NOTE: Issues range from 1996–2006. Contact information in earlier issues could be outdated. For current information, please contact the Alaska Native Knowledge Network, 907-474-1902.
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Integrating Elders in Northern School Programs by Cathy McGregor:"Our Elders were the keepers of knowledge. Without them, each generation would have learned everything there was to know by discovering it themselves." -From Inuuqatigiit Curriculum, Department of Education, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, 1996, p. 46 Additional references and notes can be found on the Alaska Native Knowledge Network web site at http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/SOP/sopv6i4.html. It turned out that the question was very real. Thanks to the efforts of a territorial administrator and a federal official who wanted to make a difference and had program funds to support their ideas, this conversation began a five-year partnership with the Canadian federal government to support the hiring of Elders in Baffin schools. For the first several years the funding came directly from the federal government. When the federal and territorial governments, in partnership with the Inuit land claim organization, Nunavut Tunngavik, established the Nunavut Human Resource Development Strategy, funding came through their auspices (Working Group on Human Resources and Training, 1996) . The Baffin Divisional Board supported the project as well, so that for the five-year period of the federal funding, $200,000 was made available to schools each year. Elders as Cultural Inclusion or Cultural Integration? When Elders first started coming into schools in northern Canada in the 1970s, their work with students was often considered an add-on to the regular program. Lessons frequently took place on Friday afternoon when the teacher and students were tired of the weekly routine. Activities often involved a whole class of students in their regular classroom. Teachers did little preparation of the students or the Elders for their time together. Teachers sometimes viewed the lessons by Elders as "spares" for themselves and left the room. Viewed from the advantage of today, these "cultural inclusion" programs appear as token gestures by the school system to the teaching of traditional knowledge and skills. It is difficult to imagine that either the students or the Elders got much satisfaction from these encounters. Today, the work of Elders is seen as integral to the success of school programs. In most communities in the Baffin region, schools have a dual mandate from the Local Education Authority, as well as the territorial government, to teach both traditional Inuit knowledge and skills and contemporary Western knowledge and skills. A survey of all Baffin communities in 1986 and direction-setting work with individual communities from 1993-96 confirmed this dual agenda. Thus the work that Elders do is part of the regular school program today. In the late 80s and early 90s, the Baffin Piniaqtavut Program of Studies provided topics for teachers to use to connect the work of Elders with the rest of the school program. The Inuuqatigiit curriculum from K-12, mandated by the government in 1996, outlines traditional Inuit knowledge and skills students should learn within various school divisions (K-3, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12). This provides the basis for integrating culture and the work of Elders into the regular curriculum. It is within this context that the work of Elders with students should be viewed. Ways to Fund Elders For many years, the Baffin Board had requested that the government fund positions for Elders in schools similar to the way in which they funded positions for teachers and language specialists (para-professionals). At that time, this had not happened (nor has it yet). There were a number of ways in which schools obtained funds to hire Elders to teach traditional knowledge: * Each school received funds as part of their base budget to support cultural programming. A per pupil allocation determined the specific amount each school received. (This of course, gave an advantage to larger schools in terms of flexibility in using the funds.) Schools could use these funds to hire Elders and to purchase the materials (skins, gas, ammunition, etc.) required to carry out traditional activities. * If the Local Education Authority (the elected school council) who had authority to determine the budget chose to do so, they could also allocate funds from other parts of the school budget for this purpose. * The board had a regional Spring Camp Fund to which schools could submit a proposal to access additional funds for resource people such as Elders, as well as equipment and materials to hold this important annual event. * The board had a regional Orientation Fund to which schools could submit proposals to access additional funds to involve community members and Elders in annual orientation activities for new staff. * Schools could raise third party funds from foundations and other organizations. Often guidelines for grants for other purposes allowed schools to include funding for Elders as part of the budget for such projects. * Schools could access funds from regional Inuit organizations through the local settlement/village council, who controlled the funding for specific programs from other departments of the federal government. For example, the federal Healthy Children initiative allowed activities which involved Elders. * Schools could partner with community groups such as the Hunters and Trappers Organization to get in-kind support for land-based activities. * Schools could use full time staff positions intended for language specialists or teachers. While these options provided funding for Elder involvement in schools, the additional funding enabled schools to increase the numbers of Elders present, extend the length of time they were involved with students and/or add new activities. Ways to Involve Elders The Baffin Board made funds available to schools through a grant system. The total money available was divided into school allocations, which each school could apply to access. Individual school allocations were determined by setting a base amount for all schools and then adding a per-pupil amount to achieve the total allocation available. Schools had to submit a brief proposal outlining how the Elders would be involved with students. The Local Education Authority chairperson, the principal and the staff member coordinating the project had to sign the proposal. For the first several years, the grants focused just on Elder involvement with students. In 1996, with the implementation of the government-mandated Inuuqatigiit curriculum, which outlined the traditional knowledge, skills and attitudes from an Inuit perspective that students should learn in school, the focus of the grants shifted somewhat to involving Elders in implementing the new curriculum (see appendix). In fact, this shift did not really change the nature of Elder involvement-they still taught traditional knowledge and skills. It did provide school staff with a guide of topics, an outline of what students should learn and a description of key experiences they might ask Elders to organize. In other words, it provided an organizational framework for traditional knowledge instruction. Using a combination of funds available, schools hired Elders in a number of different ways, to do a variety of things: * As full time cultural instructors-regular staff members along with teachers and language specialists-usually with scheduled times each week for work with different classes or groups of students. The topics and skills they taught varied depending on the age and interests of the students and the interests of the Elder. * As part-time instructors who came in several days or afternoons a week during the year to do a variety of activities with different groups of students, depending on the class and Elder's interests. As with full time instructors, these activities could include storytelling, teaching string and other Inuit games, skin preparation, sewing, cooking, tool