Copyright

Marguerite Koole; Michael Cottrell; Janet Mola Okoko; Kristine Dreaver-Charles

Published On

2023-08-18

Page Range

pp. 173–196

Language

  • English

Print Length

24 pages

13. Indigenous, Settler, Diasporic, and Post-colonial: The Identities Woven Through our Academic Writing

Chapter of: Research, Writing, and Creative Process in Open and Distance Education: Tales from the Field(pp. 173–196)
A collaboration by four colleagues at varying stages of their careers, this chapter is both polyvocal and autobiographical. It is organized using the concepts of 1) the autobiographical self in which we describe our background and training as scholars, 2) the discoursal self in which we share our thoughts on identity and voice in our writing, and 3) the authorial self in which we reflect on our writing processes and struggles. Each of these “selves” offers a space for possibilities for selfhood. As we describe these aspects of our writing “selves,” we explore our positionings as Indigenous, settler, diasporic and post-colonial individuals, and how those identities performatively intertwine with the expectations of our academic contexts.

Contributors

Marguerite Koole

(author)
Associate Professor, Educational Technology And Design, College Of Education at University of Saskatchewan
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0041-5615

Marguerite Koole is an associate professor in educational technology and design in the College of Education, University of Saskatchewan. Her PhD thesis, completed in 2013 at Lancaster University, UK, is entitled “Identity Positioning of Doctoral Students in Networked Learning Environments”. She holds a Master of Education in Distance Education (MEd) with a focus on mobile learning and a BA in modern languages. She also completed a college diploma in multimedia production with training in web development, audio, video, animation, 3D animation, marketing, and business. Marguerite has been involved in teaching, instructional design, multimedia programming, content management, e-portfolios, and social software. She has designed interactive, online learning activities for various learning purposes and platforms — including print, web, and mobile devices. Email: m.koole@ usask.ca

Michael Cottrell

(author)
Associate Professor and Graduate Chair, Educational Administration, College of Education at University of Saskatchewan
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3227-7090

Michael Cottrell is associate professor and graduate chair in the department of Educational Administration, College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan. Michael’s research and teaching areas include Indigenous-Newcomer relations, Indigenous education, international and comparative education, and Irish diasporic studies. In addition to peer-reviewed scholarship he has conducted a significant body of social-justice oriented applied and advocacy research, frequently on behalf of Indigenous communities. Email: michael.cottrell@usask.ca

Janet Okoko

(author)
Associate Professor, Department of Educational Administration, College of Education at University of Saskatchewan
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1535-6793

Janet Mola Okoko is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Administration, College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. She holds a Bachelor of Education from Kenyatta University in Kenya, a Master of Education, and a PhD in educational leadership from the University of Calgary. Her research focuses on school leadership preparation and development. She is currently studying how school leaders’ capacity to use practitioner- oriented and technology-mediated research to support student learning can be enhanced. Her recent publications report on cross-cultural perspectives on teacher leadership and contextual perspectives of qualitative research methods. Email: janet.okoko@usask.ca

Kristine Dreaver-Charles

(author)
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2550-163X

Kristine Dreaver-Charles is a member of the Mistawasis First Nation, and she grew up in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Her early career was spent teaching middle years and high school students in northern Saskatchewan. A position teaching online led to a master’s degree in instructional media from Wilkes University. Kristine works at the University of Saskatchewan and in 2022 began a new position as an academic innovation specialist with the information and communications technology portfolio. As a PhD candidate, Kristine’s areas of interest are decolonization in distance education, Indigenization, and reconciliation in higher education. She also has a related area of interest in Indigenization and internationalization in study abroad — a part of this work includes Indigenous assessment. Email: kristine. dreavercharles@usask.ca; https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2550-163X