This land is our land? This land is your land exploring the decolonizing journeys of White outdoor environmental educators

Summary: Across Canada, many Aboriginal peoples and communities are actively resisting environmental destruction and communicating to settler-Canadians traditions of respect for the land. Moreover, some Indigenous scholars and educators are calling for a foregrounding of Indigenous ways of knowing in environmental education for all students. However, Western and Indigenous worldviews differ signiﬁcantly, and settler-Canadian educators have much to learn from Aboriginal peoples who are already re-imagining a fundamentally different approach to education that pays attention to land, relationships, traditions, Elder knowledge, and place. Yet, it is difﬁcult for White environmental educators to ﬁnd effective and respectful roles as they learn from and work with Aboriginal peoples. This study seeks to understand the complexities of decolonizing journeys of White outdoor environmental educators. Findings of the study examine participant conceptualizations of decolonizing, recognition of Eurocentrism and White privilege, feelings of fear and anxiety, and experiences that facilitate decolonizing journeys. Major themes include: relationships with Aboriginal peoples, exposure to Aboriginal culture, relationships with non-Aboriginal peoples, cultural self-awareness, and time on the land.

Record details

ISBN: 9780494635391
Physical Description: electronic document
microfiche
microfilm reel
1 electronic text (156 p.) : digital file.
Publisher: Ottawa : Library and Archives Canada = Bibliothèque et Archives Canada, [2011]

Content descriptions

Dissertation Note:	Thesis (M.Ed.)--Lakehead University, 2009.
Bibliography, etc. Note:	Includes bibliographical references.
Formatted Contents Note:	Situating myself -- Overview of study -- A call to decolonize outdoor environmental education -- Understanding "Western" and "Indigenous" worldviews -- Colonization of people and the land -- Critical pedagogy, eco-justice, and Indigenous education -- Outdoor environmental education as eurocentric -- Foregrounding Indigenous ways of knowing -- TEK: the appropriation of Indigenous knowledge -- Critical place-based pedagogy: a framework for decolonizing? -- Turning to Indigenous education to learn about "place" -- Seeking conceptualizations of decolonizing for non-Aboriginal people -- The complexities of decolonization for white educators -- Conceptualizations of decolonization in Aboriginal contexts -- Decolonizing for non-Aboriginal people: conceptualizations by Aboriginal people -- Conceptualizations of decolonization by and for white Euro-Canadians -- Research design -- Theoretical framework -- Post-critical theory -- Indigenous and decolonizing research -- Participants -- Rationale for participant demographic (Researcher reflexivity) -- Outdoor environmental educators -- White Euro-Canadian educators -- Methodology -- Methods -- Discussion of findings -- Particpant profiles -- Kim -- Mary -- John -- Luke -- Participant understandings of decolonization -- Pivotal moments of decolonizing journeys -- Refining the decolonizing lens -- Recognizing Eurocentrism and white privilage -- Feeling stuck and the fear of not knowing -- Opportunities to be vulnerable and learn from mistakes -- Experiences that facilitate decolonizing journeys -- Part A: exposure to Aboriginal culture and First Voice perspectives -- Meaningful relationships with Aboriginal people -- Relationships with Aboriginal co-instructors -- Relationships with Aboriginal students -- Time in Aboriginal communities -- Exposure to Aboriginal perspectives in an Academic environments -- Exposure to cultural strength and resilience of Aboriginal people -- Exposure to examples of cultural strength -- Exposure to examples of the resilience of Aboriginal people in the face of adversity -- Relationships with non-Aboriginal people -- Relationships with non-Aboriginal allies -- Being a mentor and inviting others onto the journey -- Relationships in which to celebrate one's own cultural heritage -- Time on the land -- Appendix A: Telephone script for potential participant recruitment -- Appendix B: Information letter sent to potential participants -- Appendix C: Participant Consent form.