Removing Barriers to Higher Education to Promote Health
Removing Barriers to Higher Education to Promote Health Equity among Indigenous Canadians Alexandra Kent- Equity Lens in Public Health, UVic
Acknowledgements Centre for Aboriginal Health Research University of Victoria
ELPH Research Program Study 1: Health Equity Priorities and Strategies Parallel Indigenous Analysis Purpose: ØConceptualize relational environments within the public health system; ØIdentify barriers and facilitators to health equity for Indigenous peoples in BC; and ØAnalyze the uptake and implementation of Indigenous health equity as a priority in BC health authorities. Significance: ØPronounced inequity among BC’s Indigenous populations ØCulturally-relevant framework of analysis
What is Health Equity? Equity: “The absence of avoidable or remediable differences among groups of people, whether those groups are defined socially, economically, demographically, or geographically. ” -World Health Organization, 2014 Inequity: “Differences in health which are not only unnecessary and avoidable, but, in addition, are considered unfair and unjust. ” -Margaret Whitehead, 1992, The Concepts and Principles of Equity in Health
Framework of Relational Environments Stem Environments Core Environments Haida Tree by kireihiryu http: //kireihiryu. deviantart. com/art/Haida-Tree-173902964 Root Environments
Stem Environments Non. Symbolic Human
Core Environments Systems Communities Institutions
Root Environments Social Political Cultural Historical
Findings Education as… A Determinant of Health Root Environment A Sector for Collaboration Core Environment A Strategy for Capacity-Building Core Environment “We will work with the “Improvements in Ministries of Health “Building for the Services and Education health status of and post secondary future through Aboriginal people partners to ensure the educating Aboriginal depends on youth and improvements in the appropriate supply of social determinants staff has the skills and community members competencies they need about both of health, such as to provide safe, high professional and education, quality care, and are support career employment and able to respond to opportunities in housing, and not just changing health care healthcare. ” improvements to system and population health services. ” health needs. ” A Culturally-Safe Option Stem Environment “Increase cultural safety in curriculum for health care education; Use postsecondary network to communicate cultural safety themes…” “Build on existing relationships to develop curriculum that addresses Aboriginal peoples’ health needs”
The Potential Role of Higher Education Ø Recruit and retain more Indigenous students in public health programs through flexible learning designs and online course delivery. “There is an urgent need in Canada to increase access to accredited, effective post-secondary education to Indigenous learners through a variety of modalities to meet a range of learners’ needs, goals, prior learning histories, and life circumstances” (Ball, 2007, p. 2). Ø Promote participation among non-traditional student groups (e. g. working professionals and parents). “E-learning also seems to hold promise for Indigenous learners who have work, family, or community roles that preclude them from participating in on-campus programs of study, or who have personal or financial reasons for choosing not to join classroom-based learning environments” (Ball, 2007, p. 2) Ø Provide access to individuals living in Northern and remote areas, and further provide an incentive for them to stay and work in their communities while studying and after graduation. “Many rural, remote, and northern communities face difficulties in access to learning opportunities. As a result, there is growing interest in distance learning as a means of overcoming the challenges of geography and isolation” (Battiste and Mc. Lean, 2005, p. 12).
Advantages of Online Education Advantages Disadvantages Ø More flexible method of learning; Ø Studies can be completed at any time from any location; Ø Enables balance of work and family commitments; Ø Prepares students to succeed in the 21 st century; Ø Community can be created online; Ø Encourages thoughtful participation; Ø Engages students less likely to participate in classroom activities. Ø Requires regular access to a computer and the internet; Ø Requires a basic technology skill level; Ø Students must be self-disciplined and self-directed, with strong time management skills; Ø Potential privacy, confidentiality, and anonymity concerns; Ø Physical absence of an instructor; and Ø Students miss out on the visceral camaraderie of peers.
Effectiveness of Online Education Research Specific to Indigenous Populations Post-Secondary (Ball, 2007) Grade School (Philpott, Sharpe, and Neville, 2009) Ø Survey of Indigenous learners enrolled at the University of Victoria. Ø Explores the potential of online learning technologies to help fill the persisting large gap in Indigenous postsecondary participation, retention and success. Ø Suggests the existing research literature on the effectiveness of online learning for Indigenous learners is sparse, and the few available case studies include high school programs and delivery models that use other distributed learning technologies. Ø Study of use of e-learning among K-12 Indigenous students in Coastal Labrador. Ø Provides evidence of the importance, usefulness and learning benefits of web-delivered instruction as a viable alternative to face-to-face instruction for Indigenous students in rural, isolated contexts. Ø Claims e-learning shows promise in the attempt to address low achievement and limited educational opportunities for aboriginal and rural students.
