First Peoples Child & Family Review
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From the House of Commons Resolution to Pictou Landing Band Council and Maurina Beadle v. Canada: An Update on the Implementation of Jordan’s Principle
No full textJordan’s Principle is a child-first principle intended to ensure to ensure that Status First Nations children are not subjected to delay, denial, or disruption of services due to jurisdictional disputes between governments or government departments. In 2007, Jordan’s Principle received unanimous support from the House of Commons. Still, Jordan’s Principle has not yet been fully implemented in any Canadian jurisdiction. This article draws on publicly available information to outline the federal and provincial administrative responses to Jordan’s Principle. It also provides an overview of an ongoing legal challenge which is based on Jordan’s Principle and which has the potential to set legal precedents which have important implications for the implementation of Jordan’s Principle.
Nitsiyihkâson: The Brain Science Behind Cree Teachings of Early Childhood Attachment
No full textThe Nitsiyihkâson project was conceived in order to develop a resource to promote attachment and development in a manner culturally appropriate to the Indigenous (specifically Cree) people of Alberta. Promoting secure attachment between a child and his/her caregivers is crucial to ensuring positive mental health, and improving family well-being. Working collaboratively with the community of Saddle Lake, the process began by launching the project in traditional ceremony. Following this, a talking circle was held with Saddle Lake Elders to share their memories and understanding of child-rearing practices that promote attachment. Using their guidance, we produced the document “awina kiyanaw”, which focuses on Cree stories and teachings, for parents to share with their young children. This document will be shared within the community, and agencies interested in promoting a culturally-appropriate approach to parenting. We then examined the cross-cultural applicability of these practices and produced a Resource Manual for service providers, comparing traditional ways-of-knowing with current neurobiological and epigenetic scientific understanding. We believe this helps those working with Indigenous families better understand their culture, and appreciate the wisdom in its teachings. In this paper, we present those findings and their ramifications
Contemporary Practice of Traditional Aboriginal Child Rearing: A Review
No full textThere is a dearth of literature available on traditional Aboriginal child rearing. This review paper explores Aboriginal child rearing to determine if traditional practices are still in use, how these may differ from mainstream child rearing and may have been modified by mainstream influences and colonialism. Traditional Aboriginal parenting is discussed in the context of colonialism and historic trauma, with a focus on child autonomy, extended family, fatherhood, attachment, developmental milestones, discipline, language, and ceremony and spirituality. This review was completed using the ancestral method i.e. using the reference list of articles to find other relevant articles and more structured literature searches. In light of the high number of Aboriginal children in foster care, this research may serve to highlight the role that historical issues and misinterpretation of traditional child rearing practices play in the apprehension of Aboriginal children. It may also assist non-Aboriginal professionals when working with Aboriginal children and their families
Editorial - Resilience and Triumph: Moving Forward in a Good Way
No full textEditorial to Volume 9(1), special issue on Aboriginal child and youth mental, spiritual and cultural health
Understanding the Impact of the Pain Experience on Aboriginal Children’s Wellbeing: Viewing Through a Two-Eyed Seeing Lens
No full textPain is a universal experience all humans share but can be unique in how it is expressed. The pain experience is influenced by several dynamic factors, including family, community and culture. When it comes to pain expression children are among the most vulnerable often due to difficulty conveying their discomfort. Childhood pain can have significant physical and developmental effects that can last into adulthood. These negative health outcomes may be more pronounced in Aboriginal children given (a) the high prevalence of painful conditions, (b) potential cultural differences in pain expression, (c) the lack of culturally relevant reliable pain assessment approaches; (d) the subsequent shortcomings in pain care resulting in persistent pain (e) impact on wellbeing and untreated childhood pain. Standardized pain scales are based on Western ways of interpreting pain and may not capture the complexities of this experience through Indigenous understandings. Integration of both Western and Indigenous knowledge is accomplished when employing a Two-Eyed Seeing approach which utilizes the best of both Indigenous and Western knowledge. We want to establish reliable means for Aboriginal children to convey pain and hurt from a holistic perspective. By using a Two-Eyed Seeing lens to examine these issues, we hope to learn how to improve health care encounters, reduce hurt and enrich the wellbeing of Aboriginal children
