The Online Learning Project
The Ditidaht Language & Culture program is part of the Ditidaht Community School located on-reserve at Nitinaht Lake, BC. The program delivers K-12 language instruction and programming for adults and others in the community. Many Ditidaht members live away from the community, however, so the Online Learning Project is being developed to ensure that all Ditidaht members can access learning opportunities for their rich and unique language in a convenient and engaging way.
The online classroom was created in 2018 by a team of determined elders, teachers, linguists, and community members. At present, there are only half-a-dozen fluent speakers of Ditidaht, all of whom are in their 70s and 80s. The website is thus an act of language revitalization.
Our Team
Dorothy Shepherd – Fluent Speaker, Language Instructor
Sarah Tom – Language Instructor, Language Nest, Kindergarten Immersion, and grades 1-3
Pat Patterson – Language Instructor, grades 4-6, High School and Adult
Dr. Adam Werle – Consulting Linguist, University of Victoria Linguistics
Dave Mason – Teacher, Project Coordinator
Jean-Philippe Marquis – Filmmaker
Mapster – Web development (developer team)
Speakers and Voices
As you will experience, our lessons are presented with video, audio, and graphic illustrations. We have relied heavily on the expertise of fluent speakers in the community who have graciously and generously volunteered their time to carefully record words to help students hear and experience the language. All of these speakers also volunteer to support teachers from the daycare to adult evening classes in helping community members speak the language. We are very grateful for their contributions!
Christine Edgar
Fran Tate
Mike Thompson
Dorothy Shepherd
Our Partners
The Online Learning Project is proudly supported by:
FPCC – The First People’s Cultural Council of BC
FNESC– The First Nations Education Steering Committee