THE BE INNI RA LYR PON IV HOOLMODEL b Melanie Benn tt . Mala pina B. d. Mala pin r it - ollege, 00 II ge 2004 PR T M LTIDI UNIVERSITY OF AD R HlP ORTHERN BRITISH COLUMB IA April2012 © M lanie Bennett, 2012 F T HIN ii Ab tract Yuk n 1 w du ator t mpri d f intricat ly ukon ar ru1 hall nged t d e tab li h c nn cti n to ir t t d rural and urban Fir t ati n communi tie . el p relation hip a r ultural b rd r and ation c mmuniti r earch pr j ct, a handbo k ~ r educa t r in that b nefit the tud nt 1 arning. In thi uk n 1 prop educat r returnin g and enterin g Yukon' public ch educator with a con i re urc tudent in an ed a a p itive upp rt D r tem. The handbo k will pr vide f what th y w uld need t know in ord r t work effectively b rigin al ch i public chool environm ent. Th fi ur with Fir t ati n dir cti n f piritual, m ti nal mental and phy ical f theM di cin Wheel are u ed t divid e the chapt r and fo u th indigen u framew rk. nc pt of learning into a univer ally- underst d and -accepted I ll Tabl of ont nt .. 11 b tract Tabl f nt nt Ill i t fTabl IV Li t of 1gur hapt r l hapter 2 hapter Intr du n, ignifi can , ackgr und and [ th Pr j t ackgr und fthe roject er iew [ th Pr j e t Literature R vie - Introdu ·ti n Bringi ng the ir t ati n Per p cti v and Inclu i e Publi c du ation T g th r hange n f B 1 nging Traditi nal ati n ducati n ummary vcrvicw of the Proj ect 5 9 12 Per. pect1 e of 12 19 25 27 29 32 R earch Meth d - Intr duction b riginal h i e choo l ummary 37 Chapter 4 Handbook - Introduction piritual Emotional Mental Physical Example of a Yukon First Nation Spring ulture Camp 43 48 53 59 66 69 Chapter 5 Reflection 82 References 42 85 Appendices Appendix A- Definition of term s 90 Appendix B -Additional Re ource 92 IV Li t of Tab le Tabl e 1. 2010 Yuk n t n- ir t m nt T t Per entag tudent in anguag f Fir t Nati n tud nt compared rt and Math 7 v Li t of Figure Figure l . tgur 2. Figu r harle t n' ( 1994) The r ti cal ~ ra m rk Medi in Whe 1 mod 1 cr at db Me1ani nnett in con u1tation with Yukon ir t ation 1d r , 20 10. mm unica ti n R.P . . J ph' R P T M d l f 17 47 54 VI cknowledgement I am fore r grat ful ~ r th " ur a f kn lder parii ipati n and effl rt t teach m and 1 t m I arn in g". am, Li zz ie, ~ d ard and Per , ur kn wledg i infinit and 1 know in thi e er changing n ir m11 nt of edu ati on, y ur wi dom will can y n thr ugh th whi pering fth hea rt and mind f ur hildr n [! re r. n und rtaking u h a thi r earch proj ect cannot b compl t d with ut help and l am et mall y grateful forth gui lance an I upp rt f Dr. al ndr w Kitch nham, r. like give a knowl dgem nt t Willi am lin ha t aun uf and Mr . Penn y Pry nuk. I w uld nnctt Jr., the Tr ' nd ek Hwe h' in Fir t Na ti o n , ~ r th eir un c nditi nal upp rt. editor up reme and the 1 hapter 1 Yuko n b oa t a a tn that el brate cl and uniqu en ommunitie . Within it ge graphical area are 14 Yuk n p pu1 ati n (Yuk n ureau f tati ti ir t ly- int rc nn ct d ati o n that mpn 2 .9% P pulati n R p r1, 20 10). T h pub1i f the ch Yukon are intricately link d t the c mmunity and th peopl e th ey rv . Yuk n i ri ch in re ourcc and ha th l we t tud ent-tcachcr ra ti in f the anada ( ffic uditor m n era1 f an ada, 2009) . Furth enn r , the ta ti ti c anada umm ary Public choo1 Ind i at r R p rt for 20052006 show that Yukon ha th low t tud ent-edu ca t r ratio in ana da, w ith one edu ator £1 r ery eleven tud en t . B a d n thi report, our calc ul ation how that Yukon al ha the I we t fi -y r a rage ratio in anada of 11 .7 to n . T h average tud nt- du ca tor rati fl r an ada o er th e pa t five year ha be n 15 .5 to one. ( ffi ce f the udit r eneral of an ada, 2009, p . 9) ne would ex pect w ith m all r cia graduati on rate of the First rz and m re teac her per stu dent, th e aca demi c ation tud ent in Yukon wo uld be hi gh . Accord ing to the 2009 R eport of the Auditor General of Canada to the Yukon Legi lativ A sembl y, the gradu ati on rates of Yukon First Nation tud ents are the third 1 we t aero Canada. For exampl e, data from Stati stics Can ada shows th at for th e peri od end ed 2005- 06, Yukon h ad the third lowest fi ve-year average gradu ation rate in anada, and the Departm ent' ow n data indi cate th ere i a large ga p in gradu ati on rate between Fir t Nations stud ents and other Yukon tud ents. (Auditor General R eport to the Yukon Legislative, 2009, p . 1) In co nsid eration of the above fac ts, the D epartment of Edu ca ti n in Yukon h as made cultural inclu sion an integral pari of its recent strategic pl an and has committed to provide cultural inclusion doll ars to all schoo l that are, in part, targeted towa rd Fir t ati o n programming to enh anc and provide culturally- inclu ive en ironments fo r First Nation tudent 2 ducation moni h 1 . ultural acti iti tip nd ar n t full y de ignat d t ward ir t ati n cultural a ti viti e . ron fthe ch he p nding f th all tt d am unt i th d of th e chool on a yea r-by-y ar ba i . In re inclu i n in Yukon publi ch I ha b na epartm nt f and deli per ati n ultural du ati n-w id e foc u with li ttl nn I re p n ibl ~ r de igning the ry o f program . T hi fac t al ne warrant a deeper 1 ok int th e effec ti v n F ir t Na ti ons cultural inclu ion w ithin Yuk n Public ch The curr nt cultura l in lu i n of ir t of an inclu iv Fir t per may 1 a nd i d pend nt n the fl cu nt y ar , th c n ept f Fir t ti n and und r tanding fro m the admini tra ti proce epartm nt f ar targ t d fl r cultural acti itie within th includ e any culture dir Yuk n du cati n 201 ; h reinaft r, YD ). h (Yuk nD paiim nt f ati n int ati n ulture to th e urT nt w n I beli ev the tim ha of I . ch I breed an autom ati c a umpti on ten1 m del of ch o l and a a Fir t ati on om e fo r du cator to loo k at changing th e m del of edu ca ti on t one th at i better uited t m ee t ir t atio n tud ent ' need . A mode l that i releva nt to Fir t Nation and a m odel th at wo uld u tain cultural plurali m fl r b th th e educator and th e stud ents. This research proj ect consi ted of a handb oo k of teaching protoco ls and guidelines as th e beginning steps fo r edu cators entering into an boriginal choice m odel of publi c school. It is ba ed on the und erstanding that protoco l are the ethi cal gu ide of p ro per interaction , way of do in g, and codes of co ndu ct th at respect oth er ' o nto logy, e pi tem logy, and met hodo logy. T he handbook provides edu cato r w ith a concise resource of infl rm ati on an edu cator needs to know in ord er to wo rk effec tive ly w ith Yukon First Na ti on stud ents in a publi c choo l nvironment. With th e guid ance of Yukon Fir t Nati on Eld er fro m th e T r'o nd ek Hwec h ' in Fir t Nation, T es lin Tlingit Co uncil , and Selkirk Fir t Nati on, the proj ct identifi ed w hi ch effective First 3 ati n 1 arnmg en 1r nment an b created within a public ch ol ; whi h alu Fir t Nati 11 e p ct ~ r th 1r hildr n; and , what th to b 1 an1ing in a publi h lth ugh th e "' lder pr e Yuk 11 Fir t th e Yuk n ation exp clth ir children 1. fl r the pr j e l did n l r pr ent all 14 Yuk n ir t iding guid an ati n , the initial tep in de el ping th e handb pp t1uniti e for furth r de cl pm nt. c k wer int nd d t be a b ginning with rdin g t Batti t (2 8), lndi genou kn wl dg d e not com [r m ju t r ading te t but requir long- term r lati n hip and e pen ence with peopl e , and pi a e . The handbo k pro id th e du ca t r w ith the infl nn ati on t w rk in an Abori ginal choi ce public h ld cr , I en ir nm nt and w ith a tarting p inl to cngag in the development of building relati n hip ith th e ir t ati on tud nt and th eir lnd .igen u ance tral teaching . ignifi ca nce of the Proj ect The Yukon D epartment of du ca ti on currentl y publi she two handb ook entitl ed, The handbook for Yukon teachers and A handbook of Yukon First Nations Education resources for p ublic schoo ls; each for the u e of edu cators within the Yukon public school y tern . The handbook fo r Yukon teachers (YDE, 2011 ) is a resource which provides a compil ati on of programs and service availabl e in the Yukon D ep at1ment of Educati on and within this handbook th ere i a s in gle page entitl ed , " Fir t ati on teac hin g e se ntial and info rm ati on strategie to h lp b co me part of a First N ati on co mmunity" (p . 3 1). Thi page p rov id es 2 1 points of what a teach r should do in order to build and establi h relati n hip w ith F irs t ation [n m y opinion, the lack of sociocultural consciou ness is evid ent from the minimal sugge tio n and the minimali sm of th e sugge tions. As a ir t N ation perso n I ca n read th e 2 1 propo ed 4 trat gi and intuiti ely und r tand that th r ha been littl e or no on ultation with th Fir t ati n in writing th Yuk n ir t p int ati n cu ltur 1 f th ught and th la k f r p ct r de p und r tanding f ur e id nt. h ugge ti on ''get t kn the parent , t IIJ arent h w y u an b reach ed and tell parent about our teac hing tyle" imp ly an nt logy attem1 tin g t in~ rm an oth er h w th e can be part r th e maj rit ' id al w rid iew (Y , 20 I I , p. 3 1). Th ere i no in[! rmati n in the 2 1 p int that indica t the ducat r h uld att m1 t to und r tan I the Ab riginal world iew. T hi w uld al t of Yukon Fir t lea I m bcli ev that a person with littl e under landing ati n w uld n t be abl e to view th e e po int f ugge tion with as riti ca l an eye a I. In my iew, the ec nd f th tw handboo k pr du ccd by the ir t ation Programs and Partnership Unit, Yukon Department f du ca ti on (20 11 ) entitled The handbook r~f Yuko n First ation Education re ource fo r public schoo l how a more culturally- ensitive and pr du cti ve approach. The difference that li e between the handb ok and it c unterpart are th at it provid e more detail s of locality, more re ources, and a greater acce to Yukon Fir t Nati on informati on within the Yukon Department of Edu ca ti on. Thi s handbook includ es inform ation provid ed by the Yukon Department of Education and inadequ ately addre e the Aboriginal worldview. Although each handbook has an important and pecifi c purpose of providing inform ati on to edu cator about programs and services in Yukon public schoo l , neither of these guid e provid e an educator with the ati sfactory or in-depth means to respond to and re pectfully wo rk with First Nation students within the respected boundaries of their culture. Both handbook were produced by the Yukon Departm ent of duca tion and , in my opinion, maintain a uroc ntric view of education that encompasses fitting the Abori ginal world vi w into the We tern 5 w rld i w. eith r of th handb nt logy f Yukon ir t k pr p e th thought ati n and d f imm r ing int th ping th t a hing from ur Wi II iam (20 ll) argued that " if an du ati nal in tituti n d and tru tur , it will c ntinu t catTy ut th e a imilati ni t p lici g ernm ent" (p . 