(2007). Investigating Educational Change: The Aga Khan University Institute for Educational Development Teacher Education for School Improvement Model. International Journal of Educational Development, v27 n5 p572-580 Sep. This article continues the analyses of the impact of an innovative teacher education programme aimed at school improvement in a developing country context (A. Khamis, P. Sammons, 2004. The development of a cadre of teacher educators: some lessons from Pakistan. International Journal of Educational Development, 24(3), 255-268). Building on recent publications that have analysed outcomes of the teacher education programme and how the cadre of teacher educators has worked to initiate improvement in schools in Pakistan. The article considers the "teacher education for school improvement model" based on findings from the case studies of nine co-operating school. Lessons are presented to further inform the development of teacher education programmes and the measurement of effectiveness of such programmes in developing country contexts. The article further considers relevant international research on educational change and reform to draw further lessons. These lessons include the… [Direct]
(2007). The Weight of Inquiry: Conflicting Cultures in New Zealand's Tertiary Institutions. International Studies in Sociology of Education, v17 n4 p407-425 Dec. Considerable problems have arisen in New Zealand universities as a consequence of the conflict between the statutory role of the university as the "critic and conscience of society" and the dominant intellectual orthodoxy of cultural essentialism. A number of examples are used to show the extent to which culturalist ideological conformity compromises the scientific and critical analysis of social phenomena, thereby limiting the university's ability to serve as the critic and conscience of society. The New Zealand examples are located in the global context of culturalist orthodoxy. The writers claim that, as a consequence of the shift from class to identity politics that characterises multiculturalism, administrators and academics in a number of Western universities are now obliged to defer to politically powerful interest groups that derive their power to condemn from culturalist principles…. [Direct]
(2006). An Endless Desert Walk: Perspectives of Education from the San in Botswana. International Journal of Educational Development, v26 n1 p88-97 Jan. The San tribe in Botswana has historically been oppressed as they have struggled to maintain their culture and livelihood in the face of change. This article presents a portion of a multiple case study of access to education in Botswana, examining access to education for the San, a minority tribe with little access to formal schooling. The findings indicate that the San face barriers to educational access such as language differences, the inconvenient location of formal schools, the impact of tribal resettlement, and cultural differences. The barriers experienced by the San imply the need for educational reforms to better include this group in formal education…. [Direct]
(2006). I'm an East Coast Kid: Surfing the Waters of Spirituality and Place. Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, v11 n1 p100-111. The purpose of this paper is two-fold: (a) to deepen environmental educators' understanding of the possibility and process of developing a sense of place in a transient culture, and (b) to encourage all environmental educators to explore their sense of place transformations. A personal anecdote of a rooted New England surfer and educator who transplants to Hawai'i is followed by a thorough description of the three major steps necessary for spiritual, cognitive, and affective learning that lead to a locally based ecological and social identity; a new sense of place. The theory of sense of place, Indigenous ways of developing identities associated with place, and of the spirituality of letting go are interwoven throughout the discussion…. [PDF] [Direct]
(1993). Maori Teachers Who Leave the Classroom. Interviews with 74 Maori teachers in New Zealand who had resigned from teaching and with 23 other educators examined issues in the retention of Maori teachers. Former Maori teachers are described in terms of: (1) gender and geographical distribution; (2) type of teacher training; (3) colleges of education attended; (4) level of educational attainment; (5) length of teaching career; (6) years since resigning; (7) career history prior to resignation; and (8) current occupation. Former Maori teachers describe their motives for entering and leaving the teaching profession and their experiences in colleges of education, schools, and the education system. They also describe the difficulties faced by many Maori teachers in being Maori in a non-Maori school environment, in being a teacher of Maori language, and in being an advocate of Maori students and their families. Retention issues include the process of applying for teacher training and the teacher training itself, workload, pay and… [PDF]
(2000). Indigenous Knowledge as a Tool for Self-Determination and Liberation. This paper explores aspects of Indigenous knowledge on several levels and examines the role of Indigenous knowledge in Indigenous empowerment as the number and influence of Native people in academia increases. Indigenous peoples worldwide have a common set of assumptions that forms a context or paradigm–a collective core of interrelated assertions about Indigenous reality. Indigenous knowledge is spiritually based and spiritually derived. To remove the spiritual foundation of Indigenous knowledge is to destroy its very soul–a fact not lost on colonialist regimes. Colonial governments and institutions deprecated Indigenous knowledge and cultures and thereby justified denying Indigenous peoples a meaningful political role. The first order of Indigenous self-determination is the task of revealing the Indigenous experience, long written out of official histories. Historically, Indigenous peoples have been dependent on non-Natives to assist in developing the necessary dialogue to… [PDF]
(2007). Rewriting Traditional Tales as Multilingual Narratives at Elementary School: Problems and Progress. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics / Revue canadienne de linguistique appliquee, v10 n2 p241-256. For several years children at Joyce Public School have been rewriting traditional stories from localized cultural and linguistic perspectives, creating innovative, individualized narrative forms with digital technology. Our experimental multiliteracies research project is a collaboration of school and university teachers and researchers following a guided action research paradigm. The study has as one of its stated objectives the development of multilingual story retelling as a means of inexpensively supporting home language maintenance, fostering language awareness and aiding English as a second language learning in a community of high linguistic diversity. This paper tells our story thus far, focusing on how we have approached the creation of multilingual stories in heterogeneous, urban language classes, discussing stumbling blocks that have forced creative problem-solving and showcasing successes. (Contains 7 figures and 4 notes.)… [PDF]
