Running head: ARTICLE CRITIQUE: INDIGENOUS EDUCATION

Academic Critique:

Indigenous Education

Shaina Peter-Paul

St. Thomas University

19 October 2016
ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 2

Article 1

Goulet, L. (2001). Two teachers of aboriginal students: Effective practice in sociohistorical

realities. Canadian Journal of Native Education, 25, 68-82.

Introduction:

The author of this article, Linda Goulet is a professor of Indigenous Education at First

Nations University of Canada in Saskatchewan. Goulet has a Bachelor of Education degree from

University of Saskatchewan, and a Masters of Education and PhD which are both from the

University of Regina. According to the First Nations University Faculty webpage, Goulets

expertise is in Indigenous Pedagogies, Indigenizing Education and Indigenous Arts and Well

Being. As well as being a professor, she has produced various research on Indigenous

pedagogies, arts based health research with Indigenous Youth, community based research and

collaborative research (First Nations University of Canada webpage).

Summary:

The focus of this article is placed on the interviews of two teachers, Roxanne and Janet,

and their approaches to effectively teaching Indigenous students within their classrooms. By

using the teachers stories, it allows the reader to see the strategies and approaches that can be

implanted into any classroom. Research is provided within the stories, to back up the methods

the teachers are explaining. The article also looks at connections not only between students and

teachers, but connections to family of students, community and the society. Goulet argues that

those connections are key to effective teaching practice in regards to Indigenous students.

Presentation:
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Goulet begins the article by explaining her method for the research. Goulet had used the

stories of two teachers, and used their stories to connect to research that is relevant to effective

teaching practices. The first of two teachers is Roxanne. Roxanne is an Indigenous educator that

is fluent in Dene and has 10 years of experience as both an educator and administrator. Janet is

not Indigenous and she had 25 years of experience as an educator.

The introduction of the teachers led way to the topic at hand, Indigenous education.

Goulet introduces the topic by explaining the current state of education for Indigenous students,

stating that schools need to meet the needs of those students. Currently, Indigenous students are

assimilated into a Eurocentric curriculum, being able to relate to little to none of the content.

Meeting the needs of Indigenous students is more important than ever, to further that point

Goulet stated Aboriginal people want education for access to a better standard of living, but

with their cultures and languages intact. (Goulet, p. 70).

Goulet highlights the importance of incorporating culture and language into the

curriculum. Using the stories from Roxanne and Janet showcase how a teacher can effectively

incorporate culture and language in their class. Roxanne was fluent in the Indigenous language

of her community and was able to communicate to the students in both Dene and English.

Roxanne stated that she had noticed she was able to build a stronger rapport with her students

because she connected with them through language. Janet had taken a different approach by

using the community as a way to teach history. She had effectively used her community to allow

students to connect to the teachings (Goulet, p. 71).

Throughout the article, Goulet provides way in which an educator can incorporate

Indigenous culture and identity into the classroom. Values and norms was an approach the author

had suggested. By using the values and norms, Indigenous students would be able to engage and
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connected and by using cultural norms in the classroom, teachers share power in their

classroom by developing and respecting student autonomy (Goulet, p. 74-75). Goulet has also

provided characteristics that are effective teaching methods, such as active learning, group work

with student-student interactions, and one on one interaction between the teacher and the

student (Goulet, p. 72) and that student-teacher relationships contain warmth, caring,

sensitivity, humor and trust (Goulet, p. 72).

Another approach to effective teaching, is by building positive relationships with

students. Both Roxanne and Janet had mentioned how important it is to have genuine

relationship with their students. Having a strong relationship with Indigenous students will go a

long way because at the heart of many Aboriginal world views is the importance of

relationship. (Goulet, p. 72). Students should be able to trust a teacher and their classroom and

feel safe, and this can be done by not only have a relationship with the student but their families

as well. Incorporating the student and their families into the classroom will build a strong,

learning community but only when all can work together on an equal playing field and not

someone having authority over the other (Goulet, 2001).

Colonization is a major topic that is brought up through out the article. Goulet stated that

effective teachers of Aboriginal students learn about and recognize colonization (Goulet, p. 74)

and this can be done by incorporating colonization as a topic of discussion within the classroom.

