UNB symposium highlights Indigenous Knowledges and history education
Author: UNB Newsroom
Posted on Mar 1, 2022
Category: UNB Fredericton
The University of New Brunswick’s faculty of education, Mi’kmaq-Wolastoqey Centre and Thinking Historically For Canada’s Future will present the symposium “Indigenous Knowledges and History Education” on Wednesday, March 2, at 7 p.m. AST.
The purpose of this symposium is to explore the ways in which Indigenous Knowledges (IK) can and do inform the teaching of the past, either in formal education contexts such as K-12 history and/or social studies courses, or in informal learning spaces such as museum, community, or land-based educational experiences. The panel members will explore the meaning of IK, how IK conceptualizes the past, and shapes teaching and learning about the past.
Panellists include:
- Dr. Nēpia Mahuika, who is Ngāti Porou, and the Convenor of History at the University of Waikato in New Zealand
- Natasha Simon, PhD candidate, who is l’nu from the Signigtog district and Nikanahtpat (Director) of the Mi’kmaq-Wolastoqey Centre at UNB
- Dr. Chris Andersen, who is Métis from the Parkland region of Saskatchewan. He is a professor, and the dean of the faculty of Native studies at the University of Alberta
- Dr. Chelsea Gabel, who is Red River Métis from Rivers, Manitoba. She is an associate professor at McMaster University in the department of health, aging and society and the Indigenous studies program
The discussion will be moderated by Darrah Beaver, a PhD candidate in the faculty of education at UNB Fredericton and former director of education at Tobique First Nation.
This free public symposium honours the 10th annual Ottilia Chareka Memorial Lecture in Education and Social Justice. To attend the online event, please register in advance.
About the Annual Ottilia Chareka Memorial Lecture on Education and Social Justice
Ottilia Chareka, mother, activist, scholar, mentor, and friend, was a three-time graduate of the faculty of education at the University of New Brunswick. Ottilia was the first woman from her rural village in Zimbabwe to complete high school and went on from there to enjoy a stellar career as a teacher and academic. Throughout her life Ottilia was a considerable advocate for others, including the many Zimbabwean girls she supported in educational endeavours, fellow immigrants to Canada, and the First Nations students she worked with at St. Francis Xavier University.
When Ottilia died tragically in the spring of 2011, the faculty of education at UNB chose to honour her with an annual lecture in her name focusing on education as a vehicle for social justice, something that was a lifelong passion for Ottilia. Ottilia is survived by her five daughters.
Contact: Dr. Alan Sears, Honorary Research Professor, Faculty of Education, asears@unb.ca.
Photo: Ottilia Chareka