Transcript Slide 1

Goal #3: Barriers preventing First
Nations, Métis and Inuit learner
success are identified, and removed
by the school community.
Theme 9: Broadening our Cultural
Understanding
Activity: Sharing Circle
Sit in a sharing circle and share stories about times you have
learned about other cultures, for example by attending cultural
events, dances, dinners, through movies and literature.
Activity: Four Questions
Connect with one another by splitting into pairs and taking turns
asking and answering questions such as:
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“What brought you to this workshop?”
“How do you think culture can affect our learning?”
“What is your favorite pastime?”
“What does culture mean to you?”
Activity: The Secret Language Game
Divide into two groups—one large and one small. The small group
must leave the room and wait in the hall until called. The small group
is asked back into the room and the game is played.
Discuss how the game made you feel:
• As someone who is asked to do things that seem odd so that they fit
in with the group (large group)
• As someone who feels that everyone else is speaking another
language (small group)
FNMI Values and Behaviours
Note: The following points are a generalization and may vary from community to community.
Personal differences:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Respect the unique individual
differences among people
Stay out of others’ affairs
Verbalize personal thoughts of
opinions only when asked
Positive teacher response
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Return these courtesies as an
expression of mutual respect.
Discuss these values with the class
when encouraging respectful
interaction.
Quietness or silence:
FNMI values and behaviours
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When angry or uncomfortable, often
remain silent (especially in social
situations)
Positive teacher response
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Do not perceive quietness or silence
as indifference. Use other cues, what
you know about the student and ask
the student how they feel.
FNMI Values and Behaviours (continued)
Patience:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Virtue of patience is based on the
belief that things unfold over time
Is needed to demonstrate respect,
reach group consensus and allow
time for “second thought”
Positive teacher response
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Avoid pressuring Aboriginal students
to make quick decisions or
responses. Allow them adequate
time to process the information and
give a thoughtful answer.
Open Work Ethic:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Believe work should be directed
towards a distinct purpose and is
done when it needs to be done
Only that which is actually needed is
accumulated through work (this
supports a non-materialistic view)
Positive teacher response
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Busy work should be avoided, as it
goes against this concept and school
work should be shown to have an
immediate and authentic purpose.
For example, have students
complete projects that will
benefit/involve their own community
(e.g., recycling campaign).
FNMI Values and Behaviours (continued)
Mutualism:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Promotes a sense of belonging and
solidarity with group members working
towards security and consensus
Goes against the competitive, gradeoriented North American school
environment (e.g., promoting individual
success and achievement)
Positive teacher response
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Incorporate cooperative activities on
an equal footing as competitive
activities. For example, the school
could emphasize that all those that
try out for a team are able to
participate
Nonverbal Orientation:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Tend to prefer listening to speaking –
rarely “talk for talking’s sake”
Talk, just as work, must have a
purpose
Emphasis on affective rather than
verbal communication
Positive teacher response
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Avoid pressing a class discussion or
rapid questions – use the inquiry
approach, role playing or simulation
to assess whether they understand a
concept. For example, have students
reenact historic events or key scenes
from literature studied.
FNMI Values and Behaviours (continued)
Seeing and Listening:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Storytelling, oratory and experiential
and observational learning are highly
developed in Aboriginal culture
Positive teacher response
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Balance teaching methods that
emphasize speaking with those that
emphasize listening and observation.
For example, have students watch a
video or guest speaker and recount
what they learned.
Time Orientation:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Believe things happen when they are
ready to happen
Time is relatively flexible and
generally not structured
Positive teacher response
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Allow for flexible scheduling within
practical limits. For example, allow
for flexibility in deadlines or allow
students to create their own
deadlines, when feasible.
FNMI Values and Behaviours (continued)
Orientation to present:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Generally orient themselves in the present
and the immediate tasks at hand
Emphasis on “being” rather than
“becoming”
Present needs and advantages tend to
take precedence over possible future
rewards—although this has changed over
the past 40 years
Positive teacher response
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Learning material should have a
sense of immediate relevancy. For
example, relate material covered to
current events in the local news.
