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Robinson, David Joseph

University of British Columbia

This land- and art-based qualitative research investigates through in-depth personalized reflection narrative research, my lived experiences, process and perspectives about being an Indigenous carver, educator, and scholar. Specifically, it explores the role of wood carving during my studies at UBC in the NITEP, the Indigenous Teacher Education Program; a series of educational carving projects, and the unique Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) KIJIKATIG project in the UBC graduate studies in the Faculty of Experimental Medicine. The CIHR KIJIKATIG art project included 20 Indigenous youth research participants. This reflexive research represents the storying of personalized reflections that address the need to create a wholistic, planetary health and well-being spaces to promote sustainable dialogues among Indigenous Knowledge, and the Western Science experts in the field of experimental medicine toward decolonizing education and pedagogy. This reflexive research draws upon the analysis of data gathered from my reflexive response to the core values of the Seven Grandfather Teachings, of Love, Respect, Bravery, Truth, Honesty, Humility, Wisdom and the principles of wholeness, symbiosis and simultaneity that align with carving project events. These reflexive research events are journeys expressed through the metaphoric KIJIKATIG (Cedar Tree) Education Model (KEM) that I designed to analyze this research. The methodology of capturing reflexive research reveals aspects of wholistic health and wellness through traditional land-and art-based teachings thereby highlighting best practices in education in the field of experimental medicine. The (KEM) has been used in two complementary ways within the research. First as a framework for data analysis and secondly as a conceptual metaphor for students. This research has at its core aspects of ‘wholeness and experience’ in narrative inquiry that works well with small groups. The KEM as a research model aligns the metaphor of the cedar tree and its growth stages the (1) pith, (2) heartwood, (3) sapwood, (4) cambium and (5) bark. The first four stages are personalized reflections highlighting the role my art and carving projects played in education and gaining of knowledge. While the fifth (bark) stage reflections represent the KIJIKATIG project whereby the carving session was recorded for transcription and knowledge was transformed.

Text

2025-02-20

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/90397

Experimental Medicine

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/