Tag Archives: Place-based

MODULE 3 WEBLOG: E-LEARNING AND MOBILE DEVICES CONTINUED

  1. Nothing about us without us

    This last week, to my surprise, I saw this article on the website homepage of Mount Royal University, where I work.The following description is in the article:

    “A field school in the mountains last spring is being lauded as the best model to date of delivering Indigenous-centred curriculum in partnership with Indigenous stakeholders”

    Students are taken to the lyarhe (Stoney) Nakoda first nation in Morley, Alberta for a week-long immersive learning experience that brings together Indigenous people and settler Canadians to explore reconciliation and Indigenous land relationships.

    Community member Thomas Snow stated that:

    “You can’t teach environmental reconciliation without being out on the land, and you can’t teach Indigenous students without learning from Indigenous peoples”

    It’s definitely nice to see this sort of progress happening in my own community.

  2. Developing a Culturally Relevant eMentoring Program for Aboriginal Youth

    This is a great article for better understanding how eMentoring can assist Indigenous students in succeeding in post-secondary, as well as some of the precautions that should be taken such as understanding cultural values, protocols, respect for land and elders, etc. in pursuing the development of eMentoring programs. The article further discusses how enhancing Indigenous education could also improve Indigenous health and wellness. eMentoring allows students to have better support on their traditional land, which is critical for place-based learning and community identity.

  3. Going Places: Preparing Inuit high school students for their future in a changing, wider world

    After the last weblog, where I focused in on mobile education, particularly in Inuit communities, I wanted to explore this topic further as a potential avenue for narrowing my research topic. In my exploration I found this YouTube video which discusses Inuit learning and community investment into Inuit youth education. In watching this video, I have further recognized the importance of having community involvement in education. While this video in particular doesn’t discuss e-Learning or m-Learning, I think that it helps to further solidify the importance of community involvement in educational program, system, and tool development.

  4. Work-based Mobile Learning: Concepts and Cases (Google Book)

    Although the section in this book on Indigenous learners is small, it was helpful to me in bringing to light how mobile devices could help assist Indigenous instructors and learners in developing their own narratives in their day-to-day lives. It is discussed that mobile devices can assist Indigenous workers in documenting their work and then being able to share their work with others. As well, mobile devices are a good medium, as many learners are already experts in using them, eliminating a difficult learning curve.

  5. Tablet PCs preserve Indigenous knowledge

    While this article doesn’t discuss Canada’s Indigenous people, it does discuss, similar to the #4 article above, that mobile tablets can help with preserving knowledge. This article explains a specific application that uses 3D visualization of a village as well as drawing capabilities imitate the way elders share their knowledge which is similar to being physically present in the village. The article stresses the importance of having elders involved in the development of the app. Finally, the article discusses how tablets, using touch screens, are more intuitive than using computers and will eliminate some frustration and costs in implementing them.

Module 4 Weblog – Paige McClelland

http://iportal.usask.ca/index.php?sid=471577458&cat=757&start=100&t=sub_pages&rtype_limit=30

  • So far, this is one of the most impressive resources on Canadian Indigenous literacy that I have seen. Yipee! Basically, this site is a collection of resources that the University of Saskatchewan put together to help those who are interested in understanding Indigenous history and finding credible information that can help them change policy, develop resources, or simply learn more about Indigenous culture. I am completely blown away by the collection of resources (articles, book reviews, e-books, images, media, theses, and web sites), lack of broken links, and excellent descriptions of resources. I truly feel like the University of Saskatchewan has built a collective resource for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people alike. I had been having a tough time finding resources that were accessible and provided accessible information. Finding resources like this one is truly exciting because it helps me to see the potential for technology to help develop effective communities of practice!

