scholarly journals Teacher Attrition in a Northern Ontario Remote First Nation: A Narrative Re-Storying

in education ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-90
Author(s):  
Dawn Burleigh
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Retention ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Teacher Attrition ◽  
First Nation ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
System Perspective ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Faculties Of Education

Increasing teacher retention in First Nations communities has been identified in the literature as requiring attention. When attrition rates are high and teacher efficacy, quality of student experience, and overall academic achievement is compromised, efforts to mobilize plans for stability are needed. Through a narrative re-storying approach this paper unpacks the challenges and opportunities related to teacher attrition in one remote First Nation community in Northern Ontario. Although teacher attrition is inevitable, it is necessary to re-envision attrition factors as a plan for retention. Community integrated induction and mentorship programming, and continuous and multi-year contracts are two possible approaches to boost retention. Teacher education is also explored as a long-term approach to address teacher attrition from a system perspective. In all approaches, collaborative effort, engagement, and funding are needed from the federal government, local education authorities, and faculties of education to increase teacher retention in remote First Nation communities.

scholarly journals “Growing” a sustainable community: Health, food, and development at the Aundeck Omni Kaning First Nation

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 23-28
Author(s):  
Irene Altiman
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Community Health ◽  
First Nations ◽  
First Nation ◽  
Small Community ◽  
Health Food ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Healthy Communities ◽  
Government Financing ◽  
Organic Produce

How can a First Nation community become sustainable and not be primarily reliant on government financing and services?  Economic development is one major tool towards this sustainability. The small community of Aundeck Omni Kaning First Nation (AOK), located on Manitoulin Island, has the opportunity to become the top producer and supplier of organic produce in Northern Ontario. This paper explores local CSA, food cooperative, greenhouse, and aquaponics operations as means to reach this goal.Keywords: First Nations, sustainability, agriculture, food, healthy communities

Improving Classroom Management and Teacher Retention

2020 ◽  
pp. 201-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill Stefaniak ◽  
Jilian L. Reynolds ◽  
Tian Luo
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Middle School ◽  
Teacher Retention ◽  
Classroom Management ◽  
Needs Assessment ◽  
Teacher Attrition ◽  
Teacher Turnover ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Instructional Designer ◽  
Attrition Rates

This case explores how a needs assessment was conducted at a middle school experiencing high rates of teacher turnover. Pamela Frost, an experienced instructional designer, was assigned to assess the situation and identify opportunities to improve professional development opportunities for the teachers. As a part of a needs assessment, Pamela gathered data to address needs pertaining to classroom management challenges, teacher attrition rates, and establishing relations with the local community. This case explores how Pamela gathered data and triangulated her findings to determine what interventions were needed.

scholarly journals Water Insecurity in Ontario First Nations: An Exploratory Study on Past Interventions and the Need for Indigenous Water Governance

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 717
Author(s):  
Rachel Arsenault
Keyword(s):  
First Nations ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
First Nation ◽  
Indigenous Research ◽  
Security Challenges ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Indigenous Perspectives

In 2018, I began an exploratory study involving fourteen Ontario First Nation participants that examined some First Nation water security challenges and opportunities. In acknowledgment that many of the government assessments, reports, and investments to date have failed, this study aims to determine the causes of the water crisis as well as potential solutions by sharing Indigenous perspectives and recommendations on water governance and security. During the study, Indigenous participants were asked interview questions regarding their water and wastewater systems, their historical and current water security conditions, and if they had recommendations for achieving water security in First Nations. The analysis from these interviews demonstrated that there were ten different themes for water security and insecurity in First Nation communities as well as a set of four recommendations shared by the fourteen participants. The participant recommendations are: (1) that Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Indigenous laws be included in water security initiatives and water governance; (2) that provincial and federal governments work with Indigenous communities on their water security challenges and opportunities; (3) that First Nation leadership develops and implements community water protection plans; (4) that Indigenous communities establish an oversight committee or body for monitoring tourist ventures and extractive development projects such as mining on their territories. This paper will also discuss how an Indigenous research paradigm can be applied during the research process to ensure that the information is captured from the Indigenous perspectives of the participants.

scholarly journals Policy Forum: Establishing an Urban Reserve—Property Tax Challenges and Opportunities

2021 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 835-855
Author(s):  
Mike Icton ◽  
Devan Mescall
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
First Nation ◽  
Economic Potential ◽  
Municipal Governments ◽  
Development Tool ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Provision Of Services

Urban reserves offer a unique economic development tool for First Nation governments by providing access to markets and infrastructure unavailable on most reserve lands in Canada. Asimakiniseekan Askiy is Canada's first urban reserve established on land previously owned by a city. The urban reserve was established in Saskatoon by the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation in 1988. Asimakiniseekan Askiy provides an example of the economic potential of urban reserves for First Nations and their members, as well as municipal governments and their citizens. The urban reserve is currently home to 60 First Nation and non-First Nation businesses and their 700 employees. In 2020, the urban reserve contributed $465,662 to the city of Saskatoon in service fee payments. However, before this economic potential could be realized, property taxation presented a sizable barrier in the path of taking Asimakiniseekan Askiy from an innovative idea to a successful reality. Establishing an urban reserve has significant property tax implications, since the process requires the transfer of property from the taxing authority of a municipal jurisdiction to the tax jurisdiction of a First Nation government. Agreements providing for the transfer of tax authority also include negotiations relating to the continued provision of services to the urban reserve by the municipality. This article first provides a summary of the statutory environment surrounding the formation and taxation of an urban reserve. A case study of the establishment and 33 years of operation of Asimakiniseekan Askiy is then provided, to illustrate the property tax implications and municipal service agreement process necessary for Canadian communities to achieve the economic benefits of urban reserves. The authors identify property tax challenges inherent in the establishment of an urban reserve and offer recommendations to improve access to urban reserves as an innovative economic development tool.

Examining the Potential Use of the Collaborative-Geomatics Informatics Tool to Foster Intergenerational Transfer of Knowledge in a Remote First Nation Community

2013 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Isogai ◽  
Daniel D. McCarthy ◽  
Holly L. Gardner ◽  
Jim D. Karagatzides ◽  
Skye Vandenberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Change ◽  
First Nations ◽  
First Nation ◽  
Intergenerational Transfer ◽  
Transfer Of Knowledge ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Positioning Systems ◽  
Intergenerational Knowledge ◽  
Fort Albany

Northern First Nations in Canada have experienced environmental change throughout history, adapting to these changes based on personal experience interacting with their environment. Community members of Fort Albany First Nation of northern Ontario, Canada, have voiced their concern that their youths’ connection to the land is diminishing, making this generation more vulnerable to environmental change. Community members previously identified the collaborative-geomatics informatics tool as potentially useful for fostering intergenerational knowledge transfer. In this article, we assess the potential of the informatics tool to reconnect youth with the surrounding land in order to strengthen the adaptive capacity of Fort Albany First Nation. The tool was introduced to students in an environmental-outreach camp that included traditional activities. Students used global positioning systems and geo-tagged photographs that were loaded onto the informatics tool. Semi-directed interviews revealed that the students enjoyed the visual and spatial capabilities of the system, and recognised its potential to be used in conjunction with traditional activities. This pilot study suggests that the tool has the potential to be used by youth to provide an opportunity for the intergenerational transfer of Indigenous knowledge, but further evaluation is required.

scholarly journals Caught Between Two Worlds

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-99
Author(s):  
Judy Finlay & Lauren Akbar
Keyword(s):  
First Nations ◽  
Children And Youth ◽  
Community Assessment ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Space And Time ◽  
Collective Goal ◽  
Community Wellness ◽  
The Future ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Trusting Relationships

Mamow Ki-ken-da-ma-win: Everyone Searching for Answers Together (Searching Together) is a partnership-based approach to identifying priorities and issues of importance in remote First Nations in Ontario. The collective goal of this partnership is to learn from one another in the context of northern First Nations lived realities. This community assessment and mobilization process serves as a vehicle for understanding and taking steps to address community wellness.  The Searching Together’s southern team is affiliated with faculty, staff and students at Ryerson University.  The voices of youth captured herein are from four fly-in communities in northern Ontario and were gathered between 2011 and 2015. Children and youth played a powerful role in shaping the Mamow Ki-ken-da-ma-win process. The conversations with youth were arranged to accommodate their space and time and were built on established, trusting relationships with the youth facilitators on the team. The youth spoke with candour and had valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities they faced while living in their communities.  They were thoughtful about how to overcome obstacles that interfered with their wellbeing and they clearly expressed their wishes, hopes and dreams for the future.

scholarly journals Drinking Water Consumption Patterns: An Exploration of Risk Perception and Governance in Two First Nations Communities

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (17) ◽  
pp. 6851
Author(s):  
Neal Spicer ◽  
Brenda Parlee ◽  
Molly Chisaakay ◽  
Doug Lamalice
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Water Consumption ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Bottled Water ◽  
Consumption Patterns ◽  
First Nation ◽  
Individual Risk

Many Indigenous communities across Canada suffer from the lack of access to clean drinking water; ensuring individuals and communities have safe water to drink either from their home or from their local environment requires the consideration of multiple factors including individual risk perception. In collaboration with local leaders, semi-structured interviews (n = 99) were conducted over a two-year period in the Dene Tha’ First Nation and Kátł’odeeche First Nation to unpack the issue of risk perception and its meaning to local community members. These local metrics of risk perception including smell, taste, safety, health fears and level of concern were then used to explore patterns in other data on drinking water consumption patterns and bottled water use. The results are consistent with previous research related to water insecurity and indicate that both communities consume more bottled water than the average Canadian. Results also varied by jurisdiction; those in Alberta indicated much higher levels of concern and a greater degree of bottled water consumption.