15). ir t d I eel into Fir t b riginal b riginal p r p ctive. not ind ig ni e it pra lie fa col 111 mg ati n m anada n w ha e a generati n f ch lar wh have ati n -duca ti n and method g1 t me rp ra te their w rll vi w into urocentric 1 arnmg. Th Yuk n i no e cepti on to the ch larl y r arch and rep rt . T he handb k that I have writt n wa ba eel on our Yukon Indige nou wo rld iew and chall enge th e edu ca tor' mind set to look at their teaching thr ugh ur Fir t a ti n len . nlike the oth r handbooks, thi one, a our lder had asked, wa n t written in academic, edu ca ti nal j argo n. The han db ok i a re ource written in a perspe ti ve that honour th Indigenou th directi on give n by our ulture ofYuk n First ati on and peak to Icier . Batti te (2002) argued th at " by anim atin g the vo ices and experience of th e cogniti ve 'oth er' and integratin g th em into the edu cati onal proces , it create a new, balanced center and a fre h vantage point fro m which to analyze Eurocentri c edu cati on and its pedagog ies" (p. 5). It is fro m Batti ste's per pecti ve th at I have pre ented an opti on to bring understanding from our Yukon First Nation Icier and their perspec ti ve of what education should be for our stud ents. Background of the Project Thi s re earch proj ect wa a preliminary tudy into the benefits and operati on of Aboriginal choice schools and their m thoclologies aero Canada. The re em·cher i working as an educator in an elementary school that enco mpa es a W tern Europ an mod 1 of lea rning wi th a Fir t 6 Nati n tud nt populati n f 60 per nt, whi h pr id d th re arch r m in ight int th impl mentati n f ultural in lu ion d llar and m th d within a Yukon publi un ntly th r i n form al (Y 1. b tiginal l arning m odel being u ed in any f the Yukon , 2 01 0) . In th Yuk n, little i kn wn ab ut an a g neral public per p cti h bori g inal ch i e r crea ting an ad ant age u th re ea r her' per pe ti e th ere i a gap betw en th h ol l m d 1 and th r h lndi ge no u and ur entri und r tandin g of edu cati on. All Yukon choo l ar pr id d ultura l inc lu i n funding through the p artment o f du cation n an annu a l ba i . T h Depatim nt of du ca ti n provid e littl e g uid ance t the public cho 1 Ii r th u e f the cultural in lu ion moni e oth er th an ugge ting trongly th e fund be u ed for Fir t ati n acti i tie and m aintaining th e multi ultural per pecti ve o f tracking of cultural inclu ion r venu e m ay be maintain d by eith er th e Fir t traditi onal territory th chool re id anada. The ati n f w hi ch the within or by th e cho I' admini tra ti o n. here i a ge nera l perception that the cultural inclu ion fund are to upp ort edu cat r in cr ating relevant, m ea ningfull eatning opp ortuniti e for Fir t ati on stud ent , enabling tud ents to develop a en e ofbelonging and cultural attachment to the choo l. The mo t recent p erform anc e data of th e Yukon' s choo ls indi cates th at th e academi c achievem ent gap betw een Fir t ation stud ents and Non-First ati on tud ents i grow in g (YD E, 2011 ). The Yukon A chievem ent T ests (Y AT) is L angu age A rt and M ath em atics stand ardized tests delivered to stud ents in grades 3, 6, and 9 in all Yukon publi c choo l . 2010 Y AT in Lan gua ge Arts 56% of rade 3 F ir t Nation stud ent ccording to the cored a stand ard of acceptabl e or excellence, compared to th e Grad e 3 N o n-First Na ti on tud ents of whi ch 70% 7 c r d a tandard fa ptable r c 11 n I w r achi v ment le 1in Languag . hi h w th ir t 1i . Th d crea e in a hi ation tud ent ha ing a 14% m nt 1 el [! r Fir t ati n Tabl 1 2010 Yukon Ac/Ji v m nt T, . t P rcenta aLion Students in Languag so( Fir. t rf. and Math arion tud nts ompar d to Excellenc on-Fir. L Bel w Did Not Write n Language Art 4 52 15 29 ati n Language Art 10 60 16 14 19 2 24 2R 29 45 15 11 44 37 18 11 62 17 10 6 First Nation Math 6 19 61 14 6 on-Fir t ation Math 19 39 29 13 9 First ation Language Art 3 33 32 32 9 Non-First Nation Language Arts 12 64 16 8 9 First Nation Math 6 25 29 40 9 Non-First Nation Math 22 43 27 8 on-Fir t 3 Fir t ation Math 3 on-Fir t 6 First ation Math ati n Language Arts 6 on-Fir t ation Language Arts Source: Yukon Depa1iment of Education tudents grows as the students' progre s in their schoo l year . By Grade 6 Fir t ati n tudent have a 28% low er achievement rate than the Non-First Nation tudents and by Grade 9 the Fir t Nation stud ents have a 40% low er achievement rate than the Non-First Nation tudent . The 8 deer a ing pat1 rn in a hi ement le with 74% f th n- ir t rad f th nl y 4 % ra ptabl e. i al dem n trat din th e 2010 Y rad ir t ation tud ent core a tandard of e c llence gain th achie em ent le el nega ti ely int n ify with tudent attaining a rade 9 th e Fir t % l w r achie llence or tandard of tud nt m nt rate than th in Math matic n-Fir t rad 6 Fir t ation ati n tud nt and by ati n tud nt ha e a 4% l w r ac hievement rate th at th e on-Fir t N ation tud nt . In con id erati on of the r cent Y T p rform ance data [Yukon ch 1 thi re arch 1r 0ec t end eavo ur t pr vid an pti on f upp rt t edu cator in their wo rk to clo e th e aca demi achievem ent gap b tw en Fir t ati on tud ent and on-Fir t ali n tud ent . In my pinion, there i more t pr viding a culturall y-re pon i e learnin g env ir nm ent th a n j u t prov iding the acce to m oni e D r cultural ents to happen in the c h handbook can be an import ant t I . It i my pini n th at my encl 1in c lo ing th e ac hi evem ent gap b tw en F irst ed ati on and Non-Fir t Na tions youth. Und er tanding the edu cational need of First Na ti ons fro m their perspecti ve is nece sary in order to know how to effectively allocate the funds to activiti es, reso urce , and crea ting lea rning opportunities for student . The handbook from thi re ea rch proj ect would be a sta11 to providing a re ource that would convey know ledge of the requirem ents of First ati on in their word to th e Yukon's sch oo l y tem and demonstrate a mode l fro m th e ir cultura l identity and w orld view . The researcher is aware of her First Na tion a nee try and her worldview as a produ ct of her ance try and experience , and w ill be, as sh mu t be, ca utious about m aking bi a j ud gem nt . 9 Tlu· ugh thi r arch pr ~ tI achi v m nt gap b tw en Fir t ill pr id an pti nand re n-F ir t ati n and ati 11 urc t help du cat r c lo the tud ent and taff. O ver view mg an Fir t b ri ginal qu alitati ati n -~ ld e r to pi temo l gica l appr a h, I w rked cl ek th an w r t the ce ntral r in c/u. ion meth ods H'ou/d he e{fe five for First ar h qu e ti on ly w ith D ur Yuk 11 f: whi h u/tural at ion students in Yuko n p uhli , s hoo f. us in an In fig nous mod I of learn in and what i the ultur ~ of edu 'at ion th t! Yuko n Firs! a lion. wa nt to.fost r .for their children ?. Acco rding t r co nduct hi o r her tudi w II (2007), an epi temol gi a l app roac h i in th " fi e ld "' and g t a cl a p ne in w hich the research r ibl e t the pati icip ant in ord er to bring conte t and und er tanding of w hat the partic ipant know (p . l ). mg an epistem ol gical approach allow d m e to le en the di tance betwee n m e and th e fi eld of resea rch, and beco me the insider to our Yukon Fir t ati o n Indi genous wo rldv iew of edu cati on (C reswell , 2007). In Eurocentric thought, epi stem o logy i th e phil o o phi cal branch that dea l w ith know ledge and how person lea rn . pecifi call y I am p ea kin g of how childr n com e to learn, know, und erstand , and compreh end as und er tood by a Eurocentri c per pec ti ve a oppo ed to an A boriginal epistem ological p er pective. A bori ginal epistem o logy i found in the th ori e , philosophi es, hi stories, ceremoni es, and stori es as ways of know in g (B attiste, 2002; Wil o n, 200 8). A bori ginal pedagogy is found in parti c ipant o b erva ti ons, ex peri enti al learning, m odeling, m editation , prayer, ceremonies, story- telling, or talking r baring c ircle and di alogu e their way of knowing (Hill , 2002). Although th e do cumentati on of learning for the purpose of this re earch proj ect w as for a hoti four m onth period, it must be n ted that, a the resea rch r, l have 10 b en a quiring my traditi nal kn wl dg and ha lder in olved in th The purp The handb p n need a lifel ng relation hip with th tudy. e f thi r earch proj ect a t provid a uccinct handbook for edu cator . k i a tarting p int £ r the du at r, t ward hi culturally-re pon i and cffecti r her learning of h w t pr vid learning en ir nm nt £ r Fir t chool y t m. The pre ent cultural inclu i n f Fir t ati n tud nt in a publi c ation in Yukon public chool i current! foil win g the "add and tir'' model (Batti t , 2008 , p. 49 8) and , in thi re arch er' opinion, a model that i n t meeting th n eel Th handbo k wa ch thr rea f the ir t ati n tud ent in Yuk n. n t b written £1 II wing the [! rmat of the m di cin c wheel [! r n . Fir tl y the medi cine whe I i a uni er all y- und er t framework. The medicine wheel i an ancient ymb I u eel by alm d and accepted lncli genou t all the ati ve pe pl e of North and outh Am ri ca (Lane, Bopp & Br wn, 198 4). There are many eli fferent way that the basic concept of the medicine wh 1 i xpre eel : th four grandfather , the fo ur wind , th e four cardinal directions, and many oth r relati nship that can be expressed in et of [i ur. The concept of the four directions of physical, mental, emotional, and spiri tual is the framework for the handbook. Secondly, the Eld ers clearl y stated that to date, they fee l all past and cuiTent documents are written in educational jargon and never in the clear und er tandabl e wo rd that they want it to be. Using the medicine wh eel and the Elders words would be one mall form of trust and relationship building in a system that is hi torica ll y built on mi tru st. Finall y, the Eld ers insisted it be written with the focus of the Indigenou s mod el as being inclu sive of the Western culture, rather than the Western mod el a being inclu sive of the Indi genou culture. 11 The main e p t d ut ali n culturally-re p n L b ri ginal h ic me fr m the re ar h r' per p li r h nd ary e p cl d out ome 1 t put[! rth th ar h in the future t b gin implementing an I in Yukon. In m I Ian language it infl rmation t pr vide a Yuk n hr t urce fl r du cat r t b gin hi or h r work within an cho l m d 1 in Yuk n. Th id ea and po ibility f fUJ1h er r t bori ginal choi uld b ' puttin g th e tat ra hate'q_ (new 111 0 n) r ur hatrun hUin zh ( ch olhou ). ln the n xt hapt r, I will pr ide a detail ed eli cu ion of th profe i nalli teratur f Fir t ati n edu ation in Yuk n, different educa ti nal change th eo ri e e amine what traditional Fir t Nati n eclucati n i and th n ed fl r de el ping a en e f bel nging fo r Abori ginal tud ents. hapter 3 will then outlin th re ear h method u ed in thi provid e the actu al handb tud y. hapter 4 will k. Th fi nal chapter will utl ine my refl ecti on of the lea rning proce in compl ting thi re arch pr ject. 12 hapter 2 - Literature R eview hapter 1 pro id d a backgr und a t wh there i a need [! r thi t pe of re earch pr ject, e plained a gen ral fend av ur t Yuk n Fir t rv1 w fth pr e t, and lari.fl ed th dir c ti n which thi [! 1111 k. In thi lit rature re 1e ati n ha e alway I will amm fr m a hi t ri al per p ctive that d th ir intere ts and imp 1iance fan integrated pr culturally-inclu i e educa tion y t m . uliher, in rder t und er tand the c mpl e ity f Fir t ati n edu cation and cultural inclu i n Ire i w th hi t ri ca ! ackn w le lg ment fr m go ernm nt in luding th epartm ent f du ati n. a h group ha a p r pective f Fir t Nati n edu cation and cultural inc lu i n in Yuk n public scl1 oo l , an examinati n of each per pecti v will et th The literatur r tage of query into the r earch qu i w will al e amme om ti n . f them r recent cha ng theorie and th e u e if change knowl edge in du ca tion . Th r i a pl eth ra of re earch from the larger prov ince about tud ents and their borigin al du cati on and th e i ue on-Fir t ati on counterpa1i . anadi an f th ga p of learning between Fir t nfortunately, there ati n arch inforn1ation from Yukon is limited, therefore for the purpo e of thi literature review, I willl o kat som e of the more recent research and infonnation related to proposed chang sand po s ible theorie for success and' tru e" Indigenous learning. The chapter ends w ith a bri ef summ ary of th Jiterature review and an introduction into th e m ethodology used in there earch proj ect. Brin gin g th e First Na tion Pers pective and D ep artment of E du ca tion Perspective of Inclu sive Public Edu ca tion Togeth er The Yukon Native Brotherhood (1973) presented the docum nt Together Toda.vfor our llildren Tomorrow to the Govemment of anada which wa a tatemen t of grie ance and an 13 ttl m nt by the Yuk n ir t Nation and r pr appr a h t Yukon. p iti n pap r within the articl e, f th entir writing. utm hi re t imp rtance [! r th 1r p nted all f the 14 ir t Nation in -. du ati on f Yuk n Indi an ' rd h wed that Yukon Fir t ati n b li ompn d tw o-third ducati n to be f pi . e that ur hildr n h uld be eclu ca t d in public ch I , but w a! b lie e c n id rati on hould be gi en t the pccial pr blem , the pr crva ti n f the language, and fa tu al r pre entati n of the culture of a gr up c mpri ing n arly n -third fth e Yuk n p pul ati n. In rd r that impr ment an be mad , the Yuk n d r qu ts that the ermncnt f anada and the Yuk n TcrTitory co-op rate in th e imm di atc implcmentati n of recommend ati n c ntain d in thi P iti n Pap r. (Yuk n Na tive Brotherh d 197 , p. 50) The edu ca ti n p ition paper within the d made 12 r ommendation t th o umcnt by the Yukon ati e r therhood rnm nt of anada ( ee pp . 