The Working Group on Traditional Knowledge was formed in October 1989 by Dennis Patterson, then Premier of the Northwest Territories, to “define traditional knowledge, examine its current and potential use, and identify obstacles and solutions which will increase its influence in northern society” (1). This plan emerged from the 1988 30th annual meeting of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO in Yellowknife, where the Premier discussed the importance of Traditional Knowledge with the commission.

The authors note that while it is difficult to assess the current use of traditional knowledge given their resources, many NWT departments have begun incorporating it into their work, though there is more to be done in this regard. They recommend greater involvement of elders, communities as holders of knowledge, higher status/influence for traditional knowledge within the territorial government, more traditional knowledge in education, social services, and the justice system, and more documentation of traditional knowledge. This being said, they also emphasize that preservation is best achieved through use, and that the oral tradition should be maintained as a reliable source of information and knowledge.

Obstacles to traditional knowledge use include lack of resources, lack of support and coordination between organizations, and inappropriate uses of traditional knowledge. The authors call for a Declaration of Recognition and Support for Traditional Knowledge, in addition to a detailed list of recommendations for best practices for departments, employees, and legislation.

Abstract:

Tabled document no, . 127-91-(1) tabled on Jul 04 1991 (Northwest Territories). This report from the Traditional Knowledge Working Group defines traditional knowledge as Knowledge deriving from, or rooted in, the traditional way of life of aboriginal people and discusses ways and means of integrating it into laws, policies, programs and services. Includes references.

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This book is available in several Canadian university libraries, ISBN 9780770838720.

Legat, Allice (ed.). Report of the Traditional Knowledge Working Group. Yellowknife: Department of Culture and Communications, Government of the Northwest Territories, 1991.

Sponsored by the Department of Culture and Communication and the Department of Education. North Slavery Working Committee: Sarah Doctor, Keren Rice, Paul Andrew, Dora Grandjambe, Jane Vandermeer, Judi Tutcho, Lucy Ann Yakeleya, Ron Cleary, and Agnes Naedzo.

In the 1970s, the Athapaskan Languages Steering Committee piloted the idea of standardization, and, in 1985, the GNWT created a Task Force on Aboriginal Languages which recommended the same. In 1987 the Dene Standardization Project was born, with the goal to make decisions regarding Dene orthographies, publish reference materials, support native language specialists and teachers to learn new orthographies, and other measures. Regional standardization was to be based on the speech of Elders.

Dene Kedǝ or North Slavey language had its own, unique considerations (from the "North Slavey Technical Report", p. 46)

• Dene Kedǝ at this time was thought to consist of “three major dialects, Rádeyı̨lı̨ ,Délı̨ne, and Tulı́t’a. The community of Tulı́t’a has two major dialects within it…. [one] very similar to that of Délı̨nę, which can be called the kw dialect, while others use the dialect that is labeled Tulı́t’a in this report, or the p dialect. Speakers from Rádeyı̨lı̨ and K’áhbamı̨túé use the f dialect.” (46)

• These dialects vary in emphasis, vocabulary, tone, etc.

• There are intergenerational and, possibly, gendered differences in speech.

The Standardization team also generated numerous recommendations for implementing standardized orthographies. These included using only standardized writing in GNWTpublications, holding public awareness and literacy campaigns, publishing more materials, and supporting language teachers to learn the new systems.

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Contact the NWT Archives to obtain permission to access records from the Standardization project. See Accession no. G-2003-01. In addition, a paper on the Standardization project with similar content is available open access from ERIC. 

Government of the Northwest Territories. Report of the Dene Standardization Project. Yellowknife, 1990.

The standardization project began in 1987, with a mandate to make recommendations on orthography standardization. Five linguists and one fluent/literate speaker from each language group made up the planning committee, in addition to invited elders and other members for working committees for each language group.

• Dene alphabets have a one-to-one sound to symbol correspondence. The same sound is always represented by the same symbol.
• There are differences in use and pronunciations between communities, people, and age groups.
• Therefore, recommendations say to keep the system as phonetic as possible (writing exactly what one hears) while trying to strive towards regional standardization. Consensus is that the speech of elders should be chosen as the standard for writing, because “the speech of elders retains greater morphological information than the contracted or shortened forms which are found in the speech of younger speakers.”

Arguments for standardization:

• Preserving the speech of elders.
• Easier to teach and learn literacy. 
• Curriculum materials can be disseminated across a region. 
• Uniform Dene orthographies will “facilitate the production of printed materials” across Dene languages in private and public sectors.

