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Issue #66
May, 2015

Classroom Practice: Secondary

Durham District School Board (DDSB) Aboriginal Welcome Wheel Lesson Plan Series: In-troduction to the Medicine Wheel

http://www.ddsb.ca/Programs/aboriginaled/Resources/learningWheels/Learning%20Wheels/ddsb_welcome_wheel_series_-_intro_the_the_medicine_wheel.pdf

Source: Durham District School Board, Ontario
Focus: Secondary students

Summary: Based on the Ontario First Nation Métis and Inuit Education Policy Framework, 2007: “All students in Ontario will have knowledge and appreciation of contemporary and traditional First Nation, Métis and Inuit traditions, cultures, and perspectives,”  DDSB developed a series of lessons that relate to the Medicine Wheel.

Other board developed resources can be found at: http://www.ddsb.ca/Programs/aboriginaled/Resources/learningWheels/Pages/default.aspx

Relevant Research

Teacher Recruitment and Retention in Select First Nations Schools

http://ineducation.ca/ineducation/article/view/72

Source: Robin Mueller, Sheila Carr-Stewart, Larry Steeves, Jim Marshall

Summary: Historically, the inequitable funding for First Nations schools in comparison to funding for provincial schools has been an issue from the time of early day schools, to residential schools in which students worked half a day to tend to crops in order to grow food for consumption by students and staff, and to present day where band-managed schools still experience lack of funding.  Similarly, the lower salary levels for teachers in federal and today in First Nations-managed schools has been identified as a significant issue related to teacher retention. The purpose of this research was to identify current factors affecting teacher recruitment and retention in present day First Nations managed schools. In this paper we report on one case study comparing funding and teacher retention in one provincial school system and schools in one Tribal Council in Saskatchewan.

Multimedia

Native Tech: Native American Technology and Art

http://www.nativetech.org/

Source: Tara Prindle, Native Tech
Focus: Teachers and senior students

Summary: This is an internet resource for indigenous ethno-technology focusing on the arts of Eastern Woodland Indian Peoples, providing historical and contemporary background with instructional how-to’s and references.

This site is hosted by NativeWeb. Donations to Nativeweb help them to promote Indigenous resources, inform the public about Indigenous cultures and issues, and to facilitate communications between Indigenous peoples and organizations supporting their goals and efforts.

Early Childhood

Review of early childhood parenting, education and health intervention programs for Indigenous children and families in Australia

http://www.aihw.gov.au/uploadedFiles/ClosingTheGap/Content/Our_publications/2014/ctgc-ip08.pdf

Source: Australian Government, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Institute of Family Studies 
Focus: Early childcare providers

Summary:This paper provides a review of prevention and early intervention research literature that is focused on improving outcomes for Australian Indigenous children in the early childhood years. For the purposes of this paper, early childhood is defined as the years from conception to school entry. The included literature was drawn from three key areas of early childhood research: parenting, early childhood education, and early childhood health.

Classroom Practice: Elementary

Online Cree Dictionary: The Cree Language Resource Project (CLRP)

http://kids.creedictionary.com/

Source: Miyo Wahkohtowin Community Education Authority (MWCEA), Dr. Earle Waugh, Director of the Center for Culture and Health Family Medicine, University of Alberta, and Professor Arok Wolvengrey, First Nations University of Canada, Regina
Focus: Elementary students

Summary: The CLRP dictionary will have the ability to translate words from English to Cree in Syllabics and Roman Orthography (Cree written in English) with explanation of how it fits in a sentence. The translated word will be associated with a picture, sound and a video clip. The goal of the project is to promote the learning and preservation of the Cree language. The online dictionary will have the ability to accommodate different regional Cree dialects.

In addition to the translation function the system will allow the creation of flash cards and storyboards using the pictures and the words (syllabics and English) from the database. Other features will include educational games such as word matching and puzzles. These games will have testing components to assess student learning. The system will include a database of Cree language lesson plans that will guide teachers in integrating First Nation Languages into the curriculum.

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