Category — Module 2

The Gaia Foundation emerged in the early 1980’s to demonstrate how human development and well being are derived from the health and understanding of the living planet (Gaia), and indeed the Universe itself, of which we are an inextricable part. Its early focus was to support Indigenous communities in the Amazon in their struggle to secure the rights to their territory, and Gaia was successful in raising international awareness and support in Europe. A Micro-projects program for rainforest community initiatives enabled funds and technical support to be channeled to indigenous groups in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru and Venezuela (also in Thailand and Malaysia), for legal training, productive projects, territorial demarcation and cultural recuperation.

In Gaia Foundation, one of the main areas of work  is Indigenous knowledge. It is believed that Indigenous societies hold knowledge and wisdom to be of greatest value in life. Meanwhile, Indigenous knowledge is embedded in cultural practices  which are both highly adapted to their landscape  and very responsive to changes within it. These knowledge systems are founded in respect, reciprocity and working with Natures’ laws, which ensures that humans live in mutually enhancing ways with their ecosystem.

http://www.gaiafoundation.org/

Aboriginal Education Research Center (AERC) is a growing research center that seeks to explore and develop success strategies for learning and education of the largest growing population in Saskatchewan. Through partnerships with scholars, faculty, students, community-based organizations, schools, federal and provincial governments, AERC is working to build stronger inclusive relationships among those involved with Aboriginal education. AERC researches and studies the needs of Aboriginal student populations, successful pedagogy and practices, and experimental methods to shape future policy and directions of provincial and band schools. It aims to improve the educational capacity of schools to retain and meet the needs of Aboriginal students, while improving the knowledge and sensitivity of other students and school staff to Aboriginal peoples. In addition, it tries to develop supportive partnerships with Aboriginal communities, elders, institutions and organizations while mobilizing knowledge and practices among educational institutions through dialogues, conferences, publications, and websites on Aboriginal education. AERC also aims to facilitate dialogues with Aboriginal communities, organizations and elders to develop collaborative protocols and practices for ethical research in various indigenous fields.

http://aerc.usask.ca/index.html

The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) is an institution for information and research about the cultures and lifestyles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, past and present. The Institute undertakes and encourages scholarly, ethical community-based research, holds a valuable collection of films, photographs, video and audio recordings and the world’s largest collections of printed and other resource materials for Indigenous studies. Its activities affirm and raise awareness among all Australians, and people of other nations, of the richness and diversity of Australian Indigenous cultures and histories.

http://www.aiatsis.gov.au/

The World of Science Education

This is a book written by Stephen Ritchie of Queensland University that overviews research being done in Australia about Indigenous Science Education in the Pacific. The author shares the findings of others about how education can be used to bring about decolonialization for Aboriginal peoples. He also explores a number of interesting journal articles and provides insights into improvements and successes that have occurred.

Saskatchewan Aboriginal Education Initiatives

The Saskatchewan Education Ministry has created this site as a provincial response to formulate educational recommendations to better meet the needs of the growing Aboriginal population in the province. The initiative was also influenced from the findings of the Royal Commission of Aboriginal peoples. The province went a step further to create the Aboriginal Education Units K-12 which is linked to the site, as well as creating an annotated bibliography and extensive list of web resources. There are dialogue questions that encourage teachers to reflect on what constructivism will look like in the class room and what a transformative approach will mean to their practice. Within the resources section there are targeted subject areas with related information and sources.

Maori educational leadership site

Theory in practice at Maori Indigenous schools – a fabulous collection of powerful videos, links and resources. Technology is being successfully incorporated in a variety of ways to strategize ways of the students accessing authentic learning practice. The articles that were linked covered a broad scope of topics from attitudes and ethics all the way to pedagogical leadership in building an effective learning environment. The vision of the Aboriginal board for education 2026 is truly impressive. This site has amassed a repertoire of incredible statistics and success stories

Transformative Pedagogies and Critical Constructivism

The author begins by explaining how all curriculum can be broken into mainstream, hidden and nullified. There are models and representations of different ways teaching practices take place from traditional didactic practice to socially-engaged constructivist. There is a further exploration of how constructivist approaches can help education evolve from the old-school power over dominancy in education to a power-with knowledge approach. Eco-justice and indigenous science are explored and I see strong parallels to the “teacher as mediator” approach overviewed and the epistemology of Aboriginal learning. Links to further resources at the end

Indigenous Knowledge Systems

Provides an in-depth look at Indigenous Knowledge Systems in South Africa and the potential role for all learners to enhance their educational experience particularly in the Environmental education and ethno-ecological knowledge construction. It is interesting because the paper juxtaposes the two divergent views of benefits and dangers of incorporating this knowledge into present pedagological practices. The author posits that the place-based nature of INS lacks universal relevancy or coverage. Yet at the same time looks at how knowledge is and should be a universal resource

While searching for my research study, I found the Journal of American Indian Education (JAIE) as a professional journal that publishes papers directly related to the education of American Indian/Alaska Natives. The Journal also invites scholarship on educational issues pertaining to Native Peoples of the world, including First Nations (Aboriginal People of Canada), Native Hawaiian, Maori, Indigenous Peoples of Latin American and others. The goal of the Journal of American Indian Education is to improve Native Education through knowledge generation and transmission to classrooms and other educational settings. It encourages dialogue between researchers and teachers through research-based scholar and practitioner articles elucidating current innovations in the classroom.

http://jaie.asu.edu/

http://www.tribalcollegejournal.org/themag/backissues/spring99/spring99ee.html

This site focuses on the importance of educating native Students.  The author reflects on how tribal colleges and universities have approached and designed distance education programmes which are normally in a factory-style education, and are centered around the teacher as lecturer and propose ways to design programmes to include Native People.  The article proposes models for reaching Native students at distance using Internet-based learning and interactive video in an attempt to build bridges between cultures.