Abstract: 

The 1986 report by the Canadian Task Force on Aboriginal Languages, which recommended that the writing systems used for the northern Dene languages be standardized within 10 years, resulted in the 1987 Dene Standardization Project. The mandate for the project was to make recommendations on orthography standardization as the first step in the process of encouraging widespread native language literacy, the publication of native language materials, and ultimately the preservation of the Dene languages in a technological era that places high demands for literacy and depends on the print media for the retention and transmission of information. This paper reports on the Dene languages and writing systems in the Northwest Territories, the Dene alphabetic system, and types of and rationale for standardization. Recommendations deal with five broad orthographic issues: alternate pronunciations, alphabet symbols, use of symbols, word divisions, and punctuation. The concluding paragraphs note that the Dene Standardization Project is a model for other language groups undertaking orthographic standardization. (LB)

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Read the full paper online: http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/NALI3.html

Or, download the PDF from ERIC: https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED354768

Biscaye, Elizabeth and Mary Pepper. “The Dene Standardization Project.” In Effective Language Education Practices and Native Language Survival edited by Jon Reyhner, 23-29. Oklahoma: Native American Language Issues, 1990.

The Dene Cultural Conference was funded by the GNWT Department of Culture and Communications, and organized by the Community and Social Development staff of the Dene Nation Executive. The Community and Social Development program aimed to strengthen and promote Dene culture and traditional relationships to help address social problems in NWT communities, and the conference was intended to help set up a separate organization for this purpose that could access funds unavailable to political organizations like the Dene Nation. Conference steering committee members included: Paulette Barclay, John Bekale, Debbie DeLancey, Cindy Gilday, Ethel Lamothe, Rene Lamothe, Ernie Lennie, and Fibbie Tatti. Other contributors included Sara Jerome, Stephen Kakfwi, Ethel Liske, and Mary Wilson.

The Dene Cultural conference developed several resolutions to help shape the new institute, including directing that it pursue research, curriculum development, and involve young people. Work areas identified were: language, spiritual development, bush skills, legends, traditional spirituality, crafts, collection and storage of information and artifacts, place names, drum dance, hand games, gatherings, traditional medicine, ceremonies, responsibilities and relationships, foods, rules about animals, laws about the land, “and any other that may arise.” (11)

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This document is available in the NWT Archives in the Cynthia Chambers Collection: http://www.nwtarchives.ca/finding_aid.asp?Accession_Number=N-2007-014

Item N-2007-014: 1-7

DeLancey, Debbie. Report on the Dene Cultural Conference. Snowdrift (Lutsel K’e), Dene Cultural Conference, 1986.

Asch et. al provide context for the Dene/Métis mapping project, initiated in the 1970s when the Dene Nation began a traditional land use and occupancy study that was to be used in land claims and other negotiations. The mapping project began with the recorded knowledge of approximately 600 trappers, and began computerizing data in 1981.

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Search for Anthropology in Praxis in a local or University library. 

Asch, Michael, Thomas D. Andrews, and Shirleen Smith. “The Dene Mapping Project on Land Use and Occupancy: An Introduction.” In Anthropology in Praxis, edited by Phillip Spaulding, 36-43. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 1986.

This report covers the period of January 1st to March 31st, 1983. It documents accessions, including cassette recordings (many of interviews with Dene and English summaries), photographs, printed materials, and artifacts. The research team also recorded numerous place names in locations such as Fort Smith and Colville Lake. Keren Rice and Lucy Ann Yakaleya ran a workshop in Dene language and translations from February 7 to 18 for the research project team. The group was, at the time of writing, preparing to transition to curriculum development and gathering information about appropriate language teaching pedagogy. They also developed partnerships with the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Center and other organizations to pursue professional development and contribute to language and placename documentation.

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This document is accessible from the NWT Archives.

NWT archives accession no. 2007-14  (Cynthia Chambers Collection). 

Dene Community Council. Final Report: Dene Language/Historical Research Project. Fort Good Hope: NWT Department of Education, 1983.

From Abstract:

"In 1981-82 the Legislative Assembly's Special Committee on Education held 43 public hearings throughout the Northwest Territories to gather information on all aspects of public concern about education. Written in English and Inupiaq, this document outlines problems related to: (1) preparation for a traditional Native life versus preparation for the wage economy; (2) choosing among bilingual, Native language, and English-as-a-Second-Language programs; (3) the need for culturally appropriate curriculum and instructional materials; (4) poor attendance and high dropout rates; (5) discipline problems; (6) lack of Native teachers; (7) inadequacy of preservice and inservice teacher education in preparing southern teachers for northern schools; (8) the need for parent education and parent-school liaisons; (9) the need for adult and continuing education; (10) limited funding; and (11) large differences between educational policies and classroom practices. The Special Committee made several major restructuring recommendations, including the creation of: 10 divisional boards of education to govern schools with the advice of local educational authorities; a Secretariat of Learning to respond to demands for learning from the private and public sectors; two centers responsible for curriculum development and teacher education; and an Arctic College. In addition, 49 specific recommendations address issues of administrative structure, school programs and curriculum, language of instruction, teacher education and recruitment, special education, adult education, and policy implementation. This document contains a bibliography of approximately 270 items.”

