Activity 7, Week 31: Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Responsiveness in My Practice

Using Rolfe et. al's (2001) model of reflection, I will reflect on these two contexts within my practice:

1. Learning Activities
2. Planning and Assessment

What?
Indigenous Knowledge can be defined as a culture's knowledge system, developed and upheld by them, not by colonisation. In the classroom setting, indigenous knowledge can be explored within culturally responsive pedagogy; "using the cultural characteristics, experiences and perspectives as conduits for effective teaching”(Gay, 2001, p.106). This statement resonates with me. I believe that the most effective teaching and learning happens when cultures are supported and strengths and skills of the students in the class are identified, understood and used to promote engagement and therefore, achievement (Richards, Brown & Forde, 2004).

So What?
Our primary school has been 'dipping into' learning activities that sit within the mauri oho state, where we are beginning to be pro-active in developing our cultural responsive pedagogy (Pohatu, 2011). Using tikanga concept of tuakana/teina we have begun buddy reading programmes and developed this into activities where younger children are supported by older in using digital technologies. Kapa Haka is a further learning activity that has been developed to include all children at our school and now we are beginning to address tikanga involved in Kapa Haka, using the skills and strengths of Ngai Tahu in our community.

There is still a way to walk before we are mauri ora and are actively engaged in cultural responsive pedagogy (Pohatu, 2011). Individual teachers drive these learning activities, rather than a whole school approach, although that is how it is intended in regards to Kapa Haka. This is because of those teachers' strengths and skills, rather than promoting those of the students and developing whole staff understandings.

Learning activities of course lie within planning and assessment. An area we are developing as we implement a new integrated inquiry framework. Currently, there is little to no aspect of culturally responsive pedagogy within this. We are in a mauri moe state where we are 'asleep' and focusing on a new planning and assessment format without drawing on our children's cultures and skills as we plan (Pohatu, 2011). A goal for our school is to integrate tikanga Maori within this framework, once we have our heads around new planning and assessment formats and how the inquiry framework works in the classroom.

Now What?
Goals for our school, moving towards culturally responsive pedagogy, would be to upskill our staff in what it means to be culturally responsive in teaching and learning and then begin to integrate this new learning meaningfully into our teaching practice. We are all at different stages of Pohatu's (2011) framework and need to develop a shared understanding of what culturally responsive pedagogy looks like at our school.

References:

Gay, G. (2002). Preparing for culturally responsive teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(2), 106-116.

Pohatu, T. W. (2011). Mauri - Rethinking human wellbeing. MAI Review, 3, 1-12. Retrieved from http://www.review.mai.ac.nz/index.php/MR/article/viewFile/380/680

Richards, H. V., Brown, A. F., & Forde, T. B. (2006). Addressing diversity in schools: Culturally
responsive pedagogy (practitioner brief series). Tempe, AZ: National Center for Culturally
Responsive Educational Systems.

Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., & Jasper, M. (2001).  Models of Critical Reflection' In Critical Reflection 

for Nursing and the Helping Professions. Basingstoke: Palgrave