Land-Based Participatory Pedagogical Experiment in Sami Language Distance Teaching

Abstract

This chapter discusses teachers' professional experiments with distance education in Indigenous Sami language with children aged six to seven years in Finland. The three Sami languages spoken in Finland have law-based status in the Sami domicile area. Outside of this area, where 75% of Sami children live, the Sami languages are taught as voluntary subjects online. This challenges teachers' culturally responsible land-based pedagogical practices, which are typical of Sami education. The case study investigates one teacher's professional creative experiment that focused on land-based online pedagogies using a participatory approach. The data consist of simulated recall interviews, a logbook, and Post-it® notes. The results indicate that, as reflective practitioner, the Indigenous teacher was able to maintain culturally and linguistically responsible pedagogies through experiment. This study carries a hopeful message for the future of minority communities: through educational experiments, teachers can provide language and culture survival tools for learners in diverse contexts.