Journal of the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies (JCACS)
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Exploring Intercultural Understandings of Mental Health for School Contexts
Get PDFWhat does mental health mean? As an educator, I have noticed that mental health is a concept viewed by many students and colleagues as “loaded” with stigma and often referenced as a shameful form of illness. It is estimated that one in five high school students will suffer from a mental illness, with the majority not accessing mental health services due to the stigma associated with the illness (Bowers et al., 2013). Wondering how particular understandings of mental health might influence pedagogical approaches, I conducted a preliminary literature review across caregiver professions, including nursing, social work, psychology, medicine and education. Findings indicated that medicalized mental health definitions framed by Western philosophy were prevalent. Conceptions of mental health that represent different cultural perspectives, pluralistic understandings (diverse epistemologies), or other ways of being (ontologies) are isolated and excluded. This roundtable session will be guided by a hermeneutic approach that aims to broaden understandings by asking participants to consider the concept of mental health within cultural traditions, histories, stories, languages, experiences, subjectivities and relations. To further discussion, contemporary conceptualizations are presented through literature, images and symbols
One Path, Four Travellers: A PhD Journey of the Mind, Heart, Body and Spirit
Get PDFAs PhD students in Education Sustainability at Nipissing University, the authors each experienced a personal process of becoming and knowing (Absolon, 2011; Miller, 2019). This paper draws on journal entries, personal narratives, various significant artifacts and uses an autoethnographic (Bochner & Ellis, 2016; Holman et al., 2013) process. The paper offers a counternarrative to the solely academic PhD experiences. We consider how holistic learning engages the whole person and is deep, rich and sustaining (Archibald, 2008; Miller, 2000; Sterling, 2001). Through an exploration of how one path was shared by four travelers and personally understood, it is also an opportunity to reimagine learning (Sterling, 2001) as relational and personally meaningful journeys of mind, heart, body and spirit (Wilson, 2008). It focuses on relational learning (Battiste, 2013), communities of trust (Palmer, 1998), inter-sectionality, acknowledgement and acceptance of many ways of being. In this paper, four graduate students share humanized, educational experiences rooted in Indigenous ways of knowing and relationality that are personally constructed and transformative in nature. Their experiences bring about new ways of understanding themselves and extend it to an emergent and deepening understanding of their world views and of who they are as researchers, writers and learners. The four interconnected papers explore each student’s learning journey as it was understood in this context, at this time in life and within this community of learners
Absence of Praxis, Absence of Progressivism: The Need for Pedagogical Praxis for Progressivist Educators
Get PDFThis paper discusses the common philosophical orientation of both in-service and pre-service teachers in mainstream Canadian public schooling to progressivism. Although the meaning of progressivist theory in education varies, this paper explores a definition that encompasses the desire to teach self-governance and to prepare students for participating in a democratic and pluralistic society. Through a philosophical discussion, a deep reading of the literature and autoethnographic storytelling, this paper explores the ways in which in-service and pre-service teachers commonly define progressivist practice. They do this by juxtaposing progressivism to traditionalism without questioning theory-practice connections and disconnections through reflection and action. This leads to what I call bad praxis and a subversion of the aims of progressivist education because teachers are immersed in narratives that tell them to be politically neutral, that they are incapable of theorizing or philosophizing, and that critical discourse should be comfortable; good praxis gives the impression of being radical. However, progressivist connections to democracy are political; teachers can do more than tactfully cope in the classroom, and critical thinking is not only based in reason but also emotion. In my presentation, I make comparisons to Foucault’s (2008) concept of good and bad parrēsia, and much like the connection he makes between parrēsia and democracy, I argue that the ambiguity of praxis and the deterioration of praxis within progressivist teaching, leads to bad praxis and a failure to walk our progressivist talk. How can in-service and pre-service teachers develop good praxis skills and how might this shift support progressivist goals
