Assignment 3: Resource File – Indigenizing Biology

Autumn DeGraeve – 7806675

EDUB4140 (A33) – Teaching Biology

Dr. Lilian Pozzer

November 8, 2022
 Biology is often taught following the ideas and work of white men. While this material

has always been taught and there is nothing incorrect about the material we are teaching, there

are more views out there. In Manitoba, a lot of the students that pass through our classrooms are

Indigenous. With so many of our students identifying as Indigenous, it is time to start looking at

indigenizing not only biology, but all classes within the schools.

When we say ‘indigenizing’, this is the “process by which Indigenous ways of knowing,

being, doing and relating are incorporated into educational, organizational, cultural and social

structures.” (University of Alberta). In order to properly do this, educators must take it upon

themselves to learn/understand the importance of including Indigenous perspectives into their

classes and how they can implement these perspectives into classes. This resource file is going to

provide useful resources that teachers could use to do just that.

Learning the Importance of Indigenizing Biology

In order to teach a biology class that includes Indigenous perspectives, educators must

first learn about the importance of including Indigenous views and why we want to incorporate

these views into all classes. The following resources will provide educators with information

regarding the importance of Indigenous perspectives.

1) Incorporating Indigenous Perspectives: A Theme-Based Curricular Approach

Resource Type: Website

Found At: https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/abedu/perspectives/index.html

Description:

On this government of Manitoba website, we are provided with a list of resources

based on what happens when school learning incorporates Indigenous context. One

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 quote from this website that stood out and makes it important to incorporate

Indigenous perspectives to classes is that “including Indigenous cultural concepts

allows all students the opportunity to recognize that Indigenous knowledge has value

and contributes to contemporary school learning” (Government of Manitoba, n.d.).

Educators should also become familiar with the Indigenous studies documents based

on their school stream. This information will provide educators with very useful

information.

2) Ontario Science Centre

Resource Type: Website

Found At: https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/teachers-plus-students/teacher-

resources/professional-learning-resources/the-importance-of-indigenous-

perspectives-in-stem

Description:

The Ontario Science Centre website focuses on the importance of Indigenous

perspectives in STEM through the use of videos and a document providing more

resources for a person to look at. The first video that appears on the website is an

Indigenous man sharing the different medicines that you can get from certain plants

and how we can use certain plants to understand how our body works. Something

like this video can be used during the grade 11 biology curriculum when we are

learning about the different body systems. It is important to get your students outside

because it is important to have your students engage with the world and learn from

the natural materials around them.

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 3) Indigenous Education K-12

Resource Type: Library – website

Found At: https://guides.library.ubc.ca/indigenous_ed_k12/science#s-lg-box-

15750143

Description:

This website, while not based in Manitoba, provides resources for educators to use in

both the elementary and secondary education streams and will be discussed in more

depth in the “Implementing Indigenous Views into Classes” section below. This

website shows us that by incorporating Indigenous knowledge and understandings in

science allows us to make connections to the culture, societies, and everyday lives

around us. It also provides resources on how to incorporate Indigenous perspectives

in math, social studies, language arts, and art. This would be a great resource for all

educators to look into.

Implementing Indigenous Views into Classes

The resources found below are to provide educators with lesson plans, activities, articles,

and important information in order to help them better prepare and incorporate Indigenous views

into the different area’s biology has to offer.

1) Indigenous Peoples’ Curriculum Resources

Resource Type: Website

Found At: https://stao.ca/resource/indigenous-peoples-curriculum-resources/

Description:

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 The Science Teachers’ Association of Ontario (STAO) is a website that wants to

advance science education and values inclusion, excellence, collaboration,

accountability, and innovation. So many people have contributed to the development

of science and historically, we focus more-so on the perspectives of white-European

men. This has caused a divide and is leading to limited engagement and participation.

STAO has many different resources and includes a page labelled Indigenous

Peoples’ Curriculum Resources. This page has many different categories that range

from general interest, lab/student activity, lesson plans, and unit plans. This page

would be very beneficial for a teacher or school looking to incorporate more

Indigenous perspectives into their science classes as they range from elementary to

secondary school.

