Globalization and Science Education: The Implications for Indigenous Knowledge Systems

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Much of the current diversity literature in science education does not address the complexity of the issues of indigenous learners in their postcolonial environments and calls for a “one size fits all” instructional approach (Lee, 2001). Indigenous knowledge needs to be promoted and supported. There is currently a global initiative of maintaining worldviews, languages, and environments of which science education can be a part (McKinley, 2007). This paper is organized around five main topics that further guide the theoretical framework for this important area: a) describing postcolonialism and indigeneity related to science education, b) defining the terms indigenous knowledge, traditional ecological knowledge, c) western modern science and the effects of globalization on these terms d) examining the research on learning implications of IK and/or TEK in classrooms with a focus on the research into student learning in indigenous language, e) connecting place-based education to curricular implications for indigenous knowledge systems.