Indigenous Studies 430: Indigenous Governance is designed to lead students through the concepts they will need in order to gain a full understanding of the complex issues Indigenous peoples face with respect to governance.
The course is divided into three broad sections. Part 1 introduces Indigenous conceptualizations of such things as land, leadership, citizenship, decision making and relationships with other nations. Part 2 provides a historical and contemporary discussion of the impact of the Indian Act on Indigenous nations and governance, including a discussion of Indigenous resistance and response. Part 3 surveys various responses to Indian Act governance, from the proposals of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP), through discussions of self-government, self-administration, self-determination, and treaty federalism, to Indigenous visions of contemporary governance based on traditional values, knowledge and processes.
Outline
Part 1: Precolonial Understandings
Unit 1: The Foundations of Indigenous Political Culture
Unit 2: Indigenous Worldviews, Values, and Traditional Philosophies of Governance
Unit 3: Indigenous Governance in Precolonial and Contemporary Times
Unit 4: The Responsibilities of Women in Indigenous Governance
Part 2: Indian Act Governance
Unit 5: Indigenous Nations and the State: Colonization, Colonialism and Indigenous Response
Unit 6: The Indian Act
Part 3: Responses to the Indian Act
Unit 7: Treaties and Treaty Federalism
Unit 8: Federal Policy on Aboriginal Governance
Unit 9: Indigenous Visions of Governance: Decolonizing and Anticolonial Strategies
Evaluation
Your final grade in Indigenous Studies 430 is based on the grades you achieve on seven tutor-marked assignments. To receive credit for INST 430, you must achieve a minimum overall course grade of D (50 percent). The weighting of assignments is as follows:
Activity
Weight
Assignment 1
10%
Assignment 2
10%
Assignment 3
10%
Assignment 4
10%
Assignment 5
10%
Assignment 6
10%
Assignment 7
40%
Total
100%
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.
Materials
Battiste, Marie., ed. Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2000. (Print)
Other Materials
The course materials include a study guide, a student manual, and a book of readings.
Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice. Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized study counterparts.
Opened in Revision 1, October 11, 2005
Updated October 21, 2021, by Student & Academic Services