With Native American college matriculation on the rise and with online learning increasing in popularity, a need exists to bridge the two and to develop online learning practices that are culturally responsive. Kirkness and Barnhardt identify four principles central to American Indian education: respect, relevance, reciprocity, and responsibility. These four principles were used as the framework of this ethnographic, qualitative study, which included two Native American female students enrolled in an online course at a large 4-year University in the southeast. Results showed that students wanted supportive learning environments, Indigenous curriculum and perspectives represented online classrooms, interaction with professors and peers, and opportunities for project-based learning.
Aparicio, M., Bacao, F., & Oliveira, T. (2016). Cultural impacts on e- learning systems' success. The Internet and Higher Education, 31, 58--70. doi: 10.1016/j.iheduc.2016.06.003
BritzmanD. (1995). Beyond innocent readings: Educational ethnography as a crisis of representation. In PinkW.NoblitG. W. (Eds.), Continuity and contradiction: The futures of the sociology of education (pp. 133-156).
Cresskill, NJ:
Hampton.
DennenV.BongJ. (2018).
Cross-cultural dialogues in an open online course: Navigating national and organizational cultural differences. TechTrends,
62, 383–392. doi:10.1007/s11528-018-0276-7
6.
HuntB.HarringtonC. (2010).
The impending educational crisis for American Indians: Higher education at the crossroads. Indigenous Policy Journal,
21, 1–13.
7.
KirknessV.BarnhardtR. (2016).
First Nations and higher education: The four r’s–respect, relevance, reciprocity, responsibility. Journal of American Indian Education,
30(3), 1–15.
8.
LuytI. (2013).
Bridging spaces: Cross-cultural perspectives on promoting positive online learning experiences. Journal of Educational Technology Systems,
42(1), 3–20.
9.
McLoughlinC. (2000).
Designing learning environments for cultural inclusivity: A case study of Indigenous online learning at tertiary level. Australian Journal of Educational Technology,
16(1), 58–72. doi:10.14742/ajet.1822
SheridanK.KellyM. A. (2010).
The indicators of instructor presence that are important to students in online courses. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching,
6(4), 767–779.
17.
SterenbergG. (2013).
Considering Indigenous knowledges and mathematics curriculum. Canadian Journal of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education,
13(1), 18–32.
18.
TuC. H.McIssacM. (2002).
The relationship of social presence and interaction in online classes. The American Journal of Distance Education,
16(3), 131–150.
VogelL. R. (2011). Online learning and the oral tradition: An examination of the strengths and challenges of an online Native American leadership preparation program. Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED516140.pdf
21.
YonD. (2003).
Highlights and overview of the history of educational ethnography. Annual Review of Anthropology,
32(1), 411–429. doi:10.1146/annurev.anthro. 32.061002.093449