 

http://empoweringthespirit.ca/literacy/

  • I found this site as I was searching for resources on local school board sites. (I had never thought to do this, but now it seems so obvious. It’s important to learn what types of resources and practices are being shared in my local community.) Because I am focusing on literacy for my final project, naturally, I gravitated toward the literacy section of this site. However, there are plenty of other interesting resources, including ones on cultural awareness and wellness. In the literacy section, I really like how there are videos that showcase both Indigenous and non-Indigenous perceptions of Indigenous literacy. It reminds me of the importance of the “two-way interaction” that we learned about the other week. Through these videos, I was able to hear from Indigenous people and also hear how non-Indigenous people worked through these teachings, voicing concerns or questions that I also had.

 

https://reviews.epsb.ca/reviews/

  • This wonderful site is maintained by First Nations, Metis, and Inuit staff of Edmonton Public Schools. Essentially, it’s a collection of reviews for resources (mostly books and movies) that share good recommendations as well as resources “to weed out.” I think these types of websites are important for educators as they decide on which books and other sources to share in the classroom. This site also connects educators (or whomever is using the site) to the Edmonton Public Library. I have been trying to find resources that link out to other local sites (either online or physical), because I think it’s really important for us to find connections within our local communities and learn about what is available, too.

 

https://docs.google.com/a/epsb.ca/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=c2hhcmUuZXBzYi5jYXxmbm1pLWxpdGVyYWN5LXJlc291cmNlc3xneDo3YTg1MWFlZTcyNzUzODgx

  • This resource is such a fantastic idea in terms of using technology as a way for students to build knowledge rather than simply use technology as a way to store knowledge. This Google Doc provides open access to a list of recommended books to help Indigenous learners develop their language and literacy skills. For each book, the curators have provided an annotated bibliography, project ideas/activities, and curricular links, so that educators have a way to guide meaningful learning opportunities through reading, discussion, and active participation. There are so many ideas I have to link this resource to place-based learning. Literature is such a wonderful way for people to connect to the world around them, but knowing where to look for these sources is extra wonderful.

 

http://journals.sagepub.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/doi/pdf/10.1177/1468798411417378

  • I have come to grow really fond of Jan Hare’s work in the field of Indigenous literacy development for children and youth. She has expanded my limited view of literacy (typically thought of as reading and writing) and opened it up to a holistic model that is not just important for Indigenous learners, but I believe for all learners. In my search for this Weblog/the final research project, I stumbled upon a UBC article in which Dr. Hare discusses the significance of having parents involved in Indigenous youths’ literacy and language learning. Prior to this finding, I had mostly been focusing on resources that could help the educator find appropriate resources for the classroom, without considering the important role that Indigenous parents could/should play. (Even though we have read about the importance of community involvement in Indigenous students’ learning, this has been difficult for me to conceptualize. Finding these resources has helped me broaden my perception of community and understand the critical role of parents or other caretakers.) In the article, Dr. Hare discusses that an effective strategy for youth to learn more about their own culture is for youth to teach their own parents. In this way, both parents and students are engaged in learning through their history. This also shows that there are “many pathways to learning,” and in that, we need to be considering more informal approaches. This led me to Dr. Hare’s article, “They Tell a Story and There’s Meaning Behind that Story: Indigenous Knowledge and Young Indigenous Children’s Literacy Learning.” What an amazing resource in terms of discussing the importance of storywork, the influence of family and other community members in literacy learning, and the necessity for Indigenous children to learn from (not just about) Indigenous knowledge.

MY RESEARCH FOCUS AND WAB KINEW ON LEARNING TO CODE

I am particularly interested in learning more about how indigenous people are using modern/western technologies in order to re-know/learn traditional ways of knowing and doing (technologies). This is something that I have been increasingly interested in as I hear more and more first-hand stories about how indigenous communities are connecting and sharing ancestral knowledge and using technologies to uncover artifacts that have journeyed far from their place. The following weblinks touch on key themes from Module 1, particularly that of place. I am quickly learning that perspective also lends to offshoots in conversation about technology and Indigenous education.