The issues that come with colonization, impact the classroom greatly. Students bring the issues

from home to school, and teachers need to deal with these difficult home situations with

sensitivity (Goulet, 2001). The issues brought from home have been caused by a long continual

cycle of abuse deriving from colonization (Goulet, 2001).

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Personal Response

I found that this article was fantastic, the extensive use of research and use of personal

accounts from the two educators, Roxanne and Janet, allows a reader to know the facts and

visualize from the stories. Roxanne and Janet are great examples of educators, and I will strive to

use their advice and strategies on how to effectively implement Indigenous culture into the

classroom. If I had an educator like either of the two women, I would have genuinely enjoyed

school much more. I agree with their insight that educators should create a positive and safe

environment for students and strive to create positive and genuine relationships with all students.

Conclusion

The research presented in the article is very important for using culture within Indigenous

education. The insightful stories from Roxanne and Janet provide an example of how to

effectively incorporate the Indigenous culture into the curriculum. Through culture, norms,

values, and language there are a variety of ways to make sure Indigenous students feel

represented and included in their education. Indigenous students should feel safe, supported and

respected and it is the educators role to make sure all of the above are effectively incorporated.
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Article 2

Lamb, D. (2014). Aboriginal early school leavers on- and off-reserve: An empirical analysis.

Canadian Public Policy, 40, 2, 156-165.

Introduction

The author of this article, Danielle Lamb, obtained her PhD in Industrial Relations and

Human Resource Management from the University of Toronto. Currently, Lamb is an Assistant

Professor at Ryerson University. Lambs research has a focus on education, employment and

earnings among Indigenous Peoples in Canada and her interests include: discrimination in the

workplace, youth employment/unemployment and education (Ryerson University Webpage).

Summary

This article focuses on the attendance of Indigenous students within the Canadian

education system. Indigenous students are getting lost in the mix within the educational system

because the curriculum does not match their needs. Even though Canada is made up of a multi-

cultural population, the article highlights how Eurocentric views are at the forefront of our

education system. This fact correlates with the drop out rate amongst Indigenous students as

Indigenous students are more likely than other students to leave school.

Presentation

Lamb begins the article by providing a brief introduction of the current state of

Indigenous education in Canada. Currently, Indigenous students have a significantly low

education attainment rate than other students (Lamb, 2014). Although some action has taken

place, not enough has been done to change those statistics. Lamb will be looking specifically at
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the relationship between culturally sensitive learning environments and Aboriginal early school

leavers living on and off reserve (Lamb, p. 156). Lamb stated that having an Aboriginal

teacher are statistically significant related to a low probability of leaving school early (Lamb, p.

156).

Lamb discusses various factors that may contribute to the low education attainment rate.

One of which being low levels of socio-economic status (Lamb, p. 157). Indigenous students

are often faced with lower levels of parental education, a larger number of siblings, and higher

incidence of lone-parent household (Lamb, p. 157) all of which contribute to the education.

Academic factors include lack of culture within the classroom and curriculum and having no

sense of identity, Lamb states that Indigenous youth face discrimination at both the individual

level and institutional levels from peers, teachers, and what many argue is a predominately

Eurocentric curriculum (Lamb, p. 157)

Within the article, Lamb uses surveys to gather her data on the Indigenous students

leaving school early. In the study in Table 1, the results found higher level of drop outs within

Indigenous people who spoke their Indigenous language at home versus those who did not speak

their language. Those living on reserve were above 50% for speaking their own language, and of

those individuals, more than half had left school early (Lamb, p. 160).

The data from the study is consistent with the well-documented facts (Lamb, p. 163).

