Abstract
This article considers the contributions of Indigenous knowledges to educational research. It proposes the term comparative Indigenous education research (CIER) in an effort to promote Indigenous-centred research approaches in comparative and international Indigenous education studies. Through CIER, Indigenous peoples and communities articulate research priorities, locate sites of research that raise issues of universal and local concern, and engage community-based responses that are locally and globally relevant beyond nation-state borders. The article draws on the evolution of comparative education and proposals for research approaches that utilise underrepresented lenses, as well as manifestations of endogenous philosophies, specifically Indigenous research methodologies. Conceptual frames for considering CIER through practice are also offered, based on comparative research that crosses disciplines and borders, as well as research with Indigenous communities and researcher observations that reflect epistemological commitment to Indigenous peoples.
Résumé
Recherche comparative sur l’éducation autochtone (CIER) : épistémologies indigènes et méthodologies d’éducation comparée – L’auteure de cet article examine dans quelle mesure les savoirs autochtones contribuent à la recherche en éducation. Elle propose l’expression « recherche comparative en éducation autochtone (CIER) » dans le but de promouvoir les approches scientifiques centrées sur les autochtones dans les études comparatives et internationales sur l’éducation indigène. Dans cette forme de travail, les peuples et communautés autochtones expriment les priorités de recherche, localisent les sites de recherche qui soulèvent des questions d’intérêt local et mondial, et amorcent des réponses communautaires pertinentes aux niveaux local et mondial, applicables au-delà des frontières entre les États-nations. L’auteure s’inspire de l’évolution de l’éducation comparée et des propositions d’approches scientifiques utilisant des perspectives sous-représentées, ainsi que des expressions de philosophies endogènes, en particulier les méthodes de recherche autochtones. Elle propose en outre des cadres conceptuels permettant d’aborder le CIER à travers la pratique, à partir d’études comparatives qui dépassent disciplines et frontières, ainsi que d’études menées avec des communautés autochtones et d’observations des chercheurs qui reflètent l’engagement épistémologique envers les peuples autochtones.
Resumen
Investigaciones comparativas de educación Indígena: Epistemología Indígena y metodología en educación comparativa – Este articulo considera las contribuciones de conocimientos Indígenas para las investigaciones de educación Indígena. El articulo propone “investigaciones comparativas de educación Indígena” para intentar de promover planteamientos en estudios comparativos e internacionales que sean basadas en los intereses de comunidades Indígenas. Así, las comunidades y personas Indígenas podrán expresar sus prioridades para investigaciones, identificar problemas que sean importantes tanto para ellos y otros seres a su alrededor y en otros lugares, como también captar soluciones que sean local y global, transcendiendo los limites del estado y sus fronteras. El articulo habla sobre su origen y evolución del campo de educación comparativa, incluso proposiciones para reconsiderar métodos de investigaciones los cuales utilizan perspectivas históricamente silenciados, incluso estrategias de filosofías endógenos – específicamente, métodos de investigaciones educativas que son descolonizados Indígenas. El articulo ofrece marcos conceptuales sobre como podemos practicar investigaciones comparativas de educación Indígena que superen disciplinas académicas y fronteras nacionales tal como practicamos investigaciones éticas con comunidades Indígenas y cuales reflejan nuestra dedicación hacia ellos.
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Notes
Quechua peoples are diverse Indigenous peoples whose homelands are located in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. Wanka peoples are a related Quechua people who speak a distinct variety of Quechua language and whose ancestral homelands are centralised in Peru in the region of Junín.
The term “globalism” was most popularly distinguished from globalisation by Joseph Nye, who described globalism in the following way: “Globalism, at its core, seeks to describe and explain nothing more than a world which is characterized by networks of connections that span multi-continental distances. It attempts to understand all the inter-connections of the modern world – and to highlight patterns that underlie (and explain) them (Nye 2002, p. 1). Explanations of globalism as a rather factual process or as benign in and of itself do not always note power inequalities and resulting injustices, which is problematic for Indigenous peoples. However, for the purposes of this section in highlighting pre-modern nation state exchanges among Indigenous peoples, I find the recognition of rich and reciprocal exchanges under what I refer to as Indigenous globalism important to mention as a way of reclaiming our global relationships, which persist today through idea sharing, for example. These exchanges are also critical, as dominant political tensions (e.g. Global North and Global South distinctions) do not capture Indigenous experiences and may contribute to division that requires dialogue, which was explored in Comparative Indigeneities of the Americas, edited by Bianet Castellanos et al. (2012).
