“Exploring Kiki-inoomgugaewin:Anishnaabeg Youth Multilingualism & Technology -A Narrative Inquiry”
- Date: Wednesday, January 30, 2019 - 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Building: Bata Library
Room: 102
This case study contributes to scholarship surrounding the national conversation on Indigenous language sustainability in North America. Much of this scholarship provides insight on structuring language programs and policies for youth, leaving a tremendous research gap regarding sociolinguistic and cultural research with youth. Youth appear disinterested or otherwise set apart in current research from the development of policies and curriculum concerned with heritage languages. Upon closer inspection; however, youth are engaged and using innovative and different tools than previous generations. This exploration is a foundational case study which builds upon research highlighting the nature of Indigenous language loss in the south as a time sensitive phenomenon as the application of cognitive imperialism and colonial tactics within mainstream schools continue to conceal a large scale cultural and linguistic genocide in Canada.
Although Indigenous language loss may seem of concern to only small groups of linguists and dialectic communities, it should in fact concern anyone who cares about reconciliation or closing the tremendous gap in accessing equitable education. The preservation of Indigenous languages and knowledge systems should also be of interest to those parties who seek to comprehensively understand the Natural World and whom have a vested interest in the survival of the planet and protection of the environment. Because of these realities, the viewpoints and experiences of all concerned parties are essential. It follows then, that the youth perspective is significant.
To address this gap, participatory narrative inquiry was used as a theoretical framework to conduct a foundational case study in which detailed consideration was given to developing the lived narratives of three Anishnaabeg participants regarding their cultural and linguistic situations over the course of their lives. The case study centered on two students, one current and one former, and one elementary school Anishnaabemowin language teacher to establish the value of Indigenous youth voice in alternative forms of sociolinguistic and culturally sustainable language learning in the 21st century, and, to strengthen the argument that more research is needed in the field of first-person youth studies.
Multiple qualitative data collection methods were used including a preliminary observation of the existing scholarship which drew together diverse materials across the fields of ethnography, education, policy and literature, in addition to, emerging youth resistance and new media scholarship. Semi-structured relational interviews with pre-selected Anishnaabeg interviewees were conducted and perspectives were then presented through an interpretation of the research findings using Kurtz’s framework of participatory narrative inquiry. (Kurtz)
The results of this case study will be useful, specifically, to localized communities of Anishnaabe youth with and for whom much of the research was conducted, and, more generally to youth resistance work focused on media and technology in globalized and contemporary language and cultural ecologies. Research outcomes indicated potential directions for future research in different contexts and localities by presenting commonalities within the fields of social and political engagement and their connection to language and new media in youth populations. It is hoped that this initial material pinpointing a research gap in Indigenous youth language studies will be used to investigate future research in this field.
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Posted on January 22, 2019