construction, specific skills instruction, carving, drum dancing, researching specific topics, helping with community histories, telling their life stories, etc. * As part-time instructors who taught a "unit" or specific topic or activity every day to the same students for several weeks at a time. * As part-time instructors who were involved in specific activities such as Spring Camp or, for example, once-a-week on-the-land programs with at-risk students for the duration of the program. * As part-time research sources to narrate information on a specific topic to be developed into a teaching unit or a learning resource. * As part-time program developers to assist teachers and language specialists with creating materials which teach aspects of traditional knowledge. For example: iglu building, small tool construction, sewing with caribou skins, how to make igunaaq (fermented seal or whale meat), how to read the weather, etc. * As full or part-time Inuktitut language instructors in addition to, or instead of, language specialists. * As part-time counselors, mainly for students, but also sometimes for staff members. Some staffs have found it particularly helpful to have Elders in the school after difficult or tragic community events. * As an Elders' council for the principal (in addition to the Local Education Authority) to assist with solving particularly thorny problems, community liaison, planning cultural programs and hosting special events and activities. Ensuring Success with Elders There are many reasons to involve Elders in schools: * To meet goals set by Local Education Authorities (and the government) which identify traditional knowledge and skills as a major component of school programs. * To maintain, strengthen and enhance Inuit language and culture. * To create links between the past and the present. * To build links between the school and the community. * To encourage links between students and their parents and grandparents. * To build positive relationships between Elders and younger generations. * To help students learn to respect Elders, the lives they have lived and the knowledge and skills they have to share. * To acknowledge and provide opportunities for Elders to share the wisdom, skills and experiences they have accumulated with younger generations. * To reflect, promote and teach Inuit values and beliefs. * To foster student and staff pride in their Inuit identity and enhance self-esteem and personal identity. * To promote respect for animals and other elements of the natural environment which are intimately linked with Inuit culture. * To ensure younger generations are knowledgeable about and can practice traditional/contemporary survival skills. To achieve these goals, both Elders and students need to enjoy their experiences together. To enable this to happen, careful thought needs to be given to how and where the Elders work with students. We have found the following suggestions to be helpful in ensuring positive experiences: * It is an unfortunate aspect of modern life that Elders may be requested in some districts to have criminal record checks completed prior to working in the school. If so, the school needs to expedite the process in any way possible. * It is usually helpful if there is one staff member in the school who coordinates the Elder resource program. Ideally it should be someone from the community who speaks the language and knows community members well. Ideally this should be a responsibility that is part of the staff member's normal workload, not added to a full time teaching job. Having such a person minimizes potential communication and cross-cultural misunderstandings. * It is important to clarify ahead of time what the Elder would like to do with the students and what materials and equipment will be needed. Will the Elder provide these (at the school's expense if there is any cost) or will the school provide them? * Elders may require transportation to and from the school. The school should arrange this and cover any costs involved. * Elders should be made aware of how much the school pays them (by the hour or the day or whatever is normal practice). There should be a standard fee for Elders' work. They should know how and when they will receive their money. If possible, it is preferable to pay them the same day. This is not always possible, but it usually is much appreciated if it can be arranged. (It is also important to note that Elders may lose social security benefits if they earn a certain amount of other income, so this needs to be taken into consideration in the remuneration arrangements.) * Many Elders prefer to work with students in the afternoon, but it is important to check with each individual to determine the best time for them. * The school needs to be flexible in scheduling Elders. They may not feel well on the particular day they are scheduled or something else may prevent them from coming. It is important to be sensitive to and adapt to their needs rather than to ask them to fit within the rigid timetable of many school programs. * Students should be prepared for working with Elders. What kind of behaviour is expected of students? Why should they respect the Elder? What will the Elder expect of the students? What should students expect from the Elder? How is working with Elders different from formal school instruction? * Ask Elders to work with small groups of students or in one-on-one situations. Requiring Elders to take a whole class of 25 students to do an activity is not usually conducive to the Elder teaching or the students learning. * Provide a specific space for the Elder to work with students if the activity is done in the school. Depending on the nature of the activity, they could work in the school shop or the home economics room. Some schools have special skin rooms for processing animal furs. Some schools have provided an Elders' room in which small group activities such as sewing, story telling, researching topics, or playing Inuit games can take place. These rooms are usually equipped with comfortable seating and some means to make tea and have bannock-for both Elders and students. They are more like a living room than a classroom. * Some Elders might prefer to take a few students to work in their own home or in the community Elders' centre. (You may want to provide additional supervision assistance in these contexts.) * If the school has a qammaq (traditional sod house) or tents nearby, depending on the season, these often provide the best environment from both the Elder's and the students' perspective. They provide an appropriate context for teaching traditional skills. We have found that students who are restless and aggressive in the classroom often calm down in the presence of the Elder in this setting. * If the activity involves a land trip, nature provides the "environment" for the activity. As much as possible, it is preferable to take the students out of the school setting for work with Elders. Teaching and learning traditional knowledge is most effective when it takes place within the environmental context in which it is needed and used. * Whenever possible, teachers should participate in activities with Elders and students. This is not always possible, especially when Elders take small groups of students, as the teacher may need to stay with the other students. What this does mean is that Elders should not be used to give teachers a "spare" period. Paying attention to these details will ensure that both students and Elders have a meaningful experience working together. This will encourage Elders to continue to want to work with students and will help students give Elders the respect they deserve. This is essential if teaching traditional knowledge and skills is to be an integral part of the northern school program. | |
