Project Info for Educators

Need for Project:

There is strong need for the proposed K-12 Science Curriculum Project. The courses CRRC developed previous to this project were designed for Alaska Native students of the Chugach Region. The success of that program prompted UAF to approach CRRC and suggest opening up the courses statewide. As previously stated, it became apparent that CRRC needed to be more proactive in addressing the needs of Alaska Native students by motivating them to take an interest in science and to continue their education in the sciences. This led to the concept of developing a K-12 natural resource science curriculum based on Alaska Native Indigenous knowledge and traditional Western science. In order to make such an endeavor interesting and inviting to Alaska Native students, the curriculum would have to include components from the community and the local culture in a meaningful inquiry-based approach. The primary audience will be the K-12 students of the Chugach Region. The broader statewide Alaska Native community may also be served by this project through the development of this K-12 standards based science curriculum.

Project Design:

The long-range goal of the Chugach Regional Resources Commission is to “promote Tribal sovereignty and the protection of our subsistence lifestyle through the development and implementation of Tribal natural resource programs to assure the conservation, sound economic development, and stewardship of the natural resources in the traditional use areas of the Chugach Region.” To expand upon this long-range goal, the Chugach Regional Resources Commission has developed and adopted the following Statement of Purpose: 

  1. To insure the participation of Chugach Natives in the decision making processes that affect the land and sea and lives of Chugach residents;
  2. To provide formal advocacy to assure that private, state and federal land and resource management agencies will manage natural resources in ways consistent with the cultural traditions of the Chugach Native people, until such time as the Tribal governments can take on the management activities themselves;
  3. To enhance or provide educational opportunities for Chugach Natives in natural resource management and development in the Chugach Region;
  4. To promote environmentally sound economic development that will improve the well-being of the Chugach Native people; and
  5. To assure and promote the protection, preservation, conservation and prudent use and stewardship of fish and wildlife resources in the Tribal traditional use areas of the Chugach Region.

With the CRRC Statement of Purpose firmly in mind, this project will address the following project goals and objectives. The project goals and associated objectives address the need for a K-12 standards based natural resources science curriculum that integrates Indigenous Knowledge. This project supports the first and third statement of CRRC’s Statement of Purpose; (1. To insure the participation of Chugach Natives in the management decision making processes that affect the land and sea and lives of Chugach residents; and (3. To enhance or provide educational opportunities for Chugach Natives in natural resource management and development in the Chugach Region which are directly addressed by this project. These same goals are applicable to the goals of the DOE as stated previously, and to Tribes and Alaska Native students across the state, as well as students in other states. The goals of the project will be implemented through activities associated with each objective.

Project Goal: 

Develop a K-12 Alaska and National Science Standards based science curriculum integrating natural resource management and regional Indigenous knowledge. The curriculum will be made available to all schools in the Chugach Region in hard copy and electronic format. In order to achieve this goal CRRC has identified the following objectives:

Objective 1:

Develop K-12 standards based science curriculum integrating regional natural resource management and Indigenous knowledge. (Year 1 and Year 2)

Objective 2:

Post electronic K-12 standards based science curriculum integrating natural resource management and Indigenous science knowledge.  (Year 3)

Objective 3:  

Ascertain educator and secondary students’ perceptions of curriculum via pre and post surveys conducted before and after they pilot the curriculum developed by CRRC. (Year 2 and Year 3; Project news and updates: http://chugachk12.blogspot.com/)