New Student Project
Anishinaabe Pedagogy: Deconstructing the Notion of Aboriginal Education by Illuminating Local Anishinaabe Pedagogy
The interdisciplinary field of Aboriginal education continues to be a concern for a number of reasons, not the least of which is defining what the phrase “Aboriginal Education” means to Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples, particularly those involved with teaching and learning. Moreover, in attempts to define Aboriginal education, there has been little attention paid to the distinction between the pedagogy of local First Nations’ cultures and the institutionalized field of "Aboriginal education”. This paper aims to look more closely at the concept of “Aboriginal education” by considering what contributes to how it is produced/ developed and consumed/ implemented at the local level. “Aboriginal education” is a modern socially constructed phenomenon that is shaped by Western and Aboriginal learning constructs. In order to reach a deeper understanding of what contributes to Aboriginal education, it is important to look beyond the paired concepts of “Aboriginal” and “education”; terminology that can overshadow contributions at local levels. As a resident of south-central Manitoba, I turn to the local Anishinaabe culture to examine what has been extracted from the life-ways of this cultural community that contributes to what is perceived and being taught as “Aboriginal perspectives” in Winnipeg schools. My intention is to contribute to an understanding of how local and distinct First Nations’ cultures contribute to “Aboriginal education” as a conceptually growing phenomenon in school systems. In so doing, I aim to contribute to the discussion of the meaning of “Aboriginal education” and to illuminate what I consider to be Anishinaabe pedagogy.
The article can be found here.