Indigenous Education Commons^™

The Integration Of The Indigenous Knowledge Holders Council Into A Post-Secondary Education Tri-Cameral Governance Institution, Heather Mccagg-Nystrom

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

The 2015 release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) final report documented the historical impact of Canadian Indigenous residential schools through 94 Calls to Action requiring redress. Supporting post-secondary institution (PSI) educational reconciliation, Calls to Action #62 appeals to incorporate Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit and Métis) knowledge, philosophies and approaches into the post-secondary system which has historically been built on a Western colonial worldview. An arctic Canadian PSI (referred to by the pseudonym Big River College, BRC) has made reconciliation an institutional priority, as it aligns with BRC strategic, academic, and equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) plans. Consequently, this …

Kaykwy Wii Ooshihtaayen Dimayn? What Will You Do Tomorrow? Strengthening Indigenous Leadership Capacity To Influence School Culture And Student Achievement, Shelly Hopper

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

There continues to be a dichotomy that exists between Indigenous and non-Indigenous academic success within Canada. Within a public education context, this Dissertation-in-Practice (DiP) will address how the lack of preparation for school leaders to effectively incorporate Indigenous leadership approaches, impacts the ability to positively support school culture and achievement for Indigenous youth. Focusing specifically on the Truth and Reconciliation Committee Calls to Action 62 and 63, this DiP will explore the ways in which leaders in schools can support the inclusion of Indigenous ways of knowing within their leadership roles. Existing within a critical paradigm, the DiP will incorporate …

Transforming School-Based Mental Health To Heal The Collective Soul Wound, Andrea L. Holowka

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Pervasive well-being concerns of youth in Alberta are steadily contributing to society’s collective soul wound. In response to this growing need, K-12 systems are faced with increased demands for school-based mental health services. Public Prairie School Division (PPSD) provides student mental health intervention needs through onsite access to school-based teacher counsellors and referrals to centralized psychologists. However, decisions regarding mental health practitioner allocations or practice standards are often left to individuals and generally follow historical practice. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) problematizes PPSD’s lack of system-wide approaches to mental health interventions that can provide assurance of improved efficacy and equity …

The Trickiness Of Settler Colonialism: Indigenous Women Administrators’ Experiences Of Policy In Canadian Universities, Candace Brunette-Debassige

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Since the release in 2015 of the report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, a plethora of new administrative policies has emerged in universities. A variety of interconnecting Indigenous administrative roles has also arisen, many of which have been taken up by Indigenous women who find themselves working in challenging and complex contexts steeped in settler colonialism. Studies of the challenges these women face—indeed of Indigenous educational leadership and policies in higher education in general—are, however, sorely lacking. The present study is a qualitative exploration of the embodied experiences of twelve Indigenous women administrators (including the primary researcher) …

Improving Physical Literacy In Middle School Indigenous And Non-Indigenous Students, Jarod-Lee P. Milko

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Physical activity levels in Canadian youth are decreasing. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) focuses on improving physical literacy in middle school Indigenous and non-Indigenous students in a Northern Ontario urban school. The Daily Physical Activity (DPA) policy in Ontario public elementary schools has achieved about 50% fidelity in classrooms since its inception in 2005 (Allison, et al., 2016; Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion, 2015, p. 60). Leading a physically active lifestyle is essential for education outcomes, public health, and general health and wellbeing. Improving physical literacy in youth increases their motivation to be physically active, and through a …

Weaving The Braid Of Culturally Responsive Leadership Within Policy And Governance To Improve Indigenous Student Success, Shelly L. Niemi

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) explores a Problem of Practice (PoP) that highlights the need for why the Board of Education and the Senior Administration team within the Raven Bay School Division (RBSD, pseudonym) would benefit from using a culturally responsive leadership approach when making decisions and how this may be achieved through policy and governance to guide their practice. The goal of this OIP is to examine why this leadership approach would be relevant for the Board of Education and the Senior Leadership team when they are making any policy and governance decisions, as it relates to Indigenous …

Supporting Indigenous Students: A Critical Analysis Of The Sociocultural Context Of Nursing Education, Kay E. Vallee

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this study was to critically examine the sociocultural context of nursing education as an institution. Using a postcolonial feminist theoretical framework and institutional ethnography, I illuminated the institutional complex of nursing education. This study addressed the following research questions: 1) How do practices, programs, and policies coordinate social relations within the institution of nursing education; and 2) How are Indigenous students’ everyday lives shaped by the institution of nursing education?

Multiple methods were used to collect data, including: interviews, observations, and text analysis. Interviews were conducted with students, educators, and administrators and others involved in nursing education. …