Tag Archives: Indigenous education

Module 4- Post 4: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE AMERICAS website

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http://www.educationcaribbean.com/resources/encyclopaedia/history/history01.asp

There is a wide world of indigenous people around me and they have used the web to inform my ignorance of the fact. An example of this is the indigenous people THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE AMERICAS web site . Below are some useful articles that are found here.

 The Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: Arawaks/Tainos
The Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: Caribs/Kalinagos
The Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: Aztecs
The Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: Incas
The Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: Mayans

What really caught my attention here are not these but the fact that website is owned by the Neal & Massy group a very successful local business conglomerate that expanded throughout the Caribbean. Which show that corporate Caribbean is aware of our indigenous heritage. On a sour note the site has not been updated since 2006 so some of the links do not work. Tragically these all had to do with education with such topics as lesson plans. However those that do are still good.

The Residential School System

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The Residential School System

http://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/home/government-policy/the-residential-school-system.html

This website, through the University of British Columbia (shout out!), is an excellent look at the residential system in BC and Canada. It discusses the purpose of the residential school which was to assimilate and destroy culture.  As the site points out it was to, “kill the Indian in the child.” It stated in the 1880s, with the church assuming the role of educator and forcing theological beliefs on children who were uprooted from their homes.  The site discusses the torment these children faced on a daily basis: abuse, which was physical, psychological, and sexual .  It also outlines the inferior education the children received, often only to grade 5 and preparing the children for a life in agriculture or wood working. It was not until the 1990s that churches began to recognize their part in this destructive ploy.

The site is a great source because it also outlines the ‘need’ for residential schools.  The government of the time believed in order to settle Canada, the Aboriginal population needed to be reformed and the best way to do that was indoctrination at an early age.  They went as far as to make it illegal for First Nations to attend schools which were not residential.  The conditions at the residential school also highlighted the capabilities the government thought Aboriginal children possessed. Work was geared toward practical ability: sewing, carpentry and farming.  Ironically, for a school, it was so unfocused on education that many students only reached grade 5 by 18 years of age.  Many children died to the unsanitary conditions faced at residential schools, yet  the value placed on Aboriginal life was so low the schools continued for a century.

In the late 1950s the government finally began to treat these institutions more like a school and began to hire qualified staff, and the 80 years of mistreatment was swept under the rug.  The worthlessness created by these schools is still in communities today.  As an aside, when St. Joseph’s finally shut down many non-Native peoples had no idea what when on because that implied worthlessness still lingered in 1981.

This site will be very valuable to my project because it outlines why the government felt the need to create residential schools and always demonstrates how the schools created a sense of despair and worthlessness in many Aboriginal communities.  Many Aboriginal people are still reluctant to attend schools and are distrustful of schools due to the horrifying repercussions these schools caused.  I hope to glean from this site some of the overt means of making students ashamed of their culture and some of the not-so-overt means of destroying self worth.

TM

 

Module 3 – Technology, Community Reality, & Media – Due July 15

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http://indigenous.athabascau.ca/ – Athabasca University

This webpage is actually a link to the Athabasca University page.

On this page it highlights programs and courses, resources, as well as the access to information on conferences, guest speakers and a public outreach and education program.  Since Module 3 has begun, we have focused on indigenous knowledge as well as the question “Can an Indigenous person who is educated in a mainstream research university ever be a representative of a traditional Indigenous community?”

This webpage shows the University’s initiative behind individualized study as well as many technology-assisted distance education programs.  This university is taking into account the difficulty of accessing all communities in a country.  They offer diplomas, bachelor’s degrees and graduate degrees (with sufficient student numbers) in locations where university education is not ordinarily offered.  Their aim at this school is to foster the intellectual growth of students through the quality post-secondary education that is determined by the philosophies and values of Indigenous peoples. They mention that they keep indigenous contexts close with history, spirituality, governance, law and health being a main concern in their programs.  They believe in connecting world view and culture and note that indigenous education is a lifelong process which involves traditions and elements not normally reflected in educational settings or institutions.  Therefore to re-address the question above, I do believe that an indigenous person can be educated in a university and be able to hold onto their traditions and culture as well in order to bring new education back to their community.

http://www.unesco.org/most/bpindi.htm – Best Practices on Indigenous Knowledge

The Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education/Indigenous Knowledge (NUFFIC/IK)

This webpage is a database which concentrates in indigenous knowledge covering Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and Latin America and Carribean.