The research highlights the issue that lies within the education system and the policies. Lamb

states Scholastic achievement among Aboriginal people in Canada is a fundamentally important

concern for both educators and policy makers (Lamb, p. 164). To eradicate this issue

educators, parents, Aboriginal leaders, and communities (Lamb, p. 164) need to come to

together and work in unity to aid the next generations of Indigenous students.
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Personal Response

I truly enjoyed this article because it had looked at the reasoning behind why Indigenous

students are leaving schools. A lot of elders or older members in my community have either quit

their schooling or had not went altogether. Although a lot of the Elders are not educated, they are

still the people we go to seek guidance. This article allowed me to look at this in a different light,

most of the elders and older members speak our language in the community and have not

completed their schooling while most of the younger generation is completing our schooling but

we have lost our language. I had attended Mikmaq classes since I was a child and I had to stray

away from the classes because of the demands of our schooling. It is interesting to see how that

fact correlates with the research that had presented in the article.

Conclusion

Danielle Lamb introduced a great topic on the attendance of Indigenous students within

the Canadian education system. Indigenous students are getting lost in the mix within the

educational system because the curriculum does not match their needs. Even though Canada is

made up of a multi-cultural population, the article highlights how Eurocentric views are at the

forefront of our education system. Schools need to connect to their communities to create a well

rounded education for Indigenous students.

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Article 3

Wotherspoon, T. (2006). Teachers' work in canadian aboriginal communities. Comparative

Education Review, 50, 4, 672-694.

Introduction

Terry Wotherspoon is a sociology professor at the University of Saskatchewan. He

completed his PhD in Sociology from Simon Fraser University. According to the university's

website, Wotherspoon has conducted research in relation to Indigenous peoples and education.

Among his publishings the most notable is The Sociology of Education in Canada: Critical

Perspectives, in which he received awards for his research (University of Saskatchewan

webpage).

Summary

Educators in Canada represent a small fraction of societal members that play a role in

shaping Indigenous youth. Public school educators throughout Canada are faced with a difficult

challenge to provide an inclusive to all groups of students especially Indigenous students. This

article examines the educator's responsibilities which have been reformed for newcomers in the

profession to improve future education for Indigenous people, specifically referring to the

Indigenous people of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Presentation

Wotherspoon begins his article by overviewing the current status of Indigenous education

within Canada. The Canadian education systems had failed to provide a meaningful education

for Indigenous students, forcing Indigenous peoples to take a stand and demand access to their

own education. Indigenous students were felt isolated and did not connect to the material being
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taught from the Eurocentric view. The statistics provided highlighted the affects of the education

system failing Indigenous students as over one-third (35%) of Aboriginal people aged 25-44

had not completed high school (Wotherspoon, p. 673) and shockingly, nearly half (49%) of

young Aboriginals aged 15-24 (Wotherspoon, p. 673) were not even attending any educational

systems. These statistics are a direct effect of students not connecting with what was being

taught.

Wotherspoon takes the time to include the implications for teachers who include the

Indigenous culture into their classrooms. Although teachers strive to create an inclusive

environment for their students, it can become difficult when balancing too many things.

Teachers who try to incorporate the Indigenous culture into the curriculum, struggle with trying

to find the right way to teach the dark truth of the relationship between Indigenous people and

Canada. Teachers want to provide a teaching that is accurate yet with sensitivity (Wotherspoon,

2006). This can also become more difficult with the intensification for action in regards to

Indigenous education, Wotherspoon (2006) states teachers are confronted with changing

policies, diverse educational expectations, and periodic attacks on their profession (p. 677).

The rest of the article focuses on data that had been collected from 344 Canadian public

school teachers (Wotherspoon, p. 680) who provide insight on Indigenous education. The data

collected is through open-ended questions and surveys. In Table 1 Teachers were asked to reflect

on their schools and look at the Indigenous programing they had offered. While most had agreed

they had sufficient programing and teachings while others voiced their opinion on the subject,

stating We need to get rid of the old stereotypical texts that either dehumanize Aboriginal

people or romanticize them. The truth needs to come out on what has happened to Canadas First

Nations people (Wotherspoon, p. 863).

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The data in Table 2 looks at the teachers perspectives on changes to their teaching to

meet the needs of Aboriginal students (Wotherspoon, p. 685). The data looks at the action done

by teachers to provide an authentic education some of the action includes modifying teaching,

incorporating new content, new teaching techniques and consulting outside forces.

