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Supporting the Youth Sense-Making in Navigating Ethical Multiplicities of Heterogeneous Nature-Culture Relations in Learning Environments

Sun, April 7, 8:00 to 9:30am, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Floor: 700 Level, Room 711

Abstract

The 21st century marks a critical time in human history in remaking of nature-culture relations – that is the ways in which human activity is in relations with the natural world (e.g., Tallbear, 2011; Latour, 2012). Human-nature relations are enacted in human activity and reflect implicit and explicit epistemic, ontological, and axiological dimensions and commitments that vary across cultural communities. Designing learning for expansive nature-culture relations requires axiological innovations (Author 2016) beyond the normative forms often manifest in learning environments typically characterized as human domination and entitlement (e.g. Wildcat, 2009; Cajete, 2000).

In this paper I explore the axiological engagements and possibilities that are designed for and enacted in a STEAM learning environment focused on forest ecology and climate change with 1st-12th graders designed for Native youth. Further I examine the kinds of ethical delibertions and socio-ecological decision making that emerges in youth sense-making. Axiological positionings of self and others with respect to knowledge, knowing, and human activity are routine parts of interaction (Lemke, 2002). This study is part of an iterative participatory based design project which involved community members, researchers, and graduate students to design and implement land-based learning programs that facilitate and support Indigenous ways of knowing and western science (Bang & Vossoughi, 2016). The program was designed to focus on nature-culture relations and learning about complex ecological systems through relational epistemologies and mobile pedagogies of walking, talking, and storying the land (e.g. Author 2015; Author 2010). The framing question for the camp was: How can we live in respectful, reciprocal, and responsible relations with our lands and waters? In this paper we analyzed the ways in which these forms of relations were explored and enacted and the kinds of affordances or constraints they placed on learning and teaching about nature-culture relations and more specifically complex ecological systems.

The data for this paper comes from four sources. Video and audio recordings of the program that included 30 youth and 4 educators and additional community members, artists, and scientists that also co-taught in these environments. I utilized interaction analysis to construct a microethnographies of the ethical deliberations youth engage in through multiple learning activities across the program (e.g. DeLiema, Lee, Danish, Enyedy, & Brown, 2016).

Preliminary findings from this work reflect that youth sensemaking reflected awareness of critical historicity and the current political and ethical contours of social life. Further youth utilized traditional Indigenous stories and forms of storytelling in their sense-making across the program. Importantly they reflected a key aspect of Indigenous knowledge systems and storytelling. In addition, deliberations around decision making and the consequences and ethics of decisions were prominent across youth thinking. Youth also went beyond deliberation and actively constructed unanticipated and new ways to enact ethical responsibilities. These ethical actions were intertwined with learning about complex ecological systems. Based on these findings I propose a set of design principles as well as pedagogical practices to support ethical engagements with nature-culture relations in science learning relevant to 21st century demands.

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