Symposium: Critical Friendships, Poetic Relations: Weaving Inspirited Pathways Through the Academy
No full textIn this symposium presentation, we explore how four women scholars are drawn to one another as a sustaining and life-giving practice in the hetero-patriarchal world of academia. Institutional attitudes, power, hierarchy and oppression (Betasamosake Simpson, 2014; Foucault, 2008; Kumashiro, 2002) hold both a visible and an invisible presence in the academy as individuals struggle with increasing workloads, institutional accountability and competition. We base our foundational understandings of these conditions in critical theory (Freire, 2000), and turn to ecology (Abram, 1996; Jardine, 2006; Macy & Brown, 2014) and Indigenous philosophies (Smith, 2012) for a response that is messy, heart-full, multivocal and rooted in good relations. We weave poetry and narrative writing to describe the well-worn pathways in the academy and to critically reflect on how we might step away from them to create fresh and renewed paths. Walking alongside each other in a courageous sisterhood, we see our criss-crossing footsteps, woven together like a braid, creating strength and new possibilities through relationships. We engage Indigenous and literary métissage (Donald, 2012; Hasebe-Ludt et al., 2009) as a form of life writing (Richardson & St. Pierre, 2005) and we will invite our audience into a dialogue that explores the deep influence of these relations on our well-being and success on our personal and academic journeys
Recension : Les pédagogies de ré-imagination et de désapprentissage : Les dommages du décolonialisme au sein/contre les tenants du colonialisme au Canada
Get PDFThis book review is a close reading of three book-length works by key, contemporary scholars in the field of settler colonial studies: Walter Mignolo and Catherine Walsh's On Decoloniality; Adam Dahl's The Empire of the People; and Emma Battell Lowman and Adam Barker's Settler: Identity and Colonialism in 21st Century Canada. This review provides a critical account of the significance of navigating the complexities of modern settler colonial practices and frameworks within Western settler societies to better inform and navigate our own decolonizing processes. We identify settler logics, perspectives and foundational frameworks as key factors in our current educative practices. Through this, we debate the significance of unsettling our/selves to consider extensions of our identities through a decolonial lens and how we, as a society, contribute to ongoing colonial processes. The review also provides approaches to how these resources may be used to deepen our anti-colonial lens by considering these texts as an underlying basis to reflect upon current educative curricula.Ce travail est une analyse minutieuse sur les critiques des trois ouvrages écrits par des universitaires contemporains de référence dans le domaine des études décoloniales : La Décolonisation (On Decoloniality) de Walter Mignolo et Catherine Walsh; L’Empire du Peuple (The Empire of the People) de Adam Dahl; et Les Colons : Identité et colonialisme en 21ème siècle au Canada (Settler: Identity and Colonialism in 21st Century Canada) de Emma Battell Lowman et Adam Barker. Cette étude fournit un compte rendu critique de l’importance d’explorer les éléments complexes constituant les structures et les pratiques du système colonialisme moderne à l’intérieur des sociétés occidentales coloniales afin de mieux nous informer et nous diriger dans nos propres processus de décolonisation. Nous identifions les logiques, les perspectives et les cadres référentiels des colons qui sont des facteurs clés de nos pratiques éducatives actuelles. A travers cette analyse, nous discutons de l’importance de nous défaire nous-mêmes en considérant les héritages de nos identités sous un angle décolonial et comment nous, en tant que société, contribuons aux processus du système colonialisme actuel. L’analyse fournit aussi une approche sur la façon dont ces ressources peuvent être utilisées pour approfondir notre vision anticoloniale en considérant ces écrits comme un fondement sur lequel se reposent les curricula actuels
Du site d'enfouissement au métier à tisser : Deux enseignantes-chercheuses racontent leurs récits de durabilité via Le secret sous ma peau (The Secret Under My Skin)