You can see the specific page for Best Practices on Indigenous Knowledge in Canada by looking through the site here: http://www.unesco.org/most/bpik20-2.htm

Currently there are approximately 540 First Nation Bands in Canada with their own culture, dialect and traditional territories.  This site talks about the Generative Curriculum Model: A bicultural, community-based approach to building capacity for Early Childhood Care and Development in Indigenous communities in Canada.  The curriculum was made in partnership with the First Nations Partnership Programs. (www.fnpp.org). The FNPP focuses on Elder Involvement, Community-based delivery and Community-Appropriate training.  The curriculum focuses on community development, cultural identity, education, ethnic groups and teaching.  The program is created to reflect different indigenous knowledge and goals.  This site would be a good reference for corresponding practices and partnerships involving the expertise of different indigenous groups in Canada.

http://www.indigenousmedia.ca/ – National Indigenous Media Association of Canada (NIMAC)

This is a newly formed association in Canada – (Formed in 2012) to represent common interests of Indigenous broadcasting and telecommunications in Canada.

This website was created to strengthen the indigenous communication sector by making sure that indigenous communication service providers are heard and addressed when there are changes to legislation and regulations.

This website identifies key issues concerning indigenous broadcasters, telecommunications, and areas that are under-served by modern broadcasting/internet services.

The website has multiple resources for history of indigenous peoples in broadcasting sectors of Canada.  It also has a timeline of Canadian Indigenous history of media.  Since this Module asked us the question: “Can technology be useful in supporting Indigenous communities’ efforts to de-colonize values and thoughts?” I feel that this website can help answer this question… specifically in the media/technology area.

https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100037493/1100100037495 – Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada

Community reality was touched upon in Module 3.  This really dives deeper into what is the Canadian arctic and how indigenous peoples interact with it.  This website provides information and brings into context the continuing challenges that certain indigenous peoples of Canada face in remote northern regions.  This page provides statistics on percentages of indigenous populations up north as well as issues with economy, physical geography, politics and more.

http://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/?id=9432 – Indigenous Foundations (University of British Columbia)

This is a webpage for a class called Indigenous Foundations through the University of British Columbia.

This page provides information on terminology, aboriginal identity, land rights, government policies, community and politics, culture, and global indigenous issues. What is really important on this page (which ties us into our thoughts on Module 3) is the relationship between assimilation and western education.  This dives deeper into the residential school system (also off the webpage – http://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/home/government-policy/the-residential-school-system.html) which has been a large focus in our last week on Module 3.  This webpage does not only provide a lot of basic and important information on indigenous peoples, but also supplies multiple references, video resources and guide pages into future study of indigenous cultures.

Braiding Histories

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Dion, S. D., & Dion, M. R. (2004). The braiding histories stories. Journal of the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies, 2(1), 77-100.

I started reading the work of Susan and Michael Dion because Heather McGregor recommended it, on hearing of my enthusiasm for the power of story. This sibling pair has published many articles, and it was difficult to choose just one for this weblog. I’m very interested in Susan Dion’s work with adolescent girls, their self-image, and their stories, but as far as I can find out she has presented that work verbally at conferences and it has not been published. If anyone knows differently, please let me know!

I identified with the position that the Dions find themselves in, culturally. They are of mixed Indigenous and non-Indigenous heritage, and they ask themselves the following questions – “Can you be Aboriginal if you didn’t grow up within an Aboriginal community? If you had no access to Aboriginal languages, to cultural practices, are you still Aboriginal? What does it mean to be Aboriginal?” (78). Those are important questions that many urban Indigenous students struggle with.

Like the previous article that I posted, the authors here provide stories to their audience, so that the audience can ponder the meaning and learn from the stories. The stories show the realities of Aboriginal life, and the systemic discrimination that Aboriginal people still face.

Culturally Responsive Schooling

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Castagno, A. E., & Brayboy, B. M. J. (2008). Culturally responsive schooling for indigenous youth: A review of the literature. Review of Educational Research 7 (8), 941-993. DOI: 10.3102/0034654308323036.

This article is much more than just a literature review. Its 192 source (!) reference list could function as a library shelf of relevant literature – I invite you to scan it looking for sources to support your own research and projects. Incidentally, it cites our own Dr. Marker. Further, the article does not just review the literature; it critically analyzes the common themes presented and the areas that can still be improved.

“Culturally Responsive Schooling” – the title caught my attention because teaching methods that enhance teacher-student relationships are the focus of my research.  Because of the broad spectrum of research reviewed, however, this article is relevant to all ETEC 521 students. I think everyone should use this as a reference!

The review begins with dismal statistics for Indigenous student achievement in the United States. The authors acknowledge that most teachers and districts are interested in ways to address the disparity, but state that the plethora of research can be daunting. Their aim is to gather, condense, and synthesize the literature to make it more accessible. Included are a history of Indigenous schooling, a rationale for culturally responsive schooling, an overview of culturally responsive curriculum and pedagogy, necessary teacher attributes, issues and challenges that arise with culturally responsive schooling, and a summary of the most successful culturally responsive schooling methods.

The authors stress that truly culturally responsive schooling will be a lengthy process of change involving the effort and goodwill of many intricate systems. The knowledge exists, as they show: implementation must begin/continue.

