Participants' Perceptions of the Ho-Chunk Nation Indigenous Arts and Sciences Institute

Abstract

Native American culture or Indigenous ways of knowing and learning have been historically underrepresented in US public school classrooms. In this study, I claim that educators should participate in culturally influenced professional development (PD) opportunities to better serve all students. The Ho-Chunk Indigenous Arts & Sciences Institute (HIASI), a PD opportunity available since 2016, was created to assist educators in creating culturally inclusive, collaborative learning environments. In this qualitative, phenomenological study, I examined how HIASI participation influenced Indigenous Knowledge integration into classroom instruction and curriculum, as well as how innovative, Indigenized pedagogy impacted student-teacher relationships and created engaging, collaborative learning environments. The HIASI participants I interviewed for this study described how attending HIASI led them to incorporate more culturally relevant, Indigenized pedagogy into their classrooms, resulting in an increase in student interest and engagement.