Artefact 5

Birthing Myself Oil Glaze over dry pigment © Shirley Bear (2002)

MDDE 651: Transcending Boundaries: Making Space for Young Women in Distance Education Website/iBook (Individual Project)
This artefact represents the culmination of a fascinating and captivating learning journey, the value of which could only be described as inestimable. Of all the works I created over the course of my four year journey, I wanted this one to have practical application to the work I do and to light the path that would transport me from the world of academia to my real world work. I wanted to apply what I had learned to make an impact in a real and meaningful way and to guide me as an advocate for change. I hoped that this creation would finally dispel the lingering sense of inadequacy I felt for choosing the e-Portfolio route and not conducting research. Even though my choice to follow the e-Portfolio route was carefully considered and deliberate, I still felt somehow less authentic as a Masters graduate who had not produced original research. But as I saw the deep connections that wove through the final four courses in particular; openness, international issues, inclusive leadership and finally gender issues, I knew that the foundation for the work I wanted to do in the future would be framed around a very solid foundation. The specter of research still loomed on the horizon but this endeavour would still my uncertainty and legitimize my choice.

In this assignment we were tasked with applying the lessons we had learned from the readings and related activities in the course to problems in our own context and I was eager to make what I would develop both practical and relevant. From this a proposal, Transcending Boundaries: Making Space for Young Women in Distance Education and the iBook, Feminist Pedagogy Primer for Yukon Educators were conceptualized. (1.1/1.2) If vindication was not necessary, I still felt that it had transpired and the legitimacy of my soon-to-be Masters degree validated.

This final creative effort seemed inevitable, as if all roads had been leading to this point in time, with the intersection of all paths finally and naturally converging here. If my goal was to recognize the unique learning needs of Aboriginal students and intentionally create online learning environments that reflect these needs to make space for them and give them the opportunity to achieve their academic potential, this was an opportunity to take the first step to achieving this goal. We were tasked with the development of a proposal, but I wanted to take this one step further and actually create the proposed artefact. (2.5) It was a bold move because the time and creative commitment would be considerable, but my overwhelming desire overrode my misgivings. As a final, passionate effort I hoped my tenacity would prevail. The rational behind my proposal is reflected in this excerpt from the initiative, as outline in my online proposal. (1.7/1.8)

“In recognizing the unique learning needs of young women and intentionally creating learning environments that reflect these needs, we make space for them, giving them the opportunity to achieve their academic and personal potential. The proposed solution is the development of an online Feminist Pedagogy Primer for Yukon educators that promises to not only improve the online learning experience of the target audience but the experience of all learners” (Artefact 5, Initiative).

The primer I would develop would be framed around the creation of an ideal online classroom for Yukon learners; an ‘ideal’ classroom allows all students the right of expression but challenges them, and the teacher, into rethinking what they think they know. (1.9) In such an environment learners and teachers are sustained by a shared “commitment to reflexivity, and to dismantling hierarchies, both in and outside the classroom” (McGloin, 2016, p. 841). Conceptualizing the ideal classroom in the rural Yukon online context involves not only understanding the fundamental beliefs, values, and intentions behind feminist pedagogy, but how they intersect with uniquely Indigenous feminism, and First Peoples’ Principles of Learning. These values reflect my epistemological beliefs that favour feminist pedagogy and values Indigenous Knowledge systems and teaching methods that are holistic, active, and experiential. (2.1/2.3)

One of the enduring memories of this artefact and the course around which it as framed was how feminist pedagogy was infused authentically and naturally into the everyday routine. This notion is echoed in an excerpt from the Feminist Pedagogy section of my proposal background.

“Feminist educators reject the “banking model” (Freire, 1970) of education and frame their philosophy around social constructivism; teaching and learning involve complex social processes of knowledge-making through interaction, collaboration, and negotiation. Feminist educators “strive to join students in becoming members within, not above or outside of, a knowledge community” (Vanderbilt Center for Teaching, Construction of Knowledge, para. 2). Learning is influenced by lived experience and each learner brings a unique perspective that has been tempered by their specific experiences in distinct social locations and groups. “Students and teachers ideally learn with and from one another, co-constructing knowledge–both communal and contingent–together” (para. 2). (Artefact 5, Feminist Pedagogy).

It was difficult at times to get access to some very critical pieces of literature quickly enough; one groundbreaking piece of work in particular, Making Space for Indigenous Feminism edited by Joyce Green, was unavailable at the time but was made available to me by my remarkable instructor who had a copy of the book in her personal library and generously scanned a number of chapters so I had timely access. (1.4/1.5) This is the embodiment of authentic feminist pedagogical practice. I was reminded again of how leading involves more than adherence to a paradigm, it involves being. How we lead is who we are. I was inspired by the fact that there has been a recent increase in the amount of literature around Indigenous feminism and I gained considerable insight from the many articles and books I read from cover to cover. (5.3/5.4) I was fascinated and became convinced that understanding  Indigenous feminism might hold the key that would unlock how we create learning environments that are inclusive and equitable. This is reflected in this except from the proposal background.

