Examining Indigenous Experiences in Teacher Education Through an Ethic of Indigenous Maternal Methodology

• In Event: Indigenous Teachers and Learners: At the Intersection of Preparation, Curriculum, and Course Mandate

Abstract

This paper is part of a pilot study examining Indigenous experiences of mandatory Indigenous Requirement Courses (IRCs) in Teacher Education at three universities in Canada. The IRCs serve as institutional responses to Indigenize teacher education in response to the Calls to Action advanced by Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015. With an emphasis on cultural safety, this study gives space and voice to the experiences of Indigenous students and instructors in these mandatory courses through attending to integral elements of cultural safety: holistic wellbeing, cultural identity, and ethical space. This paper documents insights gleaned from sharing circles with students and interviews with instructors along with the methodological decisions that attend to an ethic of Indigenous Maternal Methodology.

Authors

• Jennifer Brant, University of Toronto

• Frank Deer, University of Manitoba

• Leisa Anne Desmoulins, Lakehead University

• Jeannie Kerr, University of Winnipeg

• Kayla Webber, University of Toronto

• Jessica Trickey, University of Manitoba