Keywords: modernization, relationships, place-based, aboriginal education, technology, identity, language, perspective

https://twitter.com/wabkinew/status/849248012006248448

What I find particularly interesting is how this tweet illustrates the complexity and varying opinions on technology integration in education. Wab Kinew tweets “It’s important we move technology to early years and make sure every kid, not just the high achiever, learns to code”, sharing a New York Times article . This statement strikes me as quite contrary to much of our readings and many Aboriginal perspectives on western technology, but what strikes me as most interesting, are the comments that follow Kinew’s tweet suggesting an understanding of the natural world be more important. Kinew responds saying both technology and “critical thinking about the natural world” are important. But what does this look like? How can these two notions be married?

Module 1 Entry 1

5 Links to Articles – Exploring Indigeneity the Arts and Technology

https://cjee.lakeheadu.ca/article/view/871/533

This article explores art education and place-based education as a means of developing ecological literacy. It explores the integration of the real-world, community-centred learning of place-based education with art. It provides information about a model art and environmental educators to create experiences for students regarding self and community.

http://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy/media-issues/diversity-media/aboriginal-people/aboriginal-expression-arts-media

This article explores aboriginal expression in the arts and media. It explores tv, film, theater, radio and music networks and the internet. It explores opposing viewpoints including the erosional of cultural foundations  and the empowerment in reappropriating various forms of artistic representation.

http://muskratmagazine.com/pass-the-feather-to-me-aboriginal-arts-collective/

This is the website of Muskrat magazine and the article “Pass the faether to Me” Aboriginal Arts Collective” promotes a classroom art exchange program between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal youth, teachers and artists. It promotes using visual culture to transcend logistic and financial barriers and is attempting to create co-operative and respectful interrelations for future generations. MUSKRAT is an on-line Indigenous arts, culture magazine that exhibits original works and critical commentary. It’s mandate is to use media arts, the Internet, and wireless technology to investigate and disseminate traditional knowledges in ways that inspire their reclamation.

http://www.cjc-online.ca/index.php/journal/article/view/1769/1889

This article from the Canadian Journal of Communication Explores the idea of  “Travelling Through Layers” and how  Inuit artists are beginning to appropriate new technologies. It discusses how the Inuit are mapping traditional concepts, values, and metaphors to make sense of contemporary realities and technologies.

http://www.native-art-in-canada.com/woodlandsschool.html

This article discusses the Woodlands School of Art and the impact Norval Morrisseau had on the changing the conversation in the universe about what it means to be native. Norval’s belief that the process of learning is essential to culture and so is the process of teaching culture was expressed through art. It discusses Ojibwa Culture and Art and how art can be used to bridge gaps within and between cultures.

 

4.3 – RSA Area Based Curriculum Guide

This was a neat find, as it does not pertain specifically to Indigenous groups, but can apply to them very well. It seems like a generalized version of many of the curricula we looked at in the course, and emphasizes the need for everybody to have a bit of self-determination when it comes to education.

RSA – Area Based Curriculum

Module 3 Post 4: Place-Based Education

In the interview below, Dr. Suzanne Stewart, Professor of Counselling Psychology at the Ontario Institute of Studies and Education at the University of Toronto, introduces place-based aboriginal education.  She explains that place-based is not only concerned with the geographical location but also with the socio, political and cultural positions of students, their families, and their communities.  Place-based education is successful at rebuilding trust and relationships by honouring traditional ways of knowing that were lost through colonisation and residential schools. This video could be used to introduce educators to idea of place-based education and initiative dialogue.

In the video, Dr. Stewart mentions Aboriginal Head Start programs that have adopted place-based practices.  In addition to describing their programming, the website provides several resources for planning cultural curriculum and language activities and promoting positive life choices.

Jaclyn

Resources

tvoparents (Publisher). (2011, February 24). Place-based learning in Aboriginal communities. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0kRVhva0w4

Aboriginal Head Start Association of BC. (2015). Tips and tools. Retrieved from http://www.ahsabc.com/index.php/tips-tools