Reflecting on Cultural Training Outside of Cultural Place

Abstract

The purpose of this reflective paper is to explore ways to provide quality cultural training to the faculty of a small Christian college in the area of blending Indigenous and Western ways of knowing. Although we are using various methods, including a one-week immersion in an Alaskan Native village, it seems that progress towards indigenizing the curriculum and methodologies is agonizingly slow. How can we bring effective change in a Westernized setting with limited opportunities for rich, Indigenous crosscultural experiences for faculty and staff? After researching immersion training, vicarious learning, and simulations, these authors came to the realization that we were missing the forest for the trees. It is the students who hold the power to impact the faculty and the classroom environment. All they need is a collaborative alliance with the faculty to demonstrate their knowledge, culture, and ways of knowing.