Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

An introduction to Indigenous education in Canada and BC. There will be a critical examination of historical and contemporary issues in education and an exploration of culturally based Indigenous education grounded in Indigenous philosophies. Breadth-Humanities.

COURSE DETAILS:

This course is hosted on the overlapping territories of the Coast Salish peoples, which include among others the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Səlil̓wətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), Kwikwitlem and Katzie Nations.

This course is intended as an introduction to Indigenous and decolonizing educational practices in Canada with a particular focus on Pacific Northwest bioregion, British Columbia and the Coast Salish peoples. “It aims to provide an opportunity for us to pause, think and plan with regard to respectfully and meaningfully engaging in a decolonizing inquiry process to deepen understandings of Indigenous knowledges, perspectives and pedagogies. This course is developed in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (2015) and the Canadian Association of Dean’s of Education Accord on Indigenous Education that all Faculties of Education make a commitment to advance Indigenous identities, cultures, languages, values and knowledge systems in all Canadian learning settings.” [Quoted section, adapted, in part and with paraphrasing, from Carolyn Roberts’ 2021, EDUC 311 Course Outline.]

This course offers a critical examination of historical and contemporary issues in education, through the perspectives of local, culturally-based, Indigenous led, land-based pedagogies. Throughout, we will explore the possibilities and implications of decolonizing educational practices that our grounded in Indigenous philosophical traditions – particularly, the implications for teaching and learning in/through this place, that is the Salish Sea region and the Lower mainland. Some core questions:

• What does it mean to position oneself to land and to place?
• What does it mean to acknowledge land, including its Indigenous inhabitants, and how can we design and enact educational experiences that are receptive, responsive, honouring and respectful of land?
• How are land and place containers of memory? History? Learning & teaching?
• What is Indigenous led education and what role do settlers, immigrants and non-Indigenous peoples have in respecting, acknowledging and participating in this educational work?

Together we will explore these questions and develop dispositions of inquiry and critical reflection through experiential fieldtrips and land-based learning. Land will be our teacher as we explore historical, social, cultural, and storied landscapes at particular sites of local, Indigenous (but also Indigenous-settler-immigrant significance) throughout the Lower Mainland and reflect on the implications for teaching, learning and schooling

Risk Notice: Some classes may be held outdoors on campus (e.g., the surrounding forest). Possible risks associated with these field trips are consistent with everyday encounters when visiting an urban forest or exploring within a community, and may include: exposure to walking on uneven surfaces; car, bike and pedestrian traffic; members of the general public; bugs, plants, and/or animals; natural and human-made hazards (e.g. discarded needles or falling branches); and/or prolonged exposure to changing weather conditions. Safety precautions will be reviewed prior to outings, and options will be provided if there are concerns. Much of our work will be co-created, and guided by core principles of respect, equity, inclusion, and diversity. Content warning: this course will address issues of colonization and discrimination on these lands. As this course is a unique offering involving off-campus adventures in teaching and learning, please feel free to contact the instructor if you have questions and concerns.

[These place-based learning instructions and warning about content are adapted from Dr. Cher Hill’s 2022, EDUC 252 Course Outline, with paraphrasing].

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

This course aims to support learners in:

• Positioning oneself to land, place, & community.
• Appreciating the importance of local Indigenous culture, history and land for conducting pedagogy in the Lower mainland and BC.
• Understanding different models of Indigenous led, land-based education and pedagogy.
• Cultivating a disposition of curiosity and inquiry in relation to land-based education and Indigenous topics.
• Developing capacities and strategies for land and place-based inquiry and critical reflection in your local community setting.
• Contributing respectfully and meaningfully to student-directed learning seminars.
• Understanding the historical, social, cultural, and storied landscapes of particular sites, and acknowledging these sites through collaborative, group inquiry (i.e., Land Acknowledgments).
• Fostering critically informed understandings of what it means to decolonize, Indigenize curriculum and pedagogy.

Grading

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

Computer or laptop; WiFi; Journal (electronic or paper); Suitable shoes and clothing to be comfortable outside for up to four hours, regardless of the weather (e.g. boots, rain pants, water-resistant or water proof jacket, gloves, hat; dressing in layers).

REQUIRED READING:

REQUIRED READING NOTES: