Tag Archives: indigenous knowledge

M4: P4 – Snap Inc.’s Spectacles

Here’s another non-Indigenous product that, in my opinion, would prove useful for connecting Indigenous knowledge to the land. This product is called Spectacles and was created by Snap Inc. According to Snap Inc.’s website, “Snap Inc. is a camera company.” However, they dabble in social media through its parent company, Snapchat. Regardless of the origin story, Snap offers a new version of Spectacles that claim to be a “pair of glasses that bring augmented reality to life”.

Photo: Snap

Spectacles take augmented reality (AR) that is normally experienced through a handheld device, to the user’s eyes in what could be considered immersive AR. Not only are they immersive, but the user can now experience AR hands-free because the device is worn as a set of eyeglasses with controls on the side. You have seen these sorts of glasses in movies such as Iron Man (2008), to Minority Report (2002), and if you want to stretch, Predator (1987). Many, if not all, of the FAAMG big tech companies are trying their hands at this technology, but have yet to do it right. It may be some years yet, but something to consider to augment AR.

Image: Snap

M4: P3 – Spark: The Disappearing Web

The idea of obsolescence and Indigenous knowledge on the web came to me through my last post: Keoni Mahelona and Peter-Lucas Jones on Indigenous Data Sovereignty. In that interview Jones and Mahelona explain that if the medium through which a language is stored is lost, then part of the culture is lost with it. In this episode of Spark, Young (2021) explores how previous forms of print material are available to historians, but digital data is pervasively disappearing from the web. This is, of course, a dire predicament when it comes to storing Indigenous knowledge through online platforms.

Reference

Young, N. (Host). (2021, June 10). Disappearing web. [Audio podcast episode]. In Spark. CBC.

M4: Entry 4 – Beyond Territorial acknowledgments

Chelsea Vowel is a Métis language instructor at the University of Alberta. In her blog – âpihtawikosisân – which is the Cree work for Métis, she writes about Indigenous issues from a Métis perspective. One section of her website titled Indigenous Issues 101 has multiple resources related to Myths or Misunderstandings (articles include: An Explanation of Indian Status and The wandering nomad myth) and Historic and Continuing Injustice (articles include: First Nations farming in the Prairies and High Arctic Relocations).

In a blog post from 2016, Beyond territorial acknowledgments, she addresses the purpose, best practices and going beyond the territorial or land acknowledgment. She believes they can be transformative only if they cause discomfort for the audience and speaker. They need to address “what needs to be done once we’re ‘aware of Indigenous presence’. It requires that we remain uncomfortable, and it means making concrete, disruptive change.” (Vowel, 2016).

Vowel, Chelsea (âpihtawikosisân). (2016, September 23). Beyond territorial acknowledgments. âpihtawikosisân: Law. Language. Culture [blog]. https://apihtawikosisan.com/2016/09/beyond-territorial-acknowledgments/

MODULE 4 – ENTRY 2: PART II-GARDENS & EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

I feel this a full circle moment, in that the school I have attended for most of my adult life, the University of British Columbia, has undergone many vital changes over the last few decades. I came across another related website, that again ties in with my final assignment and my own personal experiences, which has brought back many memories of my educational journey, from 2006-2007, when I was learning to become an educator. I had an opportunity to visit a place where teaching, learning, and research, was interconnected with Indigenous knowledge and sustainable food growing. There was an idea that was planted on campus, which focused on Indigenous food sovereignty, food security, and traditional plant knowledge. Here, the students, like myself, could gain a wealth of knowledge and have access to both traditional and non-traditional plants/food uses of the Indigenous peoples.

Public Domain photo by PXhere

This garden today has become a guide on the principle that ‘food is medicine’ and follows the research ethic framework of the “4R’s: respect, relevance, reciprocity, and responsibility” and a holistic understanding of health and healing. It has become grounds for an international, community-based research and land-based teachings, where the garden engages with numerous regional Aboriginal schools, communities, and organizations. This life motto has always resonated deeply with me, and I had no idea how much of it has had a positive influence in my life, not only as an educator, but as a learner.

Reference:

Indigeneous Research Partnerships. (2014). Highlights from the Indigenous Health Research & Education Garden: 2014. Retrieved July10, 2021, http://lfs-indigenous.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2015/03/2014-Highlights-from-the-Indigenous-Health-Research-and-Education-Garden.pdf

M3: P2 – Art Processors

Art Processors is an Australian creative technology company that focuses on enhancing visitor experiences in museums and galleries alike. Of the several projects that they showcase on their “Our Work” page on their website, three are Indigenous based: “WA Museum Boola Bardip”, “Josh Muir: What’s on Your Mind?”, and “Awaken”. In boasting that their “work strives to create a harmony between people, place, content and technology”, Art Processors incorporates the holistic approach of Indigenous knowledge and understanding, meanwhile building it with digital technology.

M3, Entry 5: Indigenous Knowledge informing conservation efforts

Module 3: Decolonization and Indigenous Property Rights

Entry 5: Indigenous Knowledge informing conservation

As part of my research, I am looking for specific examples of how Indigenous ways of being, doing, and knowing, can be woven into math, science, and technology.

I first came across this story through a website I use in my class for current events called Newsela. This article discusses how Indigenous knowledge and storytelling help to inform scientists researching Kermode (spirit) bear populations in British Columbia. The study found that science-informed researchers had overestimated the population of bears in the region and the real number was much closer to that which was taught through the traditional stories. This particular article is written for middle school students and is a good way to show how Indigenous knowledge can work with science.

