Elders’ Cultural Knowledges and the Question of Black/ African Indigeneity in Education

This book makes a strong case for the inclusion of Indigenous Elders’ cultural knowledge in the delivery of inclusive education for learners who are members of minority communities. It is relevant to curriculum developers, teachers, policy makers and institutions that engage in the education of Black, Indigenous, Latinx and other minority students. This book provides opportunities for exploring the decolonization of educational approaches. It promotes the synthesis of multiple types of knowledge and ways of knowing by making a case for the incorporation of Indigenous knowledges and Indigenous Elders as teachers in learning spaces. The book is of interest to educators, students, and researchers of Indigenous knowledge and decolonizing education. Additionally, it is important for educational policy makers, especially those engaged in looking for strategic solutions to bridging educational disparities and gaps for Indigenous, Black, Latinx and other minority learners. Acknowledgments 7 Contents 9 Chapter 1: Introduction 12 1.1 Land Acknowledgement 12 1.2 Situating Ourselves 17 George J. Sefa Dei 17 Wambui Karanja 18 Grace Erger 19 1.3 An Introduction to Colonial Education in Canada and a Proposal for Decolonization 20 1.4 A Note on Methodology 40 References 41 Chapter 2: Articulating the Epistemic Challenge 48 References 57 Chapter 3: Colonial Education in the Canadian Context 61 3.1 The Coloniality of School and Schooling 69 3.2 Eurocentric Curriculum in Education 72 3.3 Eurocentric Pedagogy and Praxis 74 3.4 English Language and Colonial Education 75 3.5 The Spatial Geography of the School as a Site of Colonial Education 77 3.6 Racism and the Culture of Whiteness in Educational Policy and Delivery 80 References 81 Chapter 4: Responding to the Epistemic Challenge – A Decolonial Project 88 4.1 Anti-Colonialism and Decolonization – Oppositional, Subversive and Resistant Frameworks 88 4.2 The Question of Indigeneity 96 4.3 Indigenous Definitions of Self-Indigeneity 100 4.4 Indigeneity: Diasporic and Transnational Contexts 102 4.5 Indigeneity and the African Worldview 106 4.6 African Indigeneity and Subjectivity – The Discursive Subject 108 4.7 Indigenous African Cultural Knowledges 112 4.8 Indigenous African Pedagogy 114 References 114 Chapter 5: Land as Indigenous Epistemology 121 5.1 The Interplay of Land, Indigenous Knowledges and Epistemologies 122 5.2 Land as Indigenous Pedagogy 124 5.3 Land, Indigenous Spirituality and Healing 126 5.4 Land, Indigenous Culture, Language and Identity 127 5.5 Indigenous Education as Decolonial Praxis 129 References 131 Chapter 6: The Role of Elders and Their Cultural Knowledges in Schools 135 6.1 Conceptions of Indigenous Eldership 135 6.2 Eldership in the African Context 136 6.3 Elders’ Cultural Knowledges 138 6.4 Community Perspectives on the Role of Elders 139 6.5 Situating Elders’ Cultural Knowledges in Schools 145 6.6 Learning, Schooling and Education – Some Definitional Issues 150 6.7 Entrenching Indigenous Curriculums and Pedagogies 151 6.8 Land as Pedagogy in Indigenous Education 152 6.9 Incorporating and Integrating Elders’ Cultural Knowledges into Schools 154 References 155 Chapter 7: Making the Case for the Incorporation of African Indigenous Elders and their Cultural Knowledges into Schools 160 7.1 Community Perspectives on the Incorporation of Elders into Schools 166 References 178 Chapter 8: Some Best Practices on Incorporating Elders into Schools 182 8.1 Community Perspectives on How to Integrate Elders into Schools 186 References 192 Chapter 9: The Challenges of Incorporating Elders into Schools 195 9.1 The Role of Indigenous Languages in Schools – Challenges and Opportunities 203 9.2 Implications for Education and Educational Policies 205 9.3 Community Perspectives on the Challenges of Integrating Elders into Schools 207 References 212 Chapter 10: Conclusion: Imagining New Indigenous Educational Futurities 215 10.1 Recommendations for Moving Forward 215 10.2 Conclusion 220 References 222 Index 225