Get PDFTraditionally, the responsibility for sustainability education has been assigned to the fields of science, engineering, technology and outdoor education. More recently, English language arts have begun to play an integral role in educating students on the importance of preserving the environment for future generations. Pertinent research, however, indicates that many teachers, including those teaching English, do not feel fully prepared to address sustainability in their classrooms. Such teachers would benefit from either pre-service or in-service support where they would have opportunities to gain more knowledge about sustainability, while also critically inquiring into their related pedagogical beliefs and practices. Before beginning the process of planning and implementing relevant sustainability education experiences for English teachers, it is imperative that we, two teacher educators, first examine our own teaching narratives related to this important topic. Focusing on the dystopian young adult novel, The Secret Under My Skin (McNaughton, 2000), we make generous use of Rosenblatt’s (1995) transactional theory of reader response to critically inquire into past experiences that shape our recurrent views and actions in the classroom. We express our back-and-forth transactions in interspersing sections of poetry, prose and image, including emerging questions to consider as starting points for future engagement with teachers on the integration of sustainability education into the English language arts curriculum at the secondary school level.Traditionnellement, la responsabilité de l'éducation au développement durable est attribuée aux domaines de la science, de l'ingénierie, de la technologie et de l'éducation en plein air. Plus récemment, les arts de la langue anglaise ont commencé à jouer un rôle essentiel dans l'éducation des élèves sur l'importance de préserver notre environnement pour les générations futures. Des recherches pertinentes indiquent cependant que de nombreux enseignant(e)s, y compris ceux qui enseignent l'anglais, ne se sentent pas pleinement préparés à aborder la durabilité dans leurs classes. Ces enseignant(e)s bénéficieraient d'un soutien préalable ou en cours d'emploi où ils/elles auraient la possibilité d'acquérir plus de connaissances sur la durabilité, tout en enquêtant de manière critique sur leurs croyances et pratiques pédagogiques. Avant de commencer le processus de planification et de mise en œuvre d'expériences d'éducation à la durabilité pertinentes pour les enseignant(e)s d'anglais, il est impératif que nous, deux formatrices d'enseignant(e)s, examinions d'abord nos propres récits pédagogiques liés à ce sujet important. En nous concentrant sur le roman dystopique pour les jeunes adultes, The Secret Under My Skin (McNaughton, 2000), nous utilisons généreusement la théorie transactionnelle de Rosenblatt sur la réponse des lecteurs pour enquêter de manière critique sur les expériences passées qui façonnent nos vues et nos actions récurrentes en classe. Nous exprimons nos allers-retours aux sections entrecoupées de poésie, de prose et d'image, y compris des questions émergentes à considérer comme points de départ pour un engagement futur avec les enseignant(e)s sur l'intégration de l'éducation au développement durable au programme des arts de l'anglais au niveau secondaire
Recension : Etudes canadiennes du programme scolaire : Un métissage d’inspiration/imagination/interconnexion
Get PDFThis text comprises a book review of Canadian Curriculum Studies: A Métissage of Inspiration/Imagination/Interconnection, edited by Erika Hasebe-Ludt and Carl Leggo (2018) and published by Canadian Scholars’ Press. In this text, I first summarize the main themes and trends of the volume through reference to specific, illustrative contributions. I also highlight the rather distinct structure of the volume. In my discussion of the volume, I articulate its usefulness to emerging curriculum scholars as well as those teaching graduate courses in curriculum studies. I also make reference to several questions I have after reading the book as a whole. Finally, I end this essay by pointing to the intimate and welcoming atmosphere of the volume and of Canadian curriculum studies more generally.Ce texte s’est composé d’une critique littéraire de Canadian Curriculum Studies: A Métissage of Inspiration/Imagination/Interconnection, édité par Erika Hasebe-Ludt et Carl Leggo (2018) et publié par Canadian Scholars’ Press. Dans ce texte, je résume premièrement les thèmes principaux et les tendances du volume, par référence à des contributions spécifiques et illustratives. De plus, je souligne la structure du volume qui est plutôt distincte. Dans ma discussion du volume, j’exprime son utilité aux spécialistes du programme scolaire émergentes ainsi que ceux qui enseignent des cours de troisième cycle en études du programme scolaire. Je fais référence aussi aux plusieurs questions que j’ai posées après avoir lu le livre en entier. Finalement, je conclus cette rédaction en portant à croire à l’esprit intime et accueillant du volume et des études canadiennes du programme scolaire en général
