“WORK, RESPECT, BELONGING”:
REMOTE FIRST NATION SCHOOL PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
by
Christopher Tyler
BSc, University of Northern British Columbia, 2011
BSW, University of Northern British Columbia, 2012

REPORT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK

UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA
August 20, 2020
© Christopher Tyler, 2020

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ABSTRACT
This report summarizes my practicum experience at Aatse Davie School in Fort Ware,
British Columbia, on the traditional territory of the Kwadacha Nation. This K-12 school is
located in one of the most remote areas in British Columbia and has approximately 100 students.
I expanded and developed senior and junior boys’ groups, while also exploring program
development as a social worker in a remote school location. My practicum firstly introduced
electronics to these students as part of a STEM extracurricular activity and secondly explored
areas of Indigenous masculinity. This report explores my practicum goals, accomplishments,
and learnings, and then concludes with suggestions for future social workers and contributions to
social work practice which emerged from my learning as part of my practicum experience.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract

ii

Table of Contents

iii

Acknowledgements

iv

Chapter 1

Introduction

5

Chapter 2

Aatse Davie School
Practicum Setting
Practicum Learning Goals

8
8
9

Chapter 3

Theoretical Framework
Positioning Myself Within the Practicum

11
14

Chapter 4

Literature Review
Physical Activity, Space, and the Self
Land and Culture
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math
Indigenous Masculinities
Remote Social Work

18
18
22
25
26
29

Chapter 5

Activities, Tasks, and Learning
Role as a School Social Worker
Program Development
Masculinity
Culture and Ceremony
Electronics Club
Self-Care and Me
Activities, Tasks, & Learning Concluded

32
32
39
45
49
51
53
53

Chapter 6

Implications for Social Work Practice
Gender Neutral Code of Ethics
Serial Temporary
Recommendations
Conclusion

55
55
56
58
61

References

62

Appendix A

MSW Practicum II: Learning Contract

70

Appendix B

BCASW Code of Ethics

73

Appendix C

Revised BCASW Code of Ethics

74

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I give thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Joanna Pierce, who not only sacrificed her time and
energy, but also put up with my wind-blown fancies, so I could be successful in completing my
practicum and writing this report. To my committee member, Dr. Susan Burke, thank you for
your ongoing support, feedback, assistance, and compassion, which has been ever present since
working on my BSW. To my agency supervisor, Rebecca Tallman, I say mussi cho for your
willingness to work with me and support me throughout the practicum process. To the
wonderful faculty, staff, guides, and students at Aatse Davie School, mussi cho for welcoming
me into the school and supporting my growth as a social worker through sharing each other’s
wisdom. To my wife and son, I offer the deepest sense of gratitude in supporting me throughout
this journey; I know without your support, I would not have been able to accomplish all that I
have. I thank you all for your sacrifice.

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Chapter 1: Introduction
My practicum took place at Aatse Davie School. I utilized a generalist framework within
my social work practice. Initially, I engaged with male youth in the school two nights a week
and one weekend a month. The male youth were divided into two groups: from grades five to
eight and from grades nine to twelve. My initial focus was engaging the male youth in the
development of new technology skills, providing opportunities to connect with land and culture
through positive recreation activities, and discussing ideas of Indigenous masculinity. The first
two weekend cultural activities were well attended, however, the number of participants in
weekend cultural activities began to diminish with subsequent weekend activities. I learned
through a casual conversation with a particular youth that he was not coming to the boys’ group
because he did not want to come to Thursday activities. With this in mind, I moved to a different
format that separated the group into two distinct and individual programs. The boys’ group took
place on one weekend a month, and then I also hosted an electronics club two weeknights after
school. During both of these activities, we took opportunities to discuss issues and ideas around
Indigenous masculinity.
As well, I wanted to engage male youth in prosocial activities and accomplished this
through dividing the practicum into three sub-foci: (1) helping male youth develop new skills as
electronic technicians; (2) engaging the youth in land and culturally based activities; and (3)
exploring ideas and definitions of being a young Tsek’ene male within the village and within
contemporary society.
The male youth accomplished the first focus, developing new electronic technician skills,
by building, experimenting with, and troubleshooting electronics. Electronic components
included wiring, light emitting diodes, sensors, and integrated circuits. A microcontroller,

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specifically the Arduino Uno, controlled these electronic components and interfaced with the
computer through the Arduino integrated development environment [IDE] and a programming
language based on C and C++. Moreover, the program code, known as a sketch, was imported
into the Arduino to address the electronic components connected to the Arduino and to produce a
functional piece of technology. Through this, the male youth became both consumers and
developers of technology.
The second focus, providing male youth with opportunities to connect with culture and
land through positive recreational activities, included three areas. First, weekly intermural sports
allowed them to engage with other classmates (both male and female) and work together as a
team in healthy sporting activities. Second, I facilitated and provided outings onto the land in the
traditional territory of the Kwadacha Nation, where the youth engaged in wilderness recreational
activities and cultural practices. Third, I hosted youth camps monthly within the traditional
territory of the Kwadacha Nation. At these camps guides provided cultural training, local
knowledge, and guidance.
The third focus was discussing and exploring Indigenous masculinity. The youth and I
discussed concepts of healthy Indigenous male masculinity during weekly meetings and the
weekend outings. I explored ideas of traditional Indigenous masculinity with the youth and how
these concepts applied to them today. I also explored how Indigenous youth are able to
incorporate concepts of masculinity into their lives, into their understanding of self, and into their
identities.
The remainder of this report is divided into five additional chapters. Chapter Two
provides an overview of the practicum location, including a description of Aatse Davie School,
Fort Ware, BC, and the Kwadacha Nation. Chapter Three offers an orientation of the theoretical

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framework of my practicum and my place within that framework. Chapter Four reviews the
literature relevant to the practicum setting, including an overview of: (1) Physical activity and
concepts of the self and belonging; (2) Science, technology, engineering, and math activities and
the benefits to male youth; (3) The exploration of Indigenous masculinity issues; and (4) Remote
social work practice. Chapter Five encompasses the activities, tasks, and key learnings from my
practicum experience. And finally, Chapter Six is comprised of implications for future social
work practice.

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Chapter 2: Aatse Davie School
Aatse Davie School is located in Fort Ware, British Columbia on the traditional territory
of the Kwadacha Nation. This school serves the children of the Kwadacha Nation and those
seeking to further their adult education. The school hosts a variety of groups and afterschool
programs, including Taekwondo, a girl’s group, a boy’s group, and a senior girl’s group. My
practicum site supervisor and other school employees identified a need to provide stability and
formality for the junior boys’ youth group and for the development of a senior boys’ youth group
and as such, I began by providing a consistent presence, date, and time to the junior male youth
group, comprising grades five through eight. Another responsibility during my practicum was to
help meet the identified need for afterschool activities by establishing a senior boys’ youth
group. This group was comprised of grades nine through twelve. As stated previously, through
the above, the male youth received instruction on electronics and technology as well as engaged
in pro-social extracurricular activities. Interwoven within these opportunities were discussions
on Indigenous masculinity and being a Tsek ‘ene man.
Practicum Setting
Aatse Davie School is a single building hosting all grades from kindergarten to grade 12
with approximately 100 students enrolled. The current building was built in 1983, with
structural changes since then to the building that created more space and physical rooms. Since
1993, Aatse Davie School has been Band operated. The school bears the name of a respected
member of the Fort Ware Community: Aatse Davie. Aatse is the Tsek’ene word for grandfather.
Many people considered Davie to be their grandfather. Aatse Davie, was recognized for his
remarkable and memorable generosity, kindness, and humanity; these three characteristics of
Davie were incorporated into the mission statement of Aatse Davie School. The school is

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dedicated to ensuring each student receives learning tantamount to their ability, which includes
beyond average learning (KES, 1999). The Kwadacha Education Society [KES] governs the
school and has three purposes. The first purpose is to provide educational opportunities to all
members of the Kwadacha Nation. Promoting educational excellence in Fort Ware is the second
purpose. The third purpose is to take advantage of educational funding opportunities only
available to a registered society (Kwadacha.com/education).
The people of the Kwadacha Nation live in a village more commonly known as Fort
Ware, BC. Fort Ware is approximately 570 kilometers north of Prince George, BC. From Prince
George, it is accessible via a one-hour fifteen-minute flight or via driving approximately 185 km
of highway and then 411 km of forest service road, a route which takes about 8-14 hours. Given
the remote and northern descriptors associated with this community, I will include a short
discussion on this topic in the literature review section of this report.
Practicum Learning Goals
I completed 450 practicum hours at Aatse Davie School under the supervision of the
school counsellor. The placement heightened my understanding of school social work and the
nuances associated with practicing social work in an academic setting. Specifically, the goals of
my practicum revolved around the school motto: “Work, Respect, Belonging.” This motto
guided three main areas of focus for these male youth groups. The first part of the motto is
“Work.” The boys were encouraged to attend school and participate in class. Also, as
opportunities arose, they volunteered around the community providing services to community
members; such as community clean up, chopping wood, and setting up for community events.
The second part of the motto is “Respect,” and I think of it as respect for self, community,
culture, and Elders. Respect for the self was cultivated through activities by taking ownership

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and pride in the completion of projects. Respect for culture and Elders was reinforced with the
inclusion of Elders and cultural practices in group meetings and weekend activities. The third
part of the motto is “Belonging”. A sense of belonging was created with inclusion in the male
youth groups. I hope they developed a sense of comradery with each other and a sense of
belonging within their community.
The boys’ group meetings occurred after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays (one
meeting each for the junior and senior groups) on the first and third weeks of each month.
Additionally, once per month the male youth groups participated in a weekend camping trip.
The goal was to develop a structured and consistent program for the male youth to participate
and be engaged within their community and amongst each other in healthy and pro-social ways; I
believe this was established through my practicum and ideally will continue in perpetuity.

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Chapter 3: Theoretical Framework
While reviewing the current literature to inform my practicum work at Aatse Davie
School, I realized that there was a need for further information regarding program development
in rural social work practice. Also, through my literature review and personal contemplation, I
decided a structural perspective with a generalist approach was beneficial to develop a clear and
concise model outlining social work as a program developer. This section outlines this
theoretical orientation and addresses my position as a practicum student.
Structural social work focuses on societal structures such as patriarchy which oppress
certain groups of people and notes structural barriers in accessing resources, services, and other
social needs. It is derived from a need to deconstruct societal barriers. When working with
Indigenous populations, the inclusion of Indigenous perspectives is paramount in order to
practice from a trauma-informed cultural lens. An Indigenous perspective requires an
understanding of the historical context of Indigenous peoples as well as one that incorporates the
culture into the work of the social worker (Baskin, 2003; 2012). Interventions from an
Indigenous perspective have a basis in culture and traditions; furthermore, applying cultural and
traditional interventions generates greater success than interventions facilitated by a nonIndigenous perspective (Baskin, 2012).
Sharing and connection are integral aspects in Indigenous social work. In a brief
overview of this, Hart (2009) stated, “Spirituality is so encompassing of traditional Indigenous
life that it is respected in all interactions and is demonstrated through such activities as
meditations, prayers, and ceremonies” (p. 35). Spirituality is a section of the medicine wheel
that is a powerful tool used in many Indigenous cultural practices to achieve a sense of balance
and stability (Hart, 2009). Moreover, values of respect and sharing are indicative of Indigenous

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social work. Hart (2009) defined respect as, “the showing of honour, esteem, deference and
courtesy to all, including refraining from imposing our views on others” (p. 36). He explained
that sharing not only includes the sharing of everything we can, including life experiences and
acquired knowledge. He emphasized the importance of sharing from everyone. It develops
relationships based on the exchange of information. When one person learns from another, it is
easier for the learner to receive instruction due to being more open to being taught.
In addition, trauma-informed practice not only recognizes the impact of trauma and an
understanding of the pathways to healing, but also integrates policy information and knowledge
regarding trauma into practice. A key component is to create an environment free from the
potential for further traumatization. As such, the trauma-informed social worker needs to have a
trauma-informed lens embedded in all areas of their practice. For instance, working with
children from a trauma informed practice standpoint “is about the way of being in the
relationship, more than a specific treatment strategy or method” (Poole, Talbot, & Nathoo, 2016,
p.10). Critical components of a trauma-informed practice require recognizing trauma and its
prevalence. The trauma-informed social worker needs to construct an environment characterized
by safety, trust, compassion, and collaboration in addition to providing opportunities for
individuals to experience choice and empowerment (Poole, Talbot, & Nathoo, 2010). As such, I
approached my practicum with the assertion that an Indigenous practice, and my practicum itself,
was incomplete without being trauma-informed.
A generalist social worker approaches barriers to success from a variety of perspectives,
troubleshoots different concepts, and uses practical approaches to find solutions (Collier, 2006).
The generalist social work practitioner develops a wide range of fundamental skills to be
competent at reducing silos, barriers, and gaps in service. Service silos are best visualized as

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services that are separate and operationally constrained from other services. A generalist social
worker possesses the requisite skills and abilities to navigate between siloed services and even
reduce the number of silos, narrowing gaps in and between services. Humboldt State University
[HSU] (2018) provided a comprehensive definition of generalist social work practice:
Generalist social work practitioners work with individuals, families, groups,
organizations, social policies, and communities in a variety of settings in pursuit of social
and economic justice. Generalist practitioners view people and systems from a strengths
perspective in order to recognize, support, and build upon the innate capabilities of all
human beings. They engage, assess, broker services, advocate, counsel, educate, and
organize with and on behalf of individuals, families, and collections of people.
Generalist practitioners engage in community development, organizational development,
and evaluation in order to ensure that services are useful, effective, and ethical. (para. 1)
As a generalist social work practitioner, it is important to have a wide range of skills and
competencies to be able to provide services to the people and not limit themselves to one
specialty. It is also important to favour a flexible approach: one that allows the social worker to
engage in different facets of social work, including casework, community development, and
program development (Collier, 2006). Moreover, it is important to place special attention on the
competencies of advocacy and community or organizational development when working in
program development and administration. A generalist social worker needs to utilize all their
faculties, using a variety of approaches to address and find solutions to problems Overall, a
generalist practice was a good fit for my practicum because it allowed me to fill a variety of
roles, including program facilitation, crisis intervention, and prevention activities.

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As a generalist social worker, I developed and facilitated expanded learning opportunities
for youth including afterschool programs. Effective expanded learning opportunities support
academic rigour, boost student engagement, and provide students with supportive relationships;
these programs have significant outcomes, such as a reduction in dropout rates. Providing
additional access to expanded learning opportunities can be a part of key strategies in reducing
dropout and therefore, increase graduation rates (Afterschool, 2013). Although the primary
purpose of the boys’ groups was not to minimize truancy or increase school attendance, it was a
pleasant outcome for the boys’ groups participants at Aatse Davie School. It was reported to me
that one of the boy’s was in the office every day the previous week for difficult behaviours, he
attended the boy’s group weekend outing and the subsequent week he was not directed to report
to the office (R. Tallman., personal communication, September 2018).
In conclusion, the theoretical framework of my practicum experience was generalist
social work practice from a structural perspective incorporating an Indigenous lens and an
understanding of trauma-informed practice. A structural approach helped me identify gaps in
service, advocate for youth, and work with the school administration staff to identify sources for
funding. As well, my practicum experience included program delivery, program development,
and troubleshooting that required creative adaptation and application of critical thinking skills in
order to adjust to dynamic situations that presented during the boys’ groups.
Positioning Myself Within the Practicum
From personal experience through contact with the Indigenous people I have worked with
and lived amongst, it is customary to identify yourself, your ancestors, and your territory. Before
I delve into some personal details, I wish to visit the concept of reflexivity, which Bolton (2010)
defined as:

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Finding strategies to question our own attitudes, theories-in-use, values, assumptions,
prejudices, and habitual actions; to understand our complex roles in relation to others. It
develops responsible and ethical action, such as becoming aware of how much our ways
of being are culturally determined… to be reflexive is to examine, for example, the limits
of our knowledge, of how our own behaviours play into organizational structures counter
to our own personal and professional values, and why such practices might marginalize
groups or exclude individuals. It questions how congruent our actions are with our
espoused values and theories. (p. 7)
Reflexivity provides a means of identifying and accounting for one’s own biases and lived
experiences. By engaging in a reflexive practice, I identified and accounted for my positions,
biases, and privileges.
Myself, My Ancestors, and My Territory
My name is Christopher Adam Tyler. I was born in Whitecourt, Alberta. I am a Métis
man descended from the McGillivrays and Fiddlers. My European family originated in the
Orkney Islands of Scotland and France. They travelled westward, joining the fur trade and found
employment with the North West Company in exploration, finance, and harvesting. William
McGillivray, by virtue of à la façon du pays, was married to Susan, a Cree woman. William and
Susan McGillivray had five children including twin boys, Simon and Joseph. Simon
McGillivray’s grandson married the granddaughter of Mary Mackagonne, a Cree woman. Until
the early twentieth century, my family lived in Red River settlements in Rupert’s Land, which is
now Manitoba and Saskatchewan, before moving northward and westward to the North West
Territories and British Columbia. I have lived in Northern British Columbia for most of my life.
I have only recently, in the last five years, discovered my Métis ancestry and heritage; my

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parents and grandparents did not talk about the history of our family. In contemplation of this
silence, I speculated that my family was issued scrip, taking parcels of land or money in
exchange for a claim on Indigenous lands, rights, and processes. Another possibility is that my
family tried to pass as “white.” From a Métis perspective, passing refers to the act of appearing
to belong to one group or another and for Métis people, this meant passing as either “white” or
Indigenous (Baikie, 2009). Passing as white may have insulated my ancestral family from
persecutions otherwise endured.
Baikie (2009) declared that Indigenous social workers, meaning social workers who are
Indigenous, are required to “re-center our Indigenous knowledge, skills, and practice realities”
(p. 60). Moreover, the process of Indigenous-centered social work provides an opportunity to
centre “Indigenous philosophies, values, histories, and theories in all their multiplicity –
similarities and differences, points of congruence and divergence” (p. 60). Indigenous
philosophies are significant for me because of my history; the duality of my families’ history and
place in this country; as well as the convergence of western and Indigenous parts of being and
the divergence thereof. I was raised with white western privilege.
The ongoing struggles for the identity of Métis people must be attended to in practice
(Richardson & Seaborn, 2009). While I believe that Richardson and Seaborn discuss the
importance of addressing particular challenges and considerations that exist uniquely for Métis
people, I also believe that this sentence conveys an important message for people of Métis
identity engaged in social work practice. Although I identify as being Aboriginal, specifically
Métis, the population where I engaged in for my practicum are also Aboriginal, specifically First
Nation of the Kwadacha Nation, and it would be remiss not to acknowledge some differential
facts. I have been born into a society that has granted me certain privileges; for example, most

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people recognize me as of European descent, I have grown up in a lower-middle-class home. I
have had the privilege of education, the privilege of learning about and not experiencing racism,
and predominately avoided discrimination. These privileges were juxtaposed to what I have
found within the Kwadacha Nation in Fort Ware, BC. Many people on the reserve live in multigenerational homes in cramped conditions, live near or below the poverty line, educational
opportunities are growing (the highest level of education attainable is grade 12), and racism and
discrimination are a predominant part of the people’s lives. Additionally, my parents and my
grandparents did not experience residential school and the hardships present there; whereas, in
Fort Ware, BC, there exists a prolific number of people who attended residential school or have
been affected by previous generations’ experiences from attending residential schools.

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Chapter 4: Literature Review
This chapter is divided into five sections. The first two section will include perspectives
on land and healing, one from western ideologies and the other from an Indigenous perspective.
These two perspectives will comprise the first two sections of this chapter. The first section
explores the effects of physical activity and space in the context of the self. The self and a sense
of belonging are often expressed through self-esteem and as such, much of the literature in this
section focuses on that area. The second section of this chapter will explore Indigenous
perspectives on culture, land, and healing. The third section of the literature review explores
science, technology, engineering, and math in regard to male Indigenous youth. The fourth
section briefly examines Indigenous masculinity. The final section of the literature review
examines concepts pertinent to remote social work practice.
Physical Activity, Space, and the Self
Physical activity affects self-esteem. Bayazit (2014) measured this phenomenon using
twenty girls with a pre- and post-test administration of the Coppersmith self-esteem inventory.
In between the administrations of the self-esteem inventories, the girls participated in
recreational activities, such as volleyball, basketball, orienteering, and dance. The program
lasted ten weeks, two days per week, and ninety minutes per day. The spread of the minimum
and maximum for the pre- and post-test scores was forty. The range of scores for the pre-test
was between sixteen and fifty-six, with a mean score of 36.20 (sd=10.09). The post-test scores
ranged from forty-four to eighty-four with a mean score of 58.80 (sd=11.68). The mode of the
pretest scores was forty-four, whereas the mode of the post-test scores was fifty-six. The
difference between the pre- and post-test scores was analyzed with a paired samples T-Test
resulting in a P value equal to 0.000, indicating a strong significance between the pre- and post-

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test self-esteem scores. These results support the notion that recreational activities influence
self-esteem. Although this research was conducted with female adolescent students and cannot
be generalized the working population of my practicum, these results are congruent with other
research (Carraro, Scarpa, & Ventura, 2010; Liu, Wu, & Ming, 2015), which will be discussed in
the paragraphs below.
Physical self-concept plays a crucial role throughout the adolescent years, a time when
individuals experience many changes to their bodies, biological sex differences become more
apparent, and higher physical performance is achieved. In a sample of 103 middle school
students aged 12 to 15 years, participants answered a physical self-concept questionnaire
developed by Marsh, Richards, Johnson, Roche, and Tremayne (1994) to measure the
multifaceted architects of physical self-concept (Carraro, Scarpa, & Ventura, 2010). This
seventy-item questionnaire measured eight components of physical self-concept: health,
coordination, activity, body fat, appearance, strength, flexibility, and endurance – and two global
components, global physical and global esteem. This questionnaire has good internal and
external validity. Although the research findings revealed insignificant positive correlations
between global esteem and physical fitness indicators, the endurance shuttle run had a
moderately significant correlation on global self-esteem (r= 0.37, p<0.05). Additionally,
MANCOVA calculations on the bent-arm hang showed an effect on self-esteem. This study
uncovers that while not all components of physical self-concept had a significant effect on selfesteem, there were some components, such as strength and endurance, which had greater
significant correlations with self-esteem.
Furthermore, some researchers examined the patterns of intrapersonal changes in global
self-esteem, physical self-perceptions, and physical activity. For instance, Lindwall, Asci, and

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Crocker (2014) used latent growth curve models to analyze the data for change patterns and
associations amongst those three variables and applied multivariate latent growth curve models
to estimate covariation of individual differences in the independent variables. They found that at
an intrapersonal level, there was a weak correlation amongst physical activity, global selfesteem, and physical self-perceptions (r = 0.12 – 0.28, p<0.01). They reported that higher values
of baseline measures in global self-esteem related to a reduced decline in physical activity over
time. In other words, lower baseline values of self-esteem revealed that participants were more
likely to stop or reduce physical activity over time. Variability in physical self-perceptions,
global self-esteem, and physical activity appeared to “travel together across time” (p. 557) and
were systematically interrelated.
As well, Lindwall et. al. (2014) demonstrated that a change in either physical selfperception, physical activity, or self-esteem reflected in a change in the other two variables. The
only predictive value was that of baseline self-esteem scores, which correlated to greater
adherence to physical activity continuance. In fact, changes in physical activity revealed a weak
and insignificant relationship to global self-esteem. Moreover, changes in physical activity had a
positive and significant relationship with global self-esteem and physical self-perception.
Overall, their research suggested that changes in self-esteem were significant and positive only
when changes in physical activity and physical self-perception were co-observed. Changes in
physical activity alone were not enough to reflect changes in self-esteem.
Another example from the literature comes from Liu, Wu, and Ming’s (2015) metaanalysis evaluating the effectiveness of physical activity interventions on self-esteem. These
researchers performed additional meta-regression analysis in an attempt to identify moderators
that affected the relationship between physical activity and self-esteem. The results of the study,

21

involving eighteen randomized control trials, showed a small, but significant effect of
interventions involving physical activity (g = 0.29, p<.001). Furthermore, they found that there
were five psychological mechanisms that potentially mediated subjective well-being and
physical activity. The first psychological mechanism was detachment recovery, which suggested
that the participant was building resources during the period of physical activity, allowing for
greater stress remediation and greater subjective well-being. In other words, physical activity
provided an escape from reality. The second psychological mechanism was autonomy, which
was a mediating link to subjective well-being and physical activity. The third psychological
mechanism was mastery, which was an activity that challenged and provided learning
opportunities, allowing the honing of skills and the achievement of new levels of success. The
fourth psychological mechanism was meaning. The physical activity needed to be meaningful
and provide purpose, focus, or be something of importance to the individual. The fifth, and final,
psychological mechanism was affiliation. Affiliation was a connection with others in social
situations. Affiliation is akin to Maslow’s third tier in the hierarchy of needs, belonging, and
Alderfer’s Existence Relationships Growth (ERG) theory describing relationships (Newman,
Tay, & Diener, 2014).
Another concept of effects on self-esteem comes from Bronfenbrenner (1979), who stated
that the ecological systems theory explains an interlinked and bidirectional relationship between
individuals and their roles in their physical and social environments. Here, Bronfenbrenner
suggested that there were different identified levels within the ecological systems: microsystems,
mesosystems, exosystems, and macrosystems. The microsystems include factors such as the
individual, family, and peers. The mesosystems include factors such as settings such as school,
home, work, and traditional territory. The exosystem include factors such as an individual’s

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culture, community culture, and spirituality. The macrosystems include factors such as
individual and community politics, government policy, economics, and employment options. In
other words, self-esteem did not develop within a vacuum and in fact, there were many factors
effecting self-esteem such as location, peers, home environment, and culture.
For youth, Bergstrome (2002) found that changes in self-esteem were more strongly
correlated with interventions involving school-related or extra-curricular activities. Pretty et al.
(2007) discovered that physical activity in the country affected mental and physical health
measures. The results of this investigation showed improvements in self-esteem and total mood
disturbances after completion or engagement in exercises in green environments such as country
settings or parks in urban spaces.
Land and Culture
There is a deep connection between the person and traditional territory. The relationship
is so strong as to suggest that there is a link between that relationship and intrinsic well-being.
Fred Kelly, an Anishinaabe Elder, states in The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
(2015),
To take the territorial lands away from a people whose very spirit is so intrinsically
connected to Mother Earth was to actually dispossess them of their very soul and being; it
was to destroy whole Indigenous nations. Weakened by disease and separated from their
traditional foods and medicines, First Nations Peoples had no defence against further
government encroachments on their lives (p. 225).
The processes of colonization created an environment or set of circumstances, which forced a
disconnect between Indigenous peoples and their traditional territory. Elder Fred Kelly explains
the reason why reconnecting with culture and land (traditional territory) is vital for healing the

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Indigenous soul. Exploring this concept further, I wish to explore what it means to be connected
to the land, or what connection is, and the benefits of that connection.
Being connected.
As land was stolen from Indigenous people, they often became disconnected from the
land in which their cultures, traditional knowledge, and languages were rooted (Root, 2010).
There is a healing power of nature, and returning to the land is a way of connecting individuals
to culture and promotes an intergenerational transfer of knowledge (Radu, House, &
Pashagumskum, 2014). Furthermore, Kirkmayer, et al. (2011) concluded that there was no real
separation between the person and the environment when they stated, “Thinking about the person
as fundamentally connected to the environment dissolves the opposition between nature and
culture” (p. 88-89). Connection to the land and the environment is rooted in personal and
cultural identity, and the search for traditional knowledge is also a spiritual quest (Kirkmayer et
al., 2011; Roué, 2006). Further to the notion that connection to the land is rooted in the cultural
identity of Indigenous peoples, there is a perception that the disruption of traditional roles for
men resulted in “profound problems of identity and self-esteem” (Kirkmayer et al., 2000, p.
610).
Connection Benefits.
There are two main areas of benefits from a connection with the land and culture to be
discussed in this section. First, I will explore the benefits that connection to land and culture
plays in the role of identity and self-esteem. Second, I will delve into the power that connection
to land and culture has in the healing process.
Identity and Self-esteem. Many benefits are conveyed when a connection to the land is
restored. Probably foremost in this list of benefits is that the damaging effects of cultural

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disconnection and loss of identity caused by colonization can be directly counteracted by
learning one’s language, culture, and tradition, which will strengthen a sense of identity
(Kirkmayer et at., 2011). Furthermore, learning about one’s Indigenous identity can be a catalyst
for healing and lead to a positive identity (Gregory, 2013). Facilitating connection and time on
the traditional territory of Indigenous peoples is a land-based activity. Land-based activities are
seen as facilitating connection to a Nations’ ways and culture, nature, family and community,
identity, and spirituality, as well as pride and self-esteem (Walsh et al., 2018). The concepts of
identity that Walsh et al. (2018), Gregory (2013), and Kirkmayer et al. (2011) discussed have
direct links to the discussions of global self-esteem and concepts of self-worth reviewed in the
previous pages of this report.
Healing. Healing on the land provides opportunities for youth to learn autonomy within
a familiar or communal setting (Roué, 2006) and furthermore, gives space and place for selfreflection, strength, and resilience (Radu et al., 2014). Spending time on one’s traditional
territory; participating in cultural activities, such as hunting, fishing, trapping, cooking traditional
foods; and many other cultural activities are all healing practices (Gregory, 2003). Healing is a
process of decolonization and provides a rebalance of systems of power (Radu, et al., 2014).
Furthermore, Radu et al., (2016) states, “the reciprocal and dialogic relationship with nature
provides not only the material needs but also the ethical, moral and spiritual underpinnings of
living a good life” (p. 93). Kirkmayer et al., (2011) describe how resilience is connected to
culture and tradition. They stated,
Ideas of resilience are grounded in cultural values that have persisted despite historical
adversity or have emerged out of the renewal of [I]ndigenous identities. These include
culturally distinctive concepts of the person, the importance of collective history, the

25

richness of Aboriginal language and traditions, and the importance of individual and
collective agency and activism (p. 88).
Land and Culture Concluded
There are many benefits to participating in land-based cultural activities, especially when
enjoyed on Indigenous traditional territories. With the presence of changing times,
decolonization, and a re-appropriation of culture, defining how these cultural and traditional
practices are exercised, is important. There needs to be a recognition that,
All cultures constantly evolve, and cultural and ethnic identity must be understood as
inventions of contemporary people responding to their current situation. This is not to
question the authenticity of tradition but to insist that culture be appreciated as a cocreation of people responding to their circumstances-an ongoing construction that is
contested from within and without (Kirkmayer et al., 2000, p. 611).
As culture and healing take place in an indigenous and de-colonizing perspective, we need to be
prepared to move forward with connection to traditional territories and making space for healing;
sometimes this healing may be through an evolutionary process, sometimes it may be
uncomfortable, but always created from a space of resilience towards a greater life.
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math
There appears to be limited information in the research literature regarding technology
within Indigenous communities and youth; however, the work that does exist suggests a need for
Indigenous communities to not only be engaged as consumers of technology, but also as
architects of technology (Prins, 2002). Bang, Marin, Faber, and Suzukovich (2013) researched
the repatriation of Indigenous technologies in an urban setting and found that technology and
tools were no longer viewed as objects of authoritarian origin with roots outside of the

26

Indigenous community. Instead, they revealed that teachers and students became producers of
technology for implementation in the development of their own knowledge.
One way to conceptualize technology is to understand it through science, technology,
engineering, and math [STEM], which is a curriculum that focuses on those four disciplines to
aid students with problem-solving skills, creativity, teamwork, technology knowledge, and
intellectual flexibility. It would be an understatement to describe the research into the effects of
learning technology and young men as scarce. Most of the research currently into STEM
involves adolescent girls. This disparity is understandable when examining the disparity of
gender representation in the STEM fields. However, there is some research into STEM field
participation indiscriminate of gender. Sahin, Ayar, and Adiguzel (2014) discussed the
importance of collaborative learning groups, which is a way of learning from each other to
expand expertise or knowledge and efficiency through collaboration. Their research showed that
the learner became better able to address and solve daily issues through the development of
twenty-first century applied skills such as critical thinking; problem-solving; creativity
(Association for Career and Technical Education, 2010); accessing and analyzing information;
curiosity; and imagination (Wagner, 2008).
Indigenous Masculinities
I believe that the main definition of masculinity emerges from the dominant white
patriarchy and is propagated by education systems, government systems, and the media and
entertainment industries. Because these ideas are so dominant and pervasive, they are
normalized through everyday interactions: Innes & Anderson, 2015 state:
These perceptions are so pervasive; it is next to impossible for Indigenousmen not to be
exposed to them. As a result of the colonization of their lands, minds, and bodies, many

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Indigenous men not only come to accept these perceptions but also come to internalize
them. (p. 10)
The dominant space of masculinity includes ideas and phrases such as “man-up,” “don’t be a
pussy,” “grow a pair,” or “big boys don’t cry.” As per Morgensen (2015), these masculine
ideologies “arose to violently control and replace distinctive gender systems among Indigenous
peoples” (p. 42). A part of the colonization process of forced assimilation was to route the
current culture and paradigms of the subjugated people; this included the idea of what it meant to
be an Indigenous male and their place within the social order.
An example of tradition Indigenous masculinity can be found in the way of life and from
the creation stories of the Diné (Navajo) people. As this is a winter story, according to Diné
tradition, I will not include it here because the traditions state that the story should only be shared
during the winter. In summary, it is a story of the twin protectors who searched for their father,
the sun; in this story, one of the twin’s behaviours resonated with what it meant to be a Diné
man. Some of these exemplary behaviours included taking responsibility for their actions,
protecting people from the monsters of their time, being triumphant in fear, demonstrating
independence, and showing a strong sense of identity. A Diné man must be knowledgeable,
unafraid of responsibility, and protect his family and people. The priorities of the Diné men
belonged to others first and themselves second (Lee, 2015).
As well, there are Tsek’ene stories about the dangers in the forest, local fauna, and other
narratives. However, none of these contain messages regarding men’s place in the social
structure and what it meant to be a Tsek’ene male. Historically, men were the hunters and
during times of scarcity and travelled great distances to provide for their families. Future discord

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with Tsek’ene Elders may reveal additional knowledge regarding creation stories and Tsek’ene
masculinity (personal communication, Dune Tiyh Society, January 2020).
The circumstances of Indigenous men, however distinct, are in many ways not dissimilar
to those of Indigenous women; nevertheless, I argue that these circumstances have not been
adequately acknowledged in the media beyond reports of criminal behaviours. For example, in
Canada Indigenous men are more likely to be incarcerated, murdered, have shorter lifespans, and
are more likely to fail to graduate high school (Innes & Anderson, 2015). These situations may
be perpetuated or supported by stereotypes of maleness and masculinities as propagated by the
media. In an examination of research from the 1990s, Antone (2015) found that men generally
felt trapped in the masculinity of American society: a gun-toting, John Wayne mentality. As
Antone stated, “Much of the work we reviewed did not discourage this individualistic way of
thinking. We were looking for the materials that spoke to the virtues of Indigenous values or, at
the very least, culturally neutral ones” (p. 29).
These stereotypes are not generally conducive to Tsek’ene cultural traditions, where there
is a sense of community, assistance, and selflessness, concepts that are promoted and cultivated
in the community. For example, the school annually presents an award to a community member
under 55 years of age who demonstrates Tsek’ene traditions and whose values reveal the
importance and continued reinforcement of Tsek’ene ideals and traits. This award carries the
namesake of Francis Charlie, who exemplified Tsek’ene values in his daily living. In addition,
the Tsigazi award is presented in recognition to a school age child for exemplifying Tsek’ene
values and traditions. With the presentation of these two awards, it becomes clear that the school
and community of Fort Ware desire to continue promoting Tsek’ene traditional values. It is
important when working with Indigenous male youths to understand what it means to be a

29

developing man in a modern Tsek’ene community and within the cultural way of being; one
must try to comprehend developing a definition of masculinity in contravention of current,
colonial, and narrowly defined standards of maleness and masculinity (personal communication,
S. McCook, September 2019).
Elders are at the centre of Tsek’ene culture. They are the holders of language and
traditional teachings. The Elders of the Kwadacha Nation form the Dune Tiyh Koh, the Elder’s
Society. Dune Tiyh Koh translates from Tsek’ene to English as “Wise People’s House”
(Kwadacha.com, 2016). The Dune Tiyh Koh provides guidance and support to members of the
Kwadacha Nation; resident professionals, such as teachers and counsellors; and visiting
professionals. The Elders are respected in the community and provide necessary and important
guidance.
Remote Social Work
Defining remote social work is an arduous process. Often, scholars are unable to discuss
remote social work without resorting to other descriptors such as rural (Collier, 2006) and
northern. However, remote does not necessarily equate with northern, as in many contexts, the
hinterland regions are not located geographically north (Zapf, 2009). However, northern is an
effective descriptor for my practicum as the community is located significantly in the north of
the province: Fort Ware, BC falls above the 57th parallel, whereas the Canadian border is on the
49th parallel. Remote social work is social work carried out in a remote location, or in the case of
my practicum, a remote community. A remote community can be defined as a community being
“off the grid,” where the community is neither connected to the electrical or natural gas systems
of the rest of the province (Natural Resources Canada, 2011). Fort Ware fits within this
definition of a remote community as most homes are powered by a diesel generator and heated

30

with either electricity, wood, or a combination of both. The government of Canada defined
remote as “a geographical area where a First Nations community is located over 350 km from the
nearest service centre having year-round road access” (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2018).
Specific and significant feelings often coexist when working in a remote community.
There can be feelings of isolation, separation, loneliness, and distance. Distance can be created
through a sense of disconnection from mainstream services, such as a hospital, law enforcement,
and court systems. Remote social work can also be marked by circumstances that present a
“fish-bowl-effect,” dual roles, boundary issues, and non-conventional work hours that require
flexibility. These characteristics sometimes bring difficulties to the remote social work
experience. However, the opportunity to work in a remote social work setting also brings
exciting opportunities. A remote location can provide opportunities to work creatively, fulfill a
variety of roles, develop an understanding of the community and people, and immerse yourself
into the work in ways one cannot experience in an urban setting (Schmidt, 2008).
Literature Review Final Thoughts
Generally, there was a need to engage male youth in the Fort Ware community and
provide opportunities for them to receive entertainment from pro-social activities, including
afterschool activities and weekend activities. The research indicated that the opportunity to
engage in cultural practices on traditional territory and afterschool sports promoted increased
self-esteem, stress reduction, and connection, and these effects were especially enhanced when
done in green spaces. Furthermore, engaging in STEM activities as part of expanded learning
opportunities provided an additional area of exploration that may lead to increased attendance at
school; the development of translatable life skills, such as problem solving and critical thinking;
and becoming developers of technology. During these activities in my practicum, there were

31

opportunities to engage in mentoring practices with the youth surrounding ideas of Indigenous
masculinity and what this meant for them, and how they fostered and supported the development
of Tsek’ene male ideologies in themselves and their community.

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Chapter 5: Activities, Tasks, and Learning
While engaged in my practicum experience, I expanded upon my knowledge gained
through historical experiences, such as my time with Scouts Canada, both as a youth and a Scout
leader; during my employment with community corrections; and through my current position as
a community justice coordinator with the Kwadacha Nation. The focus of my practicum
experience was to engage male youth in three areas of pro-social activities: (1) STEM activities,
specifically electronics; (2) land and culturally based activities; and (3) understanding the ideals
of Tsek’ene maleness. Within my practicum, I achieved a greater understanding of program
development in social work practice and in three main areas of understanding. Firstly, I
experienced a greater understanding of the role of a social worker in a school setting. Secondly,
I developed a youth program for young men that incorporated many factors, such as skill
development, Tsek’ene masculinity, culture, and ceremony. Thirdly, I engaged in self-care
throughout my practicum. What follows is an exploration of these goals in greater detail.
Role as a School Social Worker
I wanted to expand my understanding of the requirements for engaging in social work
practice in a school environment. In this, I wanted to explore the policies, protocols, and
procedures of Aatse Davie School. Additionally, I sought to engage and integrate with the
school staff and faculty. Furthermore, I wanted to conduct myself as a professional social
worker and engaged in ethical practice. Below is a discussion of my practicum in terms of my
intentions, how I experienced my practicum, and the learnings I took from it regarding northern
remote practice and myself.

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Policies, Protocols, and Procedures
Ethical and effective engagement at Aatse Davie School meant understanding the
school’s protocols, policies, and procedures. For the purposes of the activities in which I was
engaged at the school, I utilized school permission slips, food order forms, and purchase order
forms. I provided permission slips to the boys attending the weekend group trips; these slips
listed departure and arrival times, location of the trip, and who accompanied the boys. The
permission slips were returned to the school before the departure of the weekend outing. If any
of the boys were in the care of the Ministry of Children and Family Development, the local
social worker responsible for the file signed the permission slips. Upon the boys’ arrival back
into the community, each was dropped off at their respective homes. Sometimes, for reasons of
administrative sanction, some boys were prohibited from participating in extracurricular
activities; as such, I regularly consulted a whiteboard in the staff room to observe if any of the
boys were prohibited from attending the outings.
One of the most important practices of the boys’ group was enlisting the assistance of a
local guide. This person led the youth in culturally based activities on the traditional territory of
the Kwadacha Nation. Many of the activities involved hunting, fishing, and guidance
surrounding culturally appropriate methods of tending to locally harvested flora and fauna. The
plan was that when an animal such as a beaver or moose was harvested, the youth had the
opportunity to learn and practice the skills and techniques for skinning and preparing the meat
and other useable parts of the animal. The local guides were extremely important to the boys’
group experiences; without them, the outing may have been limited to an escape from the
stresses at home and school, but instead the boys achieved a stronger cultural experience. While
the guides were important, when they were not available the outing was still beneficial for the

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boys in attendance, but lacked the deep cultural experience provided with the presence of the
guide.
Policies, procedures, and practices were an important component of my practicum
experience. The practices of the guides shaped my understanding of how to engage with the
youth in a culturally appropriate manner. My previous experiences with Scouts Canada shaped
my understanding of how to supervise youth in a wilderness setting. During one of my first
outings with the youth, we set up camp along the Finlay River’s bank and the guide was
preparing to take youth down river for a hunting trip. Many of the youth wanted to go, but a few
wanted to stay behind at the campsite. The guide stated that it was okay. Although I was
anxious and wanted to have either myself or the teacher chaperone remain behind, the guide
insisted that this situation was acceptable. I took a quick head count of all the youth: 14. While
no animals were harvested on this hunting trip, it was still successful. The youth watched eagles
and fished for minnows along the bank. Upon my return to the campsite, I discovered that the
youth who choose to remain behind had built a lean-to to sleep outside, as opposed to sleeping in
the wall-tent. Upon my return to the campsite, I did another head count to account for all youth.
As my practicum progressed, I became less concerned with managing risk and the safety of the
youth, and became more immersed in the moment; however, I still continued to do head counts
to make sure we came back with all the youth with whom we departed. A takeaway learning
opportunity from this experience from a de-colonizing perspective can be summed up as an
unlearning of western perspectives of safety and supervision towards an understanding of
Tsek’ene perspectives of safety and supervision. This was a powerful learning moment during
my practicum experience and will be important to remember this lesson moving forward to