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Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly: Special Committee on Education. Learning: Tradition & Change in the Northwest Territories. Yellowknife, 1982.

This study was commissioned by the GNWT to assess levels of service and demands within the NWT and make recommendations to the GNWT executive committee for steps which can be taken to “overcome problems experienced by non-English-speaking Dene in obtaining government services” with regard to the GNWT as a communicator, as an employer, and as a provider of services. (2)

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This study is held in the NWT Archives, see G-2003-001.

Ross, James. Dene Languages Study. Yellowknife: Executive Committee, Government of the Northwest Territories, 1981.

The report assesses multilingualism for Indigenous peoples in the Mackenzie district using data from the 1970 Northern Manpower Survey Program, which was collected between 1969 and 1971 in the Northwest Territories and the Yukon. The authors identify six major language groups: “Dogrib, Slave, Chipewyan, Loucheux, Eskimo and English” (1). Survey respondents were 14 years of age or older, and the five questions on language use included; “language first learned as a child” (1); “language most often spoken at home” (1); and “up to three languages in each of the categories ‘currently spoken,’ ‘currently read,’ and ‘currently written’” (2). However, because “most of the indigenous languages cannot be formally written,” the authors did not use data on writing or speaking. It is important to note that communities had varying response rates, and rates were based on NWT government population estimates. A few key findings for Mackenzie native peoples: 

“English unilingualism is highest in the 14-24 age group.” (7)

“Native language unilingualism drops off sharply by age group.” (7)

“The use of English is greatest among the Métis in the Mackeznie District. Only 1 percent speak only their native language. Roughly have speak a native language and English; the other 50 percent speak only English.”  (7)

Dogrib, followed by "Slave," had the highest reported proportion of unilingual speakers (43% and 31%, respectively, table 2 p. 11). 

At the time of the survey, over 81% of the Indigenous population of the NWT had some knowledge of English. 

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This document is available in the NWT Archives: Accession no. 2007-14  (Cynthia Chambers Collection). 

Barrados, Maria, and Martha Burd Van Dine. Multilingualism of Natives in the Mackenzie District: An Analysis of data from the Northern Manpower Survey Program. Ottawa: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Northern Social Research Division, 1977.

This paper contains three short reports. The first deals with applying the concept of community-guided education, and the second discusses northern teacher training. Both are based on applied research. The third report covers the preparation that southern teacher candidates undergo before heading north.
The aforementioned research projects stem from a 1970 conference in Inuvik, “The Man in the North Inuvik Conference,” which discussed important issues in northern community development, and highlighted a lack of community involvement in formal education. Conference participants called for involvement of elders and native teachers, particularly in lower grades, to help guarantee cultural continuity and allow students to ease into the school environment, feeling understood culturally and linguistically. Task forces were assigned to research these proposals at various sites, and Site III was Great Bear Lake (boundaries not clearly defined).

Abstract: 

The 3 research topics examined in this report are identified as crucially important by the 1970 Man in the North Inuvik Conference. Eskimo, Indian, and Metis residents of the North comprise 2/3 of the conference participants. The first 2 reports are on applied research projects, the first dealing withsome practical ways to apply the concept of community-guided education, the second with training northern native teachers. The third report is a study of southern teacher preparation for professional teaching in the North. Three conclusions appear most significant for the present stage of northern education: (1) while official directives concerning northern education seem to be promising, very often they lack comprehension from the administrators, the teaching staffs, and concerned populations; (2) local committees must have well-defined responsibilities in the selection, hiring, transfer,and dismissal of teachers; and (3) efforts to post native teachers to the elementary grades should not exclude new and imaginative formulas that depart from the sempiternal tendency to accommodate northern elementary teacher training to the already existing standards and procedures of the South. (HEC)

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See WorldCat for a list of libraries that hold this resource.

Brown, Doug, H.T. Murphy, Rosalee Tizya, Eric Gourdeau, and Ghislain Girard. Technical Reports: Education in the Canadian North. Montreal: Arctic Institute of North America, March 1973.