Objective: Explain the importance of curiosity and imagination in science.
Through traditional models of indigenous education systems, curiosity and imagination are fostered in children. Through story, they learn how the world and the environment works, then they test that in the world by becoming natural investigators and knowledge keepers. In Alaska Native culture, children played in the environment and were encouraged to go further away with age. Observing the people around them demonstrating how to live in balance, then being given a framework through cosmology and world view through story, and then they were nurtured to use rational thinking to build on their existing body of knowledge. This foundational knowledge is important for any later education. Rational deductive reasoning through curiosity is taught early. Meda also explains that it is important to understand the intricate workings of the environment to minimize risk. (DeWitt)
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Objective: Explain the relationship between probability and risk.
Alaska Natives have a differing view on probability and risk. The probability of success is based on the cultivation of presence and the process of always getting ready. When the Alaska Native people were not hunting or gathering food, their time was spent creating and maintaining hunting, fishing, trapping implements, clothing, modes of transportation, cultural items, and themselves. Mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and relational health, were maintained through song, dance, drumming, games, competition, skills training, and ceremonies. These things in combination allowed a person to always be in a state of readiness which improved the probability of success in all areas of life. Being out of balance or lazy in any of the domains (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, or relational) increased the risk of harm or poor outcomes. (DeWitt)
Sam also explains the importance of respect in hunting, fishing in all one does in Nature.  In today’s world, Sport hunting and sport fishing is like playing with your food, which is a description that some native people use.  This is treating nature, in fact all of living creatures, including the Earth as having no spirit, just cold material, which is not the way native people see Earth and everything in it. With this belief, one can see how animals won’t let themselves be hunted if you don’t respect and thank them. So, the native way, is the Earth, all of its inhabitants, the air, oceans, everything is connected and must be recognized as a system that is sacred since it was made by the Creator/God. (Demientieff)
In This Section:
- Understanding Our Environment
- The Environment and Society
- Economics and International Cooperation
- Statistics and Models
- Making Informed Decisions
- Freshwater and Marine Ecosystems
- How Populations Change in Size
- How Species Interact with Each Other
- Land Use
- Land Management and Conservation
- Feeding the World
- Crops and Soil
- The Geosphere
- Mineral Exploration and Mining
- Energy Resources and Fossil Fuels
- Nuclear Energy
- Renewable Energy Today
- Alternative Energy and Conservation
- Biodiversity at Risk
- Studying Human Populations
- Changing Population Trends
- Reducing Solid Waste
- The Atmosphere
- Air, Noise, and Light Pollution
- Atmosphere and Climate Change
- The Importance of the Individual