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Inspire: Tools & Resources (Sub-Module 3 of 3 of Inquire Module)
This section provides a selection of resources to support the curriculum including Open Educational Resources (OERs) and openly available online materials.
Tools & Resources
Indigenous Curriculum Resources
As a result of colonial influences in education, Indigenous voices and perspectives have been excluded in the curriculum. Integrating Indigenous voices and perspectives serves as a way of decolonizing the curriculum and ensuring that Indigenous Peoples' history, cultures, and perspectives are accurately represented.
When selecting resources, it's important to evaluate the accuracy and authenticity of the material. According to First Nations Education Steering Committee, authentic First Peoples resources include historical and contemporary materials that:
- are created by First Peoples or through the substantial contributions of First Peoples
- depict themes and issues that are important within First Peoples cultures (e.g., identity, tradition, role of family, importance of Elders, connection to the land, the nature and place of spirituality as an aspect of wisdom, the relationships between individual and community, and the importance of oral tradition
- incorporate First Peoples story‐telling techniques and features as applicable (e.g., circular structure, repetition, weaving in of spirituality, humour).
Learn more
- Read: An Indigenous Knowledge Mobilization Packsack: Utilizing Indigenous Learning Outcomes to Promote and Assess Critical Thinking and Global Citizenship (Negahneewin Research Centre, Confederation College)
- Read: How I am learning to include Indigenous knowledge in the classroom (University Affairs)
- Read: Truth and Reconciliation in Your Classroom (EdCan)
OER Development and Indigenous Knowledge
The following best practices are from Community First: Open Practices and Indigenous Knowledge (by Krista McCracken and Skylee-Storm Hogan). Please note that these best practices were developed within the authors' contexts:
- Relationship building must come first. Relationships need to be developed long before a project comes to fruition or a grant opportunity becomes available. Tending to relationships should be an ongoing reconciliation priority and is the foundation which all other work should be built.
- Nothing by us without us. Any OER development that includes Indigenous knowledge should be done in collaboration with Indigenous community members and Indigenous stakeholders. This collaboration should extend from project inception to completion and be based on relationship building and partnership. Credit for the knowledges shared should be included in the material.
- Integrate OCAP Principles into OER development. OCAP is a set of standards for how First Nations information should be collected, protected, used, and shared. The core principles are Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession. These principles articulate the inherent right of Indigenous peoples to manage their own information and should be integrated into any OER creation that included Indigenous knowledge.
- Not all Indigenous knowledge wants to be open. Researchers and academics are not the ones who should decide which knowledge should be made open. Indigenous communities, knowledge holders, and Elders are the ones who should be making these decisions. Do not share information without consent and guidance. Remember to clearly inform these partners on how the information will appear.
- How information is shared matters. Creative Commons licensing and the 5R’s of OER do not always meet the needs of Indigenous communities. How information is shared and how it can or cannot be reproduced needs to be understood within community contexts and made on a case-by-case basis. Creators of OER should explore traditional knowledge labels or other community driven means of sharing Indigenous knowledge.
Video: Context Matters: Indigenous Knowledge and OER
Skylee-Storm Hogan and Krista McCracken discuss the intersection of Indigenous Knowledge and Open Educational Resources (OER). They chat about best practices for sharing Indigenous knowledge online, community engaged work, and basing OER development on reciprocal relationships.
Learn more
- Read: Community First: Open Practices and Indigenous Knowledge (Krista McCracken and Skylee-Storm Hogan)
- Explore: The Learning Portal OER Toolkit
Open Educational Resources (OERs)
Textbooks
- Economic Aspects of the Indigenous Experience in Canada
- Exploring Indigenous Foods and Food Sovereignty
- Financial Empowerment: Personal Finance for Indigenous and Non-Indigenous People
- Histories of Indigenous Peoples and Canada
- Indigenous Knowledges and Perspectives on Climate Adaptation
- Knowing Home: Braiding Indigenous Science with Western Science, Book 1
- Knowing Home: Braiding Indigenous Science with Western Science, Book 2
- Historical and Contemporary Realities: Movement Towards Reconciliation
- Living Earth Community: Multiple Ways of Being and Knowing
- Living on the Land: Indigenous Women's Understanding of Place
- Northern and Indigenous Health and Healthcare
- Our Stories: First Peoples in Canada
- Northern and Indigenous Health and Healthcare
- Shingwauk Narratives: Sharing Residential School History
Interactive Activities & Videos
- In Their Moccasins
- Indigenous Lifeways in Canadian Business Video Series
- Indigenous Wellness Video Series
- Stories of Decolonization
- Visualizing Ontario's Indigenous Past
Teaching
- Critical Indigenous Perspectives on the Sociology of Education in Canada
- Facilitating online learning with the 5R’s: Embedding Indigenous pedagogy into the online space
- Healing and Reconciliation Through Education
- Indigenous Healthcare Education and Practice: Applying Digital Teaching and Learning Resources to the TRC's Calls to Action
- Indigenous Information Literacy
- Indigenous Teaching Resources: Students Collection
- Pulling Together: A Guide for Teachers and Instructors
- Reconciliation Through Indigenous Education (MOOC)
- Skoden: Teaching, Talking, and Sharing About and for Reconciliation
Websites, Videos, and Other Online Resources
Websites
- Education Resources (National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation)
- The Anishnabek Nation Education Resources
- Canada's History
- Facing History, Facing Ourselves
- Home on Native Land
- Indigenous Storybooks
- It’s Our Time First Nations Tool Kit (Assembly of First Nations)
- National Centre for Collaboration in Indigenous Education
- Resources for and about Indigenous education (OISE)
- Truth and Reconciliation in Your Classroom Infographic (EdCan)
Videos
Collections & Exhibits
LMS Packages
For general instructions for importing packages into your LMS course, please see The Learning Portal Faculty Toolkit: LMS Packages.
- The Indian Act & TreatiesThis package includes resources that provide overviews of Indigenous history in Canada, the Indian Act, Treaties, and Land Acknowledgements. Optional reflection questions / prompts are included.
- Indigenous Peoples in CanadaThis package includes resources that provide overviews of Indigenous Peoples in Canada, respectful terminology, stereotypes, and Indigenous Knowledge. Optional reflection questions / prompts are included.
- Residential SchoolsThis package includes resources that provide overviews of the history and impact of residential schools, and the Sixties Scoop. Optional reflection questions / prompts are included.
- Truth & ReconciliationThis package includes resources that provide an overview of Truth & Reconciliation and the reconciliation journey. Optional reflection questions / prompts are included.