The last few days have been quite a ride.  The three assigned readings;

have taken me through such a range of emotions, I am hoping that blogging about it might allow me to put some of my thoughts to rest tonight for a good nights’ sleep.

I hope I’m not alone when I admit that “Idle No More” left me frustrated and agitated.  I wondered if my reaction was simply a mirror of the spirit in which the chapter was written (as Dr. Pete was transparent in her writing regarding her frustration teaching pre-service white teachers). I am a very willing learner when it comes to Indigenous experience and ways of knowing, and in my experience my agitation simply signals that I have more learning to do.  And so I jump into the second reading.

I thoroughly enjoyed the second reading, and appreciate the insights that Dr. Pete had with respect to her readers.  It was brilliantly written and provoking, and I appreciated it very much.  Storytelling is so incredibly powerful. Furthermore, I appreciate Dr. Pete’s call for action for non-indigenous educators to educate themselves.  Resources abound, and I have echoed the sentiment that we (settlers) do not have an excuse to be ignorant.  That being said, I still have so much to learn. I am grateful for the respected authors noted in Dr. Pete’s work.

To finish my readings tonight, I had the pleasure of considering the Five R’s for Indigenizing Online Learning. I found the approach and foundation to the research welcoming and inspiring.  I am shocked that a new category for evaluation had to be created in order for the course to be accredited. This framework reflects so many of my goals, and I wonder about implementing a similar guiding foundation to my Environmental Science course, and allowing these critical R’s to penetrate my teaching practice throughout all of my teaching assignments.

I also am also considering the research methodology of the third article and how a similar approach would be beneficial for the implementation and evolution of my upcoming Env. Sci class.  I will certainly be revisiting this paper for further inspiration.