“Green argued that Indigenous feminism brings together the two critiques, feminism and anti-colonialism, to highlight how the marginalization of Aboriginal women is magnified by the intersection of colonialism and patriarchy. Racism and sexism fuse to create a powerful form of gender injustice for Aboriginal women. Jessica Yee (2010) argued, “when we don’t intersect or identify feminism with race, class, and sexuality for that matter, the same people will continuously lose out” (p. 120)” (Artefact 5, Indigenous Feminsim)

The task I had undertaken was complex because I had to gain insight into how these three distinct but interconnection philosophies could be deliberately applied to my unique learning context. (5.6/5.8) I began to realize that Indigenous feminism is vitally important to contemporary Indigenous women as they navigate decolonialization, the post-Residential School landscape, and the promise of self-determination as equal and participating partners; this in conjunction with feminist pedagogy and First Peoples Principles of Learning. If at first envisioning a rapprochement between the three was obscured, the harmony between the three quickly became evident. (1.9)

I published the primer as an iBook (5.7), which is an effective format for professional development for Yukon teachers who operate in an exclusively Mac environment with many participating in a One-One Cost Sharing program with Yukon Education and have acquired their own MacBook Air. (3.4/3.5) Choosing the iBooks platform as a technology-based communications tool to develop and deliver resource material makes good sense financially because iBooks can be published and made available freely on devices that teachers already have access to. (6.4) Since the target audience was Yukon teachers, who like teachers worldwide are busy keeping up with the contemporary challenges that accompany increasingly diverse and complex student populations, I strove to design a primer that was simple, effective, and engaging and to define in advance what knowledge and skills teachers could expect to acquire by working through the primer. (2.7/3.2) And to share practical strategies and resources that they could use and apply to their own teaching practice. A link back to the proposal website with background information was embedded into the iBook so teachers who wanted to know more or gain a deeper understanding of the underlying principles would have easy access. (3.1/3.3) The primer was developed as a way to provide Yukon online educators with a tool for designing feminist-inspired online courses and the knowledge they will need to guide their practice in a way that makes space for young [Aboriginal] women.

I hoped that this initiative would guide Yukon online educators to become more acutely aware of the specific identities, histories, and needs of their students within their unique contexts. (4.2/4.4) In doing this they would open up the possibility of empowering students to reflect upon their positions in the classroom, and to consider themselves as holders of knowledge, something that may have been missing from educational environments in the recent past. I was inspired by Jennifer Brant’s 2013 work on transcending boundaries.

“Brant argued, “Aboriginal education is taking place in a landscape in which hope and possibility live side by side with constraint and frustration” (p. 251), a landscape that bears an uncanny resemblance to the one set out before feminist educators. As a Mohawk woman, who has walked the walk, Brant has insight that can only come from lived experience, making her words all the more powerful. Her words are both a foregrounding for the Feminist Pedagogy Primer for Yukon Educators and an ever-present inspiration for me as a critical ally” (Artefact 5, Primer).

I hoped that in transcending boundaries, the Yukon online educational landscape would begin to shift palpably away from constraint and frustration towards hope and possibility and I am convinced that is happening already as is evidenced by the new BC/Yukon curriculum, which reflects the broader societal growing awareness of the rich history, traditions and cultural practices of Aboriginal people and their role in the country. With this in mind First Peoples’ Principles of Learning have been integrated into all aspects of the curriculum and in support of this these principles were integrated into the primer. The close alignment of these principles with feminist pedagogy was unmistakable. (6.1/6.3)

The fruits of this labour have already begun to bear fruit. I had the privilege of providing technical support to a colleague during the oral defense of her Masters in Indigenous Language Revitalization and she was looking for ways to share her Grandmother’s story, which was the basis of her thesis and I suggested we develop the story as an iBook together. This type of collaboration is exactly what I hope to do more and more of in the future. As a critical ally I can advocate as a collaborator where I can, and take my lead from those who have walked the walk.

I hope that Jennifer Brant’s (2013) words will be a foregrounding for Yukon Educators as they become critical allies.

“As an emerging Aboriginal scholar, I am firmly planted within these complexities, as I intend to contribute to the ‘making of a precious road’ by advocating for meaningful and culturally relevant educational opportunities for all students” (p. 87).

 

References
Brant, J. (2013). Transcending Boundaries: An Aboriginal Woman’s Perspective on the Development of Meaningful Educational Opportunities and Online Learning. Brock Teaching & Learning. 7(3). https://brock.scholarsportal.info/journals/teachingandlearning/home/article/view/405/0
Downing, J. (2017). Transcending Boundaries: Making Space for Young Women in Distance Education. Academic Paper.
https://mdde651jkproject.wordpress.com/
Green, J. (2007). Making Space for Indigenous Feminism. Zed Books. London. U.K.
McGloin, C. (2016). Critical allies and feminist praxis: rethinking dis-ease. Gender and Education. 28(7).
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09540253.2015.1129055?src=recsys&journalCode=cgee20
Valle-Ruiz, L., Navarro, K., Mendoza, K., McGrath, A., Galina, B., Chick, N., Brewer, S., Bostow, R. (2015). A Guide to Feminist Pedagogy. The Vanderbilt Center for Teaching. https://my.vanderbilt.edu/femped/
Yee, J. (2010). I’m an Indigenous feminist — and I’m angry. Speaking truth to power : a reader on Canadian women’s inequality. Canadian Centre for Policy. Edited by Trish Hennessy and Ed Finn. Ottawa. Canada.