Bullying Behaviour and Victimization Among Aboriginal Students within Northwestern Ontario
No full textThis study describes the self-reported bullying experiences and behaviours of Aboriginal students within two schools in a northwestern Ontario community. Different types of bullying and victimization experiences include, but are not limited to: physical, verbal, social, and electronic bullying. These bullying and victimization experiences were assessed among grades 4 through 8 students using the Safe School Survey. The results of the study showed that relative to the entire sample, Aboriginal students reported comparable levels of both victimization and bullying behaviour at school. All students reported verbal bullying behaviours and victimization experiences as the most frequent form of bullying. The results reflected no significant difference between Aboriginal male and female rates of reported bullying and victimization
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder among Aboriginal children under six years of age and living off reserve
No full textFetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) are caused by consumption of alcohol during pregnancy and the prevalence of these disorders in Canada is not well established. Statistics Canada’s Aboriginal Children’s Survey (2006) was used in the current study to assess the prevalence of FASD among Aboriginal children living off reserve across Canada. Characteristics of Aboriginal children with or without a diagnosis of FASD and living in Western Canada were also assessed. Rates of FASD were higher in Alberta and Manitoba than other provinces and territories. For these children who were diagnosed with FASD half received treatment for FASD and treatment rates did not vary across provinces. In Western Canada, FASD was more common among children identified as First Nations, and among older children. Rates of FASD were also higher for Aboriginal children who lived in low income situations, who had experienced food insecurity, or who lived with foster parents. Therefore, Aboriginal children with FASD likely experience other life challenges and these factors should be considered when treating these young children
Bound by the clock: The experiences of youth with FASD transitioning to adulthood from child welfare care
No full textFetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a condition that affects a significant proportion of children and youth in the care of child welfare agencies in Canada. Few studies have heard from the voices of youth with FASD themselves as they are leaving care. This article describes a qualitative study that focuses on the lived experiences of 20 youth with FASD in Manitoba as they were preparing for the transition from child welfare care to adulthood (or had recently emancipated from the system). The experiences and insights of these youth highlight the supports and services required by youth with FASD transitioning out of care, from both the child welfare system and from services for adults with FASD
Resilience and enculturation: Strengths among young offenders with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
No full textFetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a lifelong disorder with no cure and is accompanied by neurological deficits. FASD is a health concern that is increasingly gaining attention within the justice system. Research has identified an association between delinquency and prenatal alcohol exposure. This study looked at resources of resilience for young offenders and addressed questions regarding the association between enculturation and resilience, and whether offence histories differed between youth with and without a diagnosis of FASD. Ninety-four young offenders between 13 and 23 years of age participated, 47 diagnosed with FASD and 47 without. While this study was not intended to be a study on Aboriginal adolescence, given the overrepresentation of FASD among Aboriginal youth involved in justice settings, the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) was included to assess levels of enculturation among youth. The Child and Youth Resilience Measure (CYRM) was used to assess resilience. Results showed a positive association between the resilience-enhancing resources and enculturation, indicating that the two are intricately connected. Neither group differed in their rates on the resilience-enhancing resources or the enculturation measure. While the resilience measure was not significantly associated with official conviction data, it did demonstrate significant associations with self-reported offending data. Finally, no significant results emerged to suggest that FASD had an influence on the association between the resilience measure and offence history or the enculturation measure and offence history. Findings suggest the importance of incorporating cultural components into services targeted to produce resilience and positive outcomes, and that different groups may have different service needs
Foreword
No full textForeword for the Special Issue on FASD - A Collaboration between the First Peoples Child & Family Review and the Alberta Centre for Child, Family & Community Researc