NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region

Tags: social sciences, education, youth, social adaptation, family

Objective(s): The goal of this research is to investigate the meaning of education for Inuvialuit youth and their families in the community of Tuktoyaktuk, specifically.

Project Description: The goal of this research is to investigate the meaning of education for Inuvialuit youth and their families in the community of Tuktoyaktuk, specifically; how has the meaning of education changed for the Inuvialuit families? Further, how has education contributed to social change and how does social change contribute to changes in education? Also, is the meaning for education different for local and regional policy makers than it is for families in Tuktoyaktuk? The fieldwork will be conducted by Raila Salokangas and a research assistant based from Tuktoyaktuk. The research assistant will be hired to introduce Raila and help with the transcribing of the interviews. The methodology will include two interviewing tactics: 1) family interviews and 2) individual interviews (with a) participants in the family interviews and b) policy makers. The researcher will interview five to seven families. In each family, at least one grandparent, parent, and young adult will take part in the study. It is also possible that two grandparents, parents or children take part in the study. During the family interview all three generations will be present. Individual interviews will be conducted with the family members that take part in the family interview. The study will involve 15 to 42 participants taking part in both family and individual interviews. Also, about ten interviews will be conducted with teachers and policy makers. Participants under the age of 18 will need parental consent. The strategy to identify Tuktoyaktuk family participants will start by identifying grandparents with grandchildren between the ages of sixteen and seventeen. Raila hopes that the Tuktoyaktuk Elders Committee will help in identifying research participants. First, these grandparents will be approached to enquire their interest to take part in the research, and then the parents and the youth are asked to take part in the study. Participants will be provided with a clear explanation of what the interview will involve and its purpose. Confidentiality and anonymity will be stressed to the participant. The participants will be encouraged to ask any questions they may have, after which the participant will be invited to sign a consent form. All participants taking part in the study will remain anonymous. The interviewee can choose where the interview takes place. If the participant agrees, Raila will take notes and record the interview on audio-tape. An individual interview will last for about 2 hours. The family interview will take about 3 hours. After these two interviews (individual and family interview) the participant may be asked to talk to the researcher again to make sure that the researcher understood what was meant in the previous interviews. The researcher may also want to ask some questions that she only thought of after the first two interviews. This interview should take less than an hour. Policy makers as participants will be selected from different local and regional agencies (e.g. Tuktoyaktuk District Education Authority, Beaufort-Delta Education Council, Community Development Division, Aurora College). Interviews will be sought with people who have insight to local and regional issues related to education and the research problem. The community of Tuktoyaktuk and agencies involved in the research will be provided with copies of the research by August 2008. To insure that the public has access to the research a copy of the research will be handed to the Aurora Research Institute Library in Inuvik. Presentations on the results may be held in Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik if the communities wish so. Fieldwork will be conducted from September 19 to December 31, 2007 in Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik.