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In thinking
about innovation as an ethical practice, an article by Martin
(2003) regarding feminist educational theory is offered for our
reflection. The argument being explored in this paper relates to
the ethics scholars, especially feminists hoping to preserve and pass on
important innovations in feminist scholarship, have in critiquing each others
work. Martin (2003) is responding to Thompson’s criticism of her large
body of feminist educational theory, and she challenges Thompson to take a
broad view, encouraging her responsibility to have a “welcoming spirit”,
being “engaged in a collective enterprise” together as feminist scholars. She
suggests that rather than misinterpreting her work as “essentialism”, Thompson
could offer critique by “filling in the gaps in other women’s research” (p.
76) and giving constructive criticism (p. 76), rather than “demanding
perfection” (p.76), noting that male scholars are often given much more
generosity. |
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It seems that Martin (2003) has a more collectivist view of teaching and
learning than Thompson who may have been focused on individualistic and
competitive values. This reminds me of more collectivist Indigenous informed
ways of teaching and learning, where harmony and working together to
co-create knowledge is valued. |
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As Ktunaxa scholar Dr. Christopher Horsethief explains in his video From
Awkward Kid to Awkward Father: Parenting Post-colonization (2017) “for
us learning is not about putting things in our head. For us learning is about
putting things in our heart. All our words to do with learning and
concentration are about putting information into your heart.” He
describes how Ktunaxa problem solving is a reciprocal, collective activity
where people gather in a circle so they can see each other, understand each
other’s feelings and feel a sense of trust, so that they are “one heart working
together”. They create a common understanding through collective offering,
co-constructing knowledge in harmony with one another. In many Indigenous
societies, which are often more egalitarian rather than based on top down,
hierarchical power structures, there is a valuing of relationship and
community over individualism, which seems to be similar to the ethic which
Martin (2003) is trying to promote. |
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In my own teaching practice
I am wondering how we begin to appreciate and cultivate more collectivist
notions of teaching and learning, valuing of relationships within such a
hierarchical, individualistic system? How do we bring rigor and
constructive critique into our practice, while maintaining strong caring
relationships rooted in harmony, respect, love and truth? As well, it
makes me reflect on notions of assessment, which can often be quite critical
and create defensiveness and a negative sense of failure. How can we
reframe learning as an ongoing process of endless growth, where there is no expectation
of perfection?
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,_photo_by_Charles_Ketcham,_CC_4.0_rights_granted_by_Joyce_Ketcham.jpg)
References
Horsethief, C. P. (2017). From awkward kid to awkward father:
Parenting post-colonization. [video]. TEDx Nelson; Nelson,
BC. https://vimeo.com/249222853/3c2e6533b1
Horsethief, C.P. (2021) Dr. Christopher Horsethief [image]
Ketchum, (2018) Dr. Jane Roland Martin. [image] |
Ketchum, C. (2018) Dr. Jane Roland Martin [image]
Martin, J. R. (2003). What should we do with a feminist educational
theory when we have one? A response to Audrey
Thompson. Curriculum Inquiry, 33(1), 67-77.
doi: 10.1111/1467-873X.00250
Tucker, Tres (2020, Feb. 4) Jane Roland Martin.
youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7_Wm0Ph4R0
Response from Colleague on this Blog Post:
ReplyDeleteHi Melanie,
Thank you for offering your thoughts on this interesting article; I truly appreciate how you connected the ideas presented by Martin to some of the Indigenous ways and principles that have been the focus of this week. I would like to add to your thinking and connection by offering a quote from one of the articles I read, with respect to story-telling as a de-colonizing practice. Smith, (2012) writes, the "collective quality of stories enables connections: the story and the storyteller both serve to connect past with future, one generation with the other, the land to the people, and the people to the story" (Smith, p. 146, as cited in Louis et al., 2017). It is the collection of stories that create culture and understanding, rather than an individual's. I appreciate the perspective that women could be thought of in a similar way, growth and learning comes from the diversity of the stories together.
As a response to your final questions, I have recently been exploring the practice of 'ungrading', which attempts to address your thoughts on assessment. "Ungrading is a form of "grading for growth" in that the primary purpose of the assessment is to help students learn and improve their knowledge and skills, rather than to create a summative score that students use to compare themselves against an external credential" (Kenyon, 2022). I do think we have some far- reaching systemic challenges to cope with however, to succeed down this path-- such as articulation and entry requirements for further educational pursuits. Must start somewhere, though, right?
~ Karin
References
Kenyon, A. (2022). What is Ungrading? Duke Learning, Innovation & Lifetime Learning. Retrieved on June 7, 2024 https://learninginnovation.duke.edu/blog/2022/09/what-is-ungrading/#:~:text=Ungrading%20is%20a%20practice%20which,to%20the%20course%20learning%20goals.
Louie, D. W., Poitras-Pratt, Y., Hanson, A. J., & Ottmann, J. (2017). Applying indigenizing principles of decolonizing methodologies in university classrooms. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 47(3), 16–33. https:// doi.org/10.7202/1043236ar
Blog Post 7 : Professional and Personal Learning Network