As I started this assignment, I knew I wanted to review a historical document that was as relevant today as it was when it was published. Below you’ll find the results of my research and my thoughts on the findings.
A Corpus
It has been almost five decades since the report Indian Control of Indian Education: Policy Paper (hereinafter the First Nation Control of First Nation Education) was presented to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development by the National Indian Brothership (hereinafter the Assembly of First Nations) in 1973. It should be noted that this paper was reprinted in 1976 and 2010. For the purposes of this assignment, I reviewed the original document and the reprinted version that was published in 2010.
According to the Assembly of First Nations (2010), the articulated statement of values presented in the original paper is as true today as it was in its inception. And after reviewing both papers, I have to agree with this statement. When you compare the two papers, there isn’t a lot of changes from the original findings and recommendations. In the second paper that was published in 2010, outcomes and successes are included and outlined. Despite the framework not changing significantly in decades, the Assembly of First Nations (2010), state that little has been done to implement the original framework. Again, I have to agree with this statement. There are several recommendations that have not been implemented by all levels of government. The most challenging is access to education; there are still First Nation communities across the country that can’t provide adequate education that uses First Peoples education principles. The Assembly of First Nations (2010), also reports on successes including the number of on-reserve pre-K and K-12 schools administering programs and services to First Nations peoples using land-based pedagogies and the development of several institutes of higher education that use First Nations pedagogies offering a full range of adult education programs to graduate degrees.
I found it interesting that this policy paper was originally written in response to the 1969 White Paper which called for the dissolution of the reserve system and total assimilation of First Nations peoples. In my opinion, this paper proves that First Nations peoples have been fighting assimilation and lobbying the government with well thought out research to preserve their culture for over five decades.
Identifying A Question and Explaining the Search Terms
As I started my research, I was looking for a document that provided a framework for the development and implementation for First Nation learners and that addressed key elements of First Nation education frameworks such as language immersion and the use of holistic and cultural curriculum.
I used the following search terms:
- Indian
- Indigenous
- Aboriginal
- First Nations
- Native
- Education Framework
From these terms several research papers appeared and I started to skim through them and their bibliographies. In one of the first research papers I reviewed, I found First Nation Control of First Nation Education policy paper listed in the bibliography. I was drawn to the year the paper was published and the title of the paper, as I thought it would provide the broader information that I was looking for.
Identifying A New Question
As I reviewed the original, and then reprinted, paper I thought about the following question.
How do indigenous people envision education that integrates indigenous pedagogy?
The Results
The results of my search are below:
| Indian | Indigenous | Aboriginal | First Nations | Native | Education Framework | |
| Original Paper | 306 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 40 | 0 |
| Reprinted Paper | 384 | 14 | 4 | 404 | 39 | 0 |
Indigenous people have been educating themselves, and their communities since the beginning of time. They had a natural education system, that started at birth and continued on through one’s lifetime. Youth and individuals were educated by their elders and community members and education was rooted in culture, contributed to the prosperity of the community, and included communication through language. Further teachings were spiritual in the forms of dreams, visions, and ceremony. They have been clear on the education frameworks required to satisfy their learning needs since 1973, yet they are still trying to work with governments to set up an education system that will contribute to their community and will help preserve their language and culture for future generations.
References
Assembly of First Nations. (2010). First Nations Report on First Nations Education. https://www.afn.ca/uploads/files/education/3._2010_july_afn_first_nations_control_of_first_nations_education_final_eng.pdf
National Indian Brothership. (1972). Indian Control of Indian Education. https://oneca.com/IndianControlofIndianEducation.pdf