UVic: Online Programs Ø Canadian leaders in distance education, using emerging technology to deliver innovative programs. Ø Award for Excellence and Innovation in Student Services (2007) from the Canadian Association of Distance Education. Ø “UVic prides itself on the rigor and high quality of its non-traditional courses, which are equal to, and often models for, on-campus offerings. You will study with excellent instructors from the University and professional practice who are committed to their subjects and to access for non-traditional students. ” – UVic Distance Education Services
UVic: Indigenous Students
Internet Connectivity Low Speed (Not connected as per Industry Canada minimum of 1. 5 Mb/s to the household) Consumer Broadband Satelitemte (Not connected as per Industry Canada minimum of 1. 5 Mb/s to the household) Industrial/Institutional Capable Broadband (Not connected. No residential access) Consumer Broadband Terrestrial (Connected as per Industry Canada minimum of 1. 5 Mb/s to the household) Consumer Broadband Satelitemte (Connected as per Industry Canada minimum of 1. 5 Mb/s to the household) Industrial/Institutional Capable Broadband (Connected)
Discussion… Reputation of Online Education Students, instructors, universities, employers… “E-learning is often dismissed on the basis of preconceptions about the lack of interactivity possible through online learning platforms or assumptions that Indigenous learners always prefer to learn through face -to-face encounters that rely on visual and oral communications” (Ball, 2007, p. 2). “The long-term viability of online courses in the U. S. is in SERIOUS DOUBT if the viability is tied to the perceived academic value of developing them” [emphasis in original] (Schell, 2004).
Questions? Contact Information Alexandra Kent Email: alexandrakent@hotmail. com Phone: (604)316 -2286
References Ball, J. (2007). Indigenous learners online: The future isn’t what it used to be. Retrieved from http: //www. ecdip. org/docs/pdf/Ind%20 Ed%20 Conf%20 paper%2007. pdf Barnett, Ronald (2010). Being a University (Foundations and Futures of Education). Taylor and Francis Bell, H. A. (2012, October 1). Online learning, only better. The Chronicles of Higher Education. Retrieved from http: //chronicle. com/article/Massive-Excitement-About/134684/ Butler-Jones, D. (2008). Our population, our health and the distribution of our health. In The state of public health in Canada: Report of the Chief Public Health Officer (pp. 19 -33). Ottawa, ON: Public Health Agency of Canada. Retrieved from http: //www. phac-aspc. gc. ca/cphorsphc-respcacsp/2008/fr-rc/cphorsphc-respcacsp 06 b-eng. php Dabbagh, N. (2007). The online learner: Characteristics and pedagogical implications. Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 7(3), 217 - 226. Golod, A. (2014, September 19). Online options expanding in higher education landscape. US News, Retrieved from http: //www. usnews. com/news/college-of-tomorrow/articles/2014/09/22/online-options-expanding-in-higher-education -landscape Philpott, D. , Sharpe, D. , & Neville, R. (2010). The effectiveness of web-delivered learning with aboriginal students: Findings from a study in coastal Labrador. Canadian Journal Of Learning And Technology / La Revue Canadienne De L’Apprentissage Et De La Technologie, 35(3). Retrieved from http: //www. cjlt. ca/index. php/cjlt/article/view/545/268 Schell, G. P. (2004). Universities marginalize online courses. Communications of the ACM 47(7). Retrieved from http: //dl. acm. org/citation. cfm? id=1005821 Stange, C. (2011). Privacy Concern and Student Engagement in the Virtual Classroom. University of Victoria. Retrieved from http: //distance. uvic. ca/pdfs/Privacy-Concerns-and-Student-Engagement. pdf University of Victoria Institutional Planning and Analysis. (2013, June 25). University of Victoria Performance Measures. Retrieved from https: //www. uvic. ca/vpacademic/assets/docs/2013 Performance. Measures. pdf
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