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Integrating Native Ideas through Axax (Dance):Tumin Tanam Awaa is a term in the language of the Aleutian/Pribilof Islanders that translates as "Our Country's Work." This term was used in place of the modern idea of authorship and "owning" what one expresses. It was used most readily in traditional storytelling to remind listeners that the story following this term was a product of the country. This is a wonderful example of indigenous perspective. Dance, a favorite pastime of the Aleuts, is another method of traditional storytelling of a country through its people. Stories of days gone by are passed down through generations by dance. Many times a dance would tell a story better than a song or a narration. Some dances were only for men, some for women, and some for everyone. Passing on a story by dancing was enjoyable and memorable. The expressions of the dance made it easier for stories to stay with the people. The following is a delightful example. Tumin Tanam Awaa One evening some Aleut friends sat chatting before a driftwood fire. The long, Bering Sea twilight faded and though the day had been tiring and all the salmon were not cleaned and hung to dry, the group lingered, fighting off sleep and hoping for a story and a song. The men began teasing young Alex who had fallen out of his iqyax (Aleut kayak) trying to remove a log from a salmon net. Alex always smoked a pipe and had a habit of twitching one eye. As the friends elaborated the incident, accompanied by bursts of laughter, Alex sat gazing into the embers with a broad smile on his face. Suddenly, as if inspired by the need for entertainment, one of the men grabbed Alex's short-stemmed pipe and stood before the group, puffing it and twitching his eyes. "Here's Alex!", he exclaimed and began to dance. The men before the fire laughed in delight. Hearing them, the women and children tumbled out of the ulax (semi-subterranean dwelling) which must have been filled to bursting. They all joined the circle, clapping their hands to the rhythm of the dance steps and shouting the familiar chant: Ayang, ayax! Ayang, Ayax! Back and forth went the dancer, his boots beating the earth. In untaught, but brilliant movement, he told his story with broad comical actions. First, he bent over, pretending to pull a seine. Next, he portrayed the discovering of the log that was in the way. He runs from side to side to show Alex's uncertainty as to what to do. Then he seems to climb into an iqyax and shove off. He paddles furiously, every motion in rhythm with the chant coming from the audience, never forgetting to twitch his eyes and puff on his pipe. The entire happening was portrayed well-the struggle with the log, the grunts, the slow toppling fall into a net full of slippery, fighting salmon, and finally the disgusted wade to shore. Actually the dancer was wringing wet from perspiration which topped off the dance and left the audience falling over with fits of laughter. | |
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Integrating Native Ways of : | |
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Integrating the Tlingit Language Across the Curriculum:Seven years ago Pauline took an active interest in learning the Tlingit language. As her fluency and her interest increased, she started looking for ways to bring it into her classroom. Pauline has created a curriculum that uses the Tlingit language on a regular basis. She has been especially innovative in using items available in the Sitka environment and in the daily lives of the children to make learning the Tlingit language and culture meaningful and exciting. She has developed books, lesson plans, calendars, parent involvement activities and many other ideas that she has shared unselfishly throughout the Sitka School District (some Southeast school districts and Southeast Headstart) and beyond. The following is a sample of only one of these creative activities-an herbal gift basket. The dedicated and genuine caring it must take to follow such a curriculum is awe-inspiring. What a wonderful learning experience she has created for her children and what a wonderful gift they have received to perpetrate the culture and language. The gift basket activity was a unit that took months to complete and in order to gain the knowledge for it, Pauline attended an herbal-plant class and adapted what she learned to a first grade level curriculum. The elements that were covered were plants, the five senses, math, health, cooperative learning, language arts, technology and art. Following are the steps it took in order to complete the basket and the benefits the children gained from the experience. September Class expedition collecting leaves and pine cones that were then categorized by size and color and dried by the students. October Class trip to muskeg to pick Hudson Bay tea leaves. Taught how to identify leaves by color and smell. The historical use of the tea to the Native community was shared and discussed. When the leaves were dried, the class had an opportunity to taste the tea. Late October The class went to pick the rose hips from the Senior Center in downtown Sitka. A class discussion was shared on the high content of Vitamin * in the rose hips and its benefits. The rose hips were picked and the kids helped to pick out the seeds. Some seeds were placed under a magnifying glass so they could see why it was so important to remove the seeds. Jam was made in the classroom enabling them to smell and taste the jam. Also in October The class had an outing to pick yarrow, a medicinal plant that is also in the basket. It is used for healing tea or to clot blood. Sitka is rich with the yarrow plant. They were shown how to identify it and how to dry it for tea. The red clover in the basket was brought to class for them to observe the drying and the making of medicinal ointment from the dried leaves. Pauline honors the culture and heritage through integrated instructional planning. Sitka is their textbook for science and social studies. Included in her curriculum are basic classroom commands, counting, subsistence foods, nursery rhymes, a daily lunch count, colors, songs, posters with matching tapes and a calendar that translates well-known rhymes into the Tlingit language. If you would like more information regarding her program, feel free to contact her at 305 Baranof School, Sitka, Alaska 99835. | |
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Interior Cultural Orientation Seminar by Linda Green:The first Interior Cultural Orientation Seminar on "Community Empowerment" was held in Fairbanks at the David Salmon Tribal Hall on June 16 and 17, 2003. Twenty-five people from the Interior region were invited to participate. The focus of the seminar was on what local residents, teachers, leaders and Elders of a village could offer on a tentative plan to involve new school personnel in their community's events and activities throughout the school year. Participants in the seminar discussed ideas on empowering communities to be more involved in the local schools' curriculum and in the education of their children. Discussion included the high percentage of teacher turnover in communities and how that affects the education of students; how educators are trying to deal with the benchmark exams; the exit exam and the No Child Left Behind Act; and effective programs in the state such as the immersion schools, indigenous curriculum examples and the Native Educator Association's involvement in education. The keynote address was given by Dr. Bernice Tetpon, an Iñupiaq, who is the director of the Teacher Leadership Development Program for AKRSI through University of Alaska Southeast. Dr. Tetpon said "We, the Native educators, Elders and local residents are capable of determining the education for our future Native generations." She spoke about newspaper articles showing the low test scores of Alaska Native children in small communities and talked about how the labeling of the failures impacts our children statewide. We as educators need to help our children and grandchildren connect with education by making sure they know our history, culture and tradition. These aspects should be a part of the educational process. Esther Ilutsik who is an instructor at the University of Alaska at the Bristol Bay campus in Dillingham, reported on her work in developing indigenous curriculum and training facilitators in the Yupik region to culturally orient new school personnel. Esther thanked the Elders present for sharing and for giving us strength