Content area
Abstract
“Cooperative Learning in a Cree Community” is a study of the implementation of innovative teaching methods in a cooperative learning environment at Sabtuan Cree Adult Education. The implementation was a response to the historical context of education in Mistissini Lake. I was the English Language Arts teacher for the adult sector in Mistissini Lake between 1996–1998. My students ranged between the ages of 16 and 50. In addition to Language Arts I taught optional courses like Economics, History, Word Processing and Personal and Social Development.
I determined to investigate the potential of cooperative, and student self-evaluation as a valid instructional model for Cree adult learners. My primary objective was to increase critical thinking, learner confidence, and self-directed activity in the classroom. My aim was to study the correlation between interactive pedagogy and student engagement. One indicator of student involvement is student absenteeism. Thus one component of this study examines the correlation between cooperative learning and student attendance.
In the introduction I discuss the problems indigenous people have encountered and my understanding and assessment of the present situation in Cree schools. The second section gives a summary of the Cree context, their culture and history, particularly as it pertains to education, and largely from the Cree perspective. The third section contains my classroom activities, the goals I set for the students and the indicators with which I gauged and measured the effectiveness of the project.
In conclusion, the implementation of cooperative learning methods yielded positive results both in student achievement and in decreasing truancy for Cree adult learners. The study confirms that cooperative learning can address students' needs to increase language proficiency and to be active participants in classroom activity. This model is congruent with Cree learners' collaborative and egalitarian values that are inherent in the traditional Cree culture.