(1998). Defining "Science" in a Multicultural World: Implications for Science Education (SLCSP #148). This paper argues that science can be defined with sufficient clarity so as to maintain a coherent boundary for the practical purposes of school science curriculum development. That boundary excludes most forms of indigenous knowledge, if not all, just as it excludes art, history, economics, religion, and many other domains of knowledge. Being exclusive, however, does not confer upon science any privilege vis-a-vis other domains. Science is properly privileged only within its own domain for that is where its strength lies. When traditional ecological knowledge and other forms of indigenous knowledge are devalued, it is not because of the exclusive nature of the standard account of science but because someone is involved in the practice of extending scientific privilege from its proper domain in science and technology into other domains. The solution is to resist this practice by emphasizing the concept of epistemological pluralism throughout schooling, bearing in mind that pluralism… [PDF]
(2000). Indigenous Knowledges in Global Contexts: Multiple Readings of Our World. Indigenous knowledges encompass the cultural traditions, values, and belief systems concerned with the everyday realities of living in a particular place. They are imparted to the younger generation by community elders or are gained through direct experience of nature and its relationship with the social world. This collection of essays discusses indigenous knowledges and their implications for academic decolonization. The essays validate the existence of multiple sources of knowledge; examine strategies, projects, and theories supportive of indigenous knowledges; and highlight nuances and contradictions in affirming indigenous knowledges' place in the academy while maintaining that different bodies of knowledge continually influence each other. Following a foreword "Cultural Diversity and the Politics of Knowledge" (Vandana Shiva), the 16 chapters are: "Updating Aboriginal Traditions of Knowledge" (Marlene Brant Castellano); "Heart Knowledge, Blood Memory,…
(1987). The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act: A Land Selection Simulation. Journal of Geography, v86 n4 p174-77 Jul-Aug. Presents a lesson designed to simulate the events of The Alaskan Native Claims Settlement Act in the classroom by assigning students roles as different Alaska natives with different concerns. Emphasizes map reading skills, resource inventorying, composite map production, land use and cultural values, and the process of land selection. (Author/AEM)…
(2002). Why Indigenous Science Should Be Included in the School Science Curriculum. Australian Science Teachers' Journal, v48 n2 p36-40 Jun. Presents views on the integration of indigenous science into science teaching and discusses the rationale of this act. (Contains 21 references.) (Author/YDS)…
(2007). Moving toward the Language: Reflections on Teaching in an Indigenous-Immersion School. Journal of American Indian Education, v46 n3 p54-71. A powerful tool for creating culture while, at the same time, a cognitively rigorous exercise, Indigenous-language immersion could be a key for producing both language fluency and academic success in culture-based schools. Drawing on seven years of critical ethnographic research at Ojibwe schools in Minnesota and Wisconsin, this researcher suggests Indigenous schools consider shifting from a culture-based curriculum to teaching culture through the Indigenous language. In this article, the researcher chronicles her thinking that led to direct involvement in the founding of an Ojibwe language-immersion school. Reflecting on one year of co-teaching, some of the successes and challenges of teaching in a new immersion school are articulated…. [Direct]
(1998). Theme 3 Overview: Decision-Making and Priority-Setting in the Circumpolar North. Northern Review: A Multidisciplinary Journal of the Arts and Social Sciences of the North, n18 p197-206 Sum. An intergovernmental council on sustainable development in the Arctic discussed decision making, planning, protected areas, healthy communities, governance, assessment, and the role of youth. Recommendations included measuring scientific knowledge against the benchmark of traditional knowledge, establishing an Arctic university, allowing Northerners to determine the limits of acceptable change, and developing Arctic-wide codes of conduct for research. (TD)…
(2011). Proceedings of the 2010 Annual Meeting of the Canadian Mathematics Education Study Group = Actes de la Rencontre Annuelle 2010 du Groupe Canadien d'Etude en Didactique des Mathematiques (34th, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, May 21-25, 2010). Canadian Mathematics Education Study Group This submission contains the Proceedings of the 2010 Annual Meeting of the Canadian Mathematics Education Study Group (CMESG), held at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. The CMESG is a group of mathematicians and mathematics educators who meet annually to discuss mathematics education issues at all levels of learning. The aims of the Study Group are: to advance education by organizing and coordinating national conferences and seminars to study and improve the theories of the study of mathematics or any other aspects of mathematics education in Canada at all levels; and to undertake research in mathematics education and to disseminate the results of this research. These proceedings include plenary lectures, working group reports, topic session descriptions, new PhD reports, and summaries of ad hoc sessions. Papers include: (1) Ambiguity and Mathematical Thinking (William Byers); (2) Learning From and With Parents: Resources for Equity in Mathematics Education (Marta… [PDF]
(2003). Community Elders, Traditional Knowledge, and a Mathematics Curriculum Framework. Education Canada, v43 n1 p44-46 Win. In Nunavut, where most residents are Inuit, Inuit elders are helping develop a new mathematics curriculum based on Inuit philosophy. Students will be involved in cultural, experiential activities during on-the-land trips. Such trips involve other community members, and the resulting interactions and informal teaching by individuals other than "teachers" are more reflective of traditional Inuit society. (TD)…