When Ruth Beatty was teaching at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, she saw Indigenous cultural teachings being applied to history, social studies and other areas of instruction.
Math, however, was not part of the equation.
During a visit to the Algonquins of Pikwàkanagàn First Nation, she saw a looming demonstration, and Beatty had her ‘ah-ha’ moment.
“I thought, ‘There’s a lot of mathematics in this,’” she said, citing algebraic and spatial reasoning as examples.
She saw an opportunity to both incorporate Indigenous culture in math instruction and make it more engaging for students.
Beatty, now an associate professor with Lakehead Orillia’s faculty of education, headed up a grant application and received $44,666 from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
It’s called an Indigenous Research Capacity and Reconciliation connection grant. The money is going toward a conference that will be hosted at Lakehead Orillia in May.
The Wiidookaadying Gikinoomaagewin: Gindaaswin Kendaaswin — Relationships and Reciprocity: Indigenous Education and Mathematics Conference will take place May 3 to 5. It is already at capacity.
“It’s really about relationship building with Indigenous communities and education,” Beatty explained. “The primary goal is about making respectful relationships in the spirit of reconciliation.”
Those taking part in the conference, and deciding what will be featured during it, include “elders, knowledge keepers, community leaders, artists and educators,” Beatty said, who will discuss “cultural technology, cultural design and cultural artistry.”
“All of these have so much math inherent in them,” she said.
It’s important to have members of the Indigenous community involved in the process, she added.
“We’re not appropriating culture. We’re very careful about that,” Beatty said. “It’s not conducting research on a community. It’s conducting research with a community.”
Indigenous leaders and educators are “co-leaders of the project, so everybody’s on an equal footing.”
Beatty hopes the conference will inspire educators and community members to work together to provide math education that focuses on its connection to Indigenous culture.
Ultimately, Beatty would like to see it become the norm for elementary school students, with community members teaching alongside educators.
“We would love to see math instruction that recognizes the mathematical thinking that’s inherent in Indigenous teachings,” she said.
