Work

Decolonizing Educational Practices through Fostering Ethical Relationality in an Urban Indigenous Classroom

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: To foster the success of young Indigenous learners, our study partnered with an urban Indigenous school in Alberta’s capital region. This paper explores the decolonizing practices that emerged through the ethical relationships developed with students and staff guided by the Cree wisdom teachings of wîcihitowin and wahkohtowin. A group of Indigenous and Canadian university and school-based co-researchers worked with a class of students over four years (from grade 6 to 9) incorporating Indigenous knowledges with the mandated Social Studies curriculum. The teachings included Cree language, land-based activities, ceremony and story. Students expressed appreciation for the teachings and the opportunities they had experienced over the course of the study; it was a small step towards decolonizing education.

Source: McGill Journal of Education / Revue des sciences de l'éducation de McGill

DOI: 10.7202/1077978ar

Authors: Diane H. Conrad, Etienna Moostoos-Lafferty, Natalie Burns, Annette Wentworth

Institution: University of Alberta

Language: English

Topic: Indigenous Health, Education, and Rights

Subfield: Health

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Quality education, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: diamond

OpenAlex ID: W3169152846