scholarly journals The Effect of Virtual Mindfulness-Based Interventions on Sleep Quality: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Jiang ◽  
Michael Rosario ◽  
Sara Stahl ◽  
Jessica M. Gill ◽  
Heather L. Rusch
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Quality ◽  
Sleep Disturbance ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Delivery Method ◽  
Attrition Rates ◽  
Long Term Effect ◽  
Evidence Based Treatments ◽  
Intervention Adherence ◽  
Improve Sleep Quality

Abstract Purpose of Review We summarized peer-reviewed literature investigating the effect of virtual mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) on sleep quality. We aimed to examine the following three questions: (1) do virtual MBIs improve sleep quality when compared with control groups; (2) does the effect persist long-term; and (3) is the virtual delivery method equally feasible compared to the in-person delivery method? Recent Findings Findings suggest that virtual MBIs are equivalent to evidence-based treatments, and to a limited extent, more effective than non-specific active controls at reducing some aspects of sleep disturbance. Overall, virtual MBIs are more effective at improving sleep quality than usual care controls and waitlist controls. Studies provide preliminary evidence that virtual MBIs have a long-term effect on sleep quality. Moreover, while virtual MBI attrition rates are comparable to in-person MBI attrition rates, intervention adherence may be compromised in the virtual delivery method. Summary This review highlights virtual MBIs as a potentially effective alternative to managing sleep disturbance during pandemic-related quarantine and stay-at-home periods. This is especially relevant due to barriers of accessing in-person interventions during the pandemic. Future studies are needed to explore factors that influence adherence and access to virtual MBIs, with a particular focus on diverse populations.

scholarly journals Informal carer in Portugal: moving towards political recognition in Portugal

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
I Fronteira ◽  
J Simoes ◽  
G Augusto
Keyword(s):  
Informal Care ◽  
Long Term Care ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Oecd Countries ◽  
Low Fertility ◽  
Informal Carer ◽  
Term Care ◽  
System Perspective ◽  
Informal Carers

Abstract Informal care represents around 80% of all long term care provided in EU countries. Nevertheless, the needs for this type of care are expected to increase in the coming years in all OECD countries. Portugal is among the OECD countries with the highest ageing index (21.5% of the population was older than 65 years in 2017) due to high life expectancy and low fertility rates. As this demographic trend establishes, Portugal is expected to have more than 40% of the population over 65 years in 2037, and the expected prevalence of dementia is 3%, in 2050. In 2015 there were 2.1% of people over 65 receiving long-term care, representing 52% of all long-term care users. Around 38% were receiving care at home. It is estimated that 287,000 people in Portugal depend on informal carers. The agenda towards the official recognition of informal cares has been push forward in the country. Since 2015, several recommendations have been issued by the Parliament as well as legislative initiatives and a proposal for a Status of the Informal Carer is currently under discussion. We analyse the process of formulation of this policy in terms of sectors and stakeholders involved, definition and scope of informal carer, rights and obligations, role of the person being cared for, formal protection (e.g., labor, social, financial, training) and implementation. Recognition of the informal carer is a sector wide approach. One of the main features is the economic, social and labor protection mainly through reconciliation between work life and caring activities and promotion of the carer’s well being. Notwithstanding, and from a health system perspective, community health teams are to be the focal point for informal carers, supporting and providing specific training whenever needed. Despite its relevance, informal care should not be professionalized and responsibility of care should not be shifted from health services to informal carers. Key messages Needs for informal care are expected to increase in the coming years in OECD countries. Recognition of the informal carer is a sector wide approach.

scholarly journals Expansion of Policy Domain of Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP): Challenges and Opportunities for Policy Design

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6763
Author(s):  
Yasuhiko Hotta ◽  
Tomohiro Tasaki ◽  
Ryu Koide
Keyword(s):  
Policy Design ◽  
Sustainable Consumption ◽  
Pollution Prevention ◽  
Ecological Modernization ◽  
Policy Debate ◽  
Policy Domain ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Sustainable Consumption And Production ◽  
Transition Policy

Since 2015, the international policy community has started to agree on international agreements with ambitious middle-term and long-term goals, highly relevant to sustainable consumption and production (SCP) such as those seen in the Paris Agreement, SDGs, and the plastic-related agreements at the G7 and G20 processes. Along with this trend, there has been growing attention given to socio-technical system change or “transition”. Policy debate is putting more focus on the need to change consumption and production patterns and deal with various ecological consequences within planetary boundaries such as decarbonization, absolute reduction in material throughput, or creation of a plastic-free society. This paper examines the expansion of the policy domain of SCP in three phases; SCP focusing on pollution control and cleaner production (SCP 1.0), SCP from the perspective of product lifecycle (SCP 2.0), and SCP focusing on systematic changes in socio-technical systems driving consumption and production (SCP 3.0). The potential impact of a wider SCP policy domain can be comparable to the historical shift in discourse related to ecological modernization theory from pollution prevention to efficiency. This emerging trend corresponds to the need for a fresh approach to policy design which can facilitate transition to sustainability.

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