NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region, North Slave Region

Tags: social sciences, policy development, education, educational development, political science, devolution

Objective(s): To make an academic contribution to the existing literature and ongoing consultation processes that will inform the First Nations Education Act, slated to be tabled in Parliament in September, 2014.

Project Description: Aims of this research are to make an academic contribution to the existing literature and ongoing consultation processes that will inform the First Nations Education Act, slated to be tabled in Parliament in Sept. 2014. Methodology: The project will compare educational outcomes in three Aboriginal communities at varying points on the self-governance continuum. This project will examine both structures which may improve educational outcomes (i.e. secondary and tertiary mechanisms such as school boards and Ministry-like oversight bodies) as well as jurisdictional models that may create best practices for funding, curriculum development and professional development for teachers. First, typical South of 60 Aboriginal communities will be considered (as these communities all operate in a fairly consistent manner with on-reserve, band operated, federally funded schooling systems). The analysis for these ‘Indian Act’ communities will be informed by a literature review and existing publicly available data collected and maintained by the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada. Second, a fully self-governing community (Nunatsiavut, Labrador) will be examined. Data will be collected via elite interviews, either in person, by telephone, in addition to any other metrics available from the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada. A funding application has been submitted by the researcher to the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada’s Northern Scientific Training Program for the second component of the project and is pending approval. Finally, a ‘middle path’ community (Inuvik, Northwest Territories) will also be examined to examine educational outcomes within a land claims agreement framework. Data will be collected via elite interviews, either in person, or by telephone in addition to any other metrics available from the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada. A funding application has been submitted and approved by the researcher’s supervisor, for a separate grant to the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) that will cover this component of the research. That is, those who work in the public administration and or politicians (community leaders). It is the goal to interview approximately 10 individuals. Officials from the Northwest Territories Government (Department of Education, Culture and Employment) will also be interviewed, and any partnership arrangements between these officials would be of particular interest for this project. Interviewees will be able to provide valuable expertise and insights about Aboriginal Education in Canada. By selecting participants from multiple jurisdictions, and from multiple orders of government (and non-government) organizations, feedback is anticipated to be highly varied, and experiences will be differentiated. A snowball sampling method will be used, which means that educational experts will be able to recommend other local contacts who may be interested in contributing toward the project. This project is examining delivering education on the self-governance continuum. As such, knowledge including best practices and lessons learned will be shared from communities in multiple jurisdictions. An executive summary and copy of the final paper will be provided to all who participate and it is the aim of the research to share knowledge between many communities. Upon completion of the interview, the participant will be sent a follow-up email with the ‘official transcript’ or interviewer notes attached, to allow for participants to review the accuracy of notes, and to determine if the participant would like any to make any modifications or any additions to the interview. Once the participant is comfortable with the interview notes, they will be considered finalized, and incorporated into the project. The researcher will send a copy of the Major Research Project and an executive summary in plain language to all participants upon it’s’ completion (slated for September 2013). The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from June 12, 2013 to December 31, 2013.