This forum explores and expands on Ben-Zvi Assaraf, Eshach, Orion, and Alamour's article titled "Cultural Differences and Students' Spontaneous Models of the Water Cycle: A Case Study of Jewish and Bedouin Children in Israel" by examining how indigenous knowledge is appropriated in science classrooms; how students from indigenous…

Curriculum reforms with a focus on helping students "learn to learn" are now an established global educational phenomenon. China has been implementing such curriculum reform and this poses challenges to teachers as they need to develop new pedagogical skills and knowledge to deal with new educational demands that arise. This ethnographic…

Concerned by the need to decolonize education for Aboriginal students, the authors explore philosophies of Indigenous ways of knowing and those of the 21st century learning movement. In their efforts to propose a way forward with Aboriginal education, the authors inquire into harmonies between Aboriginal knowledges and tenets of 21st century…

This paper proposes a framework for the development of culturally responsive practices in beginning teachers to meet the needs of diverse students in multicultural classrooms. The framework describes the trajectory beginning teachers undergo toward becoming culturally responsive and discusses how teacher educators in liberal arts colleges can…

In this paper, I consider the importance of Indigenous studies programs, at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, as critical elements in enabling Indigenous Australian students to engage in the academe in ways that not only allow them to empower themselves, but, ultimately, to become effective change agents within both their own and the…

This article examines the relationship between the Earth Charter and education for sustainable development (ESD), as part of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. The areas of shared interest between the two are assessed and the invaluable nature of the Earth Charter as a resource outlining global values and principles for a…

Generally speaking, environmental education teaching, research, and practice have been informed by the traditions of western, Euro-centric culture. In this context indigenous perspectives are often marginalized, maligned, and perceived to be unscientific and therefore inferior. This essay adds to the growing body of literature exploring aboriginal…

Reading seasons and environments has been a long-held practice for Torres Strait Islanders through their close relationships with their islands and seas. This research project worked with elders on Erub (Darnley) Island, in the eastern group of islands in the Torres Strait, to document and synthesise their knowledge of seasonal patterns and…

Method-in-use (Nunn, Describing classroom interaction in intercultural curricular research and development, University of Reading, 1996, International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 37: 23-42, 1999) is a description of the method actually being enacted through classroom interaction in a particular context. The description is…

Persistent perceptions of deficit and conflict have characterised and constrained the history of relations between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians since contact. The success of their saturation is apparent in a continuing approach that presents the response to Aboriginal needs in terms of health and education "gaps"; "the…

This paper reports on a research study conducted in Mauritius between June and July 2009. The aim of this research was to investigate the use of Indian ancestral languages in the domestic domain by the younger generations. The data were collected in the field by means of a questionnaire and interviews from a quota sample of secondary school…

The Swan Valley Cluster of Schools for the Make it Count project identified the professional learning of teachers as a key factor in improving the numeracy outcomes of urban Indigenous children. Two mentor teachers were assigned to support cluster teachers in planning and teaching mathematics during 2011. This paper reports on the initiative and…

This research draws on the reflections from group discussions with indigenous families and interviews with early childhood educators and community stakeholders from five First Nations reserve communities in Canada whose young children participate in the national aboriginal Head Start On Reserve (AHSOR) programme. The purpose of the study was to…

Misrepresentation, appropriation, and denigrating Indigenous knowledge is still common practice in educational institutions despite efforts of critical educators to challenge these practices. One such challenge was to papier mache totem poles in an education institution's library in a faculty of education that houses teacher education programs. A…

Mathematics as a subject is indispensable in the development of Lesotho with respect to science, technology or any other field of knowledge. It is also a mirror to our past. In this case, Lesotho's indigenous mathematics is not fully explored and understood by Basotho. This author aims to present ethno mathematics of Basotho as compared to…