54-59 11 r a full eli cu ion). ach of the reco mmcnd ati n focu ed on area within public ed uca tion that were co n id ered t be an acknowledgement of a mind et forth nece sary envirorunent th at Yukon Fir t Nati on co n idered to be in clu ive f th eir peo pl e. In parti cul ar, Reco mm end atio n Fo ur stated, "That education program be changed to allow fo r revival and re-e tabli hm ent of Indi an language and fo r a true picture of Indian hi tory, culture, and co ntributi on to th e modern wo rld " (p. 56). Adding emphasis to Recomm end ati on Four is Reco mm nd ati on Eight, "That edu cati on of nati ve students be made more meanin gful and relevant to our needs" (p. 57). Public edu cati on from th e First Nation perspective at thi time was consid ered racially tensil e and ineffective fo r Fir t Nation students. The result of the Yukon Native Brotherhood (1973) publica ti on ha been 11 Yukon Fir t Nations signing elf-governing agreement with the Goven1ment f Canada and mo t Yukon First Nations stating that few ga ins have been made in Yukon publi c education (Yukon Fir t 14 Nati n ducati n d i ry nunitt e, 200 ). h 2009 udit r n ral R p 1i rep01i d that gap the Yukon D partm nt of du ca tion data h w d n gati e p Yukon hi e em nt in Yukon and the rag te t c r e t gap rang d from ll t 2 1 p r f ir t ignifi cant gap in gradu ati on rat ati n gradu ati n rat gradu ati on rat betw e n Fir t nt ( , 200 ). th r tud nt h R p rt al o ta ted th h 2 007/ 200 8 Fir t th r Yuk n tud ent h w da [ 65 per ent. In m re rec nt time , th Edu at ion R >form Prqj ct wa addre nt and ati n ati n tud nt in Yuk n . in Yuk n were 40 p rc nt w h r a n tandardi zed th e co ne rn f Yukon Fir t proj ec t i t engage Fir t ati n g mpl ted in 200 to once again ati n in rega rd t pu blic edu ca ti n. "The purp e f th e mm ent , itizen and th er partner in cdu ca ti n to effect po iti ve, u tainable ch ange in the edu ation y tem in th Y uko n fo r the benefi t fa ll Yukoner " (Edu cati on Re fonn Project, 2006, p. I ). The Education Reform Project put forth 207 rec01nm nd ati on from Y uko n Fir t Na ti on and edu cati on partner to the Depmiment f Edu catio n. T hro ughout th e rec mmend ati o n i an und erlying them e of the need to better th e edu ca tional opportuni ties fo r to continue the growth of First boriginal tud ent and ati on culturally- incl usive edu ca tion. T here were two m ajo r changes w ith the development of the Edu cation Reform Project do um ent. The fir t i th at althou gh th e do cument was developed in consultation with Yukon Fir t Na ti ons and partners in edu cation , it was fund ed by the Government of Ca nada and no t the Yukon First Na ti n . T he second is that the Edu cation R eform Project focused so lely on edu ca tion . T h se two factor alone lead me to believe that inclu sion of Yukon First Nations in th e publi education y tern ha progres ed since the 1973 docum ent. 15 In 19 7th Mini t r f Vic - hair f n Indian ial Pr gram , ouncil fYuk n Indian ( YI) p n du cati n and Training t in Y I wa tb g Yuk n . ernment fYuk n in aj int partn r hip with th ducati n, ti ga te and rep rt n all a pect rning b dy that r pr ati n . The final report of th mm1 i n n Indian Pr gram , Mary-Jane Jim, wa the repre entati and re p n ibl e for writing th fin al ubmi r cormnendation to th Yukon . lTIJTil . wn f Indian edu ati n 111 nt d le en f th foUJic en Yuk n Fir t du ca ti nand Training D rmall y b cam e to, " t \ a rd a ne\- partn ership". The kn wn a red a Joint [i r th unc i! - hair of ocial f Yukon Indian at the time i n of Klt '(va. Kwt)'a re ulted in [i ur ernm nt, equ a l pp rtunity in edu ca ti on for Yukon Indi an peopl ; [! rm al r cognition fYuk n Indi an culture; repre ent ati n fth interet ofYuk n Indian peopl and go of Yukon' ducati nal mment initi ati o n of p cifi c legi Jati n; and p li cy and stru ctural reD rm tem (Jim . 1987). On e Vision Multiple Patlrway : Secondwy School Programming Proces. Summary R eport (Yukon econdary chool R ep ort) wa initiated by the Yukon Depatim nt of du ca ti on to examine the Yukon's current seco ndary chool a all the buildin gs are ag in g and th e building of a new hi gh school was mand ated by the Tenitorial Government (Lee, Bremner, & Belanger, 2008). The proj ect was guided by a econd ary School Prograrmnin g Advi ory Committee that was comprised of 15 Yukon D epartment of Edu cation repre entati ve , 17 hi gh ch ol edu cators, two First Nation Elder and three Yukon First Nation patiners (Lee et al. , 2008) . An appreciative inquiry process was used to exa mine the econdary school pr gramming and to a k takeholder qu estions of what was working and what could be improved in Yukon econd ary hoo ls. Although, Lee et al.'s (2 008) report wa an examination into the overall Yukon eco nd ary choo l programmin g, th e two key finding were that the second ary chool sy tems were not me ting the 16 n d f Yuk n Fir t Nati n cultur dvi hi t ry and language in all Yukon c ndary ch l pr gramming. J-J, !ping Stud nts Su d wa a document reat d by th Yuk n Fir t ry Hall ada mmittee ( o1111nitt e (YFN repr ati n tud nt and that th r wa a tr ng n d t emb d Yuk n ir t Wl ) i a Yuk n ntation fr m all 14 ir t 200 ). h Yuk n ir t ati n du ati n ch i t 1 r vid ati n in Yukon. The mandate f th YF epartment f Branch and it pr grammlll g taff in relati on to Yukon First Nati n edu cati n in th Kind rgart n t the YFN A d i ory partm nt f duca ti n-fund ed committe with t hni al ad ice, guid anc , upport, nd re mmend ati on to the Yuk n ducati n' Publi ation "' du cati n rade 12 y t m (Lew i Hall aday, 2008) . In the d cum nt, t out i goa l and pri riti e fi r tud ent achi evement and succ ; culture and langua ge pro gram · curri culum andre ource development, impl ementati n, and , eva lu ati on; parent participation; partner hip ; andre urc fi r Fir t ati on edu cati n in publi c sc hool There is a pl ethora of inti nnation, recomm ndati on , and advice provid ed to the Yukon Government, Depa1irnent of ducati on Publi c School Branch in regard to the edu ca ti onal needs of Yukon First Nation but very littl e implementation into Yukon choo l . The documentation of inclusion of First Nation in the education sy tem has been long and continual since the original document (Yukon ati ve Brotherhood, 1973 ). Kv.·(va (1 987), Edu cation Reform Proj ect Final Rep ort (2006), On e Vi ion Multip le Path ways Seco ndary Schools Programming Process Summary Report (2008), Helping Students Succeed (2 008) and the Report of th e A uditor General Canada all compri se the long li st of repo1i , positi on pap r and reform analy is to ask the qu estions of how to provide an inclusion of Yukon Fir t Nation culture and valu e for First Nation students in public schools. one of th repmi e er I oked into changing the mod el and providing an Abori ginal choice model with a framework ba ed on 17 b riginal phil philo ophi phi ribed th fir t m del f P udo harl t n ( 1994) d that t a h meri an int rpr tati f W ten1 Europ an and m th d 1 g1 that ati educati 11 a a tandardiz d cuniculum f ngli h languag and ur pean [hi tory and cultur . P. udo edu ca ti n ~ cu 11 d fi cienci in the minority culture and att mpt t a imilate tu lent in t the cultural n nn of th d minant iety. Th following chat1 by P eudo, Qua i and Tnt ati harl t n (1 4, igure 1. p. 27) lemon trat am del of ducation. Figure 1. Pn·udo attve E:.ducauon I Dcculturatton s"mtlallon/ ullural DtsconllllUtty Qua11 Cu lture a; roadblock to cducatton ( Dcfictcncy C~planatton) at" e EJuca11on I Cuhure and lan guage taught m the con text of domtnant soctcty world VICWS True I Culture tempordrtly (day, a fter-school program l mcluded to make educat ion more relevant attve Fducauon I l nclu~ 10n of cu lture and language taught from American Ind ia n world vtews Cullu re IS ml'egral to education (Mul tt-cullum l Educa tion) Figure 1. A copy of harl es ton 's ( 1994) th eo retical framework (cited in Freng, Freng, & Moore 2006). 18 In harl t ond m de l f n' approa h" ( 1994, p. 60) . Th Qu a i ua 1 ati edu ati n h de ati e du ati n in-whi h cultural in lu i n pl an ar tructur d a add - n, pull-out r after ch 1 pr gram that pr i in ati e du ati n that th e harle t n ' ( 1994) mode l f Tru w rid w to upp 11 an b ri ginal cho ice ch Na tive edu cati n m od 1 a together l an1ing and t achin g. ba ed in id e a ti itic mod ld r , ri be f True r integr ati n in th atio n cultur . It and and a mmitme nt o f all pe pl t the uld 1 r ati e edu ca ti n n cho 1 to bring ide th enri ched urri ula tern m del of edu ca ti on i a imilation that i fed rail fund d t all th pu bli c chool acr A rticl e 8 of the U nited a ti 1 m odel are re O cted. H de crib d hi Tru b ri g inal philo o phie and wo rld i w. T h cunent W .G rm of [i reed a f bori ginal philo ophies and ne that re Dect tra litio nal way and rclie mmunity, par nt , ribed a a ' re G rmi l eclarati n f th Rig ht s an ada. f Indi genou Peoples co nd emn s forced e term : 1. Indi genou pe ple and indi v idual hav th e right not to be ubj ec ted to fo rced as imil ati on r de tru cti on of their culture. 2. tate hall provid e effec tive m echani ms for preventi on of, and redres for: An y action w hi ch ha the aim or effect of depri v ing th em of their a) integrity as di tinct people , or of their cultural va lue or ethni c id entiti e . (United ations. (20 1 1). Retri eved from United ati ons: The Univer al D ecl aration of Human Ri ghts web ite: http ://www. un.org/en/docum ents/udhr/i nd ex . html# a9) . When consid ering the U nit eel Na tions D eclaration of th e Right of Indigenous Peopl es, the reco nunend ati ons from the Yukon Na tive B rotherhood and th e lon g li t of related doc ument o n providing First Na tion inclusion in Yukon, Yukon Public edu ca ti on appear to be in the tage of Quasi Na tive Edu cation or Quasi Fir t Na ti on inclu ion . 19 han ge p int in du ammg an th r ngag m nt in hange. arning ab ut a ngag m nt in chang fr m ti n, u h a b ri ginal du ca ti n, r qUire rld i w th r than y ur w n 1 a l h at i th e per o n' norm (ll iiL _oo_, p . 19). h ang th eory r change kn wl dge can be ery p werful in inD rrning du ati n r [! 