First Peoples Child & Family Review
Not a member yet
312 research outputs found
Sort by
Intercultural Communications and Conductive Hearing Loss
No full textWidespread conductive hearing loss among Aboriginal peoples in first world nations has a significant, although largely invisible impact on intercultural communication. Poor acoustics and cultural differences in communication styles compound the effect of widespread hearing loss among Aboriginal peoples. This article considers Australian research that has investigated how conductive hearing loss can impact on intercultural communication in schools and in the criminal justice system, as well as communication processes within Aboriginal families. An understanding of these issues can facilitate the development of innovative interventions that can help address Aboriginal disadvantage, especially within mainstream institutions
Identity lost and found: Lessons from the sixties scoop
No full textThe “Sixties Scoop” describes a period in Aboriginal history in Canada in which thousands of Aboriginal children were removed from birth families and placed in non-Aboriginal environments. Despite literature that indicates adoption breakdown rates of 85-95%, recent research with adults adopted as children indicates that some adoptees have found solace through reacculturating to their birth culture and contextualizing their adoptions within colonial history. This article explores the history of Aboriginal adoption in Canada and examines some of the issues of transracial adoption through the lens of psychology theories to aid understanding of identity conflicts facing Aboriginal adoptees. The article concludes with recommendations towards a paradigm shift in adoption policy as it pertains to Aboriginal children
A way of life: Indigenous perspectives on anti oppressive living
No full textThe focus of this article is on the key elements of anti oppressive practices as examined by two Indigenous women who practice and teach anti-oppressive ways. Anti oppressive living is characterized as a “Way of Life” that values the sacred and traditional teachings of various Indigenous cultures. The medicine wheel is discussed and highlighted as an effective teaching tool to examine antioppressive ways of living, practicing and perspectives
Special Issue: Adolescent development, mental health, and promising research directions forAboriginal youth
No full textN/
Seeking “Mamatowisowin” to Create an Engaging Social Policy Class for Aboriginal Students
No full textThis article recounts the author’s personal and professional journey of developing a social policy social work course at the First Nations University of Canada. With no social policy text designed for and about Aboriginal peoples, and very few articles written on social policy issues in Aboriginal communities, the author was challenged to create content, pedagogy, and assignment structures that reflected the cultures of her students who come primarily from the plains and woodlands reserve communities of Saskatchewan. By consulting with Elders, colleagues, and students, as well as by paying attention to her own internal sense of stress or delight, she progressively modified the class over three years, releasing all that was‘dry and detached’ while building on all that was fun, relevant and exciting. Along the way, the author was introduced to the néhiyawéwin (Cree) word mamatowisowin, which refers to a state of spiritual attunement and divine inspiration. I realized that, perhaps more than head knowledge, it was mamatowisowin that she most needed in order to create a class that optimally served her students and the university’s vision of a ‘bicultural education’ that is equally grounded in both European and Indigenous knowledge systems
The Maltreatment and Adolescent Pathways (MAP) Project: Using Adolescent Child Protective Services Population-Based Research to Identify Research Questions
No full textThis article introduces readers to the Maltreatment and Adolescent Pathways (MAP) study. The MAP is a longitudinal study that follows active case files of mid-adolescents in a large urban child protective services (CPS) system. The MAP is a unique opportunity to collect information from teens about their physical health (e.g., sleep quality), mental health (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder) and cognitive style (e.g., attention, memory). The MAP study samples the population of CPS teens on questions that are used in provincial teen surveys, allowing for points of comparison to non-CPS teens. The MAP tracks youth development over 2.5 years. Although the MAP currently has a very small number of Aboriginal teens, the responses of these teens may focus practitioner and researcher attention to priority areas for further research. This includes the investigation of how some research issues, such as maltreatment history, personal safety, relationship to primary CPS worker and suicidal ideation, may be cross-informative. It is known that teen risk behaviours cluster together, but it is important to understand the relationships among these variables. An understanding of these relationships can drive knowledge creation, as well as practice and policy change. Finally, the MAPstudy has succeeded given a successful collaborative partnership between hospital, university, and CPS partners who both strive to keep the youths’ best interests in the forefront
A Story of their own: Adolescent Pregnancy and Child Welfare in Aboriginal Communities
No full textThe phenomenon of adolescent pregnancy and its relationship to child welfare in Aboriginal communities provides a useful lens through which to understand fundamental and structural problems with the current child welfare system in Canada. The following paper will examine the relationship between adolescent pregnancy and child welfare, investigate concerns with the current child welfare system, and look to the Convention on the Rights of the Child as a framework for conceptualizing alternative approaches
Indigenous knowledge and research: The míkiwáhp as a symbol for reclaiming our knowledge and ways of knowing
No full textThis paper is based on the unique learning that the author obtained from various Cree and Anishinaabe Elders regarding Indigenous knowledge. The author’s experience with learning about Indigenous Knowledge is expressed through a review of the literature conducted on Indigenous knowledge and through symbolic imagery using the míkiwáhp (or “lodge”). Included is a discussion on appropriate considerations to utilizing Indigenous knowledge and its development in the context of colonial oppression over Indigenous peoples
Here be dragons! Reconciling Indigenous and Western knowledge to improve Aboriginal child welfare
No full textThe authors discuss the factors regarding the reconciliation movement in reconciling Indigenous and Western Knowledge to improve child welfare practice with respect to Aboriginal peoples. In particular, a current initiative undertaken in collaboration with various First Nation communities in Alberta involved with the “Making Our Hearts Sing” Initiative is highlighted. This initiative aimed to build on collaboration among child welfare stakeholders and Aboriginal communities to examine issues relating to child welfare that would be more in keeping with traditional Aboriginal worldviews that could, at the same time, contribute to reconciliation, healing and increased community capacity