to continue our educational endeavors. She spoke about training facilitators in each village to work with new school staff and that each community had an individual way of communicating their values. She stated, "It wouldn't be feasible to bring all the facilitators to the hub center of the region to train them. Each teacher has to be assisted in their individual community." Esther asked the participants to look at the Athabascan Values poster and discuss how they would teach each value to a new person in their community. The participants broke into groups and were assigned five values to consider and come up with ideas to teach these values to new school personnel. Virginia Ned, program assistant for the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative, started with the comment, "Always remember that our Elders are our professors." We have always learned our values, customs and traditions and we always will. She spoke about "Education in a Rural Community," and asked the group to think about traditional education, the introduction of Western educational practices and education now. She asked the participants to think about the successes and failures of each. What would be the best approach to improving education in rural Alaska? What strategies could be used to improve education in your community? Who would implement these strategies? How would they be implemented? Who would be responsible? Bob Maguire, director for Alaska's Indigenous Peoples Academy (Project AIPA), a program developed by the Association of Interior Native Educators, talked about the curriculum units that were created by teachers who spent a week in the culture camps under the tutelage of a group of Elders from the area the camp was held in. This was the ninth year of the culture camps. Ten curriculum units have been drafted and will be ready for use in schools by the beginning of the 2003 school year. Mr. Maguire noted that the units included the Content and Cultural Standards. These are valuable resources for new teachers. The Association of Interior Native Educators also has video tapes for sale of previous camps held in the Interior region. Previous camps were held in Minto, Stevens Village, Gaalee'ya Spirit Camp, Chalkyitsik, Arctic Village, Nulato, Huslia and Northway, Also, every year for the past nine years AINE has held a conference after the camp to showcase curriculum units created by teachers attending these camps, to thank Elders for sharing their knowledge and to thank community members for welcoming the camps. The newest booklet Guidelines for Cross-Cultural Orientation Programs was introduced by Virginia Ned and Lenora Carpluk. They went over the "Guidelines for Culturally Responsive Communities, Tribes and Native Organizations." Each presentation was followed by a question and answer session. This helped participants to focus on a tentative plan to culturally orient new school personnel when they return to their communities. Follow-up activities have started with a recent grant from the State Department of Education and Early Development Recruitment and Retention Program, community section. The seminar was a great success and another is planned for May, 2004. For additional information please contact Linda E. Green at (907) 474-5814 or linda@mail.ankn.uaf.edu. | |
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Inuit Studies: Some Reflections by Maricia Ahmasuk:The Inuit, "The People" of the world are one of the more studied people in recent history. This timeless research and documentation seeks to capture the essence of what it was like in a time when all one had was oneself and those immediately surrounding to sustain life itself. It is observed that since contact, Inuit have adapted to new ways brought on by outsiders, thereby changing the way Inuit operate in their daily activities and even in their mode of thought. Barrow's George Ahmaogak, Sr., mayor of North Slope Borough, put it interestingly in his keynote address at the 13th Inuit Studies Conference, titled, Science, Politics and the Bottom Line: the North Slope Experience: " Your conversations can help to interpret what's happening in the cracks where Native culture and the mainstream culture rub against each other. It's a constant and silent and powerful movement, like the shifting of the earth's continental plates under our feet." Ahmaogak commented that these fault lines are not necessarily hostile or incompatible, but are simply hot spots that if taken so far as to interrupt the heritage of a people, such as banning the age-old practice of whaling, there are sure to be upheavals, or earthquakes. The whole subsistence issue is a prime example of how differing cultures tend to clash. It is certain that we as Inuit have felt the ripple effect of two or more cultures coming together, as all cultures of the world continue to undergo, as we are drawn into this global village through modern technology. I view our current experience as a melding, an evolution. We are living in a time where the very existence of every single human being on earth depends to a certain extent on a network of governments and countries in globally negotiated positions. As Inuit, playing an active role in what is being documented even today is crucial in terms of preserving the accuracy of the image being portrayed. Faulty past records since outside contact have proven to haunt Natives with negative connotations and misinterpretations. It is certain that we as Inuit have felt the ripple effect of two or more cultures coming together, as all cultures of the world continue to undergo, as we are drawn into this global village through modern technology. An important trend for Native peoples in the world of research is where the ownership of the surveys and their outcomes lie. Being involved from square one when the surveys are being developed is a must if they are to capture the essence of what Natives consider important information to relay to a public or agency reviewing the results. For example, the Survey of Living Conditions in the Arctic, headed out of the Institute of Social & Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Alaska Anchorage has organized a group of Alaska Natives to form the Alaska Native Management Board (ANMB), which basically steers the project. This board ensures that the information gathered for this project follows the concept of informed consent, as well as making sure that the survey is culturally sensitive. Respecting the whole process of including Native guidance on research projects brings useful information to light while at the same time defends a Native peoples' dignity and right to own what is really theirs. After two-and-a-half days of listening to intelligent speakers such as Father Michael Oleksa and Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley and visiting with Elder and author, Lela Oman of Nome, among other distinguished individuals, I was boiling with ideas, theories and a willingness to share my story with the group. I managed to offer my views with humor despite all seriousness of the issues at hand. I spoke of topics that ranged from language retention (or theory of retrieval through hypnosis in this case) to racism within our own Native society. The key point that I hoped to portray to the group was how important it is to find a balance between our modern lifestyle and the inner voice that constantly reminds us of where we came from. Coming to terms with our identity as a Native person, or just as a human being in modern society, should be an area of concern and deserves some dedicated time and research on our behalf. Coming to terms with the small, still voice inside is key to our well being and long-range health. Perhaps some of the research that shows our people to be among the most devastated statistically is a result of overlooking our important role in a societal situation that is fairly new compared to where even our parents came from. Cultural adjustments do not happen over night, and we are not all naturally compatible with the modern Western values and mannerisms. Our whole life is a research project as we gather data and interpret its meaning as it applies to our selfhood. Finding