(2011). Engaging Our Inner Scientist to Foster Connections and Broaden Our Understanding of This Land. Pathways: The Ontario Journal of Outdoor Education, v23 n2 p34-35 Win. For many educators working with elementary students, it is easy to simplify scientific concepts, but they must always remember that the inherent natural curiosity aroused when their senses interact with the landscape creates the opportunity for the development of interdisciplinary, integrated, higher thinking skills. The authors–one a storyteller and the other a scientist–structured a workshop to offer the participants choices among many simple story titles and questions, which, like a mature tree, offer a myriad of branches and roots, pathways that can be taken in order to illustrate the connection between science and the wonder they observe in their daily lives. This article presents some examples and briefly-outlined concepts that the authors offered. They present just enough to spark a bit more inquiry so that educators can hopefully provide explanations and tell stories at levels that are appropriate for their students…. [PDF]
(2011). Exploring the Potential and Challenges of Integrating Environmental Issues in Formal Education in Malawi. African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, v15 n3 p137-152. Integration of environmental issues in education is one approach to achieving sustainable development in Malawi and perhaps other countries. This paper analyses the integration initiatives in formal education including primary, secondary and university levels. The analysis is conducted with a view of identifying the successes and challenges. The 'intended' and the 'experienced' curriculum formed the unit of analysis. While the 'intended' curriculum was represented by the written syllabi, the general conditions of the school environment and evidence of teaching approaches used by teachers as found by previous studies, were used as a proxy for the 'experienced' curriculum. In general, the analysis has shown that initiatives of integrating environmental issues in the 'intended' curriculum have been achieved with considerable success although student drop out and the designation of core and elective subjects pose some challenges in this respect. The 'experienced' curriculum tends to face… [Direct]
(2011). Being Maori: Culturally Relevant Assessment in Early Childhood Education. Early Years: An International Journal of Research and Development, v31 n3 p245-256. Concern has been raised about the under-achievement of Maori children in education. The problem has tended to be located with Maori children rather than with assessments. Clearly if one takes a sociocultural perspective achievement is situated. Although studies in early childhood education have examined and developed assessment tools and frameworks there has been little attention given to early childhood assessment methods that are congruent with Maori worldviews, ideas of valued learning and aspirations for children. This paper illustrates and provides insight into assessment by and for Maori. The paper analyses the nature of assessment understandings and practices that reflect traditional Maori values. It highlights culturally relevant assessment that makes sense to Maori, that reflects "being Maori" and that supports Maori ideals and aspirations for children…. [Direct]
(2012). Dialogical Argumentation Instruction as a Catalytic Agent for the Integration of School Science with Indigenous Knowledge Systems. African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, v16 n3 p333-347. In South Africa and elsewhere, the integration of science and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) is a contentious issue. This is due to both knowledge systems being underpinned by diverse epistemic authorities. This paper explores the possibilities and challenges associated with the integration of the two knowledge corpuses and how a Dialogical Argumentation Instruction (DAI) teaching approach could mitigate or aggravate such integration. A science class in a local school in Cape Town was exposed to a series of indigenous knowledge (IK) integrated science lessons for six weeks. The DAI approach comprised lessons structured after Toulmin's Argumentation Pattern (TAP) and with argumentation frames developed to categorize the learners argument responses. Individual, group and whole class activities examined various ways for processing indigenous foods through fermentation. Data sources involved classroom observations, written argumentation frame responses and one focus group interview…. [Direct]
(2013). Post-Secondary Pathways of Non-Graduates from B.C. Grade 12. Research Results from the Student Transitions Project. Student Transitions Project The Student Transitions Project (STP) has focused its research since 2005 on the achievements of British Columbia (B.C.) grade 12 graduates who enrolled in post-secondary education. Some students who do not graduate from Grade 12 also enroll at post-secondary institutions in a variety of programs, but little has been reported on these non-graduates. To start filling the information gap, this newsletter examines the post-secondary enrollment and completion information that is available from the STP on British Columbia students who did not graduate from a public or private high school in B.C. The newsletter looks at what programs these students take at B.C. colleges, institutes, and universities when they reach post-secondary. Three educational pathways or enrollment patterns are described: (1) Upgrading programs such as Adult Basic Education or Developmental Education; (2) Post-secondary credit and other credential-bearing programs; and (3) Non core and contract (often non-credit)… [PDF]
