Projects
Rankin Inlet
Program Name: Reclaiming our Sinew
Community: Various Kivalliq Communities
Program Delivery: NAC Community Learning Centres
Program Partners: Kivalliq Inuit Association & Community Learning Centres
Goals of the Program: To build the sewing and literacy skills of young women, to strengthen awareness of traditional skills and Inuit culture and to build the pride and self-esteem of the participants.
Length of Program: 24 weeks
Description of Program:
Reclaiming Our Sinew is a 24 week program with six core courses. One part of the program focuses on preparing participants to go on to upgrading programs, enter the workforce or enhance their employability. The other part of the program focuses on teaching the traditional skill of skin preparation and sewing.
Morning were spent learning traditional skin preparation and sewing techniques with elders. The program was held in a large room in Maani Ulujuk School. By the end of the program, participants had learned the art of preparing, cutting and sewing skins. They also learned how to make caribou skin parkas, pants, mitts and seal skin kamiks and pants.
In the afternoons the participants focused on upgrading their academic skills at the community learning centre. They received language instruction in English and Inuktitut, math, computer and typing instruction.
Highlights & Reflections:
The idea for the program came from the Kivalliq Inuit Association and is an excellent example of putting Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit into practice. It was also as strong example of a partnership between the territorial and federal government, Nunavut Arctic College, the schools, the Hamlet and the Inuit organization. “Since I started the course I’ve made caribou pants, parka, mitts, socks, seal skin mitts and three pairs of kamiks. I’m proud of my sewing and what I have learned from the elders.”
Shauna Ussak, Student
Program Name: Traditional Arts and Literacy Program
Community: Rankin Inlet
Program Delivery:
The Matchbox Gallery, a private gallery and studio space owned by Jim and Susan Shirley of Rankin Inlet
Goals of the Program:
To help participants meet their personal goals including developing their ability to earn a living as professional artists and upgrading their numeracy and literacy skills. Jim and Sue believe that arts learning and academic learning complement each other and that students show impressive progress through this approach.
Length of Program: 14 weeks
Description of Program:
The Traditional Arts and Literacy Program is intended as a foundation program from which students can choose their artistic direction. Participants in the program study most areas of the traditional arts including drawing, painting, ceramics, printmaking, and soapstone carving. While some of the students have some experience as artists, others have had no prior experience in the arts.
Basic mathematics, reading and writing are an integral part of the program. The instructors feel that the academic programming is successful because they take an individualized approach to preparing course materials and lesson plans. They use materials with northern content which is relevant to experiences, needs and interests of the participants and they gear lessons to individual levels of ability.
The day begins with mathematics. The students learn new skills and review skills they have studied in previous classes. The instructors also create very relevant word problems for math class. They use the students’ names and their experiences in the program or in their lives outside class to pose realistic math problems for the students to solve.
Literacy instruction involves reading texts that are relevant to the students’ experiences. The group reads aloud and works on vocabulary development based on the text. Daily journal writing starts the afternoon. Students and instructors deepen their interaction and communication through dialogue journals. This is an opportunity for meaningful writing in which students express their problems, goals and wishes and instructors respond. The instructors gradually introduce ideas about grammar, punctuation and spelling. Some students work on other writing projects such as autobiographies.
In drawing classes students study techniques for drawing from observation and imagination. They learn to use various drawing tools and materials to express their imagination in different ways. Concepts and related vocabulary are an important part of the drawing lessons. Jim and Sue see a critical connection between drawing and language as forms of personal expression. The rest of the afternoon the students concentrate on painting, ceramics or sculpture. The instructors encourage the students to respect and understand the various tools and materials used by the artist. They also encourage people to find a way to express their own unique personality by using these media.
Jim’s comments: “This portion of the day allowed people to learn about themselves, to develop their self-confidence, and to take the issues they have at the core of their humanness and give them a tangible and manageable form.”
Highlights and Reflections:
Jim and Sue believe that the connection between art and academic learning has been well demonstrated by the success of the Traditional Arts and Literacy Program. Students make remarkable progress in all areas of their learning. Jim and Sue have observed that students show greater progress in developing their literacy and numeracy skills than they would in an academic-only upgrading program.
The gallery also provides an important base for positive social interaction and communal experience. The social environment that students have established among themselves at the gallery has proven to be a significant source for healing and personal growth. The communal learning environment, which is the foundation of the survival of Inuit people since the beginning of time, comes naturally to most of the students. The social environment is an important antidote to the alienation that most people have had to come to terms with in their everyday lives. They learn and work in an environment where their individuality is encouraged, appreciated and supported by their peers.
We feel that there are important implications for this program for the educational system as a whole. Needless to say, we are very excited about what we are doing.
Jim Shirley
in collaboration with The Nunavut Literacy Council