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adjust my understanding and expectations to accommodate the perspectives of the population
with whom I am working.
Integration with School, Staff, and Faculty
Integration with the school was an important part of my practicum. Firstly, when
possible given my travel and scheduling requirements, I attended all staff and faculty functions
including staff meetings and social functions. One of the most memorable staff functions was a
Christmas party event with “Elf Party” as the theme. At this event, staff got ready for the
students’ Christmas function and wrapped presents for the Santa visit. I also attended other
integrative activities such as staff and faculty sports nights as well as participated in special event
activities, including Orange Shirt Day.
Secondly, one of the most important integration activities was attending the school and
visiting the classrooms of the students I worked with during boys’ groups. I was present at Aatse
Davie School at the beginning and the conclusion of each school day I was in Fort Ware. I did
this during my regular workday and did not count these minutes toward my practicum. I
believed this activity was vitally important. Being in the classroom gave me a greater
understanding of the students in their formal educational environments. For instance, during one
of my school visits, I walked and spoke with a student from the junior boy’s group who was
pacing the hallway. He shared that he took a break from the classroom to clear his mind. We
talked about his current issue and discussed potential solutions. I also asked why he did not
attend the last few boys’ groups. He replied that it was because he thought he was not allowed to
participate. We talked about his behaviour during an afterschool activity and why he was asked
to leave (by a school administrator who overheard the interaction) for that specific activity.
Although I had followed up with him the next day, he still believed he could not attend any

36

further extracurricular and weekend trips. I clarified this again during our conversation, and he
attended the next and consecutive activities. My presence at the school and willingness to
engage in conversations with the students helped to build these pathways to communication.
The importance of these encounters was evidenced in the story itself; moreover, if I did not
attend the school and had this random encounter, then this young man may not have re-engaged
in activities due to a lack of connection.
As well during school visits, I built and enhanced relationships with school staff and
faculty beyond which would have occurred through participation in staff meetings and activities.
I accomplished this through spending time in the staff room and by visiting classrooms. I gained
insight into student difficulties and successes. Furthermore, I coordinated and collaborated with
school faculty regarding extracurricular school activities, such as the weekend junior boy’s group
trips and the electronics club. Integration with the school, faculty, and staff proved to be an
invaluable component of my practicum.
Professional Social Worker – Ethical Practice
While examining the British Columbia Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics
(BCASW.org., 2020), three of the eleven codes were challenging to meet. The third ethical
guideline states, “A social worker shall carry out her or his [sic] professional duties and
obligations with integrity and objectivity (para. 4).” This ethical guideline was important as I did
my best to attend my social work practicum during agreed upon dates and times, although there
were factors that made it difficult. I did not live in the Fort Ware community full-time, so
intermittent weather and a university faculty and staff strike affected my practicum schedule.
For instance, I missed two planned trips to Fort Ware due to the plane not being able to land
because of visibility issues and diverting back to Prince George. As well, during November

37

2019, a strike involving faculty and staff at the University of Northern British Columbia
prevented me from attending two boys’ group events; although I did not attend, one of the
planned events still occurred and the boys were accompanied by other adults in the community.
As a result of not being able to practice in a preferred manner and to address this disconnect
between ethics and practicality, I maintained constant communication with my placement
supervisor, supporting professionals, local guides, and others as appropriate. In this way, I felt I
upheld the third ethical guideline despite being affected by externally controlled forces.
The second BCASW ethical guideline related to my practicum experience and states, “A
social worker shall have and maintain competence in the provision of a social work service to a
client” (para. 5). In preparation for and throughout my practicum, I read relevant materials, such
as Indigenous Men and Masculinities, edited by R. Innes and K. Anderson and Lost at School,
written by R. Greene. Both of these books helped me begin to understand social work in a
school setting, provided perspectives on Indigenous masculinities, and helped me contemplate
what it meant to be an Indigenous male.
Further to this, I met with members of the Elders Council of the Dune Tiyh Koh (Elders
Society) to gain an understanding of being a Tsek’ene male and the roles of these men in the
community. The Elders Council imparted great insight into this area of conversation, and this
report contains further discussion of this aspect in a proceeding sub-section.
A portion of my practicum involved working with the youth in electronic STEM projects.
Although I had a background in electronics and programming, I still researched, constructed, and
troubleshot electronics projects and the associated program codes before presenting them to the
youth to facilitate a smoother process. This preparation included building the projects, figuring

38

out nuances, and learning enough about the components well enough to share this information
with the youth effectively.
BCASW ethical guidelines six and seven had a significant perspective on my role as a
practicum student: “[a] social worker shall protect the confidentiality of all professionally
acquired information. She or he [sic] shall disclose such information only when required or
allowed by law to do so, or when clients have consented to disclosure” and “[a] social worker
who engages in another profession, occupation, affiliation or calling shall not allow these outside
interests to affect the social work relationship with the client, professional judgment,
independence and/or competence” (paras. 7 – 8). As I have been, and am currently, employed
by the Kwadacha Nation as the Khutsedzik’e’ Coordinator, there were many times when my
roles as a Khutsedzik’e’ Coordinator and a practicum student converged. For instance, a student
involved with the junior boys’ group was also involved with criminal activity in the community.
As a result of the criminal investigation, I received a referral from the local Royal Canadian
Mounted Police detachment for pre-charge diversion. Although I had to proceed with the justice
circle immediately and no other community justice forums facilitators were available to
facilitate, I still clarified my roles and responsibilities with the youth involved. Three days later,
the young man was in the passenger seat of the school van that I was driving. The other young
men present in the back of the van made quite a ruckus that day, so I found a private moment
with the young man to remind him that what happened in the village did not pertain to the
current youth trip. Where we were now, I was not the “justice guy,” but a student working with
the school and enjoying this moment with everyone else. I assured him that I was available if he
wanted to discuss what had happened and the outcome, although that was the last conversation
we had regarding this matter. Through this and many instances similar to it, I learned that being

39

open and transparent helped navigate this duality of roles with relative ease; this was an
important consideration when remaining ethical within northern remote practice, and without
harming the relationship of trust and security (coldwar.org, 2020).
Program Development
I had many goals I wanted to accomplish during my practicum at Aatse Davie School.
One of these goals was developing and expanding existing programs at Aatse Davie School,
focusing on the senior and junior boys’ groups. I emphasized strengthening the junior boy’s
group and creating a senior boy’s group. Additionally, I discussed my learnings about Tsek’ene
masculinity, how culture and ceremony were incorporated into the program, and finally, the
electronics club.
The Boys’ Groups
As discussed earlier, there were two boy’s groups, one for the junior boys and one for the
senior boys. These groups functioned similarly, but since each had different outcomes and
learnings, as such each group is discussed separately below.
Senior Boy’s group. The senior boy’s group had a bi-weekly after school electronics
activity and a bi-monthly weekend cultural activity. To prepare for the semi-weekly afterschool
electronics activity, I visited classrooms and displayed an example of an electronic activity.
There was interest shown and I announced that the first after school activity would take place
that day after school. Three youth popped their heads into the classroom after school that day
and mentioned they would be back in a moment; however, none returned. Over the course of the
coming months – throughout the school year – the senior boys showed no further interest in
coming to the afterschool activities. While this remained true, I continued to try and build
interest though classroom visits and school announcements. As well, I still prepared and waited

40

at the prescribed meeting location for each of the semi-weekly meetings in case a youth attended.
I hoped that remaining consistent would result in participation by the senior boys; this proved to
be a false presumption.
The second component of the senior boy’s group was semi-monthly cultural outings. A
local guide led these outings at a camping location on the traditional territory of the Kwadacha
Nation. Opportunities for recreation, teamwork exercises, and leadership development were
developed during these outings. Disappointedly, these events were attended with
underwhelming results. Although the trips were planned for the senior boys’ groups, often the
senior boys would cancel last minute, and I sought permission for other boys to attend.
However, there were two examples when a boy or a group of boys approached me and inquired
about arranging a trip.
In particular, I want to share how a group of the senior boys exhibited both leadership
qualities and teamwork skills. During a winter activity event at Jake Lake, two boys left to ride a
snowmobile on and around the lake. About thirty minutes later, the two boys returned to the
camp, but on foot. They had inadvertently stuck the snowmobile in a deep snowbank and could
not move it. Those two boys, two other boys, and the guide all walked back across the lake to
help remove the snowmobile from the snowbank. Of note, the two boys who originally took the
skidoo out for a ride were less experienced riders. One of the boys who helped remove the
snowmobile was an experienced rider and ended up showing the lesser experienced riders a
method to get the snowmobile out of the snowbank without having to dig it out. Through this
example, I observed teamwork when the group offered assistance and leadership when the
experienced rider taught the less experienced riders some snowmobile techniques and skills.

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Junior Boy’s Group. I modelled the junior boy’s group similarly as the senior boy’s
group and provide similar opportunities so there would be consistency and familiarity when the
junior boys transitioned to the next group. The junior boy's group received a formal name in
Tsek’ene: Natsidootasii, which translates to ‘let’s go’ (F. Seymour & A. Hocken, personal
communication, January 30, 2019). Natsidootasii incorporated bi-weekly extracurricular
activities and bi-monthly outings onto the traditional territory.
As stated earlier, at the beginning of my practicum I visited classrooms and shared an
example of electronic activities for the boy’s groups. The junior boys showed interest.
Furthermore, I announced that the first afterschool activity would take place that day after
school. Many young men showed up for the first session and subsequent sessions.
These bi-weekly meetings of Natsidootasii contained multiple discussion themes. The
first theme was exploring culture, identity, and masculinity. Through our discussions, we spoke
about who we are and how we fit within our familial systems. One topic that resonated with me
was how identity extended from and was molded by popular media and the entertainment
industry. During one meeting, I presented the junior boys with two audio clips and asked them
to identify the eagle. One audio clip was what media often uses to portray the sound of an eagle,
whereas the second audio clip was the actual sound of an eagle. All these young men who have
spent most of their life in wilderness setting with the presence of eagles had mis-identified the
sound of the eagle; which further highlights the power of media over experience. What they
identified as being the eagle was, in reality, the call of a hawk. We discussed why the media and
entertainment industry might use the sound of a hawk as opposed to an eagle. We discussed how
the call of the hawk sounded more aggressive, whereas the eagle call sounded less-strong and not
reminiscent of what the young men wanted to identify with. Tsek’ene culture has a lot of respect

42

and admiration for the eagle, which is a sign of good luck and messages from the ancestors
(Dune Tiyh Koh, personal communication, January 30, 2020). That very next weekend, the
junior boys and I went on a cultural outing hunting along the Finlay River, south of Fort Ware.
The young men heard the call of a bird and wondered what bird it was; they heard the call again
and identified the call as the sound of an eagle. After walking around a couple of bends in the
river, a flock of eagles greeted us as they feasted on something along the riverbank. We
connected the discussion from the previous afterschool activity to that the weekend activity, and
many of the boys appeared excited by recognizing the call of the eagle.
The second component of Natsidootasii was the bi-monthly weekend cultural activities.
Much like the senior boy’s group, the junior boy’s group were accompanied by a local guide
who, somewhere upon the traditional territory of the Kwadacha Nation, led the youth in cultural
activities, such as hunting and fishing, and shared of traditional knowledge, such as skinning
animals and preparing harvested meats. Furthermore, there were recreation activities, teamwork
opportunities, and leadership development. Attendance varied and sometimes there were as few
as five participants and sometimes as many as fourteen. On one weekend outing, the youth
gathered felled logs and brought them to the campsite for processing. One of these logs was
heavy and needed more than two youth to transport it. With encouragement from the guide and
leaders, each youth grabbed a section of this log and carried it to the campsite together. This
became a learning opportunity to realize that together they can accomplish much more than
individually.
On another practicum activity on the Finlay River south of the village, another leadership
opportunity arose for the boys. Some of the youth wanted to sleep outside, as opposed to the
majority of the youth and the adult accompaniments, who slept in a wall tent with a wood stove.

43

One of the older junior boys built a lean-to and showed the younger boys how to build it,
including adding a raised shelf. A couple of the boys ended up sleeping on the brush under this
shelf. What stood out for me during this particular outing was that one of the youth took on
many leadership opportunities, encouraging the others and sharing instruction on shooting a rifle;
this same youth had been sent to the principal’s office daily in the week prior to leaving for the
trip, but after the trip was not sent to the principal’s office due to misbehavior or any other
reason both of these experiences demonstrated a degree of success shared by those who
participated in the junior boy’s groups.
Concluding Thoughts on the Boys’ Groups
While the boys’ groups targeted different age groups, there were two overarching themes.
First, the boys’ groups were marked generally by cooperation and cheerfulness despite a few
occasions of disagreeable or unexpected behaviours. Green (2009) states:
The vast majority of challenging kids already know how we want them to behave. They
know they’re supposed to do what they’re told. They know they’re not supposed to
disrupt the learning of their classmates or run out of the school when they’re upset or
embarrassed. And they know they’re not supposed to hit people, swear, or call out in
class. So they don’t need us to put lots of effort into teaching them how we want them to
behave. And while this may be hard to believe, most challenging kids already want to
behave the right way. They don’t need us to continue giving them stickers, depriving
them of recess, or suspending them from school; they’re already motivated. They need
something else from us. (p. 7)
Had I not read this passage early on in my practicum, I may have continued to deal with
behavioural situations in ineffective ways. I found what worked well in addressing difficult to

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handle behaviours was exploring the situation with the youth and discussing what they needed
from the situation. For example, one youth thought that I was not paying enough attention to
their needs while focusing on another youth. Therefore, I had to develop further my skill of
managing differing needs within a group dynamic. This experience also allowed me to
experience and put into practice a trauma-informed perspective, as I looked into the needs of the
youth behind the behaviour and not focused solely on the behaviour. I am reminded, Poole,
Talbot, & Nathoo (2016) stated that when working with youth, from a trauma informed
perspective, the greatest effect on a youth is the relationship between the youth and the worker.
By focusing on the needs of each individual in the group and not the needs of the group, I was
better able to build relationships with the youth, which created a safe place and a closer
relationship.
The second overarching theme was the notion that youth can and will do well or perform
as expected when given the opportunity to do so, an argument supported by Green (2009). I
observed this notion many times throughout my practicum. For example, the youth discussed
above who visited the principal’s office daily prior to an outing experienced change in
behaviours immediately after participating in the weekend groups. Furthermore, I observed the
phenomenon that youth would succeed when given the opportunity while engaged in the
weekend cultural outings. The boys who frequently exhibited challenging behaviours during the
semi-weekly afterschool activities would often take on leadership roles during the weekend
outings, displaying helping behaviours. The development of this change echoes the healing
characteristics that Radu et al., (2014); Roué (2006); and Gregory (2003) discussed when
connection to traditional territories and culture are participated in and experienced. The youth
are in a safe place, comfortable, and able to express their internal resilience, it is not a stretch of

45

the imagination that these transformations are observed. It was amazing to observe and
experience the transformation of these boys.
Masculinity
Exploring ideas of masculinity led me on two parallel and often convergent paths. The
first path was reading material on Indigenous masculinity and the second path was talking with
Elders in the community of Fort Ware. Through both paths, I gained insights into principles of
Indigenous masculinity, and specifically, Tsek’ene masculinity.
Indigenous Masculinity
Antone (2015) discussed the reconstruction of Indigenous masculine thought and why
there was a need to reconstruct this thought. He stated that prior to colonial influences, ideas and
facets of Indigenous masculinity were culturally bound. After the colonization of the land, the
culturally relevant ideas of Indigenous masculinity changed into that of a “John Wayne” sense of
masculinity. Regarding colonialism and masculinity, Antone further stated:
Five hundred years of contact riddled with atrocities has left behind a society of
Indigenous men lacking true joyful identities, their authentic humanness erased by
generations and countless acts of violence against them. These experiences have left
beings who have survived through small acts of control and power, who have become
household oppressors. They mimic the oppressors they hate, as if this is the only way to
be a man. (p. 33-4)
In other words, we learn from what we see and experience. Indigenous people experienced
many ineffective examples of Indigenous masculinity through the processes of colonization,
including residential schools, “child welfare”, and the criminal justice system. The reality of the
situation is that, although the historical trauma of Indigenous masculinity is not the fault of

46

Indigenous people, it is still their responsibility to learn what it means to live as an Indigenous
male within contemporary society and within their culture.
How can Indigenous men reclaim their personages and masculinity identities? Antone
(2015) asserted that to understand Indigenous masculinities, we need to understand the creation
story of Indigenous peoples. Indigenous creation stories relate to the creation of the people and
the masculine role in those stories are indicative of the vast cultures of Indigenous peoples in
Canada.
I had hoped to share the creation stories of both the Cree or Métis-Cree and Kwadacha
Nations, to both explore my own creation story and assist with the young men in exploring
theirs. However, I encountered two obstacles. The first obstacle was that at the time of this
writing, I was unable to hear to a story from an Elder in the Kwadacha Nation. When I asked
about the creation story, the Elders did not share this story with me. I am unsure if this was
because the Elders were too shy to share or because of a fear of outsiders caused by the effects of
colonialism and a fear of transfer of knowledge to a document such as this report; as such, I did
not press the conversation further. As well, when researching Cree or Métis-Cree creation
stories, I discovered that both cultures share creation stories involving Wisakecahk. However,
stories about Wisakecahk are to be shared during the winter months only and are meant to be
narrated and shared, not simply read. Given these factors from each of the Kwadacha, Cree, and
Métis-Cree creation stories, and out of cultural respect and honour, I am not sharing their
creation stories within this report. Nevertheless, I encourage everyone, including the reader, to
seek out creation stories in order to understand and internalize the messages and teachings found
with those stories.

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Tsek’ene Masculinity
I wanted to understand the role of men and masculinity in Tsek’ene culture and
traditions. Therefore, I utilized opportunities to speak with and listen to the Elders of the
community. The Elders, both male and female, shared many stories and much wisdom. The
following are my interpretations of the pieces of knowledge and stories shared; however, the
Elders of the Dune Tiyh Koh reviewed and approved these writings to be included as part of my
practicum report.
One of the first lessons I learned related to grandfathers and their role in the family.
Traditionally the grandfather was an essential role in a child’s life. The grandfather taught
children how to be self-sufficient and these teachings continued until the child reached the age of
ten. One Elder shared a story in which, after he turned ten years old, he was taken to a trapline
and left alone for three days to show his skills and self-reliance. Seeking guidance from the
grandfathers is congruent with the importance of looking to the Elders for guidance. Before the
men become grandfathers, they are often fathers. Fathers’ responsibilities were to teach their
sons how to hunt, fish, and take care of the household. The fathers protected the family and
brought home what the family needed for survival. When I asked about gender roles, the Elders
informed me that binary gender roles were often blurred, and with no significant difference
between men and women regarding chores.
Before the men in the village became fathers and grandfathers, and prior to the
introduction of western ideas of religion and matrimony, they respectfully courted not only a
woman, but also courted the woman’s family. The men spent a season with her family. Before
the introduction of western ideas of religion and matrimony, one had to prove to the prospective
spouse’s family that you could take responsibility for your spouse and support her and future

48

children. The courting male was often required to spend an entire year with the spouse’s family
to demonstrate he had the required skills and would be able to keep their daughter safe and free
from harm.
One man who exemplified the ideals of Tsek’ene masculinity so well that the community
memorialized his legacy. His name was Frances Charlie. Aatse Davie School presents an award
to a community member who demonstrates behaviour in their life exemplifying the personage of
Frances Charlie. Frances Charlie was dedicated to helping community members, especially
those in need. He was a widow with children and was a Tsek’ene male who espoused a strong
understanding of family. Francis Charlie was a watcher of the people and checked in with other
families to ensure they had the necessary provisions. While he was always moving around, he
was always there to help. Recently, the school presented the Francis Charlie award to a male
adult community member who is known in the community to offer support, supply hunted meat,
and generally take care of the community.
Masculinity Concluded
At the outset of my practicum, I discussed issues of masculinity formally and then later,
informally; however, there was minimal interest from the youth to discuss this topic. What I
found effective during my practicum was challenging toxic masculinity as it occurred. There
were two experiences over the course of my practicum. One of these experiences occurred
during the first few weeks of my practicum as the youth, the local guide, other chaperones, and
myself completed cleaning up after dinner. The sun had long since rested behind the mountains.
We camped near the roadside and occasionally saw vehicle lights heading north or south along
the road; however, one set of lights turned into the camp site. We were greeted by the guide’s
partner and his children. She had brought supplies to make s’mores. One of the boys exclaimed,

49

“I thought this was boys’ group.” I called him by name, to gain his attention, and then responded
with, “I think what you meant to say is, thank you for bringing s’mores.” He then responded
positively and thanked the person for bringing s’mores.
Another example happened during camp in the wintertime. The boys needed to haul
firewood and one boy did not carry as much as the other boys. One of the other boys called him
a little girl, and he responded by throwing something across the yard. I gathered those two boys
together, asked what he meant by calling him a little girl, and asked the other boy why he
behaved by throwing an object in an aggressive manner; I believe I challenged both areas of
toxic masculinity through challenging the name calling and through challenging a physical
response to conflict. After a brief conversation and addressing each other’s feelings, the two
boys recognized that verbally mocking others and throwing objects was unacceptable; it also
allowed the one boy an opportunity to explain that he was embarrassed to ask for assistance
because a piece of firewood he was to carry became stuck.
Although working with the young men to understand masculinity and what it meant to be
a Tsek’ene male occurred in a way I did not plan for, I found ways to have discussions and
challenge ideology within everyday occurrences. I learned that it is effective to challenge toxic
masculinity in the moment, encouraging the young men to espouse the standards of the
community and of the school, and of the example provided by Frances Charlie.
Culture and Ceremony
Culture and ceremony were important components of the boys’ groups. There were
three main examples of culture and ceremony that I observed while engaged with the guides
during the practicum experience. The first example of culture I encountered was after a hunt on
the river. A couple of boys had harvested small game. One of the boys did not want to skin the

50

animal; however, the local guide encouraged the young man and promised assistance if needed.
The young man needed no further encouragement and only minimal assistance as verbal
direction. Once he finished harvesting the hide from the animal, I could see a sense of pride and
accomplishment that would not otherwise have been present but for engaging in and
implementing the cultural skills the youth possessed.
The second example of culture I wish to share occurred during a winter weekend outing.
We were spending the weekend out at a local lake and during the second day of the weekend trip
the young men were guided to another lake a short snowmobile ride away. Here the youth were
provided the opportunity to engage in an ice-fishing competition. The boys spent the better part
of the afternoon fishing in holes in the ice and, when not actively engaged in fishing, they were
playing around on the lake with the snowmobiles. Although no fish were caught, the boys
appeared to enjoy the competition.
The last example of culture and ceremony I wish to share relates to ceremony. The
ceremony I wish to discuss correlates to the resolution of conflict and the sharing of stories: the
ceremony of council fire. The ceremony of council fire is held with what can be boiled down to
two basic guidelines: respect the circle and respect the talking piece. Council fire involves the
participants sitting in a circle around a fire that is prepared specifically for the event.
Participants will take turns sharing and talking before passing on the talking piece. For the boy’s
group, council fire was used more specifically when a conflict arose, and the youth were not able
to resolve the conflict in the moment. Council fire allowed the youth to address the issue and
resolve the conflict without resorting to violence. Anyone at any time can call for council for
any reason. Pre-practicum experience had exposed me to council fire procedure and ceremony:
what was different in the implementation of council fire between my previous experience and the

51

experience with the boy’s group was the frequency of when council fire was utilized. For the
boys’ groups, council fire was held in response to when conflict arose and not, as per my
previous experience, daily. What I learned from the utilization of council fire in the boys’
groups was, for one, that ad hoc council fire was effective in addressing conflict and providing a
resolution and, second, that council fire was as affective with adults sitting in council as it was
with youth sitting in council.
Culture and ceremony were very important components of the boys’ groups and provided
guidance for the nature of activities that occurred during the weekend outings. During the course
of the boys’ groups, when the youth were more heavily engaged in traditional activities, culture,
and ceremony, the perceived occurrence of conflict and the prevalence of malaise and boredom
was anecdotally observed.
Electronics Club
When I started my practicum during the 2018/2019 school year, I facilitated electronic
activities for male youth participating in the boys’ group program. Out of the two boys’ groups,
only the junior boy’s group participated in the electronics activities. They built and tested two
electronic projects. They also took an electronic schematic and transferred what they saw on
paper onto a breadboard. If the project worked, they then played with it and experiment with
different variables and processes. If the projected failed to perform as expected or failed to
power on at all, the youth performed troubleshooting processes to discover what went awry.
Once they discovered the error, which was sometimes a misplaced cable or a component plugged
in backwards, I observed their joy from problem-solving. My father, who was also my scout
leader, often described the joy in seeing a child’s sense of pride and accomplishment. I never

52

understood this phenomenon until that first moment when the youth’s chest expanded with that
very same sense of pride and accomplishment.
As I concluded my practicum during the 2019/2020 school year, I modified the
afterschool activities to be more inclusive and to address the fact that only four or five junior
boys participated. The afterschool extracurricular activities were modified from Tuesday and
Thursdays for the junior and senior boys’ groups respectively. This was done in part to address
two apparent issues. First, there were four to five junior boys who were regularly participating in
the weekday extracurricular activities and none of the senior boys were participating. Previously
I said the afterschool electronics activities were modified in part due to a lack of attendance; the
other part which precipitated the modification was to create a space of inclusion. The
extracurricular activities became an electronics club open to all students in grades eight through
twelve.
The first meeting of the open electronics club occurred in October and twelve students
attended, both male and female. They collaboratively decided on an electronic project to
develop over the course of the year; this project was an assistance walking device for blind
individuals that provided haptic or auditory feedback based on the proximity of obstacles.
Despite the apparent strong start to the electronics club, there were three obstacles that impacted
its success. First, I could not travel to the community on two occasions due to weather and plane
issues. Second, the staff and faculty strike at the University of Northern British Columbia
prevented me from engaging in practicum activities for the duration of the strike. Third,
personal health issues prevented any further meetings of the electronics club. Despite these
obstacles, I learned that there was interest from the community’s youth, regardless of gender
identification, in designing, building, and experimenting with electronic projects. I also learned

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that I had difficulty remaining consistent with commitments to youth when I tried to be a
member of and participate in a community where I did not live full-time. Although I identified
as being a temporary community member, I still felt a heartfelt sense of belonging whenever in
Fort Ware.
Self-Care and Me
Self-care was an important component of my practicum. For self-care, I utilized massage
therapy, reiki, journaling, and personal hobbies. Massage therapy and reiki were instrumental in
addressing residual stresses and created a healthy work/life/school balance. Journaling helped
me process my thoughts and feelings. On a few occasions, especially when the boys were
exhibiting difficult behaviours, I contemplated the choices I made when managing these
behaviours. Journaling reminded me that the youth’s struggles were not mine and mine were not
theirs. The boys were on their traditional territory without worrying about the stresses back in
their community. One day I hope to share these experiences on the traditional territory of the
Kwadacha Nation with my family.
Massage therapy, reiki, and journaling were all methods of self-care that I used as needed
and when I could take time away from other tasks. As well, I tried to set aside time daily to
engage in personal hobbies such as computer programming and playing video games. These
methods of self-care provided relaxation and reduced my stress. When I did not engage in
regular self-care, I felt the work/life/school balance shifting. However, when I engaged in
regular and consistent self-care, I addressed the difficulties of balancing work, life, and school.
Activities, Tasks, and Learning Concluded
I have learned much from my practicum at Aatse Davie school in Fort Ware, BC, on the
traditional territory of the Kwadacha Nation. As I progressed through my practicum, I modified

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and adapted my practicum goals to meet community needs and the demands of the moment; I
know now that this is a hallmark of performing social work in a remote and isolated northern
community. Over the course of the last year and a half, I have seen the joy that came from
working with youth and saw, from their perspective, the differing joys found in life.

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Chapter 6: Implications for Social Work Practice
My practicum at Aatse Davie School was similar to the professional work I have done for
the last decade; however, my practicum also had many unique circumstances and experiences. It
was similar in that I worked with people, engaged in conflict resolution, shared information, and
listened to others on an individual and group level within both situations. The practicum was
different due to the special considerations needed when working with youth instead of adults,
especially in regard to supervision, guidance, and care. I also felt a stronger level of
responsibility towards the youth. Through my experiences from both my work experience and
my practicum, I am able to summarize my key learnings and identify potential future
contributions to social work practice. More specifically, I will (1) discuss gender neutrality
within the BCASW Code of Ethics, (2) discuss a new term serial temporary, and (3) provide
recommendations within the areas of commitment, flexibility and adaptability, teamwork, and
Glasnost.
Gender Neutral Code of Ethics
A significant portion of my personal growth and processing throughout my practicum
was contemplating gender constructs and experiencing helpful- and toxic-masculinity. In 2019, I
attended a conference on restorative justice hosted by the Nation Association of Community and
Restorative Justice and was asked to indicate my preferred pronoun. When I received my
registration name card at the conference, my indicated preferred pronoun was written just below
my name. Hale (2007) argued that the inclusion of preferred and diverse preferred pronouns is
both helpful and normalizing. Furthermore, misgendering through not using preferred pronouns
can create barriers to inclusion in the workplace (Fogarty & Zheng, 2018). British Columbia
now recognizes an ‘X’ gender on forms of government identification, including birth certificates

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and driver’s licenses (British Columbia, 2018). As well, New York City legally recognized 31
gender identifications (Datta, 2017). With the recent and necessary discussions regarding gender
inclusion, the BCASW Code of Ethics should be gender neutral. By modifying the Code of
Ethics to include all genders, BCASW would be inclusive, operate from a more trauma-informed
perspective, and not cause undue harm to those who identify as non-binary. The current Code of
Ethics is included as Appendix B and the modified Code of Ethics is included as Appendix C.
The reworking of the code of ethics is subtle, but powerfully inclusive. I have shown the
modified text of the reworked Code of Ethics is in bold typeface for easier recognition.
Serial Temporary
I discussed earlier in this report that I flew in and out of the community to perform my
practicum tasks. Thus, sometimes I was involved with the community and was a member of the
community and at other times I was not. Through my education at the University of Northern
British Columbia, I studied at least two courses that focused on remote and northern social work
and participated in as many courses on Aboriginal social work. Despite this education, I did not
feel adequately prepared for the impact of being a fly in and fly out social worker.
To understand what this meant to social work practice, I reviewed the available literature
and searched for examples describing the nuances created by being a temporary worker. Most of
the research related to temporary farm workers (McLaughlin, Wells, Mendiburo, Lyn, &
Vasilevska, 2017), family impact (Dittman, Henriquez, & Roxburgh, 2016), impact on resources
and regions (Rolf & Kinnear, 2013; Carrington & Pereira, 2011), resource workers (Mayes,
2020; Darow & Mandizadza, 2018; & Ellem, 2015). I found no research on fly in and fly out
impacts of social work practice and the unique circumstances that affected this practice.

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I choose the term serial temporary to describe the unique set of circumstances that
occurred during my practicum. In terms of “temporary”, I was in the community at intermittent
times and met other temporary workers who worked for a brief period of time, left, and then
never returned. On the other hand, my schedule varied. Sometimes I was in the community a
week and then left to come back in another week. Sometimes, I was there for five days and other
times I was there for two or four nights. This, in a sense, created a situation where I was a
temporary worker; however, this was different than the other temporary workers since I would
always return to the community shortly.
In terms of “serial”, from a technical standpoint communication occurs when a bit of data
is transferred in or out across data lines sequentially one at a time. Relating this concept to my
practicum, I often arrived in the community, presented to the school, did an activity or function,
and then left, only to return again some time in the future to repeat this process; this is a perfect
example of seriality. For instance, early on in the week I arrived in the community to perform
the regular components of my employment and then, on a Friday morning would head out on a
weekend activity as part of my practicum; we returned on Sunday sometimes late in the day and
before school started on Monday, I returned to Prince George with a plan to come back to the
community in about ten days.
Working with the youth as part of my practicum created an extraordinary sense of
responsibility for myself and for my commitment to the community beyond what I felt
throughout my previous five years of working with the Kwadacha Nation. From this experience
I have four recommendations for serial temporary social workers that I believe are applicable
when working with any age group in a remote northern community.

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Recommendations
Recommendation One – Commitment
The first recommendation is to be committed to your work. Much like doing research in
Indigenous communities, the social worker should endeavor to build trust in the community and
do this partly through following through on commitments. Specific to social work practicum
students, the student should remain and continue to work with the community or organization
after the conclusion of the practicum, which will build trust (Blackstock, 2010).
Furthermore, a temporary social worker should set a reliable schedule and communicate
this to the community and community organizations. When the community can anticipate a
social worker’s arrival and departure, they are able to plan accordingly and look forward to the
programs and services offered. When the social worker fails to abide by the principles of
commitment, programs can suffer and potentially discontinue. I assert that trust is the most
important factor in maintaining stability in the community and for the programs that are being
offered, requested, or supported.
Recommendation Two – Flexibility and Adaptability
When working as a serial temporary worker, there are variables that can interfere with
maintaining commitments. Therefore, it is necessary to internalize a strong sense of flexibility.
Social work in this context does require flexibility. During one of my trips into the community,
the plane was enroute to Fort Ware, the landing gear was down, the plane descended, and then at
about 400 meters from the runway the plane took a sharp turn skyward and returned to Prince
George, BC. The activities I planned to do for this trip were postponed until the next time I was
in the community. During times when there was a boy’s group scheduled for the weekend and
the plane was cancelled or once when I was personally ill, I made other arrangements so that the

59

activities still took place. Arrangements included finding other chaperones or ensuring that the
food order was delivered on the next plane.
Flexibility and social work should be synonymous, but special consideration should be
taken into account when working as a serial temporary social worker in a remote northern
community. It is beneficial to be adaptable with situations as they arise. This is more than being
a generalist social worker. However, even the most committed, flexible, and adaptable social
worker will not be able to be accomplish all goals individually, which leads to my next
recommendation of teamwork.
Recommendation Three – Teamwork
No social worker should work in isolation; while they might be the only social worker
employed by an organization, it is helpful to ally one’s self with other professionals in the
community who show similar ethics and understandings. Teamwork is important to be
successful in remote northern communities as a fly-in-fly-out social worker. In my experience,
more was accomplished when everyone worked together. I relied upon the expertise of local
guides, teachers, and other community professionals to answer the questions and inform me
regarding differences in local practices and guidelines. Teamwork also means that the social
worker responds to and understands other people’s unique perspectives, including considering
diverse backgrounds, education, history, and family stories. When I could not complete a task
during my practicum, or was unable to attend for weather or personal reasons, I relied upon
others to make sure the youth were still able to have the excursion as planned.

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Recommendation Four – Glasnost
The term glasnost is a term that means openness and was the name for the social and
political reforms in the Soviet Union to provide more rights and freedoms with the people
(Coldwar.org, 2020). The takeaway from the glasnost principle is the concept of openness.
Glasnost principles suggest that social workers be transparent in their desires and reasons for
engaging in social work. There should be an expectation that the social worker is genuine and
caries their work with integrity. During my practicum, I rescheduled or postpone events for
various reasons. Some of these reasons included the death of an Elder, personal sickness, and
familial illnesses. I found that as long as I was genuine and transparent, that the youth accepted
these scheduling changes. This was evident as the youth continued to ask about future groups
and outings.
Recommendations – Concluded
Ultimately, these four recommendations are inextricable linked and build upon one
another. Furthermore, the four recommendations will build and strengthen the trust amongst the
social worker, the community, and professional agencies. I also suggest using these
recommendations when hiring social workers to work in a remote northern community; I suggest
hiring social workers who are committed, adaptable & flexible, demonstrate teamwork, and are
genuine.

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Conclusion
Overall, my practicum experience at Aatse Davie School not only helped to expound my
knowledge of social work, of who I am, and my sense of masculinity, but also benefited the other
work that I perform in the community. I have a greater understanding of being a social worker
working in criminal justice systems, being a school social worker working within a school, and
being a social worker working within a community. The wisdom I gained from the practicum
goals accomplished and the learning opportunities from difficulties was immeasurable.
The beginning of this report introduced the school motto as “work, respect, belonging”. I
originally intended the motto to guide program development and over the course of the
practicum, I became influenced by the motto. “Work”: I worked with youth, with staff and
faculty at the school, with the Elders, and with all others involved in my practicum. “Respect”: I
showed respect to the youth, local guides, Elders, school administration, and school staff. I
believe that the youth and community reciprocated that respect. “Belonging”: As I performed
my practicum duties and functions in the school, I felt a greater sense of belonging not only in
the school, but also within the community and with the Elders. In other words, work leads to
respect, respect leads to belonging, and belonging leads to better social work practice.

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Appendix A
MSW Practicum II Learning Contract

Student: Christopher Tyler
Practicum Supervisor: Rebecca Tallman
Academic Supervisor: Dr. Joanna Pierce
Agency: Aatse Davie School, Fort Ware, BC on the traditional territory of the Kwadacha Nation
Length of Placement: 560 Hours

Estimated Completion Date: March 31, 2019

Hours of Work: Tuesday and Thursday 3-5pm plus one weekend a month

Learning Goals

Objectives and Activities

Monitoring and Evaluation
Criteria

Gain knowledge regarding
Aatse Davie School’s
protocols, policies, programs,
and procedures.

Become familiar with
documentation used by the
school for the purpose of
running the youth group

Follow agency policy and use
program forms and
paperwork

Develop effective working
relationships with group
participants, school faculty
and staff, and supervisors
Increase understanding of the
role of social worker as
school youth group
coordinator

Attend agency meetings

Work directly with school
administration and staff to
provide youth activities to
two youth boy’s groups

Attend required or supported
meetings at school

Engage with school personnel
and work collaboratively

Provide youth group activities
twice per week with the youth
and coordinate camping trips
once per month

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Identify as a professional
social worker and conduct
myself accordingly

Work collaboratively with
other school youth group
coordinators to problem solve
and develop programming

Attend school-based team
meetings when available

Attend practicum during
agreed-upon hours

Attend practicum during
agreed-upon dates and hours

Connect and collaborate with
other school youth group
coordinators

Meeting with my practicum
supervisor regularly to ensure
practicum goals are being met

Understand agency policy

Review agency policy and
procedures

Maintain professional
boundaries
Engage in ethical practice

Engage in the on-going
critical reflection of practice

Apply ethical principles to
my practice

Attend clinical supervision
and debrief

Maintain a journal to
document my practicum
experience and engage in ongoing critical reflection of
self and practice

Attend regular clinical
supervision

Review BCASW Code of
Ethics and apply to practice
as needed
Develop program
development skills from the
lens of a generalist social
work practitioner

Review theories and practice
models and how they can be
applied in the context of my
practice

Attend clinical supervision

Develop and manage a
program for two boy’s youth
groups

Use effective and creative
problem-solving skills to
address issues and adapt
program on an on-going basis

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Develop a program for youth
in the school
Develop an understanding of
understanding of
masculinities within the
context of being aboriginal
(young) men

Effectively engage male
youth groups in developing
an understanding of
masculinities within the
context of being aboriginal
(young) men

Gain a better understanding
of Indigenousmasculinities
and myself in place within
those identities.

Improve and build upon
program development social
work practice

Develop effective
relationships with group
participants

Work with the youth groups
and provide leadership and
program

Increase understanding of
various program coordination
and leadership skills and their
efficiencies in the group
setting
Develop an understanding of
the use of cultural practice
and its place in the youth
program

Engage youth in cultural
ceremony and practice in a
meaningful way that
enhances the youth's
understanding of cultural
ceremony and practice

Engage in the use of Elders
throughout the course of the
program

Develop self-care and coping
strategies to maintain mental
and emotional well-being in
my practice

Engage in self-care activities
regularly to maintain balance

Use cultural ceremony and
practice in an appropriate and
effective manner in the youth
program

Sit and take council from
Elders and garner their
support and participation in
various aspects of the youth
programs.
Engage in reflective practice
through journal writing

Engage in self-care activities
(exercise, connection with
spirituality, nature)
Engage in regular debriefs
with my supervisor

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Appendix B: BCASW Code of Ethics
Ethical behaviour is at the core of every profession. The BCASW Code of Ethics was jointly
adopted by the BC Association of Social Workers and the BC College of Social Workers in
January 2003 and consists of eleven principles:
1. A social worker shall maintain the best interest of the client as the primary professional
obligation.
2. A social worker shall respect the intrinsic worth of the persons she or he serves in her or his
professional relationships with them.
3. A social worker shall carry out her or his professional duties and obligations with integrity
and objectivity.
4. A social worker shall have and maintain competence in the provision of a social work service
to a client.
5. A social worker shall not exploit the relationship with a client for personal benefit, gain or
gratification.
6. A social worker shall protect the confidentiality of all professionally acquired information.
She or he shall disclose such information only when required or allowed by law to do so, or
when clients have consented to disclosure.
7. A social worker who engages in another profession, occupation, affiliation or calling shall not
allow these outside interests to affect the social work relationship with the client, professional
judgment, independence and/or competence.
8. A social worker shall not provide social work services or otherwise behave in a manner that
discredits the profession of social work or diminishes the public’s trust in the profession.
9. A social worker shall promote service, program and agency practices and policies that are
consistent with this Code of Ethics and the Standards of Practice of the BC College of Social
Workers.
10. A social worker shall promote excellence in her or his profession.
11. A social worker shall advocate change in the best interest of the client, and for the overall
benefit of society.

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Appendix C Revised BCASW Code of Ethics
Ethical behaviour is at the core of every profession. The BCASW Code of Ethics was jointly
adopted by the BC Association of Social Workers and the BC College of Social Workers in
January 2003 and consists of eleven principles:
1. A social worker shall maintain the best interest of the client as the primary professional
obligation.
2. A social worker shall respect the intrinsic worth of the persons they serve in their
professional relationships with them.
3. A social worker shall carry out their professional duties and obligations with integrity and
objectivity.
4. A social worker shall have and maintain competence in the provision of a social work service
to a client.
5. A social worker shall not exploit the relationship with a client for personal benefit, gain or
gratification.
6. A social worker shall protect the confidentiality of all professionally acquired information. A
Social Worker shall disclose such information only when required or allowed by law to do so,
or when clients have consented to disclosure.
7. A social worker who engages in another profession, occupation, affiliation or calling shall not
allow these outside interests to affect the social work relationship with the client, professional
judgment, independence and/or competence.
8. A social worker shall not provide social work services or otherwise behave in a manner that
discredits the profession of social work or diminishes the public’s trust in the profession.
9. A social worker shall promote service, program and agency practices and policies that are
consistent with this Code of Ethics and the Standards of Practice of the BC College of Social
Workers.
10. A social worker shall promote excellence in their profession.
11. A social worker shall advocate change in the best interest of the client, and for the overall
benefit of society.