By local, I mean place-based, utilising local epistemologies, languages and language protocols, cultural practices, and culturally based adaptations of Goodyear-Ka'ōpua’s “other lineages and other thinkers” (Goodyear-Ka'ōpua 2016).
General figures from the United Nations (UN) estimate the world’s Indigenous population at roughly six per cent of the total population, or 370 million peoples in around 70 countries worldwide. Indigenous peoples even in shared homeland regions are not homogenous and were not bound by borders prior to colonisation. For example, the Amazon is home to approximately 300 Indigenous languages (Coronel-Molina and Quintero 2010, p. 43) and spans nine South American countries, with the majority of lands in present-day Brazil, Peru and Colombia.
Aotearoa is the Māori term for New Zealand. In this article, I attempt to use Indigenous place names wherever possible.
For more information about TIMSS, see: https://nces.ed.gov/timss/ [accessed 3 September 2018].
For more information about PISA, see: http://www.oecd.org/pisa/test/ [accessed 3 September 2018].
Kanaka Maoli is the term for Native Hawaiian; wherever possible, I attempt to use the terms that Indigenous peoples use to refer to themselves.
The descriptor indigenist was proposed by Lester-Irabinna Rigney (1999) in reference to rethinking foundations and purposes of Indigenous research with Indigenous Australians and other Indigenous peoples. However, the term could be interpreted by Latin American scholars as related to “indigenista”, where the English translation is also “indigenist”. Indigenista in Peru, for example, refers to an intellectual movement that gained momentum in the 1930s and attempted to reconcile the role of Indigenous peoples, primarily Quechua populations, in Peru’s national identity. For more information, see Sumida Huaman, (2018).
An approximate literal translation of tukillapmi yapanchik yatakushun into English would be something like “Let’s all live together beautifully.”
The term homologuous refers to a similarity in structure; heterologous is its opposite.
Since the focus of this article is not on the studies themselves, I do not name communities or review the research findings here.
My understanding of innovation includes the following (Sumida Huaman 2015): (a) Indigenous innovation is distinctive, already at the centre, as theory, process and practice that is driven by Indigenous people; (b) it seeks to restore, reclaim, protect, maintain and revitalise local Indigenous knowledge linked with Indigenous cultural practices and languages; (c) it draws upon local Indigenous knowledge systems;(d) it is equipped to conscientiously respond to imperialisms and their strategies, including colonisation and capitalism; (e) it creates spaces where metanarratives are problematised, approaches evaluated and re-evaluated, and tensions appropriately addressed; (f) it opens, expands and rebuilds dialogue within and between indigenous communities; (g) it explores and builds connections with other knowledge systems (i.e. Western modern science); and (h) it is concerned with how Indigenous people benefit and for how long.
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Acknowledgements
This article is dedicated to my Quechua community members and is written with gratitude towards Indigenous researchers everywhere, especially our farmers and healers who teach us how to observe the world with respect and love. Urpillay sonqollay to Hortensia Huaman Carhuamaca de Sumida, whose love for education and our people has shaped my life as a researcher, and to my Tia Ines Callalli Villafuerte for sharing her vast earth and runasimi knowledge. Special thanks to Stephen Roche and Maya Kiesselbach for their staunch support of this special issue. Many thanks to the Indigenous scholars in Hawai’i, Aotearoa and on Indigenous lands who courageously write in order share their ideas with us all. Kawsachun.
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Sumida Huaman, E. Comparative Indigenous education research (CIER): Indigenous epistemologies and comparative education methodologies. Int Rev Educ 65, 163–184 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-018-09761-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-018-09761-2