The final set of data that is presented in Table 3 specifically looks at the teachers

perspectives on their workloads and school environment (Wotherspoon, p. 689). The

respondents of the study were spilt in their choices. In regards to adequate time to prepare for

class, level of school funding, time to help struggling students and sufficient resources to meet

Aboriginal students needs, they are nearly spilt between agree and disagree (Wotherspoon,

2006). From the data, it highlights the inconsistency with teaching and the demands teaching

require.

Personal Response

The author presented interesting information, looking at how the education system in

Canada is failing their Indigenous students. I found this very interesting because it allowed me to

reflect on my schooling. One of my biggest complaints from K-12 schooling, is that there was

never any information about my culture or people. My parents had incorporated our culture into

our household, we tried to use our language as much as possible, my father would tell me

legends as bedtime stories and partook in events in our community. My father was also a teacher

at the high school and one of the subjects he taught was Native Studies and he would always tell

me about his classes, and I would love learning more about my culture. When I was in school, it

was like a different world. I had to adjust to a new way of thinking and learning and I had

struggled the first few years of my education. Sadly, I have lost most of my language and do not

practice my culture as much as I would like. I believe that incorporating the cultures of
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Indigenous people into the classroom will allow students to connect to the material and thrive in

school. Not only just Indigenous culture but the cultures that make up that community. I agree

with Wotherspoon that more still needs to be done to make sure all students are thriving in the

education system.

Conclusion

Wotherspoon highlights importance of Indigenous culture within the public school

system. Incorporation of Indigenous culture within the curriculum is left into the hands of

educators, who are already balancing a multifaceted occupation. More needs to be done to aid

teachers in providing a holistic and culturally inclusive classroom so students, especially

Indigenous students can thrive in the public education system.

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Article 4

Phillips, R. (2010). Try to understand us!: Aboriginal elders views on exceptionality. Brock

Education, 20, 1, 1.

Introduction

The author of the article, Ron Phillips, obtained his Bachelor of Education at Laurentian

University, then completed a Masters of Education at the University of Manitoba. Later

completing his PhD at the University of Arizona. According to the Nipissing University's

website where he currently is employed as a professor, his PhD research focuses on First

Nations/Aboriginal education with an emphasis in special education. Philips research in the

field of Indigenous education and special education is an ongoing process. Currently, he is

researching Special Education Policies and First Nations Schools Across Canada as well the

Federal Governments Role in Education (Nipissing University, webpage).

Summary

This article focuses on Indigenous special education in Canada. The research views

special education through the eyes of four Indigenous elders from Saskatchewan. Indigenous

students have significantly high numbers of students labeled as special needs. Looking into the

reasoning behind the statistics, the research in this article digs deep to find the answers. This

article discusses what four indigenous elders ideologies on exceptionality and possible solutions

to the imminent special education dilemma for Indigenous students.

Presentation

Phillips starts the article by giving some background on Indigenous students high

representation as special needs. The current education system, as Phillips (2010) stated is
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failing Aboriginal students because it went against the Indigenous worldview that all

children, including those with special needs, as being gifts from the Creator (Phillips, p. 65).

Seeing children with no labels allows Indigenous worldviews to not differentiate between

children with or without special needs (Phillips, p.68). Phillips (2010) stated that it is the

educators roles to adapt their lessons to match the needs of all their students, including students

with special needs and to consult with an Indigenous elder to seek guidance (p. 68).

The elders who were asked to share their input and insight in this study, were well

respected elders in their communities who had experience with providing guidance to both

Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups (Phillips, p. 66). It is important to note that the title elder

is not given out to someone due to their age, to be considered an elder, you are a well respected

member of the community who is well versed in traditional culture (Phillips, 2010). The four

Indigenous elders that were selected, participated in a panel discussion and this is where Philips

has gained their input.

The first elder introduced, focused on learning from the oral teachings of the Elders in

the community (Philips, p.69). Oral teachings was tied to the educators role in the schools.

Educators should bring about a positive attitude and to leave the negativity at home. When

educators talk to students, if it is done in a positive way then students will notice and appreciate

it, the elder stated enlighten them with good words and words to make them feel better.