This could be used in biology when students look at biodiversity in grade 12. They

provide a worksheet that breaks the activities into three different parts and that the

parts/lessons will last more than one 70-minute period. A benefit from this activity is

that it provides activities that can be modified into shorter time periods. One final

thing to note about this document is that it provides guiding questions on what the

students should understand and do once the lessons are complete. These questions

make students keep both Western and Indigenous views in mind.

A limitation with this website is that some of the links require you to download the

material and may not relate to topics we actually cover in that grade. For example,

under the link Grade 11 Biology, the three resources it provides are for

photosynthesis and plant biology which in Manitoba we do not cover in Grade 11

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 biology. We can always keep these activities in mind, however, and modify them to

work in the grade 9 reproduction unit when they learn about plants.

2) Chapter 6. Indigenous perspectives on biodiversity

Resource Type: Book (website)

Found At: https://www.csiro.au/en/research/natural-environment/biodiversity/

biodiversity-book/chapter-6

Description:

This website focuses on a book about biodiversity written by Dr. Fiona Walsh. The

chapter that I am focusing on is chapter 6 as it discusses the Indigenous perspectives

on biodiversity. Biodiversity as defined by the American Museum of Natural History

“refers to the variety of life on Earth at all its levels…”.

This chapter, or even part of this chapter, would be a good resource to share within a

biodiversity class in grade 12 as it discusses the impact it is having on Indigenous

people who rely on the natural resources. This chapter has section titles that ask

questions such as ‘What is the condition of biodiversity?’. Instead of a researcher

going into detail and explaining it, they have a person who identifies as Indigenous

and lives off of the land answer the questions and to share their thoughts and worries.

A limitation is that students may find this to be a lengthy read so they will briefly

scan over it instead of truly understanding what biodiversity is contributing to and

how it is affecting those around it. One way to improve this document if it were to be

split into sections and then the students could be split into groups to read each

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 section. They can then take note on what they read and can share their understanding

with the class.

3) Indigenous Futures in Engineering: Biology

Resource Type: Website

Found At: https://www.aboriginalaccess.ca/resources/teaching-links/biology

Description:

Indigenous Futures in Engineering at Queen’s University has a goal of increasing the

number of Indigenous engineers in Canada and in order to do this, they want to

promote science to kids in the elementary and high school streams. In order to fulfill

this goal, they have provided a variety of lesson plans with fun, interactive activities,

and resources for teachers who are teaching biology.

Many of the lesson plans provided, are useful labs and activities that could be used

when teaching biology. There are projects that range from human body system

disorders to a protein synthesis project. There are also varying labs for students to

look at when they begin studying biodiversity and worksheets that look at Punnett

squares to mitosis.

A limitation of this website is that while this is the Indigenous Futures in Engineering

website and they want to promote the number of Indigenous students in engineering,

the materials they provide do not provide questions or focus on Indigenous views

specifically. Because of this, a change that could be made is teachers modify the

projects, worksheets, and labs to include Indigenous perspectives. An example of this

would be during the human body system disorders project, how might these disorders

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 differ in Indigenous people? Are Indigenous people more susceptible to these

disorders?

4) Indigenous Way of Life: Grade 11 & 12 Biology

Resource Type: Document

Found At:

https://frontierarea1.weebly.com/uploads/3/1/2/1/31215159/iwol_biology_resources_

list_for_teachers_-_grade_11__12_.pdf

Description:

The Indigenous Way of Life department created this resource document to provide

teachers as a professional development during COVID-19 lockdown. This document

was to help teachers learn how to incorporate Indigenous perspectives and

knowledge into their biology lessons.

This document is an extremely useful resource when teaching biology as it breaks

down each unit in both grade 11 and 12 biology. It provides a wide range of readings

and videos that focus just on how these topics affect Indigenous people. An example

is in the Transportation and Respiration unit in grade 11 biology. This document

provides 3 different resources within the circulatory system that focuses on how

Indigenous people are affected by cardiovascular health. I do not believe there are

any limitations within this document.

