Inuit principals and the changing context of bilingual education in Nunavut

Bibliographic Data

ID3800910
AuthorsShelley Tulloch (Faculty of Education, University of Prince Edward Island, 550 University Avenue, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island C1A 4P3, Canada), Lena Metuq (Government of Nunavut), Jukeepa Hainnu (Piqqusilirvvik Cultural School, Nunavut Arctic College, P.O. Box 97, Clyde River, Nunavut X0A 0C0, Canada), Saa Pitsiulak (Nunavut Arctic College, P.O. Box 11358, Iqaluit, Nunavut X0A 0H0, Canada), Elisapee Flaherty (Government of Nunavut), Cathy Lee (0000-0002-4550-3731, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Box 378, Pangnirtung, Nunavut X0A 0R0, Canada), Fiona Walton (University of Prince Edward Island)
Year2017
Volume40
Issue1
Pages189-209
Publication date2017-06-14
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueÉtudes/Inuit/Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0701-1008 • E-ISSN: 1708-5268
PublisherConsortium Erudit (PUBLISHER • CA)
DOI10.7202/1040151ar
OpenAlexW2669515133
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited20

Although positive policies and laws promote the Inuit language andInuit qaujimajatuqangit(IQ) in all sectors of Nunavut society, including at all levels of Inuit schooling, many Nunavut schools are still struggling to overturn colonizing practices and mindsets that have hindered effective education of Inuit youth. In this article, we document perceptions of students, teachers, principals, parents, and community members related to school transformation under the leadership of an Inuk principal and and Inuk co-principal in two Nunavut high schools. These oral accounts show that having an Inuit principal enhanced students' opportunities to learn and practise the Inuit language and IQ through enhanced, localized programming and increased exposure to Inuit ways of speaking and being. Parents were mobilized and equipped to support and advocate for their children, including joining local District Education Authorities, when they were able to communicate easily and effectively with the principal, and saw their knowledge, culture, and language valued and practised in the school system. We argue that the strong, community-anchored leadership modelled in these two schools transformed the context for effective intercultural, bilingual education. Results point to the importance of leadership by school principals in actualizing the goals set out in Nunavut's Education Act (2008), governmental mandates, and language laws

Archaeology · Bilingual education · Context (archaeology · Geography · Pedagogy · Perception · Political science · Principal (computer security · Public relations · Sociology · Educator Training and Historical Pedagogy · Indigenous Health, Education, and Rights · Multilingual Education and Policy · Psychology

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