For Module 1 cyber-traveller reflections, I took a look at the global and local Indigenous Knowledge systems in the context of education as it plays out in 5 countries where I have worked over the years, namely: Timor-Leste, Bolivia, Papua New Guinea, Australia, and Laos. Since my work has mainly focused in the health sector, I was interested to get a glimpse of current perceptions from an education perspective (defined in the broadest sense). From each search I selected one post that struck me as a powerful addition to our understanding of how indigenous knowledge is being framed educationally in each country.
POST #1 – Timor Leste
Timor-Leste comprises a variety of indigenous groups speaking more than 16 different languages. The country was colonised by Portugal for 500 years and subsequently invaded by Indonesia for 25 years and after a long and violent conflict finally became independent in 2002. Over the past 15 years, Timor-Leste has been developing its education system which is challenged by a high level of donor dependence and different interest groups. Indigenous teachers together with Curtis Gabrielson (a technical adviser) have been reforming the curriculum to bring indigenous knowledge into the classroom by bringing grandmother’s wisdom into the class. You can learn more about this curriculum in Curtis’s TedX Dili.