5) Indigenous Knowledge, Ecology, and Evolutionary Biology

Resource Type: Book

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 Found At:

https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/umanitoba/reader.action?docID=557314

Description:

This book discusses how Western scientists view ecology and evolutionary biology

versus how Indigenous people perceive these topics. The chapter of most interest

here is chapter 4 when it gets into the topic of Indigenous perspectives.

This can be used when teaching biology because it goes to show that sometimes there

is more to science then what Western scientists believe. For example, on page 76, it

begins by stating that “Indigenous understanding of the natural world emerged from

conceiving of the living world as a network of relationships across communities that

include humans” (Pierotti, 2011, p. 76). Indigenous people base lots of their

understanding and knowledge by relationships. Another part of this chapter that I

think is worth noting is when the author compares how Charles Darwin laid out his

conditions for natural selection and evolutionary change to take place vs. how Okute

(an Indigenous man) set up conditions for this process of natural selection to occur.

While one focuses on variation and how that variation affects the individual’s ability

to survive and reproduce, the other focuses on how the process of natural selection

occurs through traditional Lakota knowledge and spiritual teaching.

A limitation to this reading is that it can be a very heavy read to take on as it is quite

lengthy (being over 200 pages) and that it may not be accessible to all students.

Because of this, educators could take it upon themselves to read/skim through the

material presented within this book and then incorporate it into their lessons.

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 6) When Scientists “Discover” What Indigenous People have Known for Centuries

Resource Type: Magazine

Found At: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/why-science-takes-so-

long-catch-up-traditional-knowledge-180968216/

Description:

This article in the Smithsonian magazine shows us that Western science has been

ignoring what the Indigenous people have done for years. As stated at the very

beginning of the article, “When it supports their claims, Western scientists value

what Traditional Knowledge has to offer. If not, they dismiss it.” (Nicholas, 2018). I

think this quote holds a lot of value and would be very beneficial for students to

know. This is because Western scientists in the past, but even now do not want to

listen to what Traditional Knowledge has to say because they do not “trust” what the

Indigenous people have to tell them as it may not come from years of experiments

and tests.

Nicholas’ article could be used when teaching biology as it shows the importance of

Indigenous perspectives and Traditional Ecological Knowledge. Based on the

information gathered within this article, Western science could benefit from

Indigenous perspectives and in order to advance today’s science, the two need to be

working together. This will hopefully help encourage Indigenous students to share

the teachings they have received from elders. It may be beneficial to also bring elders

into the classroom for a grade 12 biology class and have them share their views and

observations on things such as animal behaviours, migration, and evolution.

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 A limitation is that by reading this article, Indigenous students may become less

likely to share what they have learned from family and elders as they feel their peers

and those around them will discredit their views. It is also because of this that the

quote mentioned in the first paragraph is super important to address and discuss. This

way, students can come to an understanding of the bias present in western science

and how ignoring Indigenous perspectives is discrimination. It would be the job of

the educator to make sure students keep an open mind and understand that Western

science in certain aspects of biology are much further behind than Indigenous

perspectives.

7) Science First Peoples Teacher Resource Guide

Resource Type: Document

Found At: http://www.fnesc.ca/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/PUBLICATION-

SCIENCE-FIRST-PEOPLES-Secondary-TRG-2019.pdf

Description:

The Science First Peoples Teacher Resource Guide is a helpful document that

provides many different resources and activities that a teacher could use within her

science classes. This document connects theories and words that we use in biology

classes now to themes from Indigenous knowledge.

A specific unit in this document that stood out to use when teaching biology was unit

2 on transformation, genetics, and evolution. These terms are most commonly found

in the grade 12 biology curriculum. Indigenizing topics in school are becoming a

bigger idea and many teachers are unsure on how to incorporate Indigenous views

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 into their classes. This document provides beneficial guiding questions for educators

to use when teaching genetics, evolution, and biodiversity. It also provides activities

that an educator might already see and use in their classroom. This document makes

it easier for educators to find the connections between what we are teaching now to

including Indigenous views.

Within this document, I do not believe there are many limitations.