I found the peer reviewed article related to this study as well. The authors also referenced another study that combined Indigenous knowledge and genetic research to inform conservation efforts related to caribou populations.

Bookshire, B. (2021, June 28). Science and Indigenous history team up to help spirit bears. Newsela. https://newsela.com/read/indigenous-people-kermode-bear/id/2001020259/

Service, C., Bourbonnais, M., Adams, M., Henson, L. Neasloss, D., Picard, C., Paquet, P., & Darimont, C. (2020). Spatial patterns and rarity of the white-phased ‘Spirit bear’ allele reveal gaps in habitat protection.Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.12014

Module 4 Post 2: Indigenous youth are clear about what they want and need

My work in finding authentic ways to Indigenize post-secondary curriculums requires listening and learning directly from Indigenous youth.

How can we possibly Indigenize post-secondary curriculums without listening to Indigenous youth? What do they want from their educational experiences? Susan Dion from York University spoke with various Indigenous youth and discovered that they are clear about what they want and need from education. These include lessons that address: “Indigenous humanity and diversity, the history of colonialism, local history and contemporary culture, Indigenous knowledge, languages, and worldviews” (Dion, 2016, p 471). They don’t want Canada’s story to be their story. They don’t want destruction of their culture nor the disappearance of their language. They strongly want to survive as Indigenous people and they refuse to assimilate.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/cars.12128

Reference:

Dion, S.D. (2016). Mediating the space between: Voices of Indigenous youth and voices of educators in service of reconciliation. Canadian Sociological Association. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/cars.12128

M2 P4: BCIT’s Indigenous Vision

This framework is the basis for the Indigenization of the nursing program at BCIT. It is broad and ambitious, but serves as a guiding framework for the work being done by faculty to ensure Indigenous student success in the programs. It is openly available to the public on the BCIT website. This vision prioritizes three actions around inclusion, accountability and collaborative relationships. The faculty working within this framework works closely with Indigenous educators and leaders from BCIT Indigenous services.

https://www.bcit.ca/indigenous-vision/

“Truth is the foundation. Indigenization is the action. Reconciliation is the goal”.

British Columbia Institute of Technology. (n.d.-a). BCIT’s Indigenous vision. BCIT.Ca. Retrieved February 21, 2021, from https://www.bcit.ca/indigenous-vision/

M2, Entry 5: Indigenous Knowledge and STEM Education

Module 2: Stereotypes and the Commodification of Indigenous Social Reality

Entry 5: Indigenous Knowledge and STEM Education

These researchers examined students using Indigenous knowledge within STEM to increase agency. The Anishinaabe arcs that were used are found in many aspects of the life and culture of this Indigenous groups. Students were able to translate their knowledge from the practical to technology. I look forward to examining how this framework can impact Indigenous futures.

I also found a website that provided some practical information and examples of arcs. https://csdt.org/culture/anishinaabearcs/index.html

Eglash, R., Lachney, M., Babbitt, W., Bennett, A., Reinhart, M., & Davis, J. (2020). Decolonizing education with Anishinaabe arcs: generative STEM as a path to indigenous futurity. Educational Technology Research and Development, 68(3), 1569-1593. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11423-019-09728-6

Show Me Your Math: Connect Math to Our Lives and Communities

Module 2, Post 5

“Show Me Your Math: Connect Math to Our Lives and Communities” compiles the work that is a joint endeavor between St. Francis Xavier University’s Faculty of Education and Mathematics Department and local Mi’kmaw and African Nova Scotian communities. The program invites Aboriginal Students in Atlantic Canada to explore the mathematics that is evident in their own community and cultural practices. Through exploring aspects of counting, measuring, locating, designing, playing, and explaining, students discover that mathematics is all around them and is connected to many of the cultural practices in their own communities. Each year students gather for the annual math fair and celebrate the work they have done.

While this website contains samples of student SMYM projects, it also includes resources for doing culturally-based inquiry projects, research relating to decolonizing mathematics education for Indigenous students, and information about a related Math Outreach program. All of this work is dedicated to transforming the experiences of Indigenous children and youth in learning mathematics and to increase both student achievement and student affinity for mathematics.

One page on the website, Connecting Math to our Lives and Communities (CMTOL) is filled with curricular ideas that connect science to our land and current issues such as Invasive Species, Environmental Racism in Nova Scotia, The Mathematics of Food Security, Water Security, Climate Change, Soil Degradation, Soil and Social Justice, Star Stories, and Structures and Engineering, to name a few.

Another webpage includes project-based and inquiry learning through the learning activities that are linked to the land or cultural traditions. The website also includes a few years of archived student projects, such as this one: MathFishing.

I also found “Fostering Mawikinutimatimk in Research and Classroom Practice” (Lunney & Wagner, 2006) that discusses the challenges of mawikinutimatimk – learning together- as related to a mathematics classroom. The report profiles that North American aboriginals have the lowest participation of any cultural group when it comes to mathematics and highlights the importance of educators recognizing the long-term impacts that colonization has had on this segment and seeking solutions that foster higher inclusivity.

References

Lunney Borden, L. (2011, November 14). MathFishing.m4v [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9Fd2OkXCdQ

Lunney, L. A. & Wagner, D. R. (2006). Fostering mawikinutimatimk in research and classroom practice. In Alatorre et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of the Twenty Eighth Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. (pp. 505 – 507). Universidad Pedagógica Nacional. http://www.pmena.org/pmenaproceedings/PMENA%2028%202006%20Proceedings.pdf

Show Me Your Math. (n.d.). CMTOLC Outreach Connecting Math to Our Lives and Communities. http://showmeyourmath.ca/outreach/