meaning and truth is a universal, yet very individual concept and delves deep into the spiritual realm. If we think about it, just being outside doing activities such as berry picking, fishing or gathering wood for a fire grounds us, bringing us back to who we are as human beings, which is a spiritual experience-being one with the land and our natural surroundings. It is the simple things in life that make an individual or society feel grounded in a culture or heritage. Finding meaning or purpose in life may mean putting the communal good over personal pain, as it was traditionally. It is important to honor our heritage by practicing our values, so as to discover their true significance and intent. Discovering past morals and ways of living an honest life may lead us to a broader understanding of where we stand in today's world of individualism, even as we fight for a co-dependant relationship with the world-at-large. As we continue to adapt to the changing times, it is a comfort to know that there exists a wide collection of materials representing a time past when life appeared simpler. We have a big picture to work with in respect to the Native way of life as we move forward in progression toward an understanding of where we have been and where we are going. It is time to take authority over our own lives through our Native organizations. Respecting the whole process of including Native guidance on research projects brings useful information to light while at the same time defends a Native peoples' dignity and right to own what is really theirs. | |
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Iñuksuk: Northern Koyukon, Gwich'in and Lower Tanana, 1800-1901 by Adeline Peter Raboff:Subject headings: Ethnohistory, Anthropology, History, Native Americans Inuksuk is an ethnohistory of the Northern Koyukon, Gwich'in and Lower Tanana Indians of Interior Alaska between 1800 and 1901. This book is rich with new ethnonyms, place names and personal names of the area and the cultures involved. It is a detailed and fascinating account of pre-contact and post-contact Interior group dynamics that could only be gathered with the aide of the oral tradition of the numerous Iñupiat accounts, Gwich'in, Koyukon and Lower Tanana informants and the author's intimate knowledge of her culture. This ethnohistory is set in a time frame where every written source from missionaries, explorers and military personnel were coordinated with the events which are recounted in the oral tradition. In most cases the oral account deepened and expanded upon the written record. A must read for students of Alaska Native history and anthropology. | |
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Inupiaq and Bering Strait Yup’ik Region Education Summit by Katie Bourdon:Alvanna-Stimpfle, Inupiaq lead teacher; Rich Toymil, Bering Straits School District bilingual/bicultural director and Katie Bourdon, Inupiaq regional coordinator/Eskimo Heritage program director. Funding came from respective programs to bring representatives from all school districts—North Slope Borough, Northwest Arctic Borough, Bering Straits Schools District and Nome Public Schools. Tom Okleasik, Northwest Planning and Grants Development, facilitated the gathering; his skills in eliciting information from participants, encouraging group participation and honing a group’s ideas are excellent—he is also an Inupiaq and local. Facilitator, Tom Okleasik, with large group The summit took place at the Nome Eskimo Community Hall in January 2004 with 58 registered Native educators. The presence of this many Native educators was energizing. The theme of the gathering was “Education: Building Strong Ties” that embraced the idea of sharing across districts to help all of our children succeed. The theme of the gathering was “Education: Building Strong Ties” that embraced the idea of sharing across districts to help all of our children succeed. A great deal of stories, ideas, resources and information were exchanged. Elder Jacob Ahwinona shared his experience with education and gave encouraging words for Native education today. Frank Hill, co-director of AKRSI, reported on the status of the AKRSI project. Dr. Bernice Tetpon, University of Alaska Southeast reviewed the Alaska Department of Education Native Student Learning Action Plan. Linda Green had everyone laughing and at ease during her presentation on the Association of Interior Native Educators curriculum development project. Esther Ilutsik, AKRSI lead teacher, shared her activities in ensuring cultural accuracy in books for education. Finally, each school district had an opportunity to share curriculum materials they had developed and used within their district, instruction practices that integrate Native ways of knowing and cultural awareness and future Native education plans for their districts. Brainstorming and strategic planning in mixed groups (representatives from different districts) and in same groups (members from one district) took place to address the goal of the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative. The goals are to improve the quality of education in Alaska by providing support for the Native voice (students, parents, teachers), developing workshops or curriculum to enhance cultural responsiveness in schools and collaborating with MOA partners, Native educators, parents and students to further Native education. Some of the major outcomes and strategies developed by the participants include: Better Communication and Sharing • Create a web page that everyone can use to ask questions or share ideas. • Work on a regional Inupiaq/Bering Strait Yup’ik newsletter. • Create a resource list, e.g. cultural books for classrooms, etc. Networking • Native education association meetings via teleconference. • More meetings like this summit. • Create a listserv of Native educators in the regions to disperse information on educational issues. Strengthening Ties and Similarities • Cultural exchanges through classroom visits to other schools. • Gather data from each school to compare strength and weaknesses. Stronger Unity • Need Inupiaq summer institute (like Yup’ik area) to develop curriculum. • Create a vision for Inupiaq/Bering Strait Yup’ik education. Needless to say, the summit was very exciting. Comments were made to me after the gathering that teachers “don’t feel so alone now.” We don’t have enough Native educators in our schools and often times they feel alone in the issues that face our students and parents. The summit helped connect us together providing stronger support to validate and perpetuate our unity. We need to continue these gatherings. Please contact me at ehp.pd@kawerak.org if you would like a complete report on the Inupiaq and Bering Strait Yup’ik Native Education summit. Quyanna! Yummm . . . Native food potluck! | |
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Iñupiaq Education Conference Coming in November:The North Slope Iñupiat Educators' Association announces the Iñupiaq Education Conference November 18-19, 1998 in the North Slope Iñupiat Heritage Center in Barrow, Alaska. The theme of the conference is "Realizing the Vision for Iñupiaq Education," focusing on the vision set forth by the North Slope Borough's first mayor, the late Honorable Eben Hopson, Sr. The conference is sponsored by NSIEA, Ilisagvik College, NSBSD, and the NSB IHLC Commission. Workshops and presentations will be on culturally responsive schools, teacher preparation, recruitment efforts for prospective teachers, Iñupiaq language immersion, curriculum development, technology and the Iñupiaq language, and Iñupiat language initiatives. For information contact: Kathy Ahgeak Ilisagvik College P.O. Box 749 Barrow, Alaska 99723 Phone: (907) 852-1720 Internet: kahgeak@co.northslope.ak.us | |
