Page 280 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

254 S.L. Stewart

focused on restoring balance to the self through relationship with others and the
environment. This Indigenous conception of education is not new or innovative, it
has been in existence and successfully employed by Indigenous people in Canada
and other places for thousands of years, as David suggests in his case study when
he states that relying on his Grandmother’s wisdom and knowledges for structuring
classroom activity and curriculum were integral to the success of his approach.
What is new is the articulation and validation of this definition as legitimate in the
context of university research and teaching within an overarching history of oppres-
sion. Since colonization, western paradigms have been forced on Indigenous peoples
in ways that invalidated and disregarded successful epistemological and healing
methods that had previously been available to Indigenous people. As a result, many
Indigenous communities today flounder in attempts to deal with their education
problems by utilizing the only resource currently available to them through the
public education system, which is dominated by western models of education and
psychology. Yet at the same time, we must acknowledge the reality that Indigenous
people today exist in both Indigenous and western worlds where a pedagogical
approach that reflects this reality and serves to offer up both paradigms in a
complementary way, rather than in a dominating or subordinating manner, may be
appropriate.
Western-thinking educators and researchers must make significant changes in
order to address needs that are not currently being well met. I propose that university
academics could receive education about Indigenous peoples’ educational needs,
including information about the historical experiences of Indigenous peoples, the
Indigenous paradigm, and form a comprehensive understanding of their own cultural
sensitivities in the educational relationship with students and communities. Learning
from case studies such as David’s could be an invaluable resource for students studying
to become teachers, and for teachers already working with Indigenous students.
Further, postsecondary institutions could build capacity for research in Indigenous
communities by revising ethical protocols to incorporate Indigenous methodologies,
especially Indigenous knowledges, into research with Indigenous groups, and by
recruiting Indigenous scholars through the acceptance of Indigenous paradigms
within the academy.

Conclusion

Current literature on Indigenous learning in postsecondary schools in Canada iden-
tifies and describes some of the most important issues in working with Indigenous
students in terms of theoretical learning themes and constraints that hinder aca-
demic success. What is missing is empirical data concerning the needs and goals of
Indigenous students from a strength or wellness-based model that is grounded in an
Indigenous paradigm, and how this might look in practice: Chinn and Hana’ike’s
case study begins to fill this gap by articulating and defining the development of
culturally relevant and place-based education from a Native Hawaiian perspective