I am fascinated with Aboriginal ways of knowing,
doing and being and want to continue to learn more about how I can saturate my
pedagogical approach with these both overtly and more subtly. The idea of adding artefacts to the environment
is one way to achieve this but as I read and researched further I discovered
there is a lot more to the notion of artefacts than I had realised.
Anthony and Walshaw argue that “in mathematics
education, artefacts offer ‘thinking spaces’—they are tools that help to
organise mathematical thinking.”
Artefacts according to Anthony and Walshaw can be
almost anything from children's work, graphs, models metaphors mathematical
symbols and equations and even the number system to examples, stories,
illustrations, textbooks, rulers, clocks, calendars, technology, and problem
contexts.
I had never thought of these as artefacts!
But they do offer Thinking Space.
Anthony and Walshaw add that educators support
children's connections to “concepts embodied in the artefacts used” by carefully
and purposefully “…select[ing] and construct[ing] artefacts that their students
can relate to’
They go further and state that “Embracing
culturally contextualised pedagogy is not, however, simply a matter of
incorporating ethnic symbols and artefacts into tasks.” Deeper consideration must
be given to the cultural context, children's, and communities understanding and
the educators own cultural competence.
Describing a Canadian experience that has many
parallels to Australian Aboriginal First Nations peoples the impact of
colonisation has been devastating. The
article argues strongly for decolonising education that redresses the past and
seeks to pave a future that values and honours Aboriginal perspectives. Munroe et al
“…believe the teaching of decontextualized mathematics and literacy
skills does not align with an Indigenous worldview which is holistic and
interconnected,” and that “…students who
learn numeracy and literacy skills in a decontextualized way will develop the
critical thinking “ needed to make decisions in a complex world.
Battiste (2002) in Munroe etal explains the significance of
indigenous knowledges in this way:
“Indigenous knowledge comprises the complex set
of technologies developed and sustained by Indigenous civilizations. Often oral
and symbolic, it is transmitted through the structure of Indigenous languages
and passed on to the next generation through modeling, practice, and animation,
rather than through the written word.… Indigenous knowledge is typically
embedded in the cumulative experiences and teachings of Indigenous peoples
rather than in a library. (p. 2)” I would also argue that the knowledge is also
passed on through dance, ceremony, land, seasons, art, and artefacts.
Anthony, G. & Walshaw, M. (2007a). Mathematics teaching for
diverse learners utilises tools as learning supports in Pedagogy in Mathematics/Pangarau.
Wellington: Ministry of Education. P126-140
140http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/series/2515/5951
MUNROE, E.A., BORDEN, L.L., ORR, A.M., TONEY, D. and
MEADER, J., 2013. DECOLONIZING ABORIGINAL EDUCATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY. McGill
Journal of Education (Online), 48(2), pp. 317-337.