Tag Archives: youth

Resources on Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Culturally Responsive Education

Infusing Aboriginal Perspectives into Your Teaching Practice

http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/deepeningknowledge/Teacher_Resources/Infusing_Aboriginal_Content_and_Perspectives_into_Your_Teaching/Infusing_Aboriginal_Perspectives.html

This source comes from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), and is a collection of various topics relevant to indigenous education, ranging from incorporating indigenous ways of knowing into mainstream curricula to video interviews with Elders sharing their perspectives on education. Formats include books, videos, resource guides, and websites. This curated selection is noteworthy for its range of perspectives.

The Challenge of Indigenous Education: Practice and Perspectives

http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001347/134773e.pdf

This document from UNESCO is divided into 3 parts: challenges to indigenous education, criteria for good practice, and lastly, case studies surrounding quality education of indigenous peoples. It is especially interesting to view the case studies, as they are focused in various parts of the world, and the way in which challenges were presented and dealt with in the given cultural setting. Not all case studies pertain to preK-12 education, but also highlights training, and community learning settings.

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy: Towards Equity and Inclusivity in Ontario Schools

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/inspire/research/CBS_ResponsivePedagogy.pdf

This document from the Government of Ontario provides short points that are easy to read, and hence offers an efficient reminder of characteristics of a culturally responsive classroom, and ways to achieve it. It is a well-organized document for reading purposes, and provides guiding questions along the way to help facilitate one’s own practice. It also includes a plethora of relevant references at the end, on related topics. This source is developed in collaboration with the Ontario Human Rights Commission.

First Peoples Principles of Learning

https://firstpeoplesprinciplesoflearning.wordpress.com

As stated on the website’s homepage, the resource was developed “to help educators in British Columbia understand how they might incorporate the First Peoples Principles of Learning (FPPL) into their classrooms and schools.” It is set up as a blog that includes background information on the FPPL, and insight into what “authentic” resources are. There is also an activity section created to coincide with each of the principles, and to promote conversation about indigenous learning in the community.

Strong Nations

http://www.strongnations.com

This website is a resource full of books related to the First Nations in Canada, as well as in the United States. It is a great resource for educators looking for supplementary material about indigenous cultures, by providing books and lesson plans for sale. The site is definitely a “store,” and thus will work for anyone looking to buy materials for their classroom, but not useful for gaining any free knowledge.

First Nations Eduction Steering Committee

As an added source, I thought I would shed light on this one again, though I have previously posted relevant information from it, but only regarding specific content on the site. It offers many resources, links, information about programs and events, and more on indigenous education. As our discussion has grown to incorporate a large variety of topics and challenges, it seems fit to include the wider site as relevant, since it also provides information on language, local education agreements, special education, and relevant publications. The Committee behind the website was founded in Vancouver by a group of participants at a First Nations education conference.

We are all Indigenous…

“We need you to take action. We are all indigenous to this earth.”

“The planet doesn’t need saving. We do.”

Rolling Stone magazine recently published a story about Indigenous hip hop artist, Xiuhtezcatl Martinez. He is also a climate activist who spoke at the United Nations about the youths work against climate change.

PowWow at Duck Lake

The National Film Board of Canada has a collection of 39 films about the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada. The collection covers a wide range of topics such as the arts, government relations, spirituality, and urban life.

PowWow at Duck Lake

The short documentary film, PowWow at Duck Lake, covers a discussion at Duck Lake, Saskatchewan. Indian-Métis problems, such as education, and lack of opportunities for Native youth, are are discussed in a gathering of Native and white community members.

PowWow at Duck Lake by ONFB, National Film Board of Canada

ALASKA NATIVE EDUCATION: HISTORY AND ADAPTATION IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM

http://ankn.uaf.edu/Curriculum/Articles/OscarKawagley/ANEHistory.html

This article talks about the interconnection of Aboriginals and nature and how specifically, the Yupiaq people in Alaska, are no different. Due to their remote location with a harsh climate they have come to have vast empirical knowledge of the land. It breaks down the essence of the Yupiaq lifestyle and how nature plays an important role in all aspects of their lifestyle. It explains how the encroachment of Western civilization has changed the way they go about many things, including education. Many of the teachers(non-Aboriginal) don’t recognize that the Yupiaq children learn differently and are not like European children. By ignoring their values, beliefs and culture, ultimately they are saying their skills and knowledge is of little importance. This article offers relevant information from the perspective of the Yupiaq people and what ignoring and encroachment do to Aboriginal children skill acquisition.

Module 3 post 3

Aboriginal Youth and Emotional Intelligence

The following article was linked to the White Path Consulting website. White Path Consulting claims to be “a leader in the area of emotional and social health”. The organization offers programs which deal with addiction, violence, youth life skills and employment readiness. I was specifically interested in the “Research” section of the their web page and an article titled “Generalizability of the emotional intelligence construct: A cross-cultural study of North American aboriginal youth”. The article outlines a study related to aboriginal youth and emotional intelligence.

Main Page

http://whitepathconsultinginc.com/

Article

http://whitepathconsultinginc.com/research/Generalizability%20%26%20youth%20%232.pdf

Module 1 Post 3

Brendan Clark

Separatism and Bubble Gum Pop in Xinjiang

Music has been my bridge for friendship with Chinese people and the proximity of the music shop to the local “Nationalities University” has exposed me to traditional music from Xinjiang. I am constantly amazed at the skill and beauty of the traditional music. The article, From Resistance to Adaptation: Uyghur Popular Music and Changing Attitudes among Uyghur Youth, focuses on how Uighur popular music has changed from the grinding heavy metal of the 90s separatist movement championed by Askar to the fluffy love songs of Arken both minkaohan (educated in Chinese) living in Beijing. I have heard neither of these artists and the article is a little out of date but outlines how the central government has manipulated the media to silence protest and homogenize the Uighur people. The article was published before the eruption of violence and protests in July of 2009 but it concludes a change in Uighur youth ideology from separatism and isolation of the Uighur nation to one of working within the current system to heighten the status of Uighurs in modern China.

Urban Aboriginal Knowledge Network (UAKN)

The Urban Aboriginal Knowledge Network provides a voice for those Indigenous individuals and families choosing to live outside of traditional land (reservation). This website provides an interactive map illustrating breakdown of aboriginal populations per major center. Furthermore, this website provides interactive infograph on what the average aboriginal life is like within an urban center with respect to education, finances, and quality of life.

The research aspect of the knowledge network aims at providing a higher quality of life for urban aboriginals. Through partnerships with social organizations and educational institutions, they aim to develop policies to assist these members of urban communities. Research generated from this organization is quite diverse, from topics such as Truth in Indigenous Ways of Knowing to Transforming Education for the Urban Youth. These topics highlight the contrasting challenge of urban aboriginals such as social dislocation, assisting with family separation and how to combat racial discrimination. While this is a different dialogue, it is one that must be included within the Indigenous experience.

To access the website, click on: http://uakn.org/

(Module 1 – Post 4)

VIU Digital Storytelling Project is Empowering Aboriginal Youth

This is a case of how digital storytelling has been used in a positive way in Indigenous communities on Vancouver Island. I like that while the project is led by Dr. Jennifer Mullett of Vancouver Island University’s Center for Healthy Communities Research, part of the project’s mandate is to train a youth team to act as mentors to teach other youth and even Elders how to use the technology. Hopefully this knowledge can continue to be passed on.

https://www.viu.ca/news/viu-digital-storytelling-project-empowers-aboriginal-youth

Module 4 Post 3 – Online Zines

This may be common online-knowledge for many of my classmates, but for me finding Muskrat Magazine has been an exciting development! It is chock full of current articles and topics related to Indigenous issues, and an active Twitter account that links to their articles.

I also happened upon Urban Native Magazine, which has a slick layout and many interesting features with a pop culture focus. That said, I’m not sure when it was last updated, but their twitter account was used only a month ago and so hopefully they are still active. Through them I was able to find the account of Lisa Charleyboy (@UrbanNativeGirl), who hosts a radio show with the CBC called ‘New Fire‘, with short episodes that range in topics (recently she has been focusing on cultural appropriation). As a fan of pop culture in general, I’m thrilled to have found these two online Zines, and can’t wait to see where my explorations lead me!