Indigenous Renaissance – Naturalizing Indigenous Knowledge

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Battiste, M., & Henderson, J. S. Y. (2009). Naturalizing indigenous knowledge in eurocentric education. Canadian Journal of Native Education, 32(1), 5-18.

This article is primarily focused on how indigenous languages are a source of indigenous knowledge. For those of you interested in the study and preservation of indigenous languages, I highly recommend this article. Its positive and powerful diction is infectious – the article will get you excited about the “Indigenous Renaissance”.

There’s another reason this article is exciting, too; remember the previous discussion thread where we discussed the idea that some math (i.e. straight lines as the shortest route from A – B) was contradictory to Indigenous knowledge? That inspired me to learn more about ways in which the curriculum was Eurocentric, and this article speaks to that. The authors assert the idea that “through its applications and teachings, [Eurocentric knowledge] has long ignored, neglected, or rejected Indigenous knowledge as primitive, barbaric, and inferior, centering and privileging European methodologies and perspectives” (6). That idea is not new, but this article goes further, exemplifying ways that teachers can avoid these harmful practices. It concludes with concrete suggestions for teachers who want their classrooms to be more culturally inclusive, creating “potential for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal learners in trans-systemic ways that European knowledge alone cannot do” (13).

“Storywork” – Add it to the lexicon

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Archibald, J. (2008). Indigenous storywork: Educating the heart, mind, body, and spirit. Vancouver BC: UBC Press.

This ebook can be accessed via http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ubc/docDetail.action?docID=10348906

I’ve been looking at ways for non-indigenous teachers to teach more sensitively to indigenous students in mixed-culture classrooms, to improve teacher-student relationships and to increase indigenous student retention. ‘Story’ is something that continuously appears – the power of story to re-frame history, to teach, to draw students’ attention. It’s a way that indigenous philosophy can become more fundamentally entrenched in the learning of students. However, story, like any other cultural tool, must be handled sensitively. This book is written expressly to that purpose. It informs readers of the nuances of story – whose story is this? Can it be shared? What’s its purpose? It also helps readers learn to effectively use story as a teaching tool – storywork. It looks at how story can be incorporated into the classroom at every age level (from primary to adult). Best of all, it tells some stories!

This book will be helpful to any teacher wanting to include more Aboriginal viewpoints and education into their own practice. Chapter Four, “The Power of Story to Educate the Heart” (pp100-117) is particularly relevant to teachers of secondary and adult learners.

Module 3- Post 3: Indigenous Caribbean Center Information on Indigenous Peoples of the Caribbean

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The more I discover about indigenous people of the Caribbean the more embarrassed I am. For I when I began this course I never fathomed they existed in such great numbers on the islands. I was aware of their presence on the South American mainland but Caribbean history at school taught me that they were extinct on the Caribbean island.  However thankfully they have leveraged the web to debunk this historical myth as is seen on Indigenous Caribbean Center web site. This blog is organized to provide easy access any with interest on the topic. The links of note are:

  1. Pages that list sites that are BY or ABOUT Indigenous Peoples of the Caribbean, organized by country
  2. Articles from the journal: Issues in Indigenous Caribbean Studies
  3. INDIGENOUS CARIBBEAN NETWORK (a social network site) 

It was interesting to note that the journal was registered with the National Library of Australia, under the original title of Issues in Caribbean Amerindian Studies. Which reinforced the point that indigenous communities the world over are threaded together by issues created by colonization.

Module 2- Post 5: Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future

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Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future

http://www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/index.html

This is by far the most interesting website I have encountered in this part of my journey into the world of education of indigenous people. It is essentially an online multimedia teacher education program by UNESCO that provides professional development for student teachers, teachers, curriculum developers, education policy makers, and authors of educational materials. It is made up of  27 professional development modules, organized in four thematic sections. Of special interest to this blog is the module Indigenous knowledge & sustainability that covers topics such as:

  1. The wisdom of the elders;

  2. Why is indigenous knowledge important?;

  3. Living by indigenous knowledge;

  4. Indigenous and formal education;

  5. Enhancing the curriculum through indigenous knowledge.

These make this module an invaluable resource for any teacher that is new to indigenous education but what is more important is that it shows how the web can be leveraged for professional development of educatiors. Which is a concept that those involved in the education of indigenous people can exploit for their own needs.

Module 2- Post 4: Cultural Responsiveness and School Education: With particular focus on Australia’s First Peoples.

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Cultural Responsiveness and School Education: With particular focus on Australia’s First Peoples.

http://ccde.menzies.edu.au/sites/default/files/Literature review Cultural Responsiveness and School Education March 2012 FINAL.pdf

One discovery that I made from doing this blog is the amount of work done by the Australians with respect to the education of their indigenous people from which any educator with an interest in indigenous education can learn a lot from. This document is testimony to this being a review of over forty(40) pieces of literature it gives valuable insights into what cultural responsiveness education is and how it can be accomplished thus arming the educator with the knowledge to better cater for the needs of indigenous people in their system.