Stories in/relation: A Podcast by Educators for Educators

Authors

Keywords:

technology, Japanese, teachers, decolonization, Indigenous

Abstract

Stories in/relation is a teaching and learning companion resource within the in/relation Project, created to support facilitators’ understanding of Indigenous topics, histories, and lived realities and to inspire facilitators to share this learning with other new learners.

The episode “in/relation with Dr. Ayaka Yoshimizu,” features an interview with Dr. Ayaka Yoshimizu, faculty member in the Department of Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia (UBC) who facilitated in/relation learning modules in a course she teaches with the UBC-Ritsumeikan Exchange Program.

The podcast episode delves into the intersections of technology, community, and Indigenous knowledge in Dr Yoshimizu’s experience adapting and applying in/relation resources in her course. In conversation between the co-hosts and Dr. Yoshimizu, the episode explores a range of topics, including:

  • Personal Journey and Motivations: Dr. Yoshimizu shares insights into her role at UBC, her involvement in the in/relation Project, and her motivations for integrating Indigenous content into her teaching.
  •  Teaching and Learning Context: The episode discussions how Dr. Yoshimizu adapted the in/relation materials to her course, CDST 250: Introduction to Canada, and elaborates on the specific classroom climate and curricular contexts.
  •  Challenges and Adaptations: Dr. Yoshimizu reflects on the challenges she encountered while applying the in/relation resources to her classroom, as well as the opportunities that emerged from these situations.
  •  Student Responses and Impact: The episode explores Dr. Yoshimizu's experiences with student engagement and feedback, offering insights into the impact of the in/relation project on student learning experiences.
  • Equipping for Engagement: Dr. Yoshimizu shares her perspective on readiness to introduce Indigenous content in courses, “teaching prep” as an ongoing process of learning and unlearning, and importance of building a community or practice in engaging with Indigenous perspectives and knowledges in their courses.

Author Biographies

Janey Lew, UBC

Janey Lew is senior strategist with the Indigenous Initiatives team at UBC’s Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology, providing strategic guidance for Indigenous and anti-racist faculty development programs, curricular support, and educational resources. She is a second- generation Chinese Canadian, born and raised on unceded Coast Salish xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and Sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) territories. She holds a PhD in Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley focusing on Indigenous and Asian Canadian solidarities and creative cultural activism.

Sam Nock

Samantha Nock is the educational resources developer, Indigenous Initiatives, Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology at the UBC Vancouver campus. She is a Cree-Métis writer, poet, and educational facilitator originally from Treaty 8 territory in the Peace Region of northeast British Columbia. Her family is originally from sâkitawâhk ᓵᑭᑕᐚᕽ (Île-à-la-Crosse), Saskatchewan. Samantha currently resides on unceded xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, and Sel̓íl̓witulh lands in so-called Vancouver.

Ayaka Yoshimizu

Ayaka Yoshimizu 美水彩加 is a Japanese settler on the unceded lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, səlilwətaɬ /Selilwitulh, and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Peoples and an associate professor of teaching in the Department of Asian Studies at UBC. She teaches transpacific histories and cultures, Indigeneities in Asia and Asian diaspora, and embodied and decolonial methodologies. Her current research looks at various sites, objects, and practices that commemorate the deaths of Japanese sex workers involved in transnational and interracial sex trade in the late 19th century through early 20th century in the transpacific world. Through this research she also explores how to grieve the deaths of Japanese transient migrants that took place on stolen Indigenous lands, and how to cultivate a translocal space to acknowledge other neglected losses in the past and present.

Digital illustration of a pacific herring by Karlene Harvey

Downloads

Additional Files

Published

05-03-2025

Issue

No. 224 (2025): Relational Technologies (Winter 2024/25)

Section

Scholarly Podcast