Final Post: Reflection on Connection to Research Topic

When I started out this research project, I searched long and hard for academic articles relating traditional ecological knowledge to the science curriculum. What I ended up finding was actually more hands-on materials to use in the classroom instead of only theoretical articles. I found full units online that can be used to integrate TEK into the science curriculum and that there are other nations who have been working on adding an indigenous perspective to the science curriculum already which could serve as good models to follow. Also, there are many articles out there about teaching strategies for teaching science to Indigenous students and being culturally sensitive to the fact that the Western scientific perspective is only one way of looking at science. My research focus shifted from finding a theoretical knowledge base of ideas to work with in implementing TEK into the curriculum to finding more of a “teaching tool kit” of materials, activities, units and strategies that can be used in the classroom.