More stuff for my teaching files [teaching]

[rebeccmeister]

Hilarious Dinosaur Comics

Commentary article: Indigenous insights can enrich our science and practice

Article it's commenting on - maybe paywalled, though: https://journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/226/12/jeb245302/319908/Moving-beyond-ontological-worldview-supremacy

Comments

[asakiyume]

V. cute Dinosaur comics, and glad to see other approaches to knowing (such as various indigenous approaches) being treated seriously.

[rebeccmeister]

It may wind up going straight over my students' heads, but I have plans to introduce multiple approaches to knowing at the very beginning of General Biology I this fall. (previously taught just from the perspective of hypothetico-deductive reasoning). A lot of the topics in the course are very cellular/molecularly focused (core concept is the Central Dogma, going from gene to protein). So we kind of have to deal with introduction of knowledge from the settler/colonialist tradition. But I might also bring in some of the recent examples of how some Indigenous groups have assimilated settler technologies for their own uses as part of their efforts to continue stewardship practices for their people and lands.

There's so much power in storytelling. It's a huge responsibility.

[asakiyume]

I love that you're doing that <3

I think it's okay to start with the settler/colonialist tradition: it's the one our society is steeped in, even if our knowledge of it may be spotty. It's good to understand where the dominant culture is coming from--good to know the language of the power brokers--but then it's so, so valuable to know other ways of thinking. For one thing, it preserves diversity of thought.

And yeah, it's always a conversation! People are always taking aspects of other knowledge systems that speak to them, and it works in all directions.

[rebeccmeister]

I encountered a study recently indicating that simply feeling a sense of belonging is HUGE for retention in college. Biology is a major where there's typically a lot of attrition in the early stages. I think the attrition happens for multiple different reasons, some of which are more actionable than others, but the whole feeling a sense of belonging can definitely contribute. I also know that simply acknowledging that diverse views exist goes a long ways. Besides, a huge part of college is developing a more nuanced understanding of knowledge generation. Students tend to begin college thinking of knowledge as a static thing; might as well start changing that from day 1.

All worth a try, at least!