(Philips, 69). The Elder has even tied that point to her own schooling, looking back to her days in

residential schools. The Elder would try to smile and interact with the nuns, who had just stand

there and hit her on the head to make her stop, stating such actions caused her to spend the rest

of the day questioning herself (Philips, p. 69).

ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 15

The second Elder, has a similar message as the first, that being positive and staying away

from negativity is important. The Elder mentioned that the positive atmosphere that should

surround children, start at birth. This Elder in particular was born in a violent way (Philips,

2010) because of the domestic violence. This negative atmosphere affected this Elder his whole

life and it had carried with him in the education systems where he had struggled severely and

was angry because he was not being understood by people (Philips, p.70) He said the key to

Indigenous students thriving, is by allowing First Nation students learn in their own way

(Philips, p.71) and for educators to be assisting students with special needs to make the

connections in learning by being the part thats missing (Philips, p.71).

The third Elder presented focused on the importance of language and Identity stating

that never lose language, thats your identity as a First Nation (Philips, p. 71). It is up to the

educators to try and understand our children (Philips, p.72) not to continue to assimilate them

into the Eurocentric curriculum. The elder also discussed learning styles, saying that Indigenous

people We learn differently. We think different. (Philips, p.71).

The final Elder had never even been to any type of schooling so he had talked about the

importance of oral teachings. Learning for Indigenous people, goes in circles, it is not just up to

the parents to educate their children, but it is through the efforts of the extended family (Philips,

2010). The Elder also talked about the importance of educators stating that youre making

people. Youre making leaders. Youre making all kinds of people here. It means a lot to our

people (Philips, p.72). To aid the Indigenous students, educators should consult with Elders, as

they would be more than willing to come into the classrooms to give some guidance to students.
ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 16

Personal Response

This was a unique article and I had loved that Philips had incorporated Elders in the

research. Elders are the heart of communities, well for mine anyways. Elders are well taken care

of in our community, our community provides lawn care, they are provided fish or moose meat

when people have a big catch, they are the first to be served at any event and this is only a few of

the many things we do to take care of elders. We do this, because they are the keepers of our

culture and language and they deserve the most respect. I am glad that the author of this article

made the Elders the focus because many Indigenous people reading the article would be more

interested in their insight rather than the data.

Conclusion

The wise words from the Elders was a great choice for this article. Elders are highly

respected in the Indigenous culture and their insight to students with special needs and the

educational system was enlightening. Their way at looking at the problem was not to point the

finger but provide those that are failing Indigenous students with practices and strategies that can

aid Indigenous exceptional learners.

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Article 5

Philpott, D. F. (2007) Assessing without labels: Culturally defined inclusive education.

Exceptionality Education International, 17, 3-34.

Introduction

David Philpott is currently a professor at Memorial University of Newfoundland. He has

a bachelor of education as well as a degree in special education from Memorial University of

Newfoundland. Philpott later received his Ph.D. of education from the University of Calgary. His

Research interest resides in as the university website states, cultural views of inclusion,

assessment, learning disabilities and parental empowerment.

Summary

The article looks at the importance of inclusive education within Canada, and it is seen

throughout various schools across the country. The inclusive education rise supports Indigenous

students rather than hinder them like the current educational system in Canada does.

Specifically, the article will look at the assessment of cultural defined inclusive schools.

Presentation

The article begins by looking at the history of inclusive education within the Canadian

context starting with the inclusive of special education. Canada had adopted a model for

education that would include all students. Although the push for inclusive, it came with its

pitfalls, Philpott (2007) stated that the inclusion movement stigmatizes children with a medical

label that results in marginalized placement in a completely separate education system (Philpott,

6). Philpott continues by highlighting an important question Why [do] we have to label a child

in order to qualify for services? that illustrates the pitfall of a deficit-based model (Philpott, p.
ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 18

6). Inclusive education in Canada has been evolving more from students with disabilities

(learning or physical) to the inclusion of cultural and linguistic diversity (Philpott, 2007).

