Jessica Ball

Enacting Research Ethics in Partnerships with Indigenous Communities in Canada: “Do it in a Good Way”

Two studies conducted through community-campus partnerships demonstrated emerging frameworks for ethical conduct of research involving Indigenous peoples in Canada. Both projects involved multiple Indigenous community partners whose interests in promoting childrens development and fathers involvement motivated the projects. The Indigenous projects were conceived within a broader social agenda of restorative justice and self-determination of Indigenous peoples in Canada following centuries of colonial government interventions. Guiding principles included community relevance, community participation, mutual capacity building, and benefit to Indigenous communities. Memoranda of Understanding negotiated with each community partner specified the roles of community and university partners and research team members in each phase of the research. Testimonials obtained from community representatives before and after the research projects indicated the success of the projects in yielding benefits to the communities in the form of substantive knowledge and strengthened capacities to engage in collaborative research through community-campus partnerships. The larger collaborative research projects in which these two Indigenous projects were embedded created challenges and opportunities due to varying recognition within these networks of the primacy of relationships as a foundation for research and the indeterminacy of outcomes when ownership of data and control over dissemination is in the hands of community partners.

First Nations English dialects in Canada: implications for speech-language pathology.

The current study reports preliminary information gathered about First Nations English dialects in Canada and considers implications for speech‐language pathology practice. Information was gathered from literature searches and forums of First Nations and non‐First Nations speech‐language pathologists, developmentalists, and linguists. The exploratory findings suggest that First Nations English dialects are shaped both by transference of features from the ancestral languages and by cultural patterns of communication. The dialects likely represent late stages of depidginization and decreolization. Examples of phonological and syntactic dialectal features illustrate the importance of recognizing non‐standard varieties of English when assessing speakers of First Nations communities and setting up goals and strategies for treatment. Research is urgently needed to identify features of First Nations English dialects both for linguistic documentation and to help speech‐language pathologists and other educators to distinguish between language impairments and dialect differences and to develop culturally relevant assessment and intervention practices.

Fathering in the Shadows: Indigenous Fathers and Canada's Colonial Legacies

A study of Canadian Indigenous fathers involvement conceptualized a temporal horizon within which to situate challenges and opportunities for caring for children following decades of colonial interventions that have diminished mens roles. Through five community-university partnerships, conversational interviews were held with eighty First Nations and Métis fathers in British Columbia, Canada. Using a grounded theory approach, a conceptual model was constructed identifying six key ecological and psychological factors that combine to account for Indigenous mens experiences of fatherhood: personal wellness, learning fathering, socioeconomic inclusion, social support, legislative and policy support, and cultural continuity. Indigenous fathers accounts bring into focus systemic barriers to positive fathers involvement, including socioeconomic exclusion due to failures of the educational system, ongoing colonization through Canadas Indian Act, and mother-centrism in parenting programs and child welfare practices. Policy and program reforms are suggested to increase Indigenous fathers positive and sustained engagement with their children.

Indigenous Fathers’ Involvement in Reconstituting “Circles of Care”

This qualitative study, part of a Canadian national study of fathers’ involvement, opened up First Nations and Métis fathering as a new area of inquiry. Conversational interviews with 80 Indigenous fathers illuminated the socio-historical conditions that have shaped Indigenous men’s experiences of learning to be a father and becoming a man in the context of changing gender relationships and the regeneration of circles of care. Indigenous fathers’ experiences unfold in a socio-historical context fraught with difficulties. However, the study findings suggest cultural strengths and sources of resilience unseen in research and community programs driven by Euro-western perspectives. This research can inform efforts to reduce systemic barriers and reconstitute positive father involvement following disrupted intergenerational transmission of fathering in Canada and elsewhere.

Literacy and Numeracy Skills among Children in Developing Countries

Young children in developing countries are at risk—due to no, little, or low quality education, and limited family resources and constrained opportunities for culturally meaningful learning. The risk is even greater for children who do not speak the majority language, endure poverty, and are members of marginalized groups including girls and religious minorities. This chapter identifies some of the foundational literacy, numeracy, and cognitive skills that children need to acquire in order to gain access to advanced educational and economic opportunities, and strategies to support these skills especially for children who are not well served by existing teaching and curricula. We identify some promising programs, research gaps, and areas where policy reforms are needed. Throughout the chapter we show how parental support, appropriate curricula, including use of the child’s first language, and effective teachers are crucial for educational achievement of all children.