- The first source I looked at for this module was UNESCO – Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future: a multimedia teacher education programme. I looked at the Indigenous Knowledge and Sustainability lesson module. It has six activities to teach teachers about Indigenous knowledge, providing them with definitions and background information. This source also compares Indigenous education to the formal education system.
- The second source I looked at was called Word of Mouth. It is about Indigenous Knowledge from the peoples of Africa and how it is in danger of being lost: “Indigenous knowledge is local, mostly traditional knowledge covering medicine, agriculture, religion, rituals and many other spheres of every day life. It still plays a major role in many African countries today, is usually transmitted orally from one generation to the next and is therefore in danger of being forgotten. This section focuses on the exploration, research and recording of indigenous knowledge, and the improved access to it.” I found this to be a good source for my research paper as it talks about Indigenous peoples outside of Canada to help round out my paper. It also has many different articles and sources to access around Indigenous knowledge, the oral tradition, and using technology to preserve culture.
- The third source I looked at was an academic paper written by Jane Hunter from the University of Queensland titled The Role of Information Technologies in Indigenous Knowledge Management; “Indigenous Knowledge Centres (IKCs) are being established globally, but particularly in Australia, Africa, Latin America and Asia. The capture and preservation of Indigenous Knowledge is being used to revitalize endangered cultures, improve the economic independence and sustainability of Indigenous communities and to increase community-based involvement in planning and development.” This was a good source for me to look at because it directly relates to my research topic on the role technology can play in the preservation of Indigenous cultures. It talks about what has already been tried and how successful those strategies were.
- The fourth source I looked at is a brief article on how technology can help preserve language. One of the strategies that is discussed is digitizing stories to be read to children in Indigenous languages. So far they have some stories in four languages: Maliseet, Mi’kmaw, Ojibwe and Cree. There are multiple partners involved in this project and they believe that “part of the success of this is that the First Nations communities and elders are helping drive this, so they have ownership of it. I think one of the things that’s missed in the education system over the years is a lot of our First Nations communities and indigenous people weren’t part of the solution. They weren’t part of what goes on in designing curriculum” (Brent Tookenay, CEO of Seven Generations Education Institute.) http://tvo.org/article/current-affairs/shared-values/how-technology-and-education-can-help-preserve-aboriginal-languages
- The fifth source I looked at was called Cultural Survival. I specifically looked at an article about how computers and technology can be used to preserve language.