Professional learning for culturally nourishing pedagogies in Inuit schools

Abstract

This article presents a participatory action inquiry into the process and outcomes of professional learning for culturally nourishing pedagogies in Inuit schools. Culturally nourishing pedagogies are approaches to schooling that centre local knowledge, language, culture, and knowledge holders. Engaging all school staff, administrators, curriculum developers, and school boards in adopting such approaches is key to decolonizing schools and practicing Indigenous sovereignty in education. A research team of Inuit educators and university-based researchers, in partnership with the Nunatsiavut Inuit Government and the school board documented and analyzed the development, delivery, immediate and short-term outcomes of professional learning workshops addressing Inuit culturally nourishing pedagogies. Results show that the teachers have many ideas for, and intuitively incorporate land, language, local knowledge holders, and local resources in their teaching inside and outside the school building. Consistent implementation of culturally nourishing pedagogies is hindered by capacity, time, school board policies, and resource gaps. Teacher-to-teacher knowledge exchange in the workshops demonstrated the importance of identity, relationship, and safe spaces in generating ideas for and practicing culturally nourishing pedagogies. Collaborative co-creation of knowledge reveals how professional learning workshops can contribute to teachers’ effective practice and to sustainable change in Nunatsiavut area schools.

Keywords

• culturally nourishing pedagogies
• Inuit education
• decolonizing education
• teacher professional learning
• participatory action research

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