Online workshop - Indigenizing Education: Historical Perspectives and Present Challenges in Sámi Education

Else Grete Broderstad, ph.d. in political science, is professor in Indigenous studies at the Centre for Sámi Studies, UiT The Arctic University of Norway. She is PI and part of a series of research projects wherein key issues are the relationship between government, industry and Indigenous communities.

Title of Docent, dr. Pigga Keskitalo works as a researcher at the University of Lapland, Finland. She also works as a bi-researcher at the Sámi University of Applied Sciences, Norway, where children’s ethical thinking is investigated. At the moment, she is working on an Academy of Finland funded project that aims to develop Sámi language distance education. In addition, she is involved in several development projects, including Arctic Pedagogy 2 (funded by the European Social Fund), and eLappi development of teacher competence in digital pedagogy (also funded by the European Social Fund). Keskitalo’s research interests focus broadly on the field of Sámi education and its research. Her Ph.D. dissertation investigated how the Sámi curriculum in Norway is conducted at the Sámi schools.

Email: pigga.keskitalo(at)ulapland.fi

Read more at the contact page of her home university.

Torjer Olsen is from the Tromsø area at the coast of Sápmi/Northern Norway. His research interests include indigenous education - gender, power and methodology in Indigenous studies – and Christianity in Sámi contexts. Olsen is the PI of the international research project Indigenous Citizenship and Education.

Email: torjer.olsen(at)uit.no

Dr. Hanna-Máret Outakoski is senior lecturer in North Sámi at the Department of Language Studies at Umeå University, Sweden, and at Arctic University of Norway in Tromsø. Her latest research project investigates teaching of heritage language writing in Sámi educational contexts. One of the aims of the current collaborative research is to strengthen the position of Sámi writing among Sámi youth, and to find new models for teachers to widen the discourses of writing instruction in Sámi education. In her earlier research, Outakoski has investigated the writing processes of multilingual young writers, context of multilingual writing in Sápmi, and teacher perspectives on Sámi writing. Other research interests lie on North Sami grammar and syntax, on the possibilities and potential of using virtual worlds and virtual classrooms for language revitalization, as well as on language use in society in general.

Email: hanna.outakoski(at)umu.se

Ol-Johán Sikku is leader of the project SáMOS (Sámi mánát ođđa searvelanjain). The purpose of the project is to develop Sami pedagogical methods based on the Sami language, culture and traditional knowledge at Sami pre-schools, that is adapted to modern Sami society. Project time: 2018-2022.

Email: ol.johan.sikku(at)samediggi.no

Hilde Sollid main research area is sociolinguistics, with a special focus on linguistic diversity and multilingualism in Northern Norway. Sollid is currently working on the project Indigenous Citizenship and Education, funded by the Research Council of Norway, where she explores topics related to Sámi language education policy and indigenous education.

Professor Tuija Turunen holds a position of Dean at the Faculty of Education, University of Lapland, Finland. She is a leader of the teacher education programme. She also leads UArctic Thematic Network on Teacher Education for Social Justice and Diversity and UNESCO/UNITWIN Network on Teacher Education for Social Justice and Diversity. Professor Turunen is an internationally recognized expert, has published widely and leads several national and international projects. Professor Turunen’s current research interests focus on teacher education, professional development in higher education, educational transitions, indigenous pedagogies and preventive school welfare work.

Email: tuija.turunen(at)ulapland.fi

Ekaterina Zmyvalova was born in Arkhangelsk (Russia). Since 2016 Zmyvalova is a PhD researcher at the Umeå University in Sámi studies. In 2013 she started her studies at the master programme of Indigenous studies at the UiT-Arctic University of Norway, followed by here specialist studies at the faculty of law at the Northern Arctic Federal University. Zmyvalova participates actively in international conferences and seminars dedicated to the indigenous people’s rights. She has published several book chapters and articles within the field of implementation of the rights of Indigenous peoples of Russia. The titles of some book chapters are “The development of Sámi children's right to learn Sámi in the Russian school context”, “The Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Marine Areas in Russia” and articles “Indigenous Children’s Right to Learn Their Mother Tongue at School: Implementation and Realization in Russia”, “Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North and Their Right to Traditional Fishing”.

Rauni Äärelä-Vihriälä is a associate professor in Sámi allaskuvla, Norway. She has a doctorate in 2016 from the University of Lapland. Her dissertation is a unique study of Sámi language nest activities. Her work in Sámi allaskuvla focuses on the sámi teacher education and in the sámi eductional research field her research focuses on sámi language immersion.

Email: rauniav(at)samas.no