(2013). Self-Concepts and Educational Outcomes of Indigenous Australian Students in Urban and Rural School Settings. School Psychology International, v34 n4 p405-427 Aug. Indigenous Australians have been known to be disadvantaged in many ways although higher art and physical self-concepts have been reported with Indigenous samples. Given recent research demonstrating the reciprocal effects of achievement and self-concept in academic domains, Indigenous students may experience further disadvantages in both academic performance and self-concept. A sample of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students ("N"?=?1,342) from schools in New South Wales (NSW), Australia were asked to respond to a survey measuring: five domains of self-concept (i.e., school, reading, mathematics, art, and physical abilities), two learning-related factors (enjoyment and participation), and a self-assessment of their school work. Their scores in a NSW state-wide assessment of students' literacy and numeracy were also obtained. Confirmatory factor analysis established the self-concept and learning-related factors. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) using a 2 (identity:… [Direct]
(2013). Caught between Catholic and Government Traditions: Americanization and Assimilation at St. Joseph's Indian Normal School. American Educational History Journal, v40 n1 p75-91. Millions visited the World's Columbian Exhibition in Chicago between May and October, 1893. World's fairs and exhibitions had grown and developed grander purposes since the first one in London in 1851: "Beginning as large international industrial displays and showcases for the new inventions and discoveries of science and technology, they quickly became committed to the much more ambitious and comprehensive aim of revealing culture in all its dimensions" (Badger 1979). Chicago's Exhibition embraced the idea of revealing cultures, including several showcases deemed "less-civilized," as Native Americans, Egyptians, and Africans were shown in a theatrical exposition. The examples of Native "savagery" showed a way of life slowly disappearing. While these exhibits intended to show the "savagery" of the American Indians, a nearby exhibit revealed to crowds of Americans the possibility that American Indians could be "civilized." An… [Direct]
(2010). Indigenous Australian Women's Leadership: Stayin' Strong against the Post-Colonial Tide. International Journal of Leadership in Education, v13 n1 p7-25 Jan. In this article, I reflect on my experiences as an Indigenous woman researcher coming to grips with colonialism through a post-colonialism lens. I also discuss a study which examines the leadership journey of a group of Indigenous Australian women. The research, which includes an auto-ethnographic approach, was guided by an Indigenous worldview and Indigenous research methodologies, and aimed to honour cultural dimensions such as Indigenous knowledge systems and ways of being. Indigenous women today are attempting to make better lives for themselves, their families and communities by becoming educated and developing their careers and leadership; however, they are thwarted in their endeavours by barriers such as racism, sexism, socio-economic and educational disadvantage, which are the direct result of colonization. These obstructions continue to shape and control the daily lives and futures of Indigenous people in contemporary Australian society. (Contains 3 notes.)… [Direct]
(2012). In Pursuit of a Computing Degree: Cultural Implications for American Indians. Journal of American Indian Education, v51 n1 p67-88. While a number of challenges contribute to the American Indian population's disconnect from information technology (IT), the most glaring is the low number of American Indian students pursuing computer science (CS) studies–a degree essential to IT's entry into and diffusion across communities. Yet, research is scant on factors that contribute to the low number of American Indians pursuing CS. This article employs cultural relevancy theory as a framework for defining the role of culture among the American Indian population and its impact on enrollment, retention, and degree completion in CS. Using data derived from in-depth interviews of 50 American Indian students at six Hispanicserving Institutions (HSIs) and Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), this article examines these students' experiences in CS programs. It shows slightly more than half of the students experienced different types and levels of conflicts between their culture and a career in CS. This was the case more with… [Direct]
(2009). "This Great Emptiness We Are Feeling": Toward a Decolonization of Schooling in Simunurwa, Colombia. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, v40 n4 p421-437 Dec. This article examines the decolonization of schooling in an Arhuaco community in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta region of Colombia. Interweaving ethnographic description with accounts of key events that took place between 1915 and 2006, I trace the community's struggle to develop an Indigenous school capable of appropriating Western forms of knowledge while retaining Indigenous practices and beliefs. I describe how Indigenous educators incorporate local forms of knowledge into schooling, and how these are presented and understood relative to the structures and discourses of the colonized school. Using the concepts of "translocality" and "transculturation," I frame this discussion of the struggle for educational autonomy within broader efforts to decolonize knowledge and epistemologies inherited from European traditions and the Colombian state. I argue that educators have transformed the school from a colonizing space to one in which Indigenous people contest and… [Direct]
