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BA, MA, PhD

Convenor/Instructor
Faculty of Business and Professional Studies
School of Communication

604.986.1911 ext. 2516
Fir Building, room FR528
kstewart@capilanou.ca

Education

PhD, Curriculum Theory and Implementation, Faculty of Education, Simon Fraser University, 2014. Thesis: Teaching the Media with Mouse Woman: Adventures in Imaginative Education.

MA, Communication Studies, School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, 2004. Thesis: Informatization of a Nation: A Case Study of South Korea’s Gaming and PC-Bang Culture.

BA, Anthropology with a minor in Linguistics, University of Alberta, 1996.

Bio

Kym Stewart began her graduate studies at the SFU Media Analysis Laboratory, where she engaged in projects exploring the impact of media on family life, imaginative play, and child development. Her research involved collaboration with families, young children, and teachers across various school districts in BC. This work evolved into a pioneering yearlong study on South Korea’s emerging online gaming scene in the early 2000s, forming the basis of her MA thesis and marking one of the first comprehensive examinations of Korea's gaming landscape.

Transitioning from her MA to PhD studies, Kym joined the LUCID (Learning for Understanding through Culturally Inclusive Imaginative Education) Project—a five-year research initiative supporting educators in Prince Rupert, Haida Gwaii, and Chilliwack in their efforts to decolonize and Indigenize curricula. Inspired by this experience, she shifted her research focus from quantitative to qualitative methods. Her PhD research, supported by the SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship, utilized auto-ethnography to explore how Imaginative Education theory could inform media education curricula for elementary schools.

As a faculty member in Capilano University’s School of Communication, Kym continues to deepen her commitment to media education and research, providing opportunities for students to engage with the world through research. She is a founding member of the Student Research Symposium (2016) and has served as Faculty Lead since 2020, fostering a vibrant research community within CapU.

Publications & activities

Journal Articles

  • Egan, K., Judson, G., Stewart, K., & Chodakowski, A. (2010). Some neglected components of teacher education programs. Action in Teacher Education, 32(4), 5-21.

  • Kline, S., & Stewart, K. (2009). L’éducation aux médias au Canada: Intégration de la consommation de médias à une éducation critique? Vers une éducation nouvelle, CEMEA Journal, 88-101.

  • Kline, S., Stewart, K., & Murphy, D. (2006). Media literacy in the risk society: An evaluation of a risk reduction strategy. Canadian Journal of Education, 29(1), 131-153.

Book Chapters

  • Stewart, K. (2015). Bringing us back to our senses. In K. Egan, G. Judson, & K. Madej (Eds.), Engaging Imagination and Developing Creativity in Education (pp. xx-xx). Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

  • Kline, S., & Stewart, K. (2012). Media literacy in Canada: Towards the resolution of the tensions in media education. In C.-K. Cheung (Ed.), Research in Media Education (pp. 23-43). Nova Publications.

  • Stewart, K. (2010). Mouse Woman and the Mischief Makers: Media education in a spirit of imagination. In T. Nielsen, R. Fitzgerald, & M. Fettes (Eds.), Imagination and Education: Imaginative Practice, Imaginative Inquiry (pp. 284-303). Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

  • Kline, S., & Stewart, K. (2000). Family life and media violence: A qualitative study of Canadian mothers of boys. In V. Van den Bergh & J. Van den Bulck (Eds.), Children and Media: Multidisciplinary Perspectives (pp. 89-110). Garant.

Conference Papers and Presentations

  • Stewart, K. (2018, May 30-June 2). Using Aboriginal myths of Mouse Woman and Raven to teach media education [Conference presentation]. Canadian Communication Association, CONGRESS 2018, Regina, SK.

  • Stewart, K. (2018, May 30-June 2). Using autoethnography to revisit Korean gaming data from 2001-2002 [Conference presentation]. Canadian Communication Association, CONGRESS 2018, Regina, SK.

  • Stewart, K. (2015, July 2-5). Steps to a creative life: Teacher self-development in imaginative education [Conference presentation]. Imaginative Education Research Group, Vancouver, BC.

  • Stewart, K. (2015, February 20-21). Mouse Woman, Métissage and media education [Conference presentation]. Provoking Curriculum Studies Conference, UBC, Vancouver, BC.

Awards & recognitions

2023–2024, CARS Unified Grant #7 for Imaginative Education Research Assistant (IE RA)

2023–2024, Section Release Allocation for CARS activities – Imaginative Education, Capilano University

2018–2019, Teaching Excellence Award Recipient

2007–2009, Doctoral Fellowship, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) (2-year funding)