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Iñupiaq Region by Branson Tungiyan:First, the Eskimo Heritage Project, for which I am the program director: We are in the process of putting 403 individual Elder interview (transcribed and translated) documents, 339 Elders conference documents and 249 Elder Advisory Committee tapes into a computerized database, so we can create our own website. This has been a long painstaking process because the Bering Strait region works with three language groups in the region: Iñupiaq, St. Lawrence Island Yupik and Central Yup'ik. Also in our archival collection, we have approximately 125 video tapes of Elders' conferences, 1500 old photographs and approximately 7000 slides. AKRSI hired me to be the regional coordinator for the entire Iñupiaq region-from Unalakleet to St. Lawrence Island and up to Barrow. I have the privilege to work with Nome Public Schools, Bering Strait School District, Northwest Arctic Borough School District, North Slope Borough School District, Ilisagvik College at Barrow and Northwest Campus here in Nome. This is a very large area where, besides the three languages in our region, the Iñupiaq language has sub-dialects within the Iñupiaq language group. I have also been involved with the Arctic Studies Center's Alaska Collections Project in which the Arctic Studies Center is doing a three-year project to bring Elders from each region to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC to name and identify objects. I followed the first group in May from Unalakleet and the second group in September. We were there during the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Our hotel was only a mile away from the Pentagon at Rosslyn, Virginia. It was quite an experience that we will never forget and very scary. We have also worked with Igor Krupnik, an anthropologist from the Smithsonian Institution's Arctic Studies Department. He had co-authored the Sourcebook on St. Lawrence Island from the Smithsonian's archival collections. It is now in the process of being printed. Photos in the book, "Our Words Put On Paper" were taken in the late 1800s of Gambell people, all in a traditional background setting. We are also in the process of preparing and planning for the Bering Strait Region 2002 Elders & Youth Conference. The theme, "Uniting Two Worlds Through Education For A Healthy Tomorrow" was selected by the Kawerak Elders Advisory Committee. This fits very well with all of the AKRSI staff meetings and the recent First Native Education Summit's expectations regarding Native education in Alaska. We are expecting approximately 1,000-plus Elders and youth to gather in Nome from the Bering Strait region, along with speakers, presenters and panelists from other regions and cities like Anchorage, Fairbanks, Bethel and Juneau. Three tracks will be focused on education, community wellness/healthy choices and visions/dreams/prophecies. It is our hope that these tracks will help with the problems of alcohol and substance abuse in our region. Elders & youth conferences have been held in the region since 1979. As we begin a new year, we reflect back to the unforgettable time Marie Saclamana, Estelle Oozevaseuk, Jacob Ahwinona, Aron Crowell, Suzi Jones and myself spent at Washington, DC during the attacks; the MOA Partners meeting in August; all the AKRSI meetings we attended; the Leonid meteor showers and of both Gambell and Savoonga landing a whale in each community in December. And we, at Kawerak, wish you A HAPPY NEW YEAR! | |
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Inupiaq Region by Elmer Jackson:Northwest Arctic Borough School District (NWABSD), North Slope Borough School District (NSBSD), Bering Straits School District (BSSD), and Nome City School District (NCSD) will host a district-wide subsistence curriculum development workshop that produces curriculum resources reflecting subsistence practices of the region and utilizing indigenous knowledge and the way of teaching. They will also participate in the regional Academy of Elders in which they and the Native educators will work on the development of indigenous curriculum resources for use in the schools. Ilisagvik College will participate in the development of a prototype curriculum framework based on Inupiaq cultural precepts and principles that will be shared with the other districts in the Inupiaq region. They will provide support for the documentation of Inupiaq Ways of Knowing. Ilisagvik College will also assist in supporting the activities of the North Slope Inupiaq Educators Association, which will provide guidance for the implementation of an Inupiaq Academy of Elders, drawing on the support of the Ciulistet Yup'ik teachers and the Association of Interior Native Educators. Kawerak, Inc. will provide support for the documentation of Inupiaq Ways of Knowing and Teaching that can serve as the basis for the teaching of all subjects in the schools. They will participate in the development of a prototype curriculum framework based on Inupiaq cultural precepts and principles that will be shared with the other districts in the Inupiaq regions. Finally they will assist in the establishment of a Bering Strait Native Educators Association that will provide guidance for the implementation of an Academy of Elders drawing on the support of the Association of Interior Native Educators. The BSSD will also utilize the Native educators to assemble and document Siberian Yup'ik and Inupiaq curriculum resources that can be utilized to bring indigenous knowledge and perspective into the school curriculum. The American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) chapters are coming to a reality in the Inupiaq region. Thanks to those who have committed their time for the Alaska RSI project. When you begin planning, fundraising, etc., local governments such as the traditional councils or IRA councils, city governments and search and rescue organizations are always willing to donate money to support school functions. Start planning your science project for the science fair to be held somewhere in the Inupiaq region. Our elders will assist in the judging of the science fair projects. AISES project coordinator, Claudette Bradley-Kawagley and teacher liaisons attended the 1996 AISES conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah. We will read their reports in the next issue of Sharing Our Pathways. I will give you an update on the progress of the AISES chapters and the Scientist-in-Residence program. If you have any questions or concerns, call me at (907) 475-2257. Happy New Year! | |
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Inupiaq Region by Elmer Jackson:Goals for Native Ways of Knowing * To incorporate Alaska Native ways of knowing into the pedagogical practice (teaching methods) of schools in rural Alaska in such a way that knowledge can be drawn from the local culture and physical environment. * To identify strengths that Alaska Native teachers and parents bring to their teaching and to create an educational environment that capitalizes on those strengths. * To integrate appropriate Alaska Native pedagogical practices into the pre-service and in-service preparation of teachers for rural schools. Benchmarks: (Year 1) * All teachers have integrated some form of experiential learning activity into their planning each week. * All participating school districts have reviewed their teacher evaluation procedures, taking into account local culture variations in successful teaching practices. * All schools report a significant increase in parent interest and involvement in school activities, including a ten percent increase in attendance at parent-teacher conferences. o. Native student enrollment in teacher education programs has increased by ten percent. * The proportion of time in in-service programs devoted to cultural issues associated with teaching has increased by twenty percent. ANCSA and the Subsistence Economy The North Slope Borough School District, Northwest Arctic Borough School District and the Bering Strait School Districts' goals and benchmarks for ANCSA and the subsistence economy are: * To achieve a balanced and thorough treatment of the role of cash-based and subsistence economies in rural communities through a comprehensive and culturally-aligned curriculum design adaptable to local circumstances. * To develop a curriculum structure that takes into consideration the context in which learning occurs and makes use of local resources. * To form a coalition of organizations associated with resource management and related economic