Marine mammals of Gwaii Haanas : developing a theoretical framework and prototype educational resource package for South Moresby/Gwaii Haanas
Date
1993
Authors
Kimmel, Julie May
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Abstract
This thesis describes the process of developing a theoretical framework for a prototypical education/ resource package about marine mammals of the South Moresby area (Gwaii Haanas) of the Queen Charlotte Islands. The package, part of a joint South Moresby Park initiative between the Haida and the Canadian Parks Service, is intended for use in a Haida Gwaii Watchmen Training Program, one designed to build upon the role of the Haida as public educators.
Conversations with individuals living in the communities of Queen Charlotte City, Skidegate and Masset provided insight into the research questions, as well as the content and design of the prototypical resource package. In addition, informal interviews and observations with Haida Gwaii Watchmen on Gwaii Haanas deepened my insight into the form and function of a resource package suited to the needs of the Watchmen and to the unique surroundings at Haida ancestral village sites. Finally, informal interviews with whale researchers in the Gwaii Haanas Archipelago aided in strengthening the linkage between insights and understandings arising from the cultural and scientific traditions.
The writing of this thesis unfolds an evolution of curriculum development: the relationship between a research question, a research approach and the author's educational beliefs and values influenced by the natural, cultural, and political environment of Haida Gwaii. The culmination of this research process is a strong recommendation that educational research and educational resource materials developed for Gwaii Haanas, remain sensitized to individual and cultural understandings which have evolved as part of a complex relationship between the Haida and the marine environment. A prototype package has been included with this thesis to provide concrete examples of a "sensitized" resource package, one that builds upon linking shared cultural knowledge and biological research through the input of the Haida, first-hand experience and the use of hands-on resource materials.
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UN SDG 14: Life Below Water