This qualitative case study draws on ethnographic methods that explore the feelings,
perceptions, and meanings of relationships between people as they interact within a particular time and space with the intent of understanding the cultural norms, values, and roles as
pertaining to what is remembered by participants (White 2009). As a case study, the approach is archetypically consistent, providing a single instance of a bounded system (Creswell, 1994) (e.g., teaching in an isolated community). Further, there is rich description (paying attention to the subtle dynamic complexity) of a unique example of real people in real situations (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2011; Geertz, 1973; Hitchcock & Hughes, 1995) with the intent of facilitating others’ reinterpretation of the case for their own unique purposes or contexts (e.g. teacher professional development) (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2011). Temporally, the work went continually back and forth between the interpretive effort to ethnographically document teachers’ developing attitudes and perceptions (i.e., mindedness) towards where they were, what they were doing, and how they were doing it. Admittedly, a few weeks is hardly enough time to truly get to know a place or the people living there. This paper thus reflects a snapshot of my impressions of a small group of people occupying a particular space in one community at a specific time with the hope of discerning insights for those in similarly dense intercultural spaces.
Time in the field consisted of an immersive 21 days as a Settler outsider-researcher-teacher in the remote Naskapi FN communities of Utaanaaw and Umisa4 in northern Quebec during the latter half of a winter semester. The school (ca. mid 1980’s), located in Utaanaaw, is bilingual Naskapi and English with approximately 250 students, mostly local FN. The day-to-day running of the school is primarily in English, but Naskapi is the language of instruction from pre-k to grade 3 and English is introduced in grade 3E (a language bridging level) and remains the primary language of instruction through to secondary 5. Further efforts to preserve Naskapi culture include classes in local history and knowledge for all grades. Participants generally agreed this endeavor requires more effort. Approximately one-third of the teachers were Naskapi and two-thirds were Settlers from southern Canada and beyond.
I immersed myself in teachers’ daily routine and did my best to become ‘one of the team’ by being useful when and where I could be. The staff often shared personal anecdotes and invited me for dinner and movie nights. I also joined the teachers for a three-day community broomball tournament, the school’s winter carnival celebrations, the occasional snowshoe hike, ice fishing, and campfire chats. The knowledge and insights from these informal interactions were
documented by reflective journaling – a practice proven useful in synthesizing data and distinguishing my personal lens in the field (Fusch, Fusch & Ness, 2017). Planned research activities included one-to-one interviews with twenty FN and Settler staff members and two concurrent focus group discussions held near the end of my stay. Despite having prepared guiding questions, there were no pre-fixed notions of what should be covered. The general goal was to initiate and support free flowing (yet somewhat focused) conversations to bring out participants’ perceptions, experiences, and reflections on coping with life and work in their culturally diverse and, for Southerners, different context. Interview participants consisted of twelve Anglo-Settlers from the south (i.e., southern Ontario and Quebec as well as New
Brunswick) teaching middle school and secondary students and/or in administration. There were three Franco-Settlers from southern Quebec teaching high school, four Naskapi teachers
4Utaanaaw (pseudonym) Naskapi word meaning town. Umisa (pseudonym) Naskapi word meaning older sister (https://dictionary.naskapi.atlas-ling.ca). Hence forth, ‘the’ community refers to both Umisa and Utaanaaw – as is common local practice. Combined population approximately 1000.
instructing elementary and middle school classes, and one Chinese Canadian immigrant who served as school librarian. The focus groups, because almost all faculty and staff participated, involved additional FN and Settler participants but English-speaking Settlers clearly
outnumbered other language or culture groups.
More generally, the age and teaching experience of Settler teachers in the school varied between those new to teaching whose teaching experience at that time was solely in Utaanaaw and those who had been teaching more than twenty years in various locales. Of this latter group, some, like Janine, had spent more than 20 consecutive years in Utaanaaw while others, such as Adrian, had more than 20 years of teaching behind them but had moved out of and back into Utaanaaw at least once. One recurrent area of discussion was the many Settler teachers who had come and gone over the years – some stayed years, others stayed weeks or days, and one stayed less than 24 hours. Most Settler participants spoke of local short-term plans while long-term career goals were undetermined but likely in the south. The Naskapi teachers had spent most of their lives and their entire teaching career in Utaanaaw (even earning their teaching credentials locally via a distance teacher education program run by a major English university in southern Quebec) and their age and teaching experience varied. They too spoke of the transience of Settler teachers, but their concern seemed focused on the community not their career.
Name Gender Origin First language Years Teaching Years in Community
Angie F Ontario English 1.5 1.5
Adrian M Quebec English 20+ 14.5
Denise F Ontario English 10+ 10+
Dan M Quebec French 10+ 8.5
Heather F Quebec English 2+ 5+
Julia F New Brunswick English 1.5 1.5
Janine F Ontario English 20+ 20+
Jack M New Brunswick English 9.5 9.5
Kathryn F New Brunswick English 1.5 1.5
Kathy F Quebec English <1 <1
Evelyne F Quebec French 6+ 2.5
Marnie F Utaanaaw Naskapi N/A 30+
Miguel M Ontario English 1.5 1.5
Noah M Utaanaaw Naskapi 3+ 30+
Nixon M Utaanaaw Naskapi N/A 30+
Octavia F Ontario English 17+ 30+
Rose F Utaanaaw Naskapi 20+ 30+
Steve M Quebec French 2+ 1
Susie F China Mandarin 5+ 5+
Table 1: participant descriptors