PARENT SESSION
Oral Session #50: Traditional Ecological Knowledge.
Presiding: J. Ford
Wednesday, August 7. 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM. Greenlee Meeting Room, TCC.

Tsé na′alkaah: Indigenous geoscience teaching.

Semken, Steven^*,1, Kimbell, Barbara², ¹ Diné College, Shiprock, New Mexico² University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico

ABSTRACT- Indigenous (place-based and culturally-responsive) geoscience education has drawn increasing interest from K-16 educators and institutions serving American Indian communities, where a sense of connectedness with the Earth is culturally seminal. At Diné College, the chartered college of the Navajo (Diné) people, Indigenous content and teaching methods enhance the interest of geoscience majors and nonmajors alike. They have also proven attractive to pre-service and in-service K-12 teachers. Development and dissemination of tsé na′alkaah (Indigenous geoscience) curricula are guided by a set of learning outcomes that include: a focus on the geology of the Colorado Plateau to enhance Diné students′ sense of place; case studies of how local geology has influenced and still influences Diné history and lifeways; integration of ethnogeologic concepts derived from traditional Diné knowledge; and a respect for the integrity of traditional culture. With support from the New Mexico Collaborative for Excellence in Teacher Preparation (NSF) and other agencies, teaching modules in Indigenous geology, and curriculum resources such as a bilingual scientific glossary, are under development. Examples of these will be presented.

KEY WORDS: Indigenous, Native American, education, geoscience