Introduction and Project Background

Authors

  • Kirk Anderson Memorial University of Newfoundland
  • Kathy Snow University of Prince Edward Island

Abstract

Initially, this special edition of The Morning Watch was developed to share the results of this research into four case studies within Inuit Nunangat. As such, the writing reflects a research project focused on four schools and communities in Northern Canada: Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, Nunavut, and the Northwest Territories. The research in these four regions responds some gaps in current literature related to Inuit education. As time has moved on, additional writers and materials have been added to round out the journal discussion to better share a Pan-Arctic view of both teacher development for the North as well as Indigeneity within the Arctic region.

Author Biographies

Kirk Anderson, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Dr. Kirk Anderson is a Professor of Educational Administration at the Faculty of Education at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Born in Shoal Brook and raised in Corner Brook, Dr. Anderson comes from a family with Mi’kmaq and Inuit ancestry. He is a member of the Mekap’sk (Northern Peninsula) Mi’kmaq Band.

Dr. Anderson holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in science and education from Memorial University of Newfoundland. He also holds a Ph.D. in educational administration and leadership from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. He has been a teacher and principal in four schools in Newfoundland and Labrador. During his time as a teacher and principal, he was active in serving the school district and Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Association (NLTA). He served as the Branch President of the Sandwich Bay Labrador Branch, Provincial Small Schools’ Special Interest Council President, School Administrator Council Western Region President, and served as part of NLTA Collective Bargaining Team. In 2017 he served as a panel member on the NLTA Panel of Public Education.

Following his teaching career, he was an education professor at the University of Saskatchewan, University of Calgary, and University of New Brunswick, where he was associate dean of education before joining Memorial University in 2011. In 2007 he received the teaching excellence award from the University of Calgary Graduate Students’ Association.

Kirk is the former President of the Association of Canadian Deans of Education and former Vice President (Anglophone) of the Canadian Society for Studies in Education. He served as Dean for the Faculty of Education from 2011-2019. In 2012 he was appointed as a member of the University of the Arctic Indigenous Issues Committee.

His primary university research areas are school leadership and school effectiveness. He has also conducted significant research into success in Indigenous (Aboriginal) education and has worked on various international projects. He currently serves on a number of national and international research groups. His most current work is research into Canadian Perspectives for Teacher Development in the North (An Inuit and Sami centric view).

Kathy Snow, University of Prince Edward Island

Dr. Kathy Snow is an educator, researcher and community advocate living in Prince Edward Island, Canada.

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Published

2022-06-29

Issue

Vol. 48 No. 1 - Spring (2022): Student Success and Teacher Development in the North: An Examination of Student Persistence and Teacher Development, ...

Section

Introduction