issues to coordinate curriculum resources and technical support for rural schools. Benchmarks: (Year 1) * Each participating school district has an articulated curriculum design that integrates the study of issues associated with ANCSA corporations and the subsistence economy and lifestyle. * Students in all participating districts are actively engaged in activities associated with the everyday life of the community. * A coalition of organizations and resources have been drawn together in each region to provide curricular support for rural schools in teaching ANCSA and the subsistence-related issues. The following organizations will participate in the implementation of the goals and benchmarks: the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative, the Alaska Native regional and village corporations, the Indigenous Peoples Council for Marine Mammals, the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, the Eskimo Whaling/Walrus Commissions, the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, the Alaska Natural Resources and Outdoor Education Association, the Alaska Society for Technology in Education, the Alaska Association of Economics Education, the Alaska Association of Social Studies Teachers, tribal colleges, school districts and the rural campuses. "The Inupiaq region will also serve as the initiator for the first of a rotating annual meeting of representatives from all resources, technology and economics education-related professional organizations throughout the state, to promote the incorporation of ANCSA and subsistence-oriented issues in school curricula in culturally appropriate ways." The North Slope Borough School District, Northwest Arctic Borough School District and the Bering Strait School District will hold subsistence curriculum development workshops. If everyone works together, the tasks will be easier to accomplish. I will keep you updated on planning meetings and other events. Charles Kingsland and Elmer Jackson at the ANREC meeting in Sitka April 23 and 24, 1997. | |
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Iñupiaq Region by Elmer Jackson:Ambler will host the first regional Native Science Fair. Many students in the Iñupiaq and the Athabascan regions will enter Native science fair projects. These projects will have Native science themes. For example one student's project might be the study and development of a scale model of a mudshark (tiktaaliq) fishtrap. In the fall, after freeze-up, the Kobuk River people build mudshark traps utilizing long spruce poles. The poles are formed into a circular, square or diamond shape that serves as the trap or holding area for the trapped fish. The Inupiat key to the successful fishing technique is the trap: a one-way entrance made of willow. Once the fish enter, they cannot get back out. They remain in the holding area. Other science projects might be the process of tanning muskrat skins or the study and research of traditional medicines. The list of possible science fair projects are numerous. The students will need many research questions answered. We ask for help from the elders and parents to teach the children in the Native way of knowing and teaching. We do not realize that we are involved in science in our daily subsistence way of life. Whether it be trapping, fishing or hunting, science is present in all of the parts. The Iñupiaq translation of science, according to Rachel Craig, is supayaat kaniqsisautaat. It translates simply, "everything that the Inupiat understands or knows." Indigenous knowledge is a precious source of information for survival in the Inupiat subsistence way of life. Presently our elders are the bearers of that indigenous knowledge. They will share their knowledge during the districtwide subsistence curriculum development workshops. This documented information will lead to the development of curriculum for use in the classroom. The school districts that will participate in the development of indigenous Inupiat curriculum are the North Slope Borough School District, the Northwest Arctic Borough School District and the Bering Strait School District. The school districts will participate in the regional Academy of Elders during the district-wide subsistence curriculum development workshops. Every aspect of the Inupiats' subsistence practices will be documented. Another objective is to involve the Native educators and to establish a Native teachers association whose membership will include the bilingual teachers. This association will create and develop lesson plans that will be shared with other teachers in the Iñupiaq region. The Bering Strait School District will also implement St. Lawrence Island Yup'ik and Iñupiaq studies materials documentation. Ilisagvik College and Kawerak, Inc. will provide support for the documentation of Iñupiaq Ways of Knowing and Teaching. The documented information can serve as the basis for the teaching of all subjects in the schools. The college will participate in the development of a prototype curriculum framework based on Iñupiaq cultural precepts and principles which will be shared with the other districts in the Iñupiaq region. The North Slope Inupiat Educators Association which will provide guidance for the implementation of an Iñupiaq Academy of Elders, drawing on the support of the Ciulistet Yup'ik Teachers Association and the Association of Interior Native Educators. If you have any questions, please call. You can reach me in Kiana at (907) 475-2257 or fax the AFN office at 276- 7989. Thank you. | |
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Iñupiaq Region by Elmer Jackson:The first annual Native Science Fair was held on November 20-22. Thanks to elders, teachers and students for making the fair educational and scientific in the Native Ways of Knowing. A total of twenty-one students, some working on team projects, presented thirteen science fair projects. Some schools sent in projects for display during the fair. Poor weather conditions and other school activities kept many students from participating. Students in grades five through eight presented the following science team projects: Nunanaik Kipitirrun-Alder Willow Dye; Furs That Keep Us Warm; Why Don't Wolf and Wolverine Furs Frost Like Other Furs? and Uses of Low Wattage Electric Bulb by Using an Inverter. Eight students in grades five through eight, had individual projects. They were the Deering Salted Salmon; A Caribou's Life Cycle; Caribou Antlers; How Do Leaves Change Color; Air-The Effect of Smoking On Our Lungs; Northern Lights; Alcohol and You and a first grade science project Ptarmingan: An Arctic Bird. The NWABSD, Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative and the National Science Foundation sponsored the fair. On Friday night an awards ceremony and a feast was held. A combination of Native food and pizza was served. The evening's highlight was the awesome Eskimo dancing by the Kotzebue Northern Lights Dancers. Taikuu (thank you) to the Northwest Arctic Borough for the use of their facility and the Northwest Arctic Borough School District for feeding and accommodating the participants. The science fair was planned through teleconferencing, the AISES planning committee deserves a thank you. Thanks especially to Ruth Sampson, Mike Dunleavy and Debra Weber-Werle who helped make the science fair was a success. And to the students and their teachers: you made history by participating in the First Annual Arctic Region AISES Science Fair. On November 22-23 two teams, one from Barrow and the other from Bering Straits, participated in the Science and Math Unit Building workshop. Kit Peixotto, the program director for the Mathematics and Science Education Center of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory located in Portland, Oregon, facilitated the workshop. The Barrow team did their science unit on whaling while the Bering Straits team worked on developing a unit on plants. The initiative for 1998 is Culturally-Aligned Curriculum Adaptations. A culturally balanced and integrated curriculum of Native and non-Native knowledge and skills will be utilized, using local examples and resources wherever possible, while at the same time articulating with state and national standards. NWABSD sponsored the Subsistence Curriculum Development Workshop in Kotzebue December 10-12. Native educators and elders started curriculum development for teachers in the Iñupiaq region. Lesson units in subsistence will be shared with teachers in various school districts. A report on the workshop will be available, listing the units that were developed. | |