(2014). Willing and Enabled: The Academic Outcomes of a Tertiary Enabling Program in Regional Australia. Australian Journal of Adult Learning, v54 n1 p50-68 Apr. This paper examines the achievement levels of students undertaking the Tertiary Enabling Program (TEP) at La Trobe University. The TEP is an alternative pathway program that traverses multiple institutions, campuses, and disciplinary areas, and is designed to prepare a diverse student cohort for tertiary study. The Program integrates several sources of support, including tutorials, mentoring, and counselling. We found high overall achievement levels, indicating success in teaching and supporting students with variant needs. Nevertheless, there was substantial variation in achievement between subjects, campuses, and student groups. Variable achievement is likely to reflect differing levels of prior educational attainment and preparedness among students. However, results also highlight the complexity in managing a Program across multiple sites, subjects, and institutions. We suggest further comparative research into curriculum and teaching practice of enabling programs nationwide to… [PDF]
(2015). Effects of the Three-Block Model of Universal Design for Learning on Early and Late Middle School Students' Engagement. Middle Grades Research Journal, v10 n2 p65-82. While students begin schooling with high engagement levels, these levels begin to drop in the middle years of schooling but appear to recover somewhat in 10th grade, suggesting that the middle years of schooling are an especially vulnerable time in terms of student engagement (Willms et al., 2009). Moreover disengagement is most common in students who are traditionally underserved at school, including minority students, Indigenous students, poor students, and students with special educational needs (Caledon Institute for Social Policy, 2005; Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2013; Richards & Vining, 2004). Given the strong relationship between learning environments and engagement, the current study sought to investigate the effects of a pedagogical model based on the principles of universal design for learning on the engagement of a group of diverse learners. Furthermore, the authors sought to investigate its effects on both early and middle years students,… [Direct]
(2014). Using Large Marine Ecosystems and Cultural Responsiveness as the Context for Professional Development of Teachers and Scientists in Ocean Sciences. Journal of Geoscience Education, v62 n1 p25-40 Feb. During 2010-2012, three professional development workshops brought together K-12 educators and scientists conducting research in the geographic and ecological context of Alaska's three large marine ecosystems (Bering Sea/Aleutians, Gulf of Alaska, and Arctic Ocean). Educators successfully applied new scientific knowledge gained from their interactions with scientists through the collaborative development of lesson plans that were place-based and culturally responsive to Alaska Native cultures. Over the course of the three workshops, we refined a model for incorporating cultural responsiveness into workshop design, employed an innovative systemic traditional knowledge framework, and developed a rubric to evaluate the lesson plans in terms of cultural responsiveness. Key factors that increased the impact of a single professional development workshop on the ability of the K-12 educators to produce culturally responsive lesson plans included (1) participation of experienced teachers as… [PDF]
(2001). A Civilising Mission? Perceptions and Representations of the New Zealand Native Schools System. The Native Schools system was a system of village primary schools for Maori children operated by the New Zealand state from 1867 to 1969. The official purpose of the system was assimilation. Virtually all previous historical accounts of the Native Schools have been written by Pakeha (non-Maori, usually of European descent) and based on material from official sources. This account is structured around oral testimonies of pupils and teachers, and all aspects of the research were shared by Maori and Pakeha researchers. Chapters 2 and 3 are concerned primarily with Native Schools teachers–Pakeha and Maori–and their relationships with their Maori communities. Chapter 4 examines pupil and teacher perceptions of how the schools operated, teacher-pupil relationships, and the pedagogies employed. Chapter 5 explores the role of the Native School and its Maori community in the decline, and survival, of Maori as a primary language of communication. Chapter 6 explores the place of Maori…
(2012). Limiting Opportunities to Learn in Upper-Secondary Schooling: Differentiation and Performance Assessment in the Context of Standards-Based Curriculum Reform. Curriculum Inquiry, v42 n5 p629-651 Dec. This study presents an analysis of the consequences for students when performance assessment and differentiation practices are combined, as part of attempts to increase minimum standards within upper-secondary schooling. Recent standards-based curriculum reform in Australia demonstrates how a focus on minimum levels of achievement can limit the benefits of performance assessment and result in differentiation practices that define the learning contexts for specific groups of students and restrict their opportunities to learn and achieve. The conclusions presented are based on analyses of the revised curriculum design, as well as investigations into the implementation of the new curriculum within three schools. Teachers' planning documentation for learning and assessment, along with semi-structured interviews with school leaders, teachers and students, provided insight into school-based practices resulting from the revised curriculum. Analyses of both the curriculum and its early… [Direct]