905-688-5550, extension 3971 Captain John DeCew 104
The Tecumseh Centre for Aboriginal Research and Education offers an opportunity to study Aboriginal languages, culture and society from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, through courses in Aboriginal Studies and cross-listed courses from co-operating faculty in other departments: Dramatic Arts and Sociology.
The Centre offers a program leading to a Certificate in Aboriginal Language. The program provides an in-depth study of an Aboriginal language and culture from beginner to advanced level.
The Centre also offers the Gidayaamin Aboriginal Women's Certificate Program, designed to be a first year certificate that allows students to transition into an undergraduate degree program of their choice. Embedded in the program design is a holistic system of support that will assist Aboriginal women in meeting their full academic potential in balance with cultural traditions and spirituality.
The requirements for admission to the certificate programs are the same as admission to a degree program. See "Certificate Requirements" under Academic Regulations.
Aboriginal Studies courses may be taken for credit as electives in any degree program or as a minor within their degree program.
Certificate Program
Certificate in Aboriginal Language
The Certificate is awarded upon completion of the following courses with a minimum 60 percent overall average:
·
ABST 1F01, 2F01 and 3F01
·
two credits from ABST 2F91, 2F97, 4F01
Gidayaamin Aboriginal Women's Certificate
The Certificate is awarded upon completion of the following courses with a minimum 60 percent overall average:
·
ABST 1F90, 1F94, 1P22, 1P50, 1P51, 2F14 and 2P17
Minor in Aboriginal Studies
Students in other disciplines can obtain a Minor in Aboriginal Studies within their degree program by completing the following courses with a minimum 60 percent overall average:
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Two ABST credits numbered 1(alpha)00 or above
·
two ABST credits numbered 2(alpha)00 or above
Description of Courses
Note that not all courses are offered in every session. Refer to the applicable term timetable for details.
# Indicates a cross listed course * Indicates primary offering of a cross listed course
Prerequisites and Restrictions
Students must check to ensure that prerequisites are met. Students may be deregistered, at the request of the instructor, from any course for which prerequisites and/or restrictions have not been met.
ABST 1F01 Introduction to Mohawk
Common sentence forms and vocabulary taught by audio-lingual methods. Listening, reading and writing of words and language recorded by Mohawk speakers. Extended dialogues to increase fluency in speech and reading. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Note: one-third of class time is devoted to the study of Mohawk culture.
Completion of this course will replace previous assigned grade and credit obtained in ABST 1P01 and 1P02.
ABST 1F20 Introduction to Algonkian Languages
Common sentence forms and vocabulary taught by audio-lingual methods. Listening, reading and writing of stories recorded by native speakers. Extended dialogues and storytelling to increase fluency in speech and reading. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 1F90 Introduction to Aboriginal Studies
Native cultures in contemporary North America. Diverse and common features of different nations; effects of geography, politics, history and language use. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 1F94 The Traditional Aboriginal Family
The traditional Aboriginal family from pre-contact to the contemporary. Topics include commonalities among cultures, dynamics of family change and development, traditional family planning and parenting as well as individual, family and community relationships and roles. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to ABWC certificate students until date specified in Registration guide.
ABST 1P03 Introduction to Cayuga I
Common sentence forms and vocabulary taught by audio-lingual methods. Listening, reading and writing of stories recorded by native speakers are used. Materials are chosen for cultural and linguistic content. About one-third of class time is devoted to study of the Iroquois culture. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
ABST 1P04 Introduction to Cayuga II
Extended dialogues and storytelling to increase fluency in speech and reading. Transcription of and response to recorded language samples to extend writing in the Cayuga language. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 1P03.
ABST 1P22 Technology in Aboriginal Community
Topics include representation of information, Microsoft applications, internet searching and library database instruction. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to ABWC certificate students until date specified in Registration guide.
ABST 1P31 Introduction to Michif Language I
Common sentence forms and vocabulary taught by audio-lingual methods. Listening, reading and writing of stories recorded by native speakers including an introduction to the Métis culture. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 1P32 Introduction to Michif Language II
Extended dialogues and storytelling to increase fluency in speech and reading. Transcription of, and response to, recorded language samples to extend writing in the Michif language. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 1P31 or permission of the instructor.
ABST 1P50 Aboriginal Spirituality I
Comparative survey of Aboriginal spiritual traditions and the influence on contemporary lifestyle and thought of peoples residing in Canada and the United States. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 1P51 Aboriginal Spirituality II
Study of the similarities and differences in Iroquois and Anishinabe spiritual tradition and belief systems. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 1P50 or permission of the instructor.
ABST 1P90 Pre-Confederation Aboriginal History
Impact of colonialism on Aboriginal peoples from contact to Confederation. Social, economic, and cultural impact on various First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples of Canada. Seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 1P91 Post-Confederation Aboriginal History
Impact of colonialism on Aboriginal peoples from Confederation to present day. Social, economic, and cultural impact on various First Nation, Metis and Inuit peoples of Canada. Seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F01 Intermediate Mohawk
Development of communication abilities and acquisition of the punctual, indefinite and perfect verb forms; transitive pronouns, noun incorporation and locative. Extension of literacy and oral skills through taped and written traditional stories. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 1F01 (1P02).
ABST 2F14 Decolonizing Aboriginal Women's Identities
Aboriginal women's identities from social, cultural and political perspectives emphasizing culture, tradition and spirituality. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to ABWC certificate students until date specified in Registration guide.
ABST 2F20 Intermediate Algonkian Languages
Development of communication abilities and acquisition of the punctual, indefinite and perfect verb forms; transitive pronouns, noun incorporation and locatives. Extension of literacy and oral skills through taped and written traditional stories. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 1F20 or permission of the instructor.
ABST 2F40 Indigenous Creative Arts
Historical and contemporary Indigenous creative expression from various traditions and cultures. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F70 Sharing Our Stories as an Approach to History
The traditional Anishnawbeg "Story of the Seven Fires" forms as organizational framework for the study of community histories of the Nishnawbe Aski territory. Lectures/seminar, 6 hours per week.
Restriction: open to BEd-Primary/Junior (Aboriginal) majors until date specified in Registration guide.
ABST 2F80 Introduction to Aboriginal Education in Canada
Overview of First Nation, Metis and Inuit education in Canada examining various Aboriginal traditions, philosophies and culturally-based models. Purpose of education from both historical and contemporary Indigenous perspectives. Indigenous perspectives on the current state and future direction of teaching and research. Seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F90 Studies in Aboriginal History I
History of a selected Aboriginal society emphasizing the historical perceptions, developments and interpretations of that society. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F91 Studies in Hodonohsonni History
History of a selected Hodinohsonni society emphasizing the historical perceptions, developments and interpretations of that society. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F92 Studies in Aboriginal History II
Independent study in an area of mutual interest to the student and the instructor.
ABST 2F96 Studies in Aboriginal Culture I
Culture of a selected Aboriginal society emphasizing the cultural perceptions, developments and interpretations of that society. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F97 Studies in Hodinohsonni Culture
Culture of a selected Hodinohsonni society emphasizing the cultural perceptions, developments and interpretations of that society. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2F98 Studies in Aboriginal Culture II
Independent study in an area of mutual interest to the student and the instructor.
ABST 2M90-2M95 Studies in Aboriginal History
Variable topics course that surveys the history of a selected Aboriginal society emphasizing the historical perceptions, developments and interpretations of that society. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2M96-2M99 Studies in Aboriginal Culture
Variable topics course that surveys the culture of a selected Aboriginal society emphasizing the cultural perceptions, developments and interpretations of that society. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 2P03 Intermediate Cayuga I
Application of literacy skills and extension of vocabulary and listening skills by reading taped stories and legends and responding orally to audio-taped exercises and in writing to printed exercises. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 1P04.
ABST 2P04 Intermediate Cayuga II
Development of communication abilities and acquisition of the grammatical forms of future, aorist, indefinite and perfect tenses; transitive pronouns, noun incorporation and locatives. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 2P03.
ABST 2P17 Reclaiming Aboriginal Women's Literary Traditions
Aboriginal women's literature and the stories embedded within the literature as they apply to Aboriginal women's histories. Emphasis on decolonizing, reclaiming and strategies of resistance through writing. Lectures/seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to ABWC students until date specified in Registration guide.
ABST 2P96 Aboriginal Theatre
(also offered as DART 2P96)
Theatrical, dramatic and performative representation of Aboriginal peoples in the Canadian experience.
Prerequisite(s): DART 1F93 or permission of the instructor.
ABST 3F01 Advanced Mohawk
Advanced studies in reading, writing and speakin in the Mohawk Language in a cultural context. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 2F01.
ABST 3F03 Advanced Cayuga
Focus on the Great Law and the Code of Handsome Lake. Study of the elevated language and contemporary significance of these works from a Cayuga perspective. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 2P04.
ABST 3P47 Aboriginal Women’s Literature: Activism and Empowerment
Stories embedded within the literature as they apply to contemporary settings. Exploration of the power of Aboriginal women's writing as a political and educational tool. Seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 3P80 Aboriginal Mothering and Motherhood: Historical and Contemporary Realities
Exploring Aboriginal ideologies of mothering and motherhood from a variety of perspectives. Historical mothering practices and family structures highlighting unique roles of Aboriginal women in many communities. Contemporary understandings of Indigenous ideologies of motherhood. Seminar, 3 hours per week.
ABST 3P86 Indigenous Peoples in Global Perspective
(also offered as SOCI 3P86 and WGST 3P86)
Contemporary debates in global Indigenous movements, including the legacy of colonization, land dispossession, cultural appropriation and new developments in the areas of environmental justice, cultural revival and political sovereignty. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to SOCI (single or combined), WGST (single or combined), WISE (single or combined) majors, ABST, SOCI, WGST and WISE minors until the date specified in Registration guide. Students must have a minimum of 7.0 overall credits or 2.0 SOCI credits above SOCI 1F90.
Prerequisite(s): one of one ABST credit, SOCI 1F90, WGST (WISE) 1F90, 2P00 or permission of the Department of Sociology Administrator.
Completion of this course will replace previous assigned grade and credit obtained in ABST (SOCI) 3P46.
ABST 3Q98 Indigenous Peoples in North America
(also offered as SOCI 3Q98 and WGST 3Q98)
Contemporary struggles for cultural survival, land, self-determination and rights in the context of colonialism in North America. Diversity of Indigenous peoples, including their internal debates and divides. Lectures, seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to SOCI (single or combined), WGST (single or combined), WISE (single or combined) majors, ABST, SOCI, WGST and WISE minors until date specified in Registration guide. Students must have a minimum of 7.0 overall credits or 2.0 SOCI credits above SOCI 1F90.
Prerequisite(s): one of one ABST credit, SOCI 1F90, WGST (WISE) 1F90, 2P00 or permission of the Department of Sociology Administrator.
Completion of this course will replace previous assigned grade and credit obtained in ABST (SOCI) 3P46 and ABST (SOCI/WGST) 3P76.
ABST 4F01 The Iroquois Spirit
Three main cultural traditions of contemporary and traditional Iroquois: the Teharonhyawkoh - The Myth of the Earth Grasper (an extensive treatise on Iroquoian Cosmology), the Kaya-nere'kowa -Constitution of the Great Law and the Kariwiyo - the Code of Handsome Lake. Lectures, lab, 4 hours per week.
Prerequisite(s): ABST 3F01 or 3F03.
Note: this course will be conducted partially in the Mohawk language and utilize guest speakers who are recognized experts on the Iroquoian tradition.
ABST 4P76 Indigenous Social and Political Thought
(also offered as SOCI 4P76 and WGST 4P76)
History and contemporary literatures on Indigenous epistemologies, the political philosophy of movements for decolonization, environmental sustainability, and Indigenous writing on gendered justice and cultural resurgence in a globalizing world emphasizing writings by Indigenous scholars. Seminar, 3 hours per week.
Restriction: open to SOCI (single or combined), WGST (single or combined) and WISE (single or combined) majors until date specified in Registration guide. Students must have approval to year 4 (honours).
Prerequisite(s): one of one ABST credit, two SOCI credits, two WGST (WISE) credits or permission of the Department of Sociology Administrator.