Philpott builds on the history of inclusion by moving into Indigenous education in the

inclusion context. Like the students who are labelled which cause a deficit, Indigenous students

are also at a disadvantage by being socially marginalized and labeled as different (Philpott, 9)

within the education system. The low education attainment rate is alarming and according to the

Office of the Auditor General (2004) report the low numbers of education of Indigenous people

will take close to 27-28 years to close the gap (Philpott, 2007).

Stepping away from inclusion, Philpott turns to the history of Indigenous education.

Since the development of the New World Indigenous people have been seen as the other, far

more than any other group of people. The label associated with Indigenous people have greatly

affected their lives and has continued to affect their education (Philpott, 2007).

As a case study, Philpott (2007) looks to Nunavut and their culturally defined inclusive

education. The education system in the Northwest Territories, aim in empowering the classroom

teacher with the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of all children (Philpott, p. 13). Some

schools provide Student Support Teachers who aid the teacher in adapting the lesson to meet

the needs of their diverse students (Philpott, 2007). Also, the government of the Northwest

Territories issued a mandate for a fully bilingual society which had led to a model that supports

culture and diversity (Philpott, 2007). This model has been successfully placed into their

education system that will provide a curriculum that will solidify culture and education while

meeting the needs of all children (Philpott, p.14).

ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 19

Assessing inclusive education systems, can be difficult to navigate but the underlying

message within this section proves that standardized testing is not appropriate for culturally

diverse education systems. It is mentioned that standardized tests are culturally biased as not

all students will be able to personally connect with the context (Philpott, 2007). An alternative to

standardized testing is by encouraging educators to rely less on even the most carefully selected

quantitative instruments and more on qualitative, classroom-based approaches which is a more

authentic assessment (Philpott, p. 18). Northwest Territories approach to culturally appropriate

assessment includes seven key principles: Supports continuous learning for all students, shows

respect for all learners, recognizes each students unique talents and skills, emphasizes the

interdependence, growth, and success of the group, needs to be outcome-base, has different

purposes, is authentic, meaningful, and builds on student strengths (Philpott, p. 21).

Personal Response

This article really focused on Northwest Territories and their education system. This

article was very eye opening because I had no idea that their education system was so inclusive

to culture. A culturally diverse education system is a great start into the right direction and I hope

that more schools start to adopt their system. I feel that students will thrive in an education

system that personally relates to them, I know I would have.

Conclusion

Inclusion of all students is very important, and I believe this article articulates that

message well. Inclusion should be free of labels and act as a method of truly including all

students no matter their backgrounds or disabilities (learning or physical). The shift of inclusion

to culture and language is prevalent in Indigenous lives. Indigenous students should feel
ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 20

represented in the material being taught, be assessed in a culturally appropriate manner and have

empowered teachers who are educated on the needs of their Indigenous students.
ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 21

References

Danielle Lamb. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2016, from http://www.ryerson.ca/tedrogersschoo

l/bm/programs/HR-management-and-organizational-behaviour/danielle-lamb/

D. Philpott. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2016, fromhttp://www.mun.ca/educ/people/dphilpott/

index.php

Goulet, L. (2001). Two teachers of aboriginal students: Effective practice in sociohistorical

realities. Canadian Journal of Native Education, 25, 68-82.

Lamb, D. (2014). Aboriginal early school leavers on- and off-reserve: An empirical analysis.

Canadian Public Policy, 40, 2, 156-165

Linda Goulet. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2016, fromhttp://fnuniv.ca/images/faculty/Goulet_

Linda.pdf

Phillips, R. (2010). Try to understand us!: Aboriginal elders views on exceptionality. Brock

Education, 20, 1, 1.

Philpott, D. F. (2007) Assessing without labels: Culturally defined inclusive education.

Exceptionality Education International, 17, 3-34.

Ron Phillips. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2016, from http://www.nipissingu.ca/aboutus/people

/Pages/Ron-Phillips.aspx

T. Wotherspoon. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2016, from

http://artsadscience.usask.ca/profile/TWotherspoon#/profile
ACADEMIC CRITIQUE 22

Wotherspoon, T. (2006). Teachers' work in canadian aboriginal communities. Comparative

Education Review, 50, 4, 672-694.