Practicality:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Tend to be very practical-minded
Respond well to material that are
concrete or experiential rather than
abstract and theoretical
Positive teacher response
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Learning and teaching should begin
with various concrete examples,
followed by discussion of the
abstract. For example, lead the
students on a field trip to observe
plant life before discussing
photosynthesis, etc.
FNMI Values and Behaviours (continued)
Holistic orientation:
FNMI values and behaviours
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Look at the world as a whole
Positive teacher response
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Relate details back to the bigger
picture, how it fits into the system of
the world and present material from
a holistic perspective. For example,
look at how historic events affected
the individuals involved, as well as
the community, province and country.
Activity: FNMI Values and Behaviours
Divide into groups of four and review the material on FNMI values
and behaviours (summary sheet 1). Then discuss examples of these
behaviours that they have witnessed and how they reacted to them.
Also discuss the question:
How does understanding someone’s cultural background help you
understand what they say and do and how they interpret what is
said to them?
Broadening our Cultural Understanding
“It is so important to actually have some knowledge of First Nations
students. And I don’t mean just kind of a glib knowledge… Every
opportunity I get, Indian students are teaching me things and this is
wonderful. I just feel richer and richer for it.”
Teacher of Aboriginal students from University of Regina, from “Strategies for
Facilitating Success of First Nations Students” Mary Hampton and Joan Roy, 2002
Culture is …
… the beliefs, characteristics, activities, fundamental
values and outlooks, preferred ways of living, and
aspects of personal identity that are shared by a group.
(Bull, Freuling and Chattergy, 1992)
Comparing FNMI and Anglo-Canadian Speakers
Comparing FNMI and Anglo-Canadian Speakers
Adapted from “Cultural Conflicts: An Important Factor in the Academic Failures of
American Indian Students” by Danielle Sanders, Journal of Multicultural Counseling
and Development
FNMI Speakers
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Speak softly at a slower rate
Interject less
Use fewer “encouraging signs”
(nodding, uh-huh)
Nonverbal communication valued
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Wait before responding
Anglo-Canadian Speakers
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Speak louder and faster
Interrupt frequently
Use verbal and physical
encouragement frequently
Verbal skills highly prized
Respond immediately
A Holistic Model of Education
From “Influencing Aboriginal Education: Effective Practices for First Nations, Métis
and Inuit Learners”, Alberta Learning, 2003.
Dimension
Literacy
Intelligence
Cognitive:
Thought processes, the
capacity to reason logically.
Linguistic,
quantitative
Verbal/linguistic
Logical/
mathematical
Emotional:
All learning is accompanied
by an emotional state, which can
greatly affect the learning outcome.
Social
Interpersonal
A Holistic Model of Education (continued)
Dimension
Literacy
Intelligence
Physical:
All learning occurs in a physical
body. Mind-body harmony is an
important element in the quality of
learning.
Body/kinesthetic
Naturalistic
Aesthetic:
Arts
Beauty is a key aspect of human
existence. Artistic expression of inner
life is key to a happy life.
Visual/spatial
Musical/rhythmic
Spiritual:
The total and direct experience of
universal love that establishes a
sense of compassion, fraternity and
peace towards all being.
Spiritual
Spiritual
Activity: KWL Chart
1.
Fill out (in small groups) what you know about the “Effects of
Colonization on Aboriginal Students”.
2.
Ask yourselves what you want to find out about the topic (i.e.,
questions they have).
3.
Scan the article “Enabling the Autumn Seed: Toward a
Decolonized Approach to Aboriginal Knowledge, Language and
Education” and note what you learned.
4.
Discuss how what you have learned has changed the way you
feel about Aboriginal People.
Activity: Culture Through Art
Look at the Aboriginal artwork displayed around the room. Share
your impressions of what these works of art have to say about the
culture of Aboriginal people.
Activity: Here’s What, So What, Now What?
Record your learning during the workshop (new ideas, specific
insights), your interpretation of your learning, and develop an action
plan. Use the graphic organizer provided.
Activity: 5-minute Reflection Poem
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Write one thing you LEARNED today
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Write one thing that HELPED you learn today
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Write one thing the you CONTRIBUTED to the learning today
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Write one thing you feel they can TRY
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Write how you FEEL