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Course Offerings
All classes are held at the Brantford campus unless otherwise noted. The Indigenous Studies combined honours programs and options can only be completed on the Brantford campus; the Indigenous Studies minor is available on both the Brantford and Waterloo campuses.
Current course offerings and schedules are subject to change and should be checked on LORIS, or LORIS Browse Classes (formerly Dynamic Schedule), where location information can also be found. Full, official academic information can be found on the academic calendars.
If you would like to take a course for which you are missing a prerequisite or are in the wrong year level or major, you will have to complete the Indigenous Studies Override Form. Filling out the form does not guarantee entry into the course.
If no faculty member is named, the instructor is to be announced. Unless otherwise stated, all courses are 0.5 credits.
In the course codes below:
ID stands for Indigenous Studies
SOJE stands for Social and Environmental Justice
YC stands for Youth and Children's Studies
ID100: Indigenous Peoples and Media
Through film clips and print media the depiction of Indigenous people is traced from the silent film era to the present day. Students will assess the social and historical impacts of these images and consider the role that film can play in the future of Indigenous people.
ID/SOJE120: Introduction to Indigenous Studies)
Provides students with an overview of the discipline of Indigenous Studies including the history, cultures, and experiences of Indigenous peoples in Canada.
ID201: Indigenous Perspectives on Globalization
This course explores the complex issues of Indigenous identity and government policy implications, land, labour, economic and survival strategies, as well as the continuing tensions between issues of participation and social exclusion on one hand, and autonomy and self-development on the other.
ID202: The Métis in Canada - Syncretic Worldviews
Who are the Métis? Do they have Indigenous rights? This course describes how the Métis emerged and developed in various parts of Canada, and the political and social organizations which sustain them in the 21st century.
ID/SOJE205: Indigenous People and Anthropology
The popular image of Indigenous people has been shaped by anthropology and the wider academy. This course will explore the interaction between Indigenous peoples and anthropology and archaeology. The course offers a brief history of anthropology, followed by examination of such topics as indigeneity, Indigenous knowledge, cultural and intellectual property, museums, archaeology and repatriation, biological research, applied anthropology, ethics in anthropology, and community-based research. The value of anthropology to Indigenous people will be debated and discussed.
ID207: Gender and Indigenous Communities
This course explores the role of gender in Indigenous communities from theoretical perspectives and through lived experiences of Indigenous peoples. Students will learn about Indigenous theories of gender, including Indigenous feminism, queer/two-spirit theory and work on Indigenous masculinities. The work of Indigenous peoples to address patriarchy through writing, political action and the revitalization of traditions and artistic creativity will be examined as evidence of the struggle to return to the respectful egalitarian traditions where women were valued for their contributions.
ID/YC208: Indigenous Play and Games
Games and sports have been central to developing a socially cohesive environment within Indigenous communities. Many of the games played today were invented in Indigenous communities. Games are an important way to understand a people's worldview, and playing and understanding games teaches important aspects of Indigenous cultures. Games are played, created and reinvented in Indigenous communities to continue to provide recreation, strengthen social connections, share and sustain cultures, and teach traditional knowledge. In this course, students will be introduced to the cultural, social and political significance of Indigenous games, and will have opportunities to see how play contributes to Indigenous lives and cultures.
ID227: The People of the Longhouse
This course will examine the social and cultural features of the Haudenosaunee people from within an Iroquoian understanding of culture and tradition. Oral history, contemporary realities, current scholarship and contemporary creative expressions will be explored in a way that recognizes the similarities and differences between Haudenosaunee communities.
ID230: Indigenous Languages of Turtle Island: Worldviews, Knowledges and Oral Traditions
This course examines the interrelationship between the languages, histories and cultures of Indigenous peoples. From creation stories to contemporary times, the worldviews, politics and philosophies embedded in Indigenous languages are the foundation for how Indigenous peoples understand the world and our responsibilities to it.
ID301: Traditional Ecological Knowledge
This course shows how human life depends on complex systems of cultural knowledge about the natural world. Topics will include Indigenous peoples' biological classification and nomenclatural systems, ethnobiology, and Indigenous explanatory models of environmental systems and the application of this knowledge in practice.
ID/YC302: Indigenous Children and Families [1]
This course looks at Indigenous child welfare in Canada and the strengths of Indigenous children and family systems. Students will explore the meaning of childhood within various Indigenous cultures, will examine colonial disruptions to Indigenous family systems through the residential school and state child welfare systems, and will learn about the resistance, resilience and recovery successes of Indigenous peoples toward Indigenous family well-being.
ID303: Indigenous Pedagogy
Traditional education teaches by experience, experimentation, trial and error, by independent observation of nature and human behaviour, and through voluntary community sharing of information, story, song, and ritual. Most importantly, local elders and traditional knowledge systems are autonomous in comparison to a strict Western education model. This course explores contemporary written texts on Indigenous pedagogy and includes learning through listening to storytellers and/or elders who visit the classroom.
ID/YC308: Indigenous Forms of Justice
Indigenous justice systems, customary laws and institutions are being rejuvenated globally by Indigenous peoples. This course will examine Indigenous perceptions of justice that may pose challenges to Western ideas and practices of law justice. It will also examine the influence of Western demands of rule of law and economics on Indigenous justice systems, specifically in terms of producing justice systems that have meaning to Indigenous peoples and preserving ancestral values for future generations.
ID330: Cultural Teaching through Language: Introduction to Spoken Language
Communication in Indigenous languages is based on cultural interaction, tradition and history. Fluent language speakers will introduce a basic understanding of cultural concepts through spoken language.
ID360: Indigenous-Settler Relations
This course investigates the relationship between Indigenous communities and settlers from first contact to contemporary times. Themes including colonialism, sovereignty, treaties and land rights will be examined using historical and modern case studies from around the world.
ID375: Indigenous Community Organizing
This course will examine issues involved in Indigenous community organizing. The course will focus on the unique intricacies of organizing within Indigenous communities – reserve, rural and urban. Students will learn how to identify community issues, examine organizational responses and assess programs within Indigenous cultural protocols and realities.
ID386: Indigenous Psychology
This course will focus on North American Indigenous peoples and the depth and magnitude of the social, political, cultural, and spiritual disruptions that settlement had, and continues to have on Indigenous health and well-being. Students will gain an understanding of the need for Indigenous-led programs, services, and interventions aimed to serve Indigenous populations.
ID400: Indigenous Research Methodologies
This course is an in-depth examination of Indigenous research theories, methods and methodologies. Students will be exposed to aspects of traditional research protocols and activities that exist within Indigenous communities. Students will also examine a diversity of literature around Indigenous research issues within western academic pursuits. Finally, students will design a research plan for an Indigenous research project. This will include a literature review and any required ethics applications.
ID/YC401: Indigenous Allyship and Kinship
This course encourages students to think critically about the process of allyship and Indigenous conceptions of kinship. Students will learn about the importance of building and maintaining lasting relationships with Indigenous communities and organizations through practical volunteer experience.
ID405: Indigenous Issues and Anthropology
The land and cultural heritage of Indigenous peoples are protected by the United Nations as collective rights. Nation states challenge the rights of Indigenous peoples and Western academics are often used as expert witnesses in legal cases. This course will investigate the role of Indigenous knowledge and Western knowledge (i.e., anthropology and history) in the protection of Indigenous rights. Case studies from around the world will examine a range of topics, including land claims, rights to traditional land use practices, protection of intellectual property (e.g., medicines, art, songs, ceremonies), oral history, repatriation of cultural heritage and ancestors from museums, and the role of anthropologists as political activists.
ID410: Medicine Garden
This course will introduce students to basic plant medicines according to local and traditional Indigenous knowledge. Students will work with knowledge keepers from Six Nations of the Grand River to learn how to identify plants that are local to the area and to understand their basic medicinal uses. Harvesting, drying and making tinctures will be covered, as will protocols around traditional Indigenous knowledge in relation to working with plant medicines. Students will be expected to fulfill twenty community service learning hours, as there will be an experiential component involving working on the land with the Six Nations knowledge keepers. Work from this course will also contribute to the development of a medicine garden behind the Laurier Brantford Aboriginal Student House.
ID430: Cultural Teachings Through Language: Intermediate Spoken Language
This course offers students the opportunity to advance their proficiency in spoken language. Fluent language speakers will work with students to increase fluency and comprehension.
Course Outlines
For past Indigenous Studies course outlines, please contact the Academic Program Assistant and provide:
- the course number(s)
- the year the course was offered
- and your Laurier student ID (if applicable)
The outlines will be forwarded as a PDF attachement.
Current students, please use your Laurier email account when requesting course outlines as this is our official means of communication with you, and will ensure delivery.