Preparing Pre-Service Educators to Teach Worldview-Threatening Curriculum
Get PDFEmotions are central to teaching potentially polarizing content. This study asked pre-service teachers to engage with ideas from Ernest Becker (1973, 1975) and terror management theory (TMT) from experimental social psychology about defensive responses. In group training sessions before their teaching practicum and focus groups after their practicum, pre-service teachers considered the following questions: How might we prevent ourselves, as teachers, from treating a student harshly (or with dismissiveness) when their worldview clashes with ours? What might we need to do with our classes before worldview threatening lessons begin in order to mitigate defensive compensatory reactions? Participants explored how to facilitate contentious and potentially polarizing content and discussions so as to prevent unhelpful, defensive reactions by both students and teachers. This content included derogating people or concepts, coaxing or coercing others to your view, expressing views related to eliminating different worldviews, as well as appropriating aspects of other worldviews. A dramaturgical analysis identified participant objectives, conflicts, tactics, attitudes, emotions and subtexts. Participants explored how to anticipate and avoid worldview threat and self-esteem threat, navigate tense pedagogical spaces, build capacity for expressing uncomfortable emotions and diffuse threat with (appropriate) humour. Through their experiences, these pre-service teachers also increased their own emotional awareness. For participants, TMT became both an attitude and a teachable theory. The authors hope that both direct and indirect uses of TMT in educational contexts can help nourish less fraught social relations, helping us (as educators and humans) gain perspective on our beliefs and those of others without devaluing emotional responses
An Inquiry Into Personal Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Science Teachers: Stories of Teaching Electricity
Get PDFThis research studied the experiences of science teachers to expose their personal pedagogical content knowledge (pPCK) of teaching electricity. Three secondary and two elementary teachers participated in this research. A narrative inquiry approach was used to study their experiences of planning and teaching an electricity unit. Oral and written narrative data were collected from multiple sources before, during and after implementing the electricity unit. Data were analyzed using topic-specific PCK (TSPCK) as a conceptual framework and narrative analysis as a technique. Meaningful and coherent stories of teaching electricity were developed to gain access to participants’ pCPCK. These stories revealed many constituent elements of pPCK in the form of events, incidents or stories of teaching electricity, exposing the narrative nature of pPCK. The study further explored the similarities and differences between secondary and elementary teachers’ pPCK of teaching electricity. The study has implications for pre-service science teacher education
Making Music: Composing With Young Musicians Program Evaluation
Get PDFMaking Music: Composing with Young Musicians is a research-commissioning project that involves a partnership between the Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa and Curriculum Services, Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB). Over a three-year period, 18 new research-based compositions for students enrolled in school music programs were created, studied and premiered in local schools by teachers and their students. The purpose of this presentation is to provide the findings from three focus groups, each representing one of the three years of the Making Music Project. Overall, the participants indicated that the experience was very positive; they appreciated the opportunity for their students to connect with professional composers and they indicated an eagerness to participate in future projects. The major strength of the project was the opportunity for teachers and their students to collaborate with living composers in the creative process, and the major weakness was the composers’ lack of experience composing educational music (a wide-spread problem in Canada). Based on their experience in the project, the teachers indicated that they were more willing to teach music composition in their classes. They noted that the composers were far more involved in the students’ learning process than would normally occur with a standard commissioning program. The teachers also noted that their own involvement shifted towards a facilitating role rather than that of teacher-directed instruction. The project could be improved through better promotion to the schools and a prior meeting with the participants to articulate roles, responsibilities and process