(1995). Implementing Indian Curriculum in Indian Teacher Education: The Student Teacher's Perspective. Journal of Professional Studies, v3 n1 p11-20 Fall-Win. Interviews with Canada Native student teachers asked them to reflect on their practice following a final practicum at the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College. Results showed that they were using techniques appropriate to Indian education, though they felt there were additional areas of need in their preparation. (SM)…
(2007). Educational and Social Development in Doi Ang Khang: A Comparative Study of the Khob Dong and Nor Lae Villages. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, v14 p99-129 Mar. Northern Thailand is home to many hill tribes, who have lived for hundreds of years as subsistence farmers or nomadic hunters. In the 1940s, communist insurgencies drove many hill tribes from China, Burma, and other nations south into northern Thailand. Uprooted from their native lands, the hill tribes left behind ties to economic resources and, to compensate, many turned to the growth of the opium poppy as a cash crop. The growth and sale of opium endangered their lives and those of the citizens of the surrounding countries, and slash and burn farming methods resulted in environmental degradation. In 1969, the Thai government formed the Royal Projects to address this situation. The Royal Project Foundation then expanded its development efforts with the establishment of the Education and Social Development Projects (ESDPs), which seek to implement sustainable social services within the villages, and have been largely successful in hill tribe villages. The authors' research assessed… [PDF] [PDF]
(1992). Pidgins, Creoles and Nonstandard Dialects in Education. Occasional Paper Number 12. Nine papers present either discussion of the issues or practical answers to the issues of nonstandard dialects, pidgins, and creoles in the classroom. They include: "The Case Against a Transfer Bilingual Program of Torres Strait Creole to English in Torres Strait Schools" (Anna Shnukal); "Summary: A Survey of Teachers' Attitudes Towards the Use of Tok Pisin in Community Schools in Papua New Guinea" (Joseph Alfred Nidue); "English in the Education of Speakers of Aboriginal English" (Ian G. Malcolm); "Kriol and Education in the Kimberley" (Margaret Mickan); "Teaching Initial Literacy in a Pidgin Language: A Preliminary Evaluation" (Jeff Siegel); "Reading Creole English Does Not Destroy Your Brain Cells!" (Ronald Kephart); "Teaching English to Kriol Speakers: The Kartiya Game" (Gary Ovington); "Educating Speakers of Caribbean English Creole in the United States" (Katherine Fischer); and "Summary:…
(2004). Negotiating Cultures in Cyberspace: Participation Patterns and Problematics. Language Learning & Technology, v8 n2 p88-105 May. In this paper we report findings of a multidisciplinary study of online participation by culturally diverse participants in a distance adult education course offered in Canada and examine in detail three of the study's findings. First, we explore both the historical and cultural origins of "cyberculture values" as manifested in our findings, using the notions of explicit and implicit enforcement of those values and challenging the assumption that cyberspace is a culture free zone. Second, we examine the notion of cultural gaps between participants in the course and the potential consequences for online communication successes and difficulties. Third, the analysis describes variations in participation frequency as a function of broad cultural groupings in our data. We identify the need for additional research, primarily in the form of larger scale comparisons across cultural groups of patterns of participation and interaction, but also in the form of case studies that can be… [Direct]
(2003). Native Educators Interface with Culture and Language in Schooling. The first year of an ongoing 3-year study focused on the attitudes of Native American preservice teachers toward the inclusion of language and culture in schooling, how teacher preparation programs impact these attitudes, and components of teacher education programs that meet the needs of Native students. Data were gathered via surveys of 232 American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian preservice teachers enrolled in 27 teacher preparation programs in 12 states; interviews with program directors; and document analysis. Fifteen of the programs were based at tribal colleges. Preliminary results indicate that the vast majority of the sample felt that Native language and culture should be included, in some manner, in the schooling of Native students. However, only a very small percentage of respondents felt professionally prepared for this undertaking as they approached their induction year as teachers. Slightly more than half of the teacher education programs focused… [PDF]
(1998). As We See…Aboriginal Pedagogy. For many years, Aboriginal knowledge was invalidated by Western ways of knowing. This collection of papers discusses ways of teaching, ways of knowing, and ways of being that have sustained Aboriginal people for over 500 years. The papers are: "Spirit Writing: Writing Circles as Healing Pedagogy" (Lenore A. Stiffarm); "Pedagogy from the Ethos: An Interview with Elder Ermine on Language" (Willie Ermine); "Plants and Medicines: An Aboriginal Way of Teaching" (Bente Huntley); "Modelling: An Aboriginal Approach" (Ida Swan); "Aboriginal Pedagogy: The Sacred Circle Concept" (Angelina Weenie); "Traditional Parenting" (Jane Harp); "A Piece of the Pie: The Inclusion of Aboriginal Pedagogy into the Structures of Public Education" (Wally Isbister); "An Analysis of Western, Feminist, and Aboriginal Science Using the Medicine Wheel of the Plains Indians" (Lillian E. Dyck); and "Aboriginal Pedagogy:…
(1997). An Innovative Medical School. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, v19 n1 p21-26 May. Co-location of the Flinders University of South Australia medical school and teaching hospital allows patient care, teaching, and research under one roof. This and a curriculum oriented to patient care from the outset have created a model program. A four-year graduate-entry admission program, rural and remote teaching programs, and attention to health issues of indigenous communities are recent innovations. (MSE)…
(1993). Combating Racism: A Confusing Story. Multicultural Teaching to Combat Racism in School and Community, v11 n3 p16-19 Sum. Incidents in two Australian secondary schools illustrate the real problems of discrimination that aboriginal students face in the Australian education system in spite of policies intended to combat discrimination and promote the needs and rights of minority students. A program to combat racism in six schools is described. (SLD)…
(2006). New Zealand Curriculum Draft from a Primary Perspective. Teachers and Curriculum, v9 p27-34. The recently released New Zealand Curriculum Draft for Consultation (Ministry of Education 2006a) sets out the Government's expectations of what school students should be able to achieve by the time they leave school. The writers explore the vision and intentions of the New Zealand Curriculum Draft, to prepare students for the future, within the wider context of New Zealand's transformation to a "knowledge" society and global competitiveness. In order to understand the challenges to a national provision of curriculum that the changing environment brings, the writers reflect also on the international and national contexts within which this New Zealand Curriculum Draft has been developed and the forces which have shaped it. The writers' purpose to draw teachers into the discussion is achieved by posing a number of questions. The implications of the need for additional support and resourcing, to ensure schools can meet the aims of the curriculum draft and government… [PDF]
(1995). "I've Really Learned a Lot, But…": Cross-cultural Understanding and Teacher Education in a Racist Society. Journal of Teacher Education, v46 n5 p327-33 Nov-Dec. Describes a cross-cultural course offered by the Faculty of Education at the University of Regina (Saskatchewan, Canada) to develop preservice teachers' understanding of aboriginal cultures, taking data from instructors' experiences and student narratives. The paper discusses the lack of understanding in white preservice teachers' views of self and others and the implications for teacher education in a racist society. (SM)…
(2000). Keeping the Seventh Fire: Developing an Undergraduate Degree Program for Aboriginal Adult Educators. Canadian Journal of Native Education, v24 n2 p185-202. Brock University (Ontario); an Ontario television station; and the Iroquois, Ojibwa, and Metis Nations are collaborating on the development of an Aboriginal adult education degree program. The clan system was modified for use as a planning tool, elders and other Aboriginal educators were included, and Aboriginal learning styles and perspectives were incorporated into the curriculum. (TD)…
(1990). Aboriginal Language and Culture Programs. A Curricular Framework (Early Childhood Services–Grade 9). A conceptual and practical structure for designing a local native language and culture curriculum for preschool through grade 9 is presented. The first section outlines the program's philosophy, rationale, and general and specific learner expectations, and offers an overview of the suggested linguistic and cultural content of such a program. The second section more specifically describes program content for each instructional division (early childhood through grade 3, grades 4-6, and grades 7-9), including elements of traditional culture, legends, daily routines, and contemporary cultural events and activities appropriate to that level. This section also contains a list of the most common linguistic functions and notions as a frame of reference for teachers to plan lessons, chart individual student progress, and keep records of what has been taught. (A more detailed list of notions and functions is appended). Section three presents guidelines and suggestions for implementation,…
(1987). Micmac Indian Social Work Education: A Model. Canadian Journal of Native Education, v14 n1 p22-29. Describes founding, goals, admissions, and implementation of a five-year Micmac Bachelor of Social Work Program at Dalhousie University. Discusses advantages and problems of a decentralized program sponsored by diverse organizations/agencies. Outlines degree requirements, staff qualifications, student personal/financial needs, and program changes to meet needs of Native adult learners. (LFL)…
(2000). Turning First Nation Forest Values into Integrated Forest Management Plans: Two Models in Alberta. Canada's federal and provincial governments have called upon the forest industry to ensure protection of Aboriginal rights and include Aboriginal communities in forest management. The challenge is to design frameworks for multi-party cooperation in which multiple values and interests can be accommodated. To promote such cooperation, two research projects focused on establishing mechanisms to apply Aboriginal knowledge to industrial forest management, providing community training and capacity building to facilitate the equitable involvement of Aboriginal communities, and establishing a framework to monitor and evaluate First Nation-industry cooperation. A project involving the Alexis First Nation of Treaty Six, Millar Western Forest Products, and the Sustainable Forest Management Network (SFMN) (University of Alberta) conducted an Aboriginal land use study while training community members to continue the research; developed an information sharing agreement concerned with access to… [PDF]
(2002). Aboriginal English: A Case for the Recognition of Prior Learning. This paper discusses Aboriginal English speakers in Australia, noting the importance of recognizing prior learning and of recognizing Aboriginal English within the context of programs that understand the particular areas where Aboriginal English speakers need support to achieve outcomes in standard English. It defines recognition of prior learning (learning from experience that children bring to their schooling, particularly when the experience has been in a speech community different from that of the school), then discusses: prior learning and language/literacy acquisition, recognition of prior minority language knowledge and second language acquisition, Aboriginal English prior learning and education, and the relationship of dominant and alternative discourses. The paper goes on to discuss linguistic processes present in Aboriginal English, examining some of the phonological, morphological, syntactic, semantic, and discoursal processes, schemas, and genres that underlie it…. [PDF]