Indigenous Ways of Knowing Connection to Responding with Effective Instructional Practices

Kiskinaumagehin is the act of teaching or direct instruction by someone who tends to have more knowledge or expertise and generally more authority over the learners and the learning process.

Kiskinaumagehin (teaching another)

Kiskinaumatowin is learning from each other in such a way that learning is interactive and interdependent, based on the equality of those involved. All learners have an equal opportunity to contribute in the learning situation.

Kiskinaumatowin (teaching each other)

Kiskinaumasowin is the self or independent learning for an individual or group under his/her/their own authority or responsibility and thus is self-directed activity.¹

Kiskinaumasowin (teaching one-self)

When considering any pedagogical plan, consider equity within a specific context. In a mathematics classroom consider teaching that allows space for multiple ways of knowing. This includes Indigenous teachings and how they are understood. (See Recommendation 3: Curriculum Actualization.)

Appreciation is when someone seeks to understand and learn about another culture in an effort to broaden their perspective and connect with others cross-culturally.

Wherever possible, access local Elders and Knowledge Keepers to ensure the context is authentically local. Creating space for students to share what is important to them allows teachers to relate relevant outcomes to their artifacts. Consider not only traditional (historic) First Nations culture but acknowledge the contemporary lives and culture of our students.

Appropriation on the other hand, is simply taking one aspect of a culture that is not your own and using it for your own personal interest.²

One must consider the difference between appreciation and appropriation.This includes incorporating the language of “as I understand it,” as well as “as it was shared with me by ….”³ to pave the way for exploration of multiple (including cultural) ways of knowing.

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¹Goulet, Linda M. & Goulet, Keith N. (2014). Teaching Each Other Nehinuw Concepts & Indigenous Pedagogies. Vancouver: UBC Press.

²Holmes, K., n.d. Cultural Appreciation vs. Cultural Appropriation: Why it Matters | Greenheart International. [online] Greenheart.org. Available at: <https://greenheart.org/blog/greenheart-international/cultural-appreciation-vs-cultural-appropriation-why-it-matters/> [Accessed 9 November 2021].

³Utilizing this language allows teachers permission to share knowledge without claiming ownership or expertise over that knowledge. See: https://greenheart.org/blog/greenheart-international/cultural-appreciation-vs-cultural-appropriation-why-it-matters/#:~:text=Appreciation%20is%20when%20someone%20seeks,for%20your%20own%20personal%20interest..