PLACE-BASED AND CULTURALLY-RESPONSIVE DIGITAL SLIDES FOR INTRODUCTORY GEOSCIENCE TEACHING

At Diné College, the college of the Diné (Navajo) people, students are introduced to the geosciences by means of the place-based course “Indigenous Physical Geology.” This course promotes relevance and student interest by focusing on the geology of the Navajo Nation and environs on the Colorado Plateau and Southern Rockies, and by incorporating Diné geological concepts and terms. In this course, the principal means of classroom delivery is by digital PowerPoint presentations enhanced by regular periods of laboratory inquiry and discussion. Printouts of PowerPoint slides are also used during exercises in the field.

In keeping with the Indigenous geoscience theme of this course, we are developing digital PowerPoint slides that use culturally-meaningful colors and patterns to evoke not only Plateau geology and physiography, but significant and illustrative concepts from Diné ethnogeology, such as the interaction of endogenic and exogenic (Nohosdzáán-Yádilhil) processes, a dynamic-equilibrium cycle referred to as the “natural order,” and the four Sacred Mountains, which delineate the physical boundaries of the Navajo Nation and comprise most of its watersheds. Preliminary post-testing indicates that Navajo students respond positively to the use of culturally-relevant images and designs to teach basic geoscience concepts. Digital slides of this type have also attracted interest from non-Navajo educators and researchers when presented at off-reservation conferences.