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Iñupiaq Region by Elmer Jackson:It is time for Elders, teachers and parents to guide and help students plan and organize their science fair projects. The Second Annual Native Science Fair will be sponsored by the NWABSD in November, 1998. Welcome again MOA partners: the Alaska Department of Education, Peggy Cowan and the Alaska Science Consortium, Nanci Spear, who are continuing work in curriculum standards and assessment. The North Slope Tribal College Consortium will be sponsored by Ilisagvik College. MOA partners, Kawerak, Inc., NWABSD and the Nome City School District, will participate in the Alaska Tribal Consortium to begin the planning process for the development of a Tribal College system in Alaska. Kawerak Inc., will prepare a higher education needs assessment for the Bering Straits region. The Bering Strait School District will work with the St. Lawrence Island Yup'ik Academy of Elders with a focus on curriculum development. The NWABSD will host a district-wide Academy of Elders and Teachers in a Subsistence Curriculum workshop. In this workshop, lesson units will be created for teachers. These units will reflect the subsistence practices of the Iñupiat people in the Kobuk River region. The knowledge gained and the way of teaching will be the focus on the development of these units. The Subsistence Curriculum workshop will be held in Kotzebue, October, 1998. MOA partners NSBSD, Nome City School District and BSSD will participate. Rachel Craig of the NWABSD will be working on a genealogy project. A workshop for bilingual teachers, focusing on "A Family Tree Gathering" will be held in October in Kotzebue. Reminding parents, teachers and students that the Second Annual Native Science Fair will be held in Kotzebue, November 1998. This is in association with the activities of the districts' American Indian Science and Engineering Society high school chapters. Students from schools in the Iñupiaq region will enter their science fair projects. Grand winners will participate in the nationals. Grand winners from the nationals will compete in the International Science Fair, 1999. Both locations are yet to be announced. Student participants have the opportunity to receive scholarship monies for future college careers. Welcome Iñupiat region MOA participants in the implementation of AKRSI goals. Welcome, also, to Frank Hill, new co-director for the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative. Thank you Dorothy M. Larson for your guidance and direction. Taikuu! | |
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Iñupiaq Region by Elmer Jackson:The AKRSI initiative for the Iñupiaq Region for the year 2000 will be Elders and Cultural Camps. Summer camps have been in existence in the Iñupiaq region for a number of years. The organizers of the 1999 cultural summer camps have been busy. Illisagvik Camp is located between Ambler and Shungnak on the upper Kobuk river. Last year, they held their first camp and plans are underway for a second camp. Further down the Kobuk river is the Kiana Elders' Iñupiat Illitqusrait Camp located near Kiana. The Kiana Traditional Council plans and sponsors this camp with funding coming from the Robert Newlin Aqqaluk Trust Fund. Northwest Alaska Native Association sponsors the Sivunniigvik Camp, located near Noorvik. Many Elders and youth from the region attend this camp. In the village of Selawik, Elders and planners usually take students camping or to a residential camp for part of the summer. At these camps, the students and young people are taught the Iñupiat Illitqusrait or the way of life of the Iñupiat. Some of the topics taught are fishing, hunting skills and other skills for gathering food with an emphasis on the Iñupiaq values. The planning for next year's AKRSI initiative has begun. I do not have the camp schedules at the present. If you would like more information, you can call me at (907) 475-2257 or e-mail me at fnej@uaf.edu. Many thanks go to all who participated in the 1999 Alaska Native/Rural Education Statewide Consortium held in Kotzebue, April 15-17. | |
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Iñupiaq Region: Academy of Elders and Culture Camps 2000 by Elmer Jackson:The theme was "A Gathering for a Time of Learning and Sharing." The goal was to teach the young people the subsistence way of life through fishing, hunting, berry picking and gathering edible and medicinal plants. One student commented that after drinking tilaaqii (labrador tea) her sinus cold began to clear. She also said that she was going to take some home. There were many edible plants and sweet roots growing near the shoreline of the camp: masru (sweet roots or wild potatoes), qusrimmaq (rhubarb), quagaq (sourdock) and patitaaq (wild chives). The academy shared and gave algaqsruutit (advice), sang love songs and told stories. Algaqsruutit are words of advice to the young. Gill nets and seine nets were used to catch salmon, quasrilluk (whitefish) and other Kobuk River fish. Some were sealed, cut, washed and hung on poles to dry. Some of the fish were half-dried for iganaaqtuk, that can be baked or boiled and tastes delicious with seal oil. Summer youth workers from Kiana met and interviewed Elders for the Oral History Project sponsored by the Kiana Traditional Council. The youth workers participated and helped the staff and campers. They are to be commended for their great help. An eagle flew over, observing the camp. I could see the caring eyes of the Elders for they knew that a large eagle is capable of flying off with a small child. Yet they were also awed by the sight of the large golden eagle perched on a spruce tree. During one of the evening sessions, the Elders shared the following algaqsruutit with the young campers: * What your parents and grandparents teach you is important. * We will depend on you; you are the ones who will run our Native corporations. * Give the best kuak, puugmiutaq and seal oil to others and one-tenth to the church. * Research your family tree to find out who you are related to. * The more you learn in grade school, the easier time you will have in college. * When you help others, especially Elders, don't ask for payment. * Don't make fun of people, especially those who are disabled. * When you have a head/sinus cold and are coughing, spit out the mucus; it is not healthy when it stays in your body. * Learn the Iñupiaq way of life as well as the Western way. Don't forget that you are Iñupiaq. * When we were growing up our parents and grandparents taught us to leave other people's property alone. * Don't steal. If you leave people's things alone, you will make the right choice. * Respect nature. * We are never too old to learn. * Keep your camping area clean. * Don't throw plastic trash into the river. The fish, birds and other animals can get caught in it. * When you are out boating, do not throw your trash on the land or in the water. If you do, it will keep the animals and fish away. * Do not leave your campfire burning while you are away; it could cause a forest fire. * Hunter and campers have a responsibility to keep the land and water clean. * When you are camping with other people, share your food with them. * The Elders' way of life is the truth. * Culture camps need more support. The Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative and AFN supported and provided for the Academy of Elders. Thanks to MOA partner Northwest Arctic Borough School District, Ruth Sampson and staff, the Kiana Elders Council and the Kiana Traditional Council for their support of the Academy of Elders and the Iñupiat Ilitqusrait summer camp 2000. The camp staff did an excellent job and the food was great! Thanks. | |
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