Dr. Helen D. Armstrong joined Brandon University in August, 2000. Since that time, she has engaged in a number of research projects. All her research falls under the umbrella of communitarian, emancipatory pedagogy. As well as the projects elaborated in the  following paragraphs, Armstrong has researched and published in other areas, including Hutterian history and educational law.

Currently Armstrong is principal investigator of a major SSHRC/CURA project entitled Community-Based Aboriginal Curriculum Initiatives: Implementation and Evaluation. The primary goal of the project is to examine the impact of Aboriginal cultural instruction in selected schools in terms of learning, school attendance, and retention of Aboriginal students. The research involves assessing the effect of bringing Aboriginal artist-educators into participating schools, with particular attention to cognitive skills, cultural awareness, psychosocial development, identity, and self-esteem of Aboriginal students. The project involves both quantitative and qualitative methods in a longitudinal follow-up design that spans six years. The hypotheses is that exposure to Aboriginal culture in the school will improve Aboriginal children’s cultural awareness and identity, and that, in turn, will increase the personal relevance and importance of the school, which then will translate into positive school-related behaviors and achievement. The secondary purpose – community development – is specifically related to the enhancement of skills and talents of community members. The project is in its fourth year, with an additional year already having been granted, with participation from five Aboriginal communities. Children and youth are responding well to the positive community role models and cultural focus to the curriculum. Efforts are also focusing on the inclusion of more supportive literature written by, for, and about Aboriginal people.

Concurrently, Armstrong is investigating the definition of an “ideal school” as articulated by youth-at-risk. The aim is to ascertain and