Arctic Yearbook 2014 | Page 52

Arctic Yearbook 2014 52 Questions were crafted to understand how each goal was being met: 1. What are NWT and Nunavut students learning about residential schools through the new module? 2. How is this learning affecting their thinking and their behavior? 3. Can secondary school education about residential schools influence the following: • Improve intergroup relationships? • Enable students to critically reflect on their own attitudes and behaviors? • Encourage students to consider responsibilities towards each other and towards the community? The research design was a formative program evaluation, carried out during the territorial module’s pilot in 2012-2013. The research design relied on a pre and post-test survey of 2036 students and 14 teachers before and after the new residential school module was taught, followed by student sharing circles/focus groups involving 89 students across the two territories. Teachers were surveyed prior to their teacher training, and again after they had taught the module for the first time. Students were surveyed prior to the module beginning, and again upon its completion. Surveys were not a test intended to capture what information students had retained, but looked at elements of community engagement, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making.7                   Daitch