1111 trat gi g tting re ult if th 111 d ha qu e ti n p rat t get p arti ular r acknowl lging and , in turn a I ep kn w ledge f the dynami c of h w th fact r in ult ( ull an , 2006, p. ). ull an p ro p broad pha e in du catio nal change pr c ed that th t111-e are in itia ti n, impl cm entati n, and c ntinu ati on (2 007). The initi ati n pha e i afD ct d by th t innova ti on , level of uppor1 from admini trati n, teach r ad v cacy, x tern al age nt and m oti va ti o n or de ire t adopt or pr ce d w ith th han g . T he impl em entati on pha e i affec ted by th the chan ge th e takehold er in th e ch an ge and th e characteri ti c h arac teri ti c of f th e takch ld er . T he continu ati on pha e i the inc rp orati on of th e change and i depende nt nth criti ca l rna of th e teacher , admini trator and takeholder invo lved in th e change. Full an argued fu rth er th at hav ing a change " th eo ry in u e" is not good n ugh and in ord er fo r it to be a " th eo ry in acti on," it requires even core premi es of focu sed motivati on, capac ity building w ith a foc u on result , lemn ing in contex t, changing context, bias fo r refl ecti ve acti on and tri -level engagem nt all und erpinned with people involved to pu h to th e nex t level, to m ak e th eir theory of action expli cit. Pull an' proposed change process loo k at edu cati ona l change a an orga ni zati on and m akes the argum ent to move from a top down leader hip of edu cati nal change m odel t ward a bottom-up shared leadership of edu cati onal chan ge m odel and crea te more m ea ning and refl ective action for those involved in bringing about the change. Pull an (2007) c ntended that change is not just about doing, it involve thinkin g about doing and edu cati onal ch ange depends 20 n what t a her d and think . M re 1mp rtantl n han ge i ab ut t a h r ' a ti n . Kn wled ge 1 ment f hang butt ach r a tually impl m nting chang , whether mall or large, i what make a difference in the li Wak (2007) pr p f their tud nt . d th at fund am ntal du cati nal chang tak organi zati nallevel, but ralh r at an in tituti nallevel. plac n l at an ccordin g t him, the .G cu of the edu ational hange literatur had, to that p int, b en up n orga niza tion and rga ni za tional change (Wak , 2007) . H e defin d in tituti n a the ocial arrangem ent tabJi hin g, rd aining, or auth rizing th id ea , norm , organi za ti n , and fram wo rk th at regul ate the pr hum an int raction in th e primary ar a e f f human li fe . Hi fundamental in titutionaJ hange pr ce throu gh mi ali gnm ent, protest ad h c alternati ve 111 Iv d e en tage th at progre ed ntr preneur hip , rc ponsibl e innova ti n, in tituti onal, and reorgani za ti on (W aks, 2007). Misa lignm ent cur w h n the in tituti on recogni ze that it i out of alignm nt w ith ther in tituti n ; Protest, where takehold ers experi ence di sati facti on, but m re powe rful age nt are still entrenched and deny th e c hange to occur; A d hoc alternatives, wh ere innova ti n co m e forw ard and takehold er beg in to put forth new ideas; Entrepreneurship , where the bringing of new idea and d eveloping noti on towa rd th e stakeholder becomes more ignifi cant in the change progress ion; Accountability, where R e p onsible innovation are brought into exi tence by respon ibl e age nt , who can th en be held accountable to the succe or failure of the innova tion ; ocial constructi on, w her in ome of the innova tive id eas are reward ed and other are rejected depending on the variou takeholder beliefs and valu es; In titutionalization, wherefore th e change becom es accepted and entr nch d with feedba ck and adjustm ent occurs regularl y; and finally, R orga nization, in whi ch older organi za ti n either adapt to assert a rol e in the change or remain un changed and thu di appear. 21 Wak con lud d that fundam ntal ducati nal change mean th readju tm nt fan e i ting rganizati n, r ch ol t new in tituti nal id a and n 1111 ; o that th organizati n, or ho 1, i on e again ordain d within the in tituti nal rder. Th e act change i d pend nt on th ocial y t m, n w id ea , alue b li f: , and n 1111 f th tak h Ici er inv lv d (Wak , 2007). make, cc rding to I-Iargrea e and Fink (2006), " du ati onal chang i rar ly ea u tain" (p. 1) and ' th e I ng term impa t f alwa y hard to ju tif and alm o t imp edu ca tional change i that tand ardi zed r fonn i de tr ying the eli er ity, and end ang ring th li and futur n u ly f th weak t m mber of the schoo l y tem, th e wh are poor, wh ar I arnin g through a n w language or have pecial edu cati nal need "(p. 4 ). Hargreav and Fink (2 00 ) co mbined the them for ducational change to b effecti it mu t m f ull an and Wak and argued that in ord er e thr ugh impl ementati on and in titutionalization to u tain ability, howca in g u tainable improv ment that bui Id s long ten11 capacity and culti vat educa tional enviro nment that are continu all y improv ing. They expl ain d that u tainability i compri eel of fi ve key interrelated characteri ti c of impr vement and change that su tain learning, endure over time, can be upported by ava il abl e or achi evabl e reso urces, doesn' t impac t negatively on other chools and systems, and promote di ver ity and capacity tlu·oughout the educational community. Hargreaves and Fink (2003) furth ered th e eli cussion on educa tional change requiring a leadership-for-learning mindset and that the prime responsibility of all choolleaders is to sustain lea rning. School leaders that are a eli tributed leadership , ensuring that someone is there after y u t sustain the change and perpetu ate th e planned innovations, ideologie and growth are the key to sustainabl e educa tional change. In a leadership-for-learning mindset, one mu t recognize th at eli tributed leader hip i "wo rkin g with reDective partners in a hared and di stributed way to beco me a collecti ve rather than an 22 indi idual ~ rce ' (Ka r Halb rt, 2009 p . 142). If thi m d 1 of 1 ad er hip i appli d t du ati nal chang ; th lead er hip i iewed a a rti al y t m mb dd din th h a1i and mind of all th 1 ad r hip i ulture r tim , and th leader hip rea t f di tribut d I ad r hip throu ghout, th n according t Hargrea e and Fink, th ch ang will be u tainabl Black to ck (20 10) pr p ed a differ nt fl nn f ch ange th f th indi idu al and upp rt a beli ef ab ut ial c n tru ct and what trategi ry that tak hat ir t w ill m e t tho e need w hil e fo ll ow ing the co r va lu e family focu ed and c mmunit ba e I. Ia k t k' (20 10) rea th f into ccount the ati n children need f child centred , ife th e ry ( L) purpmied th at wh n relati nal world i w are ac kn w l dg d and a ldre cd, balance can be rea ted for the bori ginal child in e eryth ing: du cati n al Bl ack t ck ' BOL th e ry wa deve lo ped in re pon children , sh c ia] and cultural. !though cia! we lfare f Fir t ati n tre ed that it hould be co n id ered bey nd th b und ari e of the soc ial welfare realm of influ ence. Although the Brea th of Life theory wa developed in resp on e to th e stru ctural ri k related to the First Nati on child welfa re, the assumpti on and stru cture of Breath of Life do n ot implicitl y bind it to child welfare applica ti on and co n id erations hould be given to oth er areas and cultures such a in educati on al juri di ction . (Blackstock, 20 10, p . 2) Blackstock (2010) acknowledged C ro s ' s (1 997, 2007) relationa l world v iew m odel and the principl es within as the foundati on of her BOL theo ry. T erry Cross (1 997, 2007) developed the relational worldv iew 1 odel in 198 0 w hil e workin g w ith the Nation al Indi an Child Welfare Assoc iati on (N IC WA) . ross's re lati ona l world v iew mode l is th e re fl ec ti o n of the Indi ge nou thought process and concept of balance as th e ba i for health, w hether that i an indi vidual, family, or in organi zati o n uch a school and the edu cati onal fi e ld . Th relational worldview 23 m d 1fl 11 w th principle Th c gniti f th ~ ur d mam : c gni ti ph ical, piritual and m ti nal. ommunity a tua lizati n, r le identity erv1ce, d main n ompa elf- teem and educatio n. Th phy i al d main includ e ~ d wat r, h u mg, afl ty and cm·ity. The piritu al domain mbrace tn pirituality and lifl purp I e edu ati n, bel ngin g and r lati n hip . Bl ac k tac k' that h d ribe a ne tin g n the r lati nal w rid iew principl by Bla k t ck are that cultur and c nt principle ; that th entire m del i . Th em ti nal d ma111 th eo ry embodi e ~ ur laye r . T h fl ur layer a e plained t hape the manife tati n of th relational w rld view itu ated within an e pan ive 1 aradi gm o f time call d th e seven g n ration concept; that multiple realitie are ackn wledg d and utili zed t in[! rrn ptimal valu e for the world i w principl e and trat gic t rc t re balance among th e principl ; and fourthl y, indi idu al ar viewed within th c nt world and others ( ee pp . 6- fo r further di cu i n). Bl ac k tac k' t f th eir relati on hip t the L th e ry pro po e change that incorporates an Indi genou s worldview in time, culture, and contex t. Tim e acknow ledgin g the Fir t Nations ontology a having ex pan ive co ncepts of tim e wherein pa t, pre ent, and future are mutually reinforcing. The Fir t ations even generati on concepti the co ntemplati on that everyo ne' acti ons are thought of in term of being influ enced by th e prev iou eve n ge nerati ons and each current action will have affect unto the next even generati ons (A embl y of First Nations, 1993) . Culture and context are taken into account in the shaping of the worldview principles, the principles mu st be set within the seven generation concept of time and appreciation for multiple realities; culture and context are the shaping factor fo r the principle and are depend ent on th e individua l's cultural norm s (Blackstock, 201 0). Blac kstoc k' BO L theory addresses change from an individual perspective rather than an orga nizational or 24 in tituti nal p r p cti e. Bla k t th need In k' L th r ace unt a a hild entree! han ge that m eet f a h individual wh in turn will then D rm a 11 eli ran o n' (20 10) L ?a din Edu a tiona! JVi. ly, h change ha b n th [! cu f ch lar fi r m tim han tated th at edu ational er the pa t fift y ea r and that edu ca tion al hang ha evol eel fr m inn va ti n · impl em entati on; and into a pha e kn ow n a m ea nmg making, and ca pac ity building. F llo ing th edu ca ti na l hange e th inno ati n tage i th e time in luti n, ran n argued th at hich the de el pment o f ingul arl y-c ntrolled id ea cam e fr m edu ca to r to try in th fi eld n th ir w n; th e impl em ntati n pha e wa a c ntinu ati on of controlling t p down leader hip m d l that imp e the han ge n th o e th e I ader as manager a n eding hange; th m eaning m akin g pha e m o eel fr m an indi vi du al in comp ari on t th coll e ti e per p ec ti ve to an indi idu al a a p art of th e c ll ec ti ve per p ecti ve th at progre sed th ch ange proce t a bottom -up model inc rp ratin g the id ea of all inv lved in th e chan ge; and the cap acity building pha e, whi ch m aintain a c llaborati ve app roach toward modifi ca tio n, but also includ e the m o t v ital per o n, tho e w ho w ill be m o t affec ted by th e ch ange in qu estion . Branson placed edu cati on al alteration now in a phase of an ethi cal dim nsi n whil st also m aintaining its ori ginal m anagerial dimension . H e proposed th at leading ch ange in edu cati on is as much about acting so a to not produ ce harm , but rather to produce po iti ve re ults, to honour other , to take stands that enhan ce the process, and to behave in ways th at clearl y show that their own self interest are not the dri ving moti vati on behind their 1 ader hip as it is about ac hieving desirable ch ange. Branson furth er argued that in order for effective chan ge to happen in an edu ca tio nal setting, th ere must be an und er tanding of edu cational lea dership th at ac kn ow ledges phenomeno logy, emoti n, wi dom, and elf-refl ection. Phenomeno logy is imp orta nt a it dea l 25 wi th gaining the appr priat relati nal kn w l dg and apa ity t ma imize th engag m nt f tho e b ing led . m ti n c ur wh nth I ad er r c gm z tak h lei r in ol all th cha lleng m guid d with th tran G rmati n . ambiguiti e , unc rtaintie , and parae! xe , all a implem nting chang . lf-r n cti n i th pnn ipl chang a an em ti na l pr [ th s Dr the lead er hip through the iated with uc e fu ll y h ol b ing iew ed a the ne n e tem a l rea lity, o th e m emb er can lead th ir gaining the d that chool community thr ugh change. I adership fact r and th t chn 1 gica l, hen taking int a unt the edu cationa l i -po li ti a!, and tru ctural per pe tive , the proce of leading chang ca n b d n w i ly. T h I ader need to be aware of th e di verse G rce or pr ur au ing th need t bring ab ut hange and that a the lea der th ey ca nn t achi ve th outcome f han ge by them el e . tran formati on impli e hange ca nnot happ en with ut orn e pl an r trategy and the me m ov ment away fr m a urrent tate t orn e improved tat (Hargreave , 2006) . A cco rding to Hill (2002), in order to addres change for Fir t Na t ion in edu ca ti onal ystems, educators mu t help facilitate change, not impose soluti on . A lthough th ere are spec ific obj ective in regard to change theory in reference to F ir t ati on stud ents, the literature on th e subj ect is spar e outs id e of Hill' s paper. If ch ange th eo ry i appli ed, mu t be in con ultati o n w ith a single First Nation community to avoid a top -down admini strative philo ophy whi ch would be anathem a to the Fir t Nation perspecti ve on bringing about change. That is, a theo ry th at would be based on consultation and eli cu ion and derived from experience rath er than th ory . A Sense of Belon gin g 26 Wh n di u ing Yukon ir t y tern, n mu t be awar ati n and cr ating a culturally-r p n 1 fthe need[! r a n fb el nging D rFir t educati n ati n tud nt . Yuk n id ntify th ir 1 an1ing tlu· ugh culture, language, and a en e f b longing to land and pla . mea ure. ubj en [belonging i intrica tely c nn cted t ir t Nati n but an be difficult to e elopm ent and re ear h f th e fac t r th at reat a " b I nging'' en ironm nt ar t t indi idu al pini n r feeling ( uld 2007). cia! relati n hip and acad mt ucce cco rding t f a tud ent. If an uld bel nging i tied l b riginal tud ent i i Iat d fr m r her culture, he r h i m re like! to dr p ut r choo l and ha e a "negati e sen e" prid e in hi s or her indi g n u ance try ( uld , 2 07) . ain1 (2000) de cribed hi m t ba ic hi prem1 of dev loping a en f f c mm n bel nging betwe n two culture a th rec gnition of their co nunonaliti e and th ir differ nc . a1n1 argued th at if we onl y a hi e e kn wledge [ our di fference then "o ur triumph w uld be pyrrhi c" (2000. p. 80). Ma I w ( 197 1) beli eved th at mo t maladju tm nt and emotional illne m ur ciety co uld be traced to th e fa ilure to gratify the ba ic human need fo rb longing. tudents who ex hau t th eir nergies attempting to meet thi s deficiency have no re erve left for hi gher level connotative and cogniti ve functions. Adler (1939) also believed th at fa ilure in chool u ually stemmed from fee lin g uncoru1ected to the teacher, oth er stud ent , or th e ch oo l co mmunity. In examining Adl er' theory of "belongingness, " Crand all (19 8 1) found that when students felt they belonged, th ey had an enhanced sense of worth and increased self-co nfid ence. On the other hand , if th ey did not fee l they belonged, they felt helpl ess and had no ense f ntrol over their environment. Goodenow (1993) found that wh en children felt they belonged, they were more motivated, had higher expectation of success, and believed in the valu e of their academic work. Gl a er (19 6) 27 a ti d that th n ed £ r b 1 ngm g 1 ne f th fi ba ic n eed writt n into th human g n ti c tru tur . Ma low atrn , belonging amon g th uld , Ia r, and rand a ll all argu d that r ating a b nd and en e f tud nt, cho 1 and du cat r i th e mo t ignifi ant fact r t r ating a producti e 1 arning n iro1m1ent fl r all. If we u ed th abo e m enti o ned 1er pecti e int narrati e argument then it w uld b that it i th e edu cat r' re pon ibility t r le to effecti ely build th relati n hip and en ne tak th e l ad er hip f b I ngin g fl r the tud ent w ithin the h ol y tem . Fir t Nation Tra dition al du cation It i nece ary toe pl ain what Fir t differ from the current ati on traditi nal edu cati on I oked like and how it urocentri c edu cati n . Fo r th e m t part, th e edu ca ti on y tern in ha been con tru cted u ing W e tern wo rld iew ( ajete, 1994 ). L ng be fl re an ada uropea n cam e to North America, Indigenou people h ad a hi ghl y developed y t m of edu cation. It wa th e duty and responsibility of the parents, E ld ers and m emb er of the c mmunity as a w hole to teach younger people and en ure they led a good li fe . For exampl e, thi was done by barin g experiences with children rather th an isolating them in a non-active env irorunent uch a c lo ed classroom . So , children participated in the dai ly activitie of adults. According to Brend a L afrance, in Abori ginal culture and education each kill has a social, economic, spiritual and hi storical conte t (Lafrance, 2000) . A s Lafrance noted, kno w ledge about fi sh p awning i acquired not by studying biology but throu gh parti cipating in fi shing, storytelling, art and oth er related activities. hildren's devel o pment wa empha ized throu gh barin g. For exampl e, w hen a hunt wa compl eted all the m eat was distributed and shared tlu·ou gh ut th e co trununity 28 ( afrance, 2000) . Traditi nal b ri ginal educati n had link t c n mic conditi n . wa [! r li ing and urvival. L avitt ( 199 ) p int d ut that, by th ag f fi e, an1mg b ri gina l hildr n w re alr ady tau ght t re p ct th environm nt thr u gh b er ati n and pra cti ce. in lud d learning the ati [trapping huntin g fi hing, D od gath rin g, and pr par ti n . Traditi nal edu cati n f b ri g inal children wa mainl y an in.D rmal, pr v ided y ung people w ith th in e pecifi Lafran p ri ntial pr ce . It kill , attitud e and knowledge they n ryda y life. du cati n wa a natural pr cc hi ded to f-uncti n ccurrin g w hil e d ing veryd ay acti v iti e . argue that thi type [l ea rning en ured cultural c ntinui ty and urviva l o f the m enta l, spiritual, em oti onal and ph y i al well -being f ach indi idu al (Lafra nce, 2000) . For Ab ri ginal childr n liD va lu e wer learned thro ugh th ee tend ed fa mil y. Kirkn e (1993) n ted that du ca ti on by th x tend ed family wa be t exempli fi d by th e grandm th er and her teaching throu gh leg nd , famil y p ati ence and 1 e. randm oth er pl ayed a maj or ro le in the edu cation of children . Y oun g children pl ayed, but at th e ame tim e th e contributi on of even the littl e t child to th e work of the hou eh ld wa encouraged. The dut y of lea rning began fir t by o bserving and later by doing. Acco rdin g to o ne Ab ori gin a l man, " I learned how to cho p woo d after o bserv ing m y father, m y grandmother and m y mother cho ppin g woo d and how afety con cious they were in en urin g th at no harm w ill be done'' ( Kirkn e , 1993, p . 146) . Thi learning b y ob erving, their connection to the natural world, th e grandm oth er's teac hin g and th e fact that children are full -fl edged contributing m embers of the househo ld were all -impotia nt factors in Abori ginal culture that co ntributed to th du cation and the li ve of Ab ori gin al children (Kirknes , 1993). Before urocentric schooling there wa a y tem of po itiv learning for A borigina l children. Aboriginal people stre ed an approach to edu ca ti on that re li ed on looking, li stenin g, doin g and learning ( aj ete, 1994). cco rding to Leav itt ( 1993), it i due to 29 th 1r du ati n that th m th du ati n wa rigina l uffu d a hap d b p iti in til l db indirect and n n- uld n t b und r tat d. ln acti n in the h me. ln ·hildh rc1 m an . ir t urrentl , th maJ rit ur pean phil b ri ginal mmuniti e , d, 1 r per beha i ur was f the hild thr ugh mcnt ring, rk in daiI li fe. [public , h L arc fo un led n the principl e, a so iat d with ophy f educa ti n (Mi chel, 20 d m n tratcd th at the pb y ica l, f h m life t ignifi an ati n traditi nal cdu ati n wa c nn ctcd mmunit and ~ t ring th indi idu al trcngth b er ati n and e p ri nti al phi al r piritual n ntati n. ~ r mm n phil ith d pi ingrain d piritu alit . h du ati n [ b ri ginal hildr n beha i ur t th har d a cco r lin g t emmert (200 1), research ha cial and cultural envir nm nt in whi ch learnin g take pl ac ignifi ca ntl y a f~ ct the lea rning and we ll -bein g of b ri gin al children. The prepond erance [ r arch idence in thi rc iew , h w a po iti ve relati n hip between academi perD rm ance and the pr nc of ati v language and cultural program , outweighing re ea reh th at h w little r n influence. onsequ entl y, h ati e m ri ca n hould eri u ly con id r amending their cuJTicul a t upport thi priority, whi ch re earcher hould ontinu e t tud y fac t r th at increase r dccrea e th e f the c program . (p. 12) effecti ven Demm ert argued that Abori ginal children who to k part in cho I program th at empha ized their loca l know ledge and culture within the curri culum h wed impr ement in their attendance, academic achievement and behav iour. urn mary The educator of Yukon Abori gin al tud ent have gradu all y und er tood, o cr the la t 40 yea rs, the difference between Fir t Nation tudcnt and non- bori ginal tudent . !though 30 th re ha b n mu h docum ntati n n th Improve nth cun nt r aliti fthe w , c ncept on the ubj and ugge ti n . ubje t, th re ha e been many ugg ti n n how t t, th r ha been v ry littl , to n a tual int grati n he in ment f Fir t ati n within th terTi tory f th Yuk n b gan in a docum ent d, admini trati e way fr m th [i nnati n f the Tog th r Today.for ur hildr n Tomorrmv d ut id -111 1 a 1 w pr , parti ul arly when th InC ation to th at their current tru ture is the ation rp rated, it wa n t incorp rated in a meaningful way, rather in a ucL i Nati n way. Rath er when Tnt " ir t Fir t belie ven when ir t up n r tru ture, and thu mu t b tru cture i urn nt in 1 7 and hanging any rga niza ti n fr m the nD r d up n th minority. ir t ati n ed ucational reD rm i enac t d , it mu t b from a du ca ti n al departm ent and inc rp rate their ow n phil phic , background, and ways of lea n1in g. Incorporating change th eo ry into th broader pr ce m ean that each Fir t of Fir t ati ons ducation mu t ation c01rununity ha to und er tand change theory a it app li ed to Fir t Nations, and has to und er tand change theory in regard to ed ucational ystem , and thu must be combined in each First ation ' community. Change theory is an important part of tran forming any sociological tru cture, but it must be incorporated without influence from other communiti e , by the sp ecific communities. lf we understand th e importance of the se n e of belonging fr m an individual 's tudent perspecti ve as important to his or her own development within an institution uch as a school, then we mu st incorporate the indiv idual to a di tinct ense of belongin g a a way forward to hi or her own life within a school structure. 31 me th arn al f ur pean , and the ubmi i n f ir l ati n ' ultur und er th new dominant cultur , it an b pro en, t th p int f unwritten fa t, that they nforc d th ir wn the ri phil ophie backgr und , and y tem in much th Fir t ation am way a any th r g1 al tru tur up n th e educa ti nal ture. b riginal e pite the fa t that the du ati n y tem wa c mpl e , th rough thr ugh ut their li organized, and non-authoritati , it wa a ume l t be I r ng, then it ur centric ught to b ob i u t r tum to the b riginal The fir t chapter laid ut the imp rtance f thi handbook and thi chapter ha urveyed mod I. If web li that thi wa r m c mpari on t , c nununity m del. the ex tant lit ratur . In hapter I ill pl ain th pr ject plan and pr ce s order to cr at the handbook and compl te thi research proj ct. actual handbook and the re earch project. I underw nt in hap ter 4 wi ll con i t f th e hapter 5 wil I be a final ummary of my reflection on the entire proces of 32 hapter 3 - Re ea rch Method hapt r 1 1 r pr ~ thi tual i w a t f nd av ur t d [! r thi typ t, and larifi e I the dir ati n and in pa1ii ul ar n id red duca ti n. hapt r 2 al o e pi reel eclu ati nal change theori kn wn leader f change and nan hapter 2 al o pr belonging in the h fr arch ti n in whi h k pla . hapt r 2 tart d with an e aminati n flit rature fr m a hi tori alp r p cti c f Yuk n Fir t Tru nati h th r i a n e plain d a g neral ynop 1 f the pr j t. It al [! rm ided a c nt d th fo u t an harl e ton' m cl I f from a [! w w ll - b riginal ducati nal chang the ry. d an pl anati n f the n ed D r b riginal tucl nt l and I ked into what traditi onal Fir t hav a en e f ati on ecluca ti n wa . hapter 3 will e pl ain th re earch m th d 1 g1e u ed in the unci rtakin g f the re earch project and will al o, e amine orn e b ri ginal h ic chool th at ar curre ntl y opera ting in Canada that were vi ited by the re archer t gain an in -depth know ledge of h w the chool Indigen us philo ophie op rated within th chool. The final ection of hapt r 3 clari fie the proces u ed in the de elopment of the handboo k. The overarching concept of thi qualitati ve re ea rch project was an epi temologica l approach involving me as the researcher and the development of a clo e relation hip with th Elders and conducting fi eld research with first-hand info rmati on coming fro m the Elder . F r example, one session with the Eld ers invo lved sewing a pair of moccasin in a traditional First Nations leatning e perience. Analysis and info rmation gathering from thJee cunentl y operating Aboriginal choice schools was incorporated with