Grant recipient:
Lori Campbell, Shatitsirótha’ Waterloo Indigenous Student Centre
(Project timeline: January 1, 2020 - December 31, 2020)
Description
Indigenous faculty must “code-switch” from Indigenous-centred ways of knowing and teaching to Western perspectives to fit curriculum into Western-developed frameworks, even within Indigenous courses. This results in Indigenous “content” being overlaid to Western thought. The project proposes the development of an Indigegogical curriculum framework based on Indigenous philosophy—specifically, the Seven Laws. The project requires the Principal Investigator to work with an Elder and Knowledge-Keeper and Indigenous student research assistants to develop a firm understanding of the fundamental principals of the Laws and their application in everyday life (which includes education). Once the Laws are understood, a framework can be established for Indigenized curriculum development. Delivering curriculum centred around this framework is an opportunity to place Indigenous knowledge, ways of learning, and teaching from a position that provides the educational experience of the learner from a truly Indigenized perspective.
Questions Investigated
a. How does the experiences of Indigenous RAs in learning Indigenous philosophy contribute to their own Indigegogical perspectives and relationship to the research?
b. How can curriculum be developed from an Indigegogical framework and still provide adequate and appropriate course content/outcomes to fulfil Western credit-based requirements for a “complete” course?
c. How can an Indigegogical paradigm offer a transformative shift for the learner in relation to understanding and interacting with course content in Indigenous Studies?
d. In what ways can the experience of the course instructor be enhanced by building and delivering curriculum from an Indigegogical paradigm?
Findings
a. The student RA found they were free to research in decolonial ways, without the deep restrictions of colonial standards or sources and data. The research was important to the work but also very relevant and important outside of academia. The relationship to this work lead the RA to centring an Indigenous narrative that addressed the following:
- How can this benefit their community?
- How can I take this work to better their won understanding of Indigenous ways of being and knowing within their world?
- How can they incorporate this work into an everyday working model so that is is accessible outside of academia?
b. Centring the seven teachings as a core framework or philosophy allowed the Indigenous facilitators to remain balanced spiritually, emotionally, and physically throughout the process of bringing together what is often very difficult information to share with the students. It allowed for strength to cover topics in “a good way”.
c. Understanding the issues facing Indigenous peoples requires looking outside of colonial frameworks. It requires understanding Indigenous ways of being, knowledges, and lived experiences. The issues being taught exist outside of an academic lens and should only be taught through an Indigegogical framework to provide opportunity for deep learning by students.
d. See response to “b”.
Summary
Research indicates that Indigenous faculty often receive poor course evaluations by white students who suggest that material is “biased” or that Indigenous scholars are performing “reverse racism” (which does not even exist). It was extremely beneficial to work as a team (faculty and RA) in preparing, delivering, and assessing curriculum. Although the position was titled “RA” to fit a colonial system, essentially it provided opportunity for the Knowledge Keeper (faculty member) to have the support of a Helper (RA) while mentoring the Helper to learn and apply Indigenous philosophy and teachings. At the same time, the Knowledge Keeper and Helper were able to support one another while guided by the seven teachings.
There are also reasons that Knowledge Keepers work with younger Helpers. It also provides for knowledge exchange in the other direction. The RA brought in a social media component that allowed for stronger student engagement, but also the opportunity to provide multiple Indigenous voices on each topic area covered. Indigenous learning and teaching occurs in multiple ways! This was extremely well received by students and came up multiple times in discussions and feedback.
Indigenous peoples are often expected to bridge the gap for white ignorance and the topics to which we often teach are the same topics that we are made up of. We cannot separate ourselves from it. To support and encourage transformative learning it requires us to be our authentic, unapologetic Indigenous selves and that requires us to show vulnerability and to share traumatic experiences for consumability of others. When we are able to naturalize our ways of knowing, learning, reaching and self-care we have opportunity to be more effective educators while still maintaining our own well-being. The notion of universality is imperialism and it is colonial. It does not allow for unapologetically Indigenous folks to work within the academy, rather it only invites us to replicate and be enforcers of coloniality on ourselves, our people and in our classrooms.
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