Decolonizing and Co-Constructing Contexts that Welcome Indigenous Practices and Knowledges in Early Childhood Education
Karyn Callaghan, Faith Hale, Michelle Taylor Leonhardi, Monique Lavallee
Abstract:
Colonialism takes many forms. In early childhood education, the dominance of the normative gaze of developmentalism and the tendency to compartmentalize and sidestep spiritual aspects of life serves to marginalize other ways of knowing, distancing mainstream culture from opportunities to recognize and reconsider assumptions and established practices. In this article, Indigenous and settler educators draw on lived experience to critically reflect on perspectives and practices they have been taught and consider, with optimism, possibilities arising from the intersection of Indigenous knowledges with How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years.
Keywords:
Indigenous knowledges; colonialism; developmentalism; early childhood education
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Dramatic Play in Northern Aboriginal Head Start Classrooms: Supporting Indigenous Children’s Learning of their Culture and Language
Shelley Stagg Peterson, Tina Gardner, Eugema Ings, Kayla Vecchio
Abstract:
Three Aboriginal Head Start educators and a university professor report on a collaborative inquiry that examined video recordings of children’s dramatic play with Indigenous cultural materials to learn how children interacted with materials and see the role of the Ojibway language in their play. In their play, children imitated Indigenous cultural practices carried out in the home, at sacred ceremonies, and on the land. The children showed an understanding of Ojibway words but did not speak them in their dramatic play. We propose suggestions for non-Indigenous educators who wish to introduce children to Indigenous cultural practices and languages or to incorporate the cultural practices of children’s families into classroom dramatic play.
Keywords:
Aboriginal Head Start (AHS), Indigenous cultural practices, teaching Ojibway language and culture, play-based learning, pedagogical documentation
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Gizhaawaso: Culture as a Protective Factor for Indigenous Children with Disabilities
Nicole Ineese-Nash
Abstract:
This article examines Indigenous approaches to health and treatment in order to critique the current early intervention system for children with disabilities. Seeing disability as a social construct, this article suggests that disability as defined within the early intervention system is based on Eurocentric ideals that pathologize Indigenous ways of being. From this conceptualization, this article will illustrate the gaps within the current early childhood support service systems and offer suggestions for developing culturally appropriate support services for Indigenous children with disabilities.
Keywords:
Indigenous disability, Indigenous early childhood, early intervention, cultural healing
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The Leadership Journey in the Spirit of Indigenous Early Childhood Educators in Remote Northern First Nations Communities
Lori Huston
Abstract:
This article examines Indigenous approaches to health and treatment in order to critique the current early intervention system for children with disabilities. Seeing disability as a social construct, this article suggests that disability as defined within the early intervention system is based on Eurocentric ideals that pathologize Indigenous ways of being. From this conceptualization, this article will illustrate the gaps within the current early childhood support service systems and offer suggestions for developing culturally appropriate support services for Indigenous children with disabilities.
Keywords:
Indigenous educators, early childhood programs, leadership, Wildfire Circle, professional development
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