Drawing on treaties, international law, the work of other Indigenous scholars, and especially personal experiences, Marie Battiste documents the nature of Eurocentric models of education, and their devastating impacts on Indigenous knowledge. Chronicling the negative consequences of forced assimilation, racism inherent to colonial systems of education, and the failure of current educational policies for Aboriginal populations, Battiste proposes a new model of education, arguing the preservation of Aboriginal knowledge is an Aboriginal right. Central to this process is the repositioning of Indigenous humanities, sciences, and languages as vital fields of knowledge, revitalizing a knowledge system which incorporates both Indigenous and Eurocentric thinking.

Dr. Marie Battiste is a Mi’kmaw educator and professor in the Indian and Northern Education Program at the University of Saskatchewan. Her historical research of Mi’kmaw literacy and education as a graduate student at Harvard University and later at Stanford University, where she received her doctorate degree in curriculum and teacher education, provided the foundation for her later writings in cognitive imperialism, linguistic and cultural integrity, and the decolonization of Aboriginal education. A recipient of two honorary degrees—from St. Mary’s University, Halifax, and from the University of Maine at Farmington—she has worked actively with First Nations schools as an administrator, teacher, consultant, and curriculum developer, advancing Aboriginal epistemology, languages, pedagogy, and research. Her research interests are in initiating institutional changes to decolonize education, language, and social justice policy and power, and in devising educational approaches that recognize and affirm the political and cultural diversity of Canada. She is senior editor of First Nations Education in Canada: The Circle Unfolds, a 1995 publication from the University of British Columbia Press, and editor of Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision, published by the University of British Columbia Press in 2000. She is a board member of the International Research Institute (IRI) for Maori and Indigenous Education in New Zealand and a member of the Board of Governors for the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Canada. (Update 2010: In 2008, Dr. Battiste received a National Aboriginal Achievement Award, National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation. She is currently Academic Director, Aboriginal Education Research Centre (AERC), College of Education, University of Saskatchewan.)

Marie Battiste's profile page

Rita Bouvier is an educator and a writer. She has published two collections of poetry with Thistledown Press, Blueberry Clouds (1999) and papîyâhtak (2004), and has been nominated for several Saskatchewan Book Awards. Bouvier's poetry has been translated into Spanish and German, and her work has appeared in literary anthologies and musical and television productions. In 2008 the Gabriel Dumont Institute published a collaborative children's book with artists Sherry Farrell-Racette and Margaret Gardiner and featuring the title poem from papîyâhtak titled Better That Way. Bouvier lives in Saskatoon.

Rita Bouvier's profile page

• Short-listed, Rasmussen, Rasmussen & Charowsky Aboriginal Peoples’ Writing Award, Saskatchewan Book Awards
• Short-listed, University of Regina Arts and Luther Award for Scholarly Writing, Saskatchewan Book Awards

Battiste has carefully crafted her book in a manner that goes from the deeply personal to the undeniably political in a seamless fashion that most writers strive to accomplish, but few succeed. … with Battiste’s leadership and inspiration, we can become catalysts for change, rather than harbingers of history. The academy remains indebted to scholars like Dr. Battiste, who has the wisdom and political acumen to “show us the way”.

Education Matters, Vol. 3, Issue 1

Marie Battiste gives us a book that is comprehensive in its scope, with 10 chapters of tightly written prose extensively referenced and organized around relevant research. The book will be a welcome addition to all those who seek to provide the best education we can for all our learners.

AlterNative Vol. 11, No. 1

With this book, Battiste helps us to see the ways that this imperialist approach to education continues today in the Canadian educational system. … what I am most grateful for from this work is the vision Battiste lays out for the transformation of how we think about knowledge and learning in this country. It is this part of her work in particular that makes this a relevant read for any Canadian, not solely educators.

Intotemak, Vol. 43, No. 1

Battiste’s “storytelling manner” provides a textured analysis and discussion of the multilayered and multipronged components embodied within the discourse on Indigenous education and the need to decolonize the education system in its entirety … a must-read for all administrators and educators, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, especially those who are involved in educational policy.

Brock Education Journal Vol. 23, No. 2

Decolonizing Education provides an opportunity for educators, researchers, students, and parents alike to think about how it is they envision a well-rounded, just, and balanced curriculum.

Alberta Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 60, No. 3