Teaching in a Cold and Windy Place: Change in an Inuit School

David Quiring is a Ph.D. candidate in history at the University of
Saskatchewan.

Teaching in a Cold and Windy Place describes the author’s efforts as a
school principal to provide high-quality and relevant education in a
Baffin Island community. Educators in Baffin Island and elsewhere in the
North find themselves at the forefront of governmental efforts to
integrate First Nations peoples into Canadian society. As Tompkins
points out, northern education, long plagued by inadequate curriculum,
high rates of teacher turnover, and low levels of student achievement,
badly needs fresh ideas and methods to satisfy all parties involved in
the educational process.

The author’s four-year tenure resulted in dramatic improvements in
the performance and satisfaction of students and teachers. Many of the
ideas Tompkins applied, including having and following a vision
statement, using themes, working in teams, teaching in the Inuktitut
language, and using Inuit educators, reflect contemporary trends in
education. Tompkins describes her thoughtful and persistent application
of these and other methods. She also provides a concise and useful
summary of the recent history of the Inuit people of Baffin Island,
describing processes similar to those found in many other areas of
northern Canada. These include the centralization of nomadic people into
communities, rapid population growth, increased poverty linked to an
inadequate economic base, and the role of education in offering
alternatives to the local population.

Directly and indirectly, Tompkins deals with the perplexing issue of
how the larger Canadian society and First Nations can bring positive
change to northern communities. The issues she addresses and the
strategies she presents apply not only to Inuit education but also to
educational situations in aboriginal communities across northern Canada.
This short and readable book offers hope and inspiration to northern
residents in general and to northern educators in particular.