the knowledg gained from wo rking clo ely with the lders and content analy i of recent lit rature of Fir t ations educa ti on. The three anadian Aboriginal school di scus ed furth er in the methodology ection of thi paper, 1~1 33 Mahkwa I m ntar in Manit ba , Ami k a i I m ntary in riti h lb Jia, and p n nc tw cont f th tu aliz d th pre 1 u b dy f work in Fir t The final pr duct f thi re earch proj ect i an inti nn ati 1 and ch 1' lndi g nou educati n in Yuk n and form d the fl und ati n t the crea ti n f thi r crea ting the handb arney Hill b r e th daily p rati n ar h r, t de el pan und r tandin g f a h ch enabl me a th r phil ophy. The lumbia, w re i it d t cad m in handb arch proj ation t. k. Th pr ce k required a 1 ng-tenn relati n hip with ld r fr m three Yukon ir t Nation . Th relation hip that f, a the r archer, ha e ith the Jd r b gan wh n I was a child and i in continual devclopm nt in ur li ving y ar . ach ld r wa infonn e I f my interview ign d a n ent fl rm be.D re ur e i n began. ach of th e ld er wa infonn ed of what the re arch proj ct nd product wo uld be and that they eac h had indi vidual contributions which did not mean th ey we re r pre ntin g their per pective Fir t wh ole. ati n a a ach Eld er' input wa repre entati e of hi or h r individu allndig nou know ledge as a Yukon Fir t Nation Elder. For the purpo e of thi re earch project, the fir t part of thi journey wa to obtain perm1 sion from my Tr 'ondek Hwech 'in ' First ati on Elder to compl ete thi research and put their "ways of kn owing" on paper. Alth ough, Elder am Johnston and Elder Li zz ie Hall are not of Tr' ondek Hwech' in ancestry, both Eld ers have been mentors throughout my life and both ac know ledged that initi al perm is ion to lea rn pro toco ls mu st co me from th e Tr 'o nd ek Hwec h' in First Nation. To my understanding during the sessions, all of the Elder ex pre sed that they had seen enough papers written in what th ey ex pre sed as "the white man's wo rd ". Keepi ng in mind the personal hi story of the Eld ers in qu estion, it can b under tood why they are cone rned for obfuscatin g language; however, these concern al so show the di trust between th two parti : 34 th ir Fir t ati n c mmunity and th g rrun nt. lth ugh I, a are archer, d n t n fr m thi hi t rica! eli tru t. It i uch languag , it i imp rtant t n t th ra i t diction com u pici n. Thi i my int nt that thi handbo k will help t end thi dif.D r n m p rc pti n f th My learning from the Ici er t meeting , weat , c n er ati n four month . In th r everal m nth in th D rm [ ircle k place 10 n t pa n ur traditi nal Indi gen u kn wledge. I c1 d dir ti n fr m fi ur Yuko n Icier fi r a peri d of m nth we had 2 day c mpn ing of 264 hour of fo rma lle on tim e. It i fr m the e e p rience that I created a handb Wheel model, a t. r t a, and the breaking f bread, co nver ati on during utd or-experienti al and n-the- land attend ed D rmal lea rning hall nge a the cultural lei r and the a ademi w rlcl i rei fr m th urag parat d into the fi ur directi n k for educa tor . I used the Medicine f the m ntal, motional, pi ritual, and ph ysical per pective . It will be a re urce that wo uld be a tart to brid ging the cultural ga p in mind et and hopefull y be the beginning to th e edu cato r' jo urn ey of und er ta ndi ng the relati onal plurali sm n eded to wo rk with Yukon First ati ons in a publi choo l. In Eld er Lizz ie Hall' word s, ''Tell them, they need to go in my teps fir t" (perso nal co mmuni cati n, Janu ary 8, 20 12), and it is my hope that they will use this a a gu ide fo r their own educati onal and teaching JOU111ey. During the experiences with the Eld ers, I was not petmitted to take notes, picture , audio or video recordings of our time learning together. If I required clarifi cati n, I was expected to return to the Eld er and gain clarity through our traditi onal oral passing of know ledge. The only documentation I was permitted to keep wa a refl exive journal after the m tings wi th the lder . According to reswell (2007) a refl ex ive joumal is a type of di ary where there arch r mak 35 r gular ntri during th r deci ion and r a ar h proce . In my j UJna1 ntri n £1 r them , th 1 gi ti f the tud y and r Oecti n upon what i happening in t nn of m y own alu e and int re t . R efl e bia alu e which ld r and ity requir that th writ r i n c1 u r h bring t th qu aJit ti e re j ournal ntti crib ed in what a tivity I wa participatin g, th d ate, and d nt ( oded ace rdin g t their tit! and nam quadrant f the m edi c ine w he 1 I would attach th 1 arch tud y ( r fth p n en e th at h a pr and phy ica l ( ). I r c rd ed m th dol gi al ), and m y th ught w 11, n t which n: m enta l (m ), m ti na l (e), piritu al (s), ampl e of a j um al entry i : pecifi c ELH :O1/07/201 2 ew in g M cca 111 . (p) LH e pl ain d that the m ement o f ewing and the act f cuttin g out the patt m i our way of doi ng th e hand -o n-1 am ing we talk about. ( ) ELH talked about prayer and meditati n during our se sion . W e are to think (praying) of th e p r on we are m aking th m c a in £1 r and w ing i qui eter activity that allow you to r f1 ct (m editati n) n your w rk and yo ur ow n th ught . (e) LH expl ained th at the de ign and ty le we ch o e l put n th m cca in i ur em ti ons and feelings how n in c 1 ur and hape with the beadwo rk .(m ) LH cla1ified th at the co unting, measuring and n uring the ymmetry of the pair f mocca in i wh re we u e our m ath and art kill s;countin g the bead , drawing th e de ign, m aking ure the design are ymmetri cal. Through out th ions w ith the lder th e lea rning wa n t all it and talk. Le n were tau ght in tradition al ways and there were m any time I was compl eting hand s-o n-tas k and had to learn wh at the E lders m eant by teaching me how to complete the tas k . n e exampl e of a traditionalles on was sewing a p air of m occasin with one of th e E lder . When we ew, we are learning much m ore than an art fon11 or a imple m ath Jesson in counting. W e area l o experiencing a spirituality in the fo nn of prayer and m editati on; we pray fo r the anim al that ha given its life for the suppli es we are using to m ake the moccasin ; we pray fo r th m oo e and the beaver; we pray for th e p erson for whom we are m aking the m occa ins and that we are ki ll ed in our work; and we pray for the ld ers th at have tau ght us the skill to m ake th m oe asin . An oth er xa mpl e of a les o n was an on-th e- land day by parti c ipating in ice fi hing. Thi day of 36 traditi nal I arning included ph i al I h 1 in th i f h w 1 ng t mak th fi h lin , kn t t ing D r the n t, length f ; m nta l lc n n [hiking t th lake I ere n ce ar pre a uti n n eel d t und rtak th end a t ri a e at ncar the fi . hing h I and a and in tructi n fr m the ld r nh ' t , and utting , and rganization f a~ ty f h n ring th fi. h we cau ght ur; piritu all e , on [ li t ning t the Ici er iding; and , em ti nal 1 u tenanc th fi h w uld b pr and th [! r the da king uppli pull lupth netb t centhc tw fi hing h les, p er~ 1111 the fi . hinge pediti on in a traditi nal mann r. Becau han db it wa ag r cd th at, thr ugh thi rc. carch project, I k tru tured t the G ur dir cti n f the medic in h cl, it was up to me to a cc1iain to whi h quadrant f th medi in ' h 1 I w uld attach th lea rnin g. and w uld make entri e in m ren ould be de eloping a I lea rn d from th e ld cr j urn al I w uld cod my lea rning a, ph ys ica l (p ), mental (m) , emotional ( ), r piritu al ( ) with date of c i n and which ld er parti cipated in th e e i n. Member ch eking for whi ch ld er we re pre ent at th e tim e of teac hing wa in th e form of their initi al . ome of th e e ion had all of the Id er present, or th ere we re time it wa. on a one- to-one ba i with me and the ld er, r me and two of the Ici er . Becau e of eli tance and ability to travel, th ere wa nl y one time where all fi e ofu met and it wa in the co mmunity f Whitehorse, Yuk n. A there wa a cerem ni al pa1i to thi e ion, and beca u e it wa out id e f the traditional territorie of all four Ici er , there wa a requirement t attain penni ion fro m Kwanlin Dun Fir t Nati on and Ta 'a n Kwac h'a n oun cil, the two re idin g Fir t ati n traditi onal territ ry in whi ch we met to compl et a week nd of learning. As a member of th e Tr' ndek I lwech ' in Fir t Nati on, wh en I am pas ed know ledge fro m an ld er, it i. con idered a acrcd act and it i ex pected that I und er tand and a 'Cept the 37 Indi g n u kn w led g t b pa d n a it ha be n [! r a mi ll ennia . Traditi na il , th Tr ' nd ek ra il . h chan g f pa in g our traditiona l kn H e h' in pa d our kn written t nly happ n d in the pa t century, with th incr a t ha te hn 1 gy and the ea with the f 01rununicati nin a p Ici er for thi r ear h pr j ect i th.r u gh thi r arch proj t that I w ill pr ne t d ac e t led ge in crib I unci rto k t-c mput r w rld . Th pr c peel in traditi n nd our ways of knowing. It i id e a re urce th at bridge ur traditi nal ral Indi gen u kn wl edg t the written te t. Aboriginal boice chool The concept and t nn , Aborig ina l hoi ·e hoo f i re lati v ly new in th e anadi an contex t of public du catio n. Currentl y, th m aj rity o f public chool ar D unci cl n the principle a ciatecl with a uropea n philo ophy of eclucati n (Miche l 2005) . That i , th e schoo l' v i i n, goa l o bj ecti ves, e pec tati on o f b hav i ur, and curri culum are all de li v r d and ground ed w ithin a v iewpoint th at u es E ur centri c cultures a the fo und ati n and all subj ect are delivered to the tud ent u ing Eur pean perspective . T hi edu cati on al approach is ba eel on a White, Eurocentric m odel of know ing and leave out lndi genou knowledge . Miche l (2 005) described an Aboriginal choice school m odel as one that e tabli hes a different edu ca tional phil o oph y and has th e sc hoo l's v i io n, goa ls, and obj ec ti ves, expectati ons of behav io ur, curriculum, and pedagogical design based on an Indi gen ou wo rlclv iew . A ny stud nt can attend an A bori ginal choice m odel of school, as it i no di fferent than a communi ty- based chool, or a French llrunersion chool w ithin the publi c schoo l sy tem . The onl y difference between an A boriginal cho ice school and a traditi on al public schoo l is that a ch ice ch oo l i tru cturecl around a foundation of an Indige nous wo rldview . In o rd er to und erstand how an A bori gi nal edu cation al philo ophy is put to practice, I have provided three rec nt e ampl e of bori g ina l 38 boice ch ol : iji Mahkwa ch l, Ami kwa iy ad 1ny an arney Hill lementary. he e ample f boriginal tlu· e u c fully- p rating bori ginal choice ch ol ar ch ice ch I mod el that uld rk w II within th e Yuk n' I i an boriginal ch i e cho 1 that ha been operating in Winnipeg, iji Mahkwa ch Manit ba ince 1994. "Th e iji Mahk wa ch I and h mmunit UJ h ld th e beli ef th at all children have an inher nt right t th hi gh t qu ality f h listi e edu ca ti n. Th integration f traditional, cultural teaching in upporti e learning enviromnent will pro id tr ngth and kill to m et th e hall enge tud ent with f li~ " ( ij i Mahkwa ch ol Web ite, 2010). The cho I follow an Indigen u frame ork of Th ~ Fou r Dire ·tions guiding the edu cator' teachin g and th e child' lea rnin g. h ij i Mahkwa cdu ali n i the cultural value and beli ef: of the ree and jibew ne th at focu c on ati n whil e operating in a public schoo l format. All tud ent ar welcome and a tud ent doe n t have to be of ir t ati on ancestry to attend Niji Mahkwa choo l. Th e curr nt principal of ij i Ma hkwa ch ol, Rob Ri el, describes the N iji Mahkwa ducati on e peri nee a "o ne teeped in th Cree and Oj ibew cultur . !l ow in g the stud ent the opportunities to remain connected to their First Na ti on anee try, culture, language and pride'' (R. Ri el, per onal communi cati on March 23, 20 I I). Niji Mahkwa Schoo l has been operating for 17 years and is viewed a a strong Abori ginal choice model (K. Richard son, personal communication November 21, 201 0; R. Ri el, per nal communicati on March 23, 2011 ). The mo re recent examples of Aboriginal cl ice choo l , Ami skwaciy Academy and Can1ey Hill looked to Niji Mahkwa School as a guid e to begin their journeys of opening an Aboriginal choice school in their di trict. 