Module 1 Posts and Reflections

British Columbia Education Enhancement Agreements

The government’s website on enhancement agreements. Provides an A-Z on what the purposes of the agreements are, who the stakeholders are and how they are implemented in individual communities. The site also lists the school districts with enhancement agreements and links to the documents. I was appreciative of the fact that the site went the extra step to publicly acknowledge how the education services of the province of BC have failed the First Peoples in the province. There are also further links to the Shared Learnings: Integrating BC Aboriginal Content K-10 document encompassing almost 200 pages of lesson ideas, history and cultural approaches

Indigenous Education Institute

The Indigenous Education Research page promotes research and education into Indigenous Science, Teaching, Learning and Technology. The organization explains that its primary motive is which encompasses the preservation of ancient knowledge and promotion of contemporary application of such knowledge. It has links to many other publications from Indigenous groups who are utilizing “cultural immersion” approach to science and other topics. The IEI participates in developing resources with post-secondary organizations such as the University of Berkley and the national science foundation

World Indigenous Nations Higher Education Consortium

World Indigenous Nations Higher Education Consortium. The WINHEC states in its charter its main objective of pursuing the “educational rights of Indigenous people” and the goal of self determination by directing higher education. A huge “meetings of the minds” bulletin board with links to their research publications and journals. Also includes information/tools to introduce technology to elders in a culturally sensitive manner to allow communities to digitally capture oral history and perspectives. The site also links to the WINHEC journal which encompasses broad research mainly in the area of education for First Peoples.

Redwire Magazine

Digital site for the magazine publication redwire and related media from its readers/contributors. An interesting look at how youth are harnessing the power of technology to connect with and share with other FN youth. Has a native youth artist collection of media and writing. I had subscribed to the magazine for years for my classroom and had found the magazine to be less professionally produced then other magazines. However, it does an amazing job of providing a voice for young urban and rural Indigenous youth; their concerns, challenges and views.

First Nations Pedagogy

First nations experiential learning/authentic learning with a constructivist approach slant. The site explains the Indigenous views towards education and the value that is placed on the inherent ability of each learner. The pages delve deeply into how the rich traditional pedagogy amongst First Peoples embraced a strong experiential approach. Videos and resources, as well as simple approaches to incorporating an experiential approach to teaching are reviewed. The authors further create a very strong argument for this approach for all learners showcasing research and implementation techniques. They cite a variety of works including the research document of Dr. Marie Battiste