8) Case Studies for Indigenous Science

Resource Type: Case Study (website)

Found At: https://cdn-5cb4e3b3f911cf0dc86f377b.closte.com/wp-content/uploads/

2020/01/Case-Studies-for-Indigenous-Science.pdf

Description:

Within this document three different case studies can be found that help educators

become aware of their knowledge on Indigenous views and Indigenous science.

This document can be used for teaching in biology as it provides educators with three

different scenarios on what they might face when incorporating Indigenous views

within a class. It also helps to prepare educators for questions students might have

once Indigenous views are added. Some of the topics that are mentioned within these

case studies are smudging, where in a course it would be appropriate to do smudging,

can trauma be passed down generations through your genes, and finally, Indigenous

students not wanting to take part in a frog dissection. Smudging could be

incorporated within grade 11 biology and students could research the benefits

smudging has on the body. Trauma being passed through our genes is a topic in

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 grade 12 biology and educators should be prepared for this question. Finally,

dissections take place in grade 11 biology when students may have to dissect a cow

or pig heart. Educators should be prepared for this and have alternative methods as

students should not be forced to take part as it could be upsetting to them and go

against their beliefs.

Limitations present within this document are that extra resources are not provided,

and should educators be unsure on how to answer the questions, they may find it

difficult to incorporate these three different cases into their biology classes. Having a

document with these scenarios, but with guidance on how to properly approach them

would be beneficial for the educators to properly incorporate these topics into their

biology classes.

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 References
American Museum of Natural History. (n.d.). What is biodiversity?.
https://www.amnh.org/research/center-for-biodiversity-conservation/what-is-biodiversity
Anonymous. (n.d.). Case studies for Indigenous science. https://cdn-
5cb4e3b3f911cf0dc86f377b.closte.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Case-Studies-for-
Indigenous-Science.pdf
First Nations Education Steering Committee and First Nations Schools Association. (2019).
Science first peoples teacher resource guide.
http://www.fnesc.ca/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/PUBLICATION-SCIENCE-
FIRST-PEOPLES-Secondary-TRG-2019.pdf
Indigenous Futures in Engineering. (n.d.). Biology. Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science.
https://www.aboriginalaccess.ca/resources/teaching-links/biology
Indigenous Way of Life. (2020). Indigenous way of life: Grade 11 & 12 biology resource list.
Frontier School Division.
https://frontierarea1.weebly.com/uploads/3/1/2/1/31215159/iwol_biology_resources_list_
for_teachers_-_grade_11__12_.pdf
Nicholas, G. (2018). When scientists “discover” what Indigenous people have known for
centuries. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/why-
science-takes-so-long-catch-up-traditional-knowledge-180968216/
Ontario Science Centre. (2022). The importance of Indigenous perspectives in STEM. Ontario
Science Centre. https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/teachers-plus-students/teacher-
resources/professional-learning-resources/the-importance-of-indigenous-perspectives-in-
stem
Pierotti, R. (2011). Indigenous knowledge, ecology, and evolutionary biology. Routledge Taylor
& Francis. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/umanitoba/reader.action?docID=557314
Science Teachers’ Association of Ontario. (n.d.). Indigenous Peoples’ Curriculum Resources.
https://stao.ca/resource/indigenous-peoples-curriculum-resources/
University of Alberta. (n.d.). Indigenizing and decolonizing teaching and learning.
https://www.ualberta.ca/centre-for-teaching-and-learning/teaching-support/
indigenization/index.html

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University of British Columbia. (n.d.). Indigenous education K-12.
https://guides.library.ubc.ca/indigenous_ed_k12/science#s-lg-box-15750143
Walsh, F., Christophersen, P., McGregor, S. (n.d.). Chapter 6: Indigenous perspectives on
biodiversity. CSIRO.
https://www.publish.csiro.au/ebook/chapter/9781486302062_Chapter_6
Zidny, R., Sjöström, J., Eilks, I. (2020). A multi-perspective reflection on how Indigenous
knowledge and related ideas can improve science education for sustainability. Science &
Education, 29, 145-185. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11191-019-00100-
x#citeas

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