39 ni kwa iy cad my b gan in 1 99 a an id a br ught to liD by educat r who wi h d to ee more pportuniti that in for bori ginal tudent . " mi k aci i an Ab ri ginal hi gh ch ol rp rate traditi nal nati e alue a it phy, hav ore philo tud nt id entify with their r e ultur and till prepar the tudent with kill D r th 2 1st centur '' ( miskwaciy Academ y h 1Webite,2 010). The g n i en ~ r uraging cho I to I m d 1 per p cti e. mi kwac iy ca me fr m th k at th eir mi kwaciy h 1 c mmunity need and addre th m with a ni ch ca demy wa tb fir t ch 1 f it kind , meeting the needs of h 1 di tri ct rec gni zed that the maj or the urban Abori ginal youth in dmonton, tud ent p pulation of their di trict wa p rcentage of the dmont n oard Publi c chool 1berta. Th tud ent [ Fir t ati n anc . try and that a high tudent w r dr ppin g out of hi gh cho I. Thi informatio n ct the wheel in motion to begin Ami kwac iy Academy. The ite of an ld airport tem1inal wa elected and renova ted to meet th need of an ab ri ginal ch ice high choo l with a focu on the ree culture and language. Acco rdin g to prin cipal, Fred Hine , "A mi kwac iy Academy operate und er th e vision statement of ' Our path , our life, our spirit'. (F. Hine , per ona1 communi ca tion, May 17, 2011 ). On the sch oo l website th e schoo l defin es their purpose and dail y wo rk as, "Thi s vi ion of Ami kwaciy Academy is to honour the Aboriginal community and refl ect it culture , va lu e , ancestral knowledge and traditi on in ac hi ev ing exce ll ence in edu cati on: · A fter a choo l visitation, conversa ti ons with staff and Prin cipal Hin e , in thi s resea rcher' op ini on it i evident that the Cree Nations cultural prid e is interwoven w ith the dail y operation y tems, norm and cultural fabri c of Amiskwaciy Academy. Ami kwaciy is now an Abori ginal choice school that 40 th r eli tri t are 1 king t ward fl r infl rmati n and m d 1 t h tartin g an aborigina l hoi ce I of their wn . lumbi a' fir t Briti h 1 m entary Mahkw a ch h bo ri gina1 ch ic 1 i a ch ol that t a mod el to beg in their pr bori g inal ch ice c h f be 1 i I cated in Pri n mi kwaciy A ming an b ri g ina1 h ices ho l. (K . tart the h e rge, B . . a nd i curr ntl y in their I bega n when the Provincial 1 y ar put fo rth fi r a Pro inc ial Prince G eo rg . (Mi ch l, 2005) The pr cmnmi e e bori gin a1 bori gina l c ho ice chool in t m m entum until th e ioned R obert M alate t t complete a eco nd a e m ent of chool Di tri ct 57, Prine arney Hi ll mb r 2 1, 20 10) e ond y ar of operati n. T he pr c Branch in the 200 /2004 ch I, fl rm all y known a k direc ti on fr m b th Ri hard on, per onal c mmuni ca ti n, Th ch bori gin a l du cati n Boa rd bori ginal edu ca ti n in eo rg A a result of thi Report, the Boa rd of du ca ti on stru ck a Ta k Force n A b rigin al E du cation which began it work in eptember 2007. The con ultation proces for th e Aboriginal C hoice choo l in chool Di trict 57, i the resultin g acti on f Recotrun ndation l 0 of the Ab ori ginal Edu cati on Ta k Force Reportl , That th e B oard o f E du cation, School Di strict No. 57 (Prince Geo rge) enter into imn1edi ate community consultation with the intent of d e ignating an ex istin g elem ntary chool as an Ab ori gin al K -7 choice elem entary school, ffective a early as September 1, 2008. (C. Corri ga n, 2009 , p . 3) Within these reco mmendati ons, it was suggested that the B . . bori ginal C ho ice choo l look to Amiskw aciy Academ y in Edm onton, Albetia and M oth r Earth School in W innipeg, M anitoba for cmTiculum examples (Michel, 200 5). 41 ft r a few m re y ar lumb ia' fir t cted and Briti h y ar. Th ch mmunity li f r ear hand n ultati n, a it h 1 f arney Hill wa borigina l choice cho I pened ·~ r th e 20 l 0/20 II urrently op rating und er th tit! [ b ri ginal h ol h ice choo l un til th e n ultati n [! r aDak lh nam i c mpl t d. ccording to interim prin ipal, Kathy Ri hard tim of tran iti n. he upport tud nt u e b riginal h i e ch with integrated hoi e cho 1 d 1 ory Dak lh langu age n t in th unci!; n, th cho 1 i in th ir infancy and it i a 1 i building hea lthy relati n hip to b 1iginal educa ti n initi ati e , including; bori ginal b ri gin al ontent and p r pecti ve acr s the curriculum ; trong tart program; -. Jder-in-Re idenc Program; Re torati ve Practice; Traditionall and -ba d edu cati n pr gram; After ch ol pr gram ; Multi-age fami ly grouping in a cyc le of 1 aming and c ll ab rative work with famili e , community agencie and organi zation to ma imize pportuniti communication, [! r our tud ent . (K. Ri chard n, per nal ov mber 2 1, 201 0) 11 three of th e Abori ginal choice model schoo l ar dem n trating the succe of providing an indigenous ba ed philo ophy of teaching to tud ent . In all the ite vi itati on I felt there was an overwhelming ense of prid e and belongin g to the choo l community and Indigenous worldview. The creating of the handbook took into account the infonnation gathered from site visitati ons to the three Aboriginal choice schools, both historical and current literature f Fir t Na ti ons education, factors from different change theorie , and most importantly, the know ledge gained from working with the Yukon First Nati on Elders. 42 urn mary introdu d pre i u Jy in ary [! r thew ll -being f th Fir t m d I within th territory i n current Yuk n h e plained in hapter y tern lb 11a, 111 hapter 1, th imp t1an e fan boriginal ch i ch ati n tud nt within the y tern . It i my h p that the preliminary methodol gica l r earch a - ld r ' teaching and th pi n ring b ri gin a l choi e riti h olumbia, and Manit ba, will all pro ide amp! D r the tru ctural blu print [! r an riginal ch hoo l upporting re earch ch ol y t min Yukon. In the ne t hapter, I will pro id the a tu al handb ok that detail and d ign the way ahead D r an boriginal ch i ch 1m d I within th e chooJ y tcm f the Yukon Territory. hapter 4, the handbook, take int acco unt the pr liminary literature th at i u eful for th e crea tion of an Ab ri ginal choice choo l mod 1, th teachin g fro m the ir t the re earch that I have d neon ati on Eld er , and b rigin al choice choo l in Briti h olumbi a, Albet1a, and Manitoba. I will co mbine the philo ophie to create an Ab ri ginal ch ice ch olmodel [! r Yukon, with the co ntinu ed guid anc th at was gi en to me by th e Eld er's teac hin g . Thi handbook will create a balanced, tud ent-focu ed Yukon Fir t ation chool tand ard . Finall y, in Chapter 5, I will elucidate my per onal refl ecti ons fro m the re ea rch project and the proce s of the development of the handbook. 43 hapter 4 - The Handbook hapt r 1 pro ided a nt tual 1e a t wh th r i a ne d f< r thi typ fr ar h proj ct a genera l yn f the proj r hapter 2 tart d with an e aminati n of literature fr m a hi toric al arch pr j t fo llow ed . p r p cti e o f Yukon ir t nati educati n. ati n and in parti u lar c n id er d hapter 2 al a en i w in chapt r 2 pr of b longing in th hapter 3 e plain d th re and ex amin d h harl t n m del f Tnt e pl red edu ca ti nal hange th eorie from a few w ell known lead r of change and narr wed th fl literatur r t, and clarifi d th dire ti n in which thi s form of u t an id d an b rigin al du ati n a l change theory. The pl anati on of th e nee l fl r b ri ginal tud ents t hav 1 and I oked int w hat tradi ti nal ir t N ati n edu ca ti on wa . ar h meth d Iogie u ed in the und ertakin g of th r m Ab riginal h ice h 1 th at are currentl y op erating in earch proj ect anada that were vi ited by th re earcher to ga in an in-depth kn w l dge f h w the ch ols Jndi geno u philo ophie operat d within the chool. T he fin al cti on of chapter 3 clarjfi e th e proce u ed in the development of the handb ook. Ch apter 4 i the handb oo k, a re ource for du cators to begin their learning of an Indigenous world view and A boriginal culture of Yuk n F ir t Na ti ons. Chapter 5 will conclude the research proj ect w ith my personal refl ecti on of the p roce . Introduction As an educator, how can you enter into and lea rn about a First ati on community/ choo l in a way that w ill m aximize your chances of making a positi v contribution to th e edu cati na l experi ences of the First Na ti on tud ents w ith w hom yo u will wo rk? Th re are no impl e pre cripti ons in response t that qu e ti on, but there are om e trategies yo u can draw upon to 44 guid y u int a newt a hin g ituati n and h lp y u t adapt y ur tea hing practi c er e th uniqu edu cational need f the ir t to better ati n c ultural c mmunity. R lati nal plurali m kill can b e tabli h d by b th du at r and tud nt w h n pp rtuniti f building r lati on hip ar m onth ch o l yea r cal nd ar. u tained r time, u uall y much 1 n ger than the ten ulturally-ba ed edu cati o n i th plat[! rm in which th e edu ca tor can ith Fir t ati n tud ent an I achi eve ucces . ince lean1ing a culture i a 1i fet im und ertaking, w her d y u a a n wco mer ta1i, and wh at are the mo t imp 1iant a p ct t be n id ered . On of the fi r t thing t rec gniz i that the more yo u learn about anoth r culture, the m rc yo u w ill find out abo ut y ur elf. W e all ca n y around our ow n ub -c n c iou culturall y of th e nditi ned mind t and fil ter fo r maki ng sen e o ut orld around u , and it i n't until we nco unter peo pl e w ith a ub tanti a ll y d ifferent et o f mind et and filter that we have to co nfr nt th e a umpti n , pr di po ition and beli ef: th at we tak e fi r granted and w hi ch m ak e u w ho we are. To illu trate how those difference ca n co m e into pl ay, th e fo llow ing chart umm arize om e f the characteri stics th at tend to di tingu ish th e view of the world a exhibited in m an y Indigenous oc ieti es fro m th at r pre ent din W e tern cu tom . 45 lndigenou World view We tern World view piritua lit t tmbedded tn all element of the cosm ptntualtty t'i centered n a <;tngle upreme Bei ng ll uman . ha e are. pon tbtltt for matntaintng harm ni u. relati n. htp with the natural world ll uman<; e erct<;e domtnal t n per<; nal and econ mtc ga tn e d for rectpr ctty b twe n human and natural world; r , urces are vtewed as gt ft atural res urce<., are avatlable ft r un il atera l human e plottatt n ature t honoured roultnel through datly sptntual pracltce ptntual practtces are tntermtllent and <;et apart from datlyltfe Wt dom and ethtcs ar clenved from dtre e perience wtth the natural world fl u man rea<.,on transcend'> the natut al world and can produce tn'>tghts 111dependently niver e 1 mad up of dynamtc, ever-changtng natural force. nl\·er<.,e ,., made up fan array of '>laltc phy'ltcal objects niver.e i. tewed as a holtsttc, integrattv <;y<.,tem with a unt fymg It fe force ntver<.,e '" compartmental11ed 111 dualt'iltc form<; and reduce<; to progre<.,<;tvely <;maller conceptual part<; Time i circular with natural cycle. that sustatn all life Time 1 a ltnear chronology of " human progre sa nd de elopment" ature wt ll alway po .. e. unfathomable mystenes ature t<., dectpherable to the rational human mind Human thought, feeling and word are tnextncably bound to all other a. pect ofthe untverse IIuman thought, feeltng and words are formed apart from the <;urrounding world Human role i to participate in the orderly de igns of nature Human role ts to dtssect, analyze and mantpulate nature for own end<; Respect for Elder i based on their compa ion and reconciliation of outer and inner direct knowledge Respect for ther is based on materia l achievement and chronological old age en e of empathy and kinship with other form of life en e of separate/ uperiority over other forms of life View proper human relationship with nature as a continuou two-way, tran actiona l dia logue View re laltonshtp of human . to nature a a one-way hierarchtcal imperative er nature to u<;e tt ft r (Adapted from Knudston and uzuki, 1992) The fo ll owing handbook will prov ide infonn ati on th at w ill enabl e the edu ca to r to work towa rd irst N ation culturall y- res pon ive teachin g w hil e al o encomp a sing an borigi nal 46 hoi m d 1 phil phy. Th handb k i di id d int th wh 1; piritua1 emotional mental and phy ical. a h educator thinking t ward und r tanding h w t d [! ur dire ti ction pro id el p a Fir t cla r om and tr ngth-ba d 1 arning 1 en ironment with th my hop that thi handb ok will b th ati n e ample f how t f the medi in infonnation t guide th ation culturally-ba ed tudent' b tinter tin mind. It i tali t the ducat r' kn wledge of h w t pr cu1turally- r pon i e I arning en ir nm nt ~ r Fir t Yukon Fir t n ati n tud nt in Yuk n scho 1 . Keeping ulturall y-rel vant educa ti on in mind, I will end the handb rga niz a Yuk n Fir t ati n id e a k with an ulture amp m an ducational tting. All ducator ' need a tart point and it can be chall nging t begin if yo u a the educa tor are un awa re of what be t practice l ok like in a di ffe rent ultural norm. The u1tur amp unit i ne mall example of an event that can b d n in a chool etting and wi ll incorp rate the spiritual, emotional, mental and phy ica l a pect r quir d in Fir t 1 ation. student learning. Strength -based learning is the process of acqui ring knowledge or skills by applying what makes you strong and building on the indi vidual 's past successes . 47 · To increase awa reness or FirSt all OilS h1 story, culture, traditi ons and languages among all students · To mamta1 n and 1mprove the phys1ca l ell bemg or studen t 111 ti naJ • fo Increase sense 0 belong1ng. selfrespecl . and pndc among students Figure 2. Medi cine Whee l m del creat d by Fir t ation lder , 20 I 0. Mental o 1mprovc the acadc1111c achiC\emcnh of all students elani e enn ett, in co n ultation with Yukon 48 piritu al "A I il, h art indige no us edu a lion is a spiritual ndeavour" ( aj e te 1998). The :[Jiritua/ h pt r pr Y u k n ir t id th cun nt [! und ati nal b li ef an I lea rning qualiti es of at i n lndi g n u piritu all y- ba eel c uni ulum . ulturall y a nd piritu ality require a bri f nd r tandin g ir t o f the differenc between a ir t ati n per p cti e f piritu ality and th e reli gion . Linking the imp rtanc f piritu a lity to culturall y r p n i ir t Jl an ati n ngl phone id al o f ations lea rning i an integral part f a t a hin g and 1 arnmg. Altho ugh Yuk n Fir t at i n ar div r fr m reg1 n t r g10 n, b rigi na l cultures hare va lue , beli ef: , and i w on l arning that repre nt or crea te or contribute to a cultural philo ophy of learning. Prior to contact, it i kn wn that bori gin al oc1et1 e had th eir ow n uni que fo nn o f oc ial organi zation , piritual practice and y tern of government. A boriginal pe pie develop d their social y tern so th y could fun cti n in a m anner, whi ch supported their beli ef in a C reator and th e ir und er tandin gs of'' atura l Law''. T he ir cultural be li e f ys tem ab ut kinship tie encomp assed a w ide ran ge of both human and piritual relati on hips. The A boriginal v ision of th e wo rld was both ho li tic and univer al and it wa the view of life that made it pos ible for Ab ori ginal people to be truly re pec tful and humani ti c in th eir dail y interactions w ith people and in their co-ex i tence and interd ep end ence w ith the env ironment in which th ey lived. (Hill , 2002, p . 8) First N ation spiritual beliefs are oft en confu eel w ith reli gion (Lane, Bo pp & Brow n, 1984 ). From the First Na tion perspective th e spiritual dimen io n of hum an development i to fi r t hav the capac ity to respond to your dream s, second t accept those realities as an opportun ity for reflection, third to expre s the e realitie in speech, art, science or mathem ati c , and fourth to use the fir t three dimen ions to guid e your future decision m aking (Lane, Bopp & Brown, 19 4) . A ll edu ca tors must ensur that tudent of bori ginal ance try are know ledgea bl e of th e world 49 " be nd ' th ir h me c mmunit 111 a that e panel th ir h ri z n wh ile tr ngth nin g th eir ow n identity and thi wi ll n t happ n if th y d not kn w the an ld er am J hn t n, 2011 ). Th main diffcrenc t r who guid th m ( lingit f world i w b tween th tw cultur of ~ ir t N ti n and th W e t rn w rld i th Indi g n u w rid iew [ pirituality being imb del din all elem ent fthe co m ingl upr m B eing. Yuk n Fir t rath r than th W ati n p e tern world iew f piritu ality b ing c nt red on a a tr ng pirituality ba d on an ancient ral traditi nand an inh r nt r pe t fl r th land , th e [I rce of nature and th animal and pl ant th y hare them with . pirit are en eel through ut th natural world , in the land , th wa ter, the plants and the animal . It i of gr at imp rtanc t maintain a balanced relati n hip between all the e fore N ative pirituality teach . h w t hea l pe pi e w ho are ick, how t li ve o ff th e land in harmon y and how to develop piritual power. ati v pirituality i a lifl tyle. each p er on on Earth i g1ven a pecial gift by the ccording to anc ient beli ef: rea tor and ha a li felong re po n ibility to develop th at gift forth benefit of th e whole community. Yukon First Na ti on piritual found ati onal beli efs includ e oral traditio n, co mmuni cation, and self-direction. Tlu·ou gh these three found ational beli efs Yukon First ati on ackn owledge and celebrate a connec ti on to all things of creation ; from th e Emih, from th e Air, from the W ater and from the Fire within all. Oral tradition plays a significant role in Aboriginal id entity. Oral traditi ons and kill up ersede written skill in Ab original cultures as it is and alw ays ha bee n th e m ethod of all teaching and learning. T eachings or leg nels, as they ma y be call ed tod ay, pro vid e imp01iant information on origins, beliefs, va lue , practices, and ocial cu tom . They also reco unt alu ab l so n a ut ut al, d ri e the land traditi n t Y uk n ir t li ing ultur , and n 1 a wa e ta lk, it i the\ a fth ir ral al l ur kn \ led ge, all ur ati n Fld r Li/J:i e ll all , Tr' nd ek ati n ~ ld r Ed\vard R bert , 20 I l ). n c mmuni ca ti n kill c mmunica ti n kill o fth onl cpa !kirk Fir t Th abilit t c mmuni ate i. hi gh! va lu ed b aw ar ti n . f l an1in g, carr ing the hi tory of pe pie, tran mittin g t a hin g, e er thin g th t i imp rtant t u ,. ( I h ech ' in Fir t the de 1 r piritual c nn , hum ur, and truth , all whil helping t bridg the pa t mg alu \ ith the pr ent. " We tell t ric , ap , r c n ral in form . ir t ith Fi r. t b riginal culture . . . du ca t r need t b ati n a. we ll a de eloping th e ati n tud nt . It must be n ted th at c mmuni ca ti on i not per n' b d language and fa ial e, pre ton ca n be more important th an word in ome itu ati on . " We don'tju t talk with our wo rd , we talk with ur whole body, ur fa e and ur acti n , \\hat\\ d i al P rcy Henry, 2011 ). Many Fir t \ hat \\e a) ., (Tr' nd ck I hvec h' in F-ir t ati n Eld er ati n pe pi e pea k m re low ly and u e cui tural pau e th at are longer than tho e who co mmuni cat ntirely in ngli h. Thi pau e in th e ngli . h language i n t only a refl ecti on f the pacing f their traditi onal language and culture, but al o relate to th e fact that they may not be w rking and thinking in their mother t ngue. AI o, Fir t ati on peopl often take their time to full y c n ider and r p nd to a qu e ti n before an we ring. ft i th reforc impo11ant to pro vid e ad qu ate time for Fir t ation pe ple and tud ent t re pond when a kin g qu e tion . No t1h American main tream cultu re accept cro talk and occa i nal intetTup tion conver ati on. Thi can be interpreted a rude and aggre ive behaviour by ome Fir t 111 ati n peo pl e. In Yukon Fir t Na tion culture no one has the ri ght to interrupt ld er or talk o cr and above them when th ey are pea kin g. An effecti ve educa tor i we ll kill ed in the c mb inati on of verbal and non-verbal co mmuni ca ti on when working with Fir t Nati on tud enL . 51 t ryt lling public p aking, pr ntati n , and baring circle ar c mmon ultural form f c mmunication . Taking part in u h acti iti nc ura g kill and t mod 1 the valu o f baring and li tening. c mmunicat wh th !though th on tud ent t d b ri ginall elop b tter verbal rn r mu l b able t ar and wh re th y co m fr m m rd er t know wh er th y ar gomg. pt f kn w ing who y u ar and her yo u com from und impli ti c, in ati n p r o n' li~ . A actualit it i a v ry c mpl kill th at i de e l peel thr ugho ut a Fir t kill th at beg in at birth and ntinu a ll de e l p thr ugho ut th e per on' I i fe. Know in g wh o yo u are and w h re y u co me fr m in lv matril inea l lineage language, culture of place, tradition , and kn w ledge of pi a e and r gion. Fir t ati n 1 am a th y gr w ab ut th eir m atrilinea l id entity with rec uiTe nt pp rtuniti e of refl ecti 1 arning in order to devel p their id entity knowl edge and ga in direc ti n t w here th ey want to grow t elf- dir cti n i w id ely re pected in A b r igin al cultur . Practic uch a using in ight, having re pect fo r yo urself and oth rs, and tak ing r pon ibi lity fo r yo ur act ion are de ired life skill for Fir t Nati on . Thi refl ct a col11Jn on cultural und er tand ing; befor any acti on is taken con iderati on has been given to both the ancestors and future generation . elf-directi on of va lues h elp students create a p ositive attitud e toward per an al growth, lea rnin g, and change; developing th eir own person al ethics, hone ty and integrity whi ch are es ential va lu e of elfdirection . A boriginal cultures view all thing a having a spirit, h av ing a fo rce and cause of li fe and interconnecti on w ith all things. U nd er tanding the discrepancy in the Indi genou s world view of pirituality being imbedd ed in all elem ents of th e cosm o rather than th e W e tern world iew of pirituality being centered on a single Supreme B eing is the tart point fo r an edu cator to develop th eir know ledge of the Indi ge nous ontology. It i also e s nti al th at education practitioner 52 r p n ibl for de igning ulturally ba d uniculum p £1 undati nal beli f: and imp 1ian f pirituality t an und er tanding f th b ri ginal ulture . 53 Emotional "In order to f ach r sp onsiv I '· yo u n d to exam in how , tud nts xp rien learning. 11 is important to know th , y mbo /i , i n ~fi an tud nf a rib to your actions. Fo r stud nts, your hoi of exercis , mal rial , an d a ignm nt vok m aning, ou may not hav in! nd d. . . Kn owing how th y r a t to riti ism, how they d al with fai lur , an d how th y mov out o.f .fru ·trating period of be ing ·tailed or blocked i. cru iol to your pro ti e ". t ph n . Br kfi ld, Th th Ia,, room , J y- a J, i/lful '[, a lz r - On T, hnique, Trust, and R sp onsibi/iti s in Publi her , an Franc i co, 1 90 Th Emotional hapt r pr id e the b ginning tep for an educa t r to building relation hip and effecti e co1nmunica ti n with Fir t in a ll it ·~ ati on in a ch rm i an moti ona l e peri ence. R bert P . . Jo 1 en vir nm nt. Learning ph ' tra inin g m ode l of R P T i the fram ewo rk u ed to narrow edu ca tor thinking f h w to build effec ti ve relati on hip w ith Fir t ati o n peopl e. T h trainin g m deli a and m ov ing throu gh tag of va lu ati n ntinu u cy hea l pr ce trategiz ing, Pre enting, Tran fom1in g. Jo e ph ' RE P - T mode l i u ed a a bu in e Na tion government . For the purp b ginning w ith R e ea rch va lu ati on , u tomi z in g, and m de l of how to engage First e of thi handbook and w ith the guid anc fro m Yukon Fir t Na tion Elder I have adapted the m od 1to fit an edu ca ti onal mind et w ith th e edu ca tor in th e ce nter of th e lea rnin g proces . Jo e ph ' m ode l in th e bu in e s fi e ld is v iewed a a templ ate th at enable people to build cross-cultural awarene sand p rov ide the background on wh at to do and wh at n ot to do in developing effective-long term relati onships with Fir t ati on people. Jos ph has also delivered training cour es using hi s RESPECT m odel in th e edu ca ti onal fie ld a the concept are easily adaptable and viewed as info rn1ative to tho e who are not aware of A bori g in al peoples' is ue and chall enges, especiall y w ith re pec t to chools and edu ca ti on (Joseph, 2007). 54 Tram;fom1 $ ' Resear