Summer Institute in Teaching Foundational Indigenous Knowledge
The Summer Institute offers professional learning for in-service teachers and school leaders supporting your growth as more effective teachers by deepening your understanding of First Nation, Métis and Inuit ways of being, knowing and doing. This deeper understanding will enhance your ability to address TQS # 5: Applying Foundational Knowledge about First Nations, Métis and Inuit in your classrooms and schools.
Students may choose two of the four course options - one in the first two-week session; one in the second.
The Program
July 8-18, 2024:
These courses are offered on the University of Alberta main campus.
Instructors: Dr. Trudy Cardinal and Megan Tipler
July 8 - 18, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (M-Th)
This course is designed to transform understandings of Indigenous ways of nurturing literacy learning. Students will have the opportunity to participate in diverse experiences designed to deepen understanding of the potential of Indigenous knowledges and pedagogies for transforming understandings of Literacy and how we can inspire and nurture literacy alongside our next generations of children and youth.
Instructor: Dr. Dwayne Donald
July 8 - 18, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (M-Th)
This course provides opportunities for students (as Individuals and as part of a collective learning community) to dwell with the key concepts and frameworks that inform current understandings of Indigenous curriculum and pedagogy. Particular attentiveness will be given to the idea of foundational Indigenous knowledge and knowing what those might be and how we might express our understandings of those in contemporary educational contexts.
Parts of this course are offered on the land in the river valley near the U of A campus.
July 22 to August 1, 2024:
These courses are offered on the University of Alberta main campus.
Instructor: Dr. Melissa Tremblay
July 22 - August 1, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (M-Th)
This course is directed towards teachers who expect to work with Indigenous children and youth. It is designed to provide learners with a broad introduction to child and adolescent development from Indigenous perspectives, as well as promising practices for helping Indigenous students to reach their full potential.
Instructors: Dr. Darlene Auger & Dr. Janice Huber
July 22 - August 1, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (M-Th)
Guided by the principles of MÎYO OHPIKINÂWASÔWIN (good child raising) and PÎMÔSIHTA (an invitation to feel), this course is an invitation to journey back in time when our ancestors honoured the sacredness of children as gifts from Creator, knowing that each child, each spirit came with their own wisdom to be in this world, to walk in a good way, to explore, to experience, to feel, and to give back, to teach, to share their knowledge and wisdom in a forever cycle or spiral of life. As teachers, we are responsible for creating a sacred space for children to do what they have come here to do. We are merely guides and nurturers. Week by week, we will learn these ways of nurturing children by experiencing and thinking with them.
Artist: Stewart Steinhauer
Participants
This program is limited to 20 students. Courses may be taken individually, however, priority will be given to students in the Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies - Indigenous Education program. Application deadline: May 15, 2024.
If space is available, students in other graduate programs and Open Studies are welcome. Students not in the GCES program must submit a 1-2 page statement of interest including:
- A summary of your experience - teaching or otherwise - that helps us better understand your interest in the summer institute.
- An indication of which course(s) you would like to take.
A selection committee will review your submission and, if eligible, you will be contacted with further instructions on the admissions process. Submit your statement to gcesinfo@ualberta.ca by May 31, 2024.
Questions? Contact us at gcesinfo@ualberta.ca.
Fees
$1477/course plus non-instructional fees.
Accommodations: If you require paid accommodation, a number of options are available, including nearby hotels and Bed & Breakfasts. Should you wish to stay on campus--only steps away from your classes, there are two options:
- University of Alberta residences
- St. Joseph's College (please indicate that you are a Summer Institute student)