Category Archives: MODULE 2

Module 2 Post 2

Pipedreams

Zoe, a future guest on UBC’s MET anti-racis speaker series, discusses Canada Truth and Reconciliation efforts, and how the inclusion of making and makerspaces in educational environments with an informed intention can serve as further efforts in TRC. I appreciate how explicit she is in aligning the work of making with TRC so as not to forget the important work that needs to be done and paying tribute to the pedagogies that are now being used that were stripped of those who were forced to attend residential schools.

Module 2 Post 1

Makerspaces

Luc Lalonde’s post explores both the importance of makerspaces and local, land-based Indigenous knowledge. He opens up makerspaces as an ideal environment to incorporate Indigenous culture so long as the spaces are informed by Indigenous worldviews. He provides a number of links to anecdotal adn research based evidence while providing some examples of work that can be done.

Cultural Appropriation vs. Appreciation – M2 P3

As settler educators, when incorporating Indigenous perspectives into our pedagogy, we need to pay attention to the ways in which we do this. The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) released a document titled, Cultural Appropriation vs. Appreciation in 2019 that highlighted many of the key differences between the two. A few quick takeaways from the document include:

  • “In terms of cultural teachings, it is not appropriate for educators to teach a culture that is not their own. Rather they should make connections with the Indigenous community itself to share their cultural knowledge.” (p. 9)
  • “Cultural appropriation is taking and using Indigenous images, ideas, knowledge and material for purposes that hurt or damage the Indigenous community from which it belongs. Cultural appreciation uses this knowledge to benefit, build and partner with the Indigenous community from where it comes from.” (p. 9)
  • “As part of the continued and collective learning about cultural appropriation vs. cultural appreciation, it is important that educators self-reflect on their own identity in relation to power and privilege.” (p. 10)
  • “When learning about other cultural groups it is a good practice to constantly selfreflect on your own culture and identity. Everyone is coming with experiences from diverse backgrounds and it is through story that people can relate to one another.” (p. 16)
  • “It is important to recognize that our intention can be different from our impact when we engage with a culture that is not our own.” (p. 17)

One of the challenges I hear about frequently among settler educators is that they would like to bring in Elders or Knowledge Keepers to speak with their students but are not sure where to start or what is “appropriate.” Pages 13 and 14 of this document discuss Indigenous traditions and engagement protocols giving educators a starting point.

Indigenous Films & TV Series for Youth – M2 P2

Authentic film can be a really useful way to incorporate Indigenous voices in the classroom, especially as a settler educator who does not have any lived experience. Here are a few examples:

Maq and the Spirit of the Woods (2006)

This short brings to life the idea of Elders and Spirits. It’s the story of a young Mi’kmaq boy learning more about story, medicine and song. Created by Phyllis Grant who is a Mi’kmaq from the Pabineau First Nation.

 

Nunavut Animation Lab: Qalupalik (2010)

Another short that takes place near the Arctic Ocean and depicts a young boy, Angutii, who does not want to listen to his parents. Created my Ame Papatsie, an Inuk artist based in Pangnirtung, Nunavut.

 

Wapos Bay Series (2005-2011) 

A number of different topics are covered in each of these episodes and can be used to teach about Cree culture and honoring tradition. The series is also available in Cree and in French which could be useful for French immersion educators.

 

Although these examples could most definitely be used in a middle school setting, I find some of them to be a little bit young. It appears there are a decent amount of film resources available for younger students and for older students as well but few that hit the 13-15 year old ages.

 

 

Module 2: Post 5: Digital Technology Innovations in Education in Remote First Nations

The research article Digital Technology in Education in Remote First Nations  Beaton and Carpenter (2016) “explores how community members living in remote First Nations in Northwestern Ontario are using digital technologies for informal and formal learning experiences” (p. 42) through a settler colonial lens. The article discusses how technology is a double-edged sword, as technology can be used as a tool to maintain and uphold colonial structures. For example, the article discusses how many Indigenous languages are endangered, yet technology and the internet are presented through a lens of Western culture and the English language. This results in Indigenous people further immersing themselves in Western culture, distancing themselves from traditional languages and knowledge. On the other hand, the article highlights the importance of providing Indigenous people with access to finding local Indigenous resources that are specific to their communities. Many Indigenous communities use technology to protect and preserve Indigenous languages (p. 45).

This article provides a direct connection to my research paper, as it provides in-depth background information analyzing how technology is used to uphold colonization as well as how technology can be used to support decolonization work.

References

Beaton, B., & Carpenter, P. (2016). Digital Technology Innovations in Education in Remote First Nations. In Education, 22(1), 42–60. https://doi.org/10.37119/ojs2016.v22i1.266

M. 2 – P. 3 – Connecting First People’s Principles of Learning to Shop Class

One of the few things I use Facebook for is the ability to ask other high school shop teachers questions regarding shop class. I am part of a group that has many shops teachers across the province. The group is used to bounce ideas off one another, assist each other with teaching, and well, basically anything that has to do with shop class. Looking through some of the old files in the group, I has able to see how a shop teacher took the First People’s Principles of Learning and related it to shop class. Basically, one of the principles is stated, the there is a short follow up section on how that principle connects to what we do in shop. The teacher put images of the bands which feed into the school, and also the traditional territory in which the school sits on. They can be changed as the teacher is willing to share a version which can be edited. I have attached the pdf to their version.

What I like about this is it takes very little time to print and hang some posters in a classroom, but can make a huge difference when students see it. Shop classes are often in the corner of a school (or sometimes completely separate) and they don’t carry a reputation of being the most up to date with the times unfortunately.  It is pretty easy to walk into a school shop program and see safety posters from the 90’s and worn out tables and chairs. This is also an example of how sharing can make a difference across schools and districts.

Indigenous Knowledge in the Shops

Jessica Presta: Module 2, Post 5

Seeing as there is a palpable awareness of a need to decolonize nursing education, I decided to research into what steps are being taken to achieve this. I stumbled across a framework created by the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN) and the Canadian Indigenous Nurses Association (CINA) whose goal is to support decolonization, Indigenization, and reconciliation in nursing education. Their framework includes foundational strategies, recruitment and retention strategies, and curricular strategies for nursing education to advance the above goals and respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s calls to action. Here is an excerpt of the calls of action from the TRC as they related to nursing education:

Their framework is quite extensive and is a great starting place for decolonizing nursing education. They state implementation of this framework and their strategic plan to occur from 2019-2023, I will be curious to know what has been accomplished to date. I will focus some of my research time to answering this in the coming days.

Indigenous Movies & TV Series – M2 P1

As we dove into Module 2 we were tasked with thinking about how the media contributes to the stereotypes that exist about Indigenous people and communities. For this post I attempted to find a few representations of the Indigenous experience, represented through film that were “accurate.” Research on who critiqued these representations was crucial to ensuring the “wannabes” described by Zimmerman et al. (2000) didn’t make the cut. Though not all of these pieces of media may not be suitable for all grade levels, they could act as a starting point for settler educators when attempting to learn more about Indigenous cultures, traditions and livelihoods prior to classroom discussions.

Indian Horse (2017)

Description from Rice (2020): “This film is about a young Canadian First Nations boy who becomes a champion hockey player, but truly it’s about his experience using hockey as an escape from the boarding schools. If you haven’t heard about boarding schools, known at the time as Indian residential schools, and how they were created to strip Natives of our culture, the film might be shocking to you. Watching it as a Native woman was difficult, mostly because I have heard many elders speak quietly of these times, and of the pain they endured. It’s an emotional film, to be sure.”

 

Songs My Brother Taught Me (2015)

Description from Rice (2020): “Written and directed by Chloé Zhao, Songs My Brothers Taught Me showcases the harsh realities Native families face on the reservation. It follows the lives and relationship of two siblings living on Pine Ridge in South Dakota. Living as a Native in a postcolonial world is about survival, and this film captures the emotions and the pains many of us go through who live and survive on reservations today.”

 

Gather (2020)

Description from Rice (2020): “Sanjay Rawal’s new documentary follows Indigenous people as they reclaim traditional foods and put into practice their sovereignty. Being in control over one’s traditional foods and ways of eating and living is a practice that is slowly coming back to our peoples. This film showcases the journey of several Native peoples as they journey down that road of reclamation.”

 

Basketball or Nothing (2019)

Description from Rice (2020): “This Netflix docuseries follows the Chinle High School basketball team on the Navajo Nation in Arizona. Basketball is a huge sport in Indian Country, and I remember when this series first came out, how all my Navajo friends felt seen! Natives across most of the U.S. follow the basketball scene very closely, and this series specifically focuses on the Native side of the sport.”

 

Reference:

Rice, C. (2020, November 16). 8 Essential Films of the Native American Experience. AARP. https://www.aarp.org/entertainment/movies-for-grownups/info-2020/native-american-films.html

Zimmerman, L. J., Zimmerman, K. P., & Bruguier, L. R. (2000). Cyberspace Smoke Signals: New Technologies and Native American Ethnicity. In Indigenous Cultures in an Interconnected World (pp. 69–86). Routledge.

Jessica Presta: Module 2, Post 4

My research into why Indigenous people are under-represented in healthcare as professionals has taken me down a path of understanding the institutionalized racism that exists in our healthcare system in BC. It comes as no surprise that our colonial history has led to powerful systemic structures that perpetuate racism towards the Indigenous people of our province. Understanding this history was the first step to uncovering some of the barriers which discourage Indigenous people from seeking out healthcare education. Then I looked at the education system, specifically nursing education, to get a sense of how these systems are also deeply colonial and what work is being done to decolonize these spaces. I came across this webinar hosted by The Center for Nursing Philosophy on the topic of decolonizing nursing. They had an expert panel of speakers representing research on decolonization in nursing from around the globe.

The first speaker is Dr. Lisa Bourque Bearskin, associate professor and Inaugural BC Research Chair in Indigenous Health in Nursing at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, Canada, who introduced the concepts of decolonization and truth and reconciliation. She begins at 6:49 min and speaks for approximately 15 minutes. A notable takeaway for me was learning about Indigenous nurse pioneers such as Mary Seacole, Edith Monture, and Mary Mahoney who had a great impact on the profession and who are left out of nursing academia. Rather, we are taught about Florence Nightingale, a Caucasian woman of English decent who is coined the founder of modern nursing. These expert panelists call for the decolonization of nursing academia to enhance the success of BIPOC students.