SUCCESSFUL DEFENCE
Dr . Jennifer MacDonald Photo credit : Shuana Niessen
Congratulations to Dr . Jennifer MacDonald on the successful defense of her dissertation : “ Wayfinding for the Continuation of Life : A Curriculum Inquiry to Enrich Experiences and Renew Relations in Outdoor Education ” at the University of Calgary . ( Click title to read )
Dr . MacDonald ' s supervisor was Dr . Jim Field and committee members were Dr . Dwayne Donald , Dr . Aubrey Hanson , and Dr . Julian Norris . The external examiner was Dr . Nicholas Ng-A-Fook ( University of Ottawa ).
Education News | Page 41
In her doctoral research , Jennifer says , “ I journeyed alongside secondary school students involved in multi-day wilderness expeditions . I was interested in how students experienced and understood placespecific lifeforms . Simultaneously , as their guide , I wanted to humbly live out holistic relational teachings kindled through visits with nêyihaw Elder Bob Cardinal . Bringing these threads into dialogue helped me to generate insights toward a kinetic process of narrative mapping and to develop principles for wayfinding toward more ethical relationships .”
MacDonald is excited to build on this research , inquiring into “ how these principles might live in other settings and across disciplines to enliven place-specific ecologies as the living curriculum and to support educators in guiding all students towards lifesustaining relations in everyday contexts .”
( L-R ) Dr . Heather Phipps , Darian Agecoutay , Dr . Barbara McNeil , Dr . Kathleen O ' Reilly , Dr . Anna-Leah King , and Stephen Davis at Wanuskewin Heritage Park at the Closing Feast during the Indigenous Literary Studies Association ( ILSA ) Gathering in June 2022 in Saskatoon ( Treaty 6 ).
The theme of the ILSA 2022 gathering was Kîhokêwin tâcimoyin , Se rendre visite pour se raconter des histoires ( Visiting to tell Stories ), and this event brought together many storytellers , knowledge keepers , scholars , artists , and community members . The ILSA gathering 2022 was hosted by and in partnership with the Gabriel Dumont Institute ( GDI ) and the Saskatchewan Ânskohk Writers ’ Circle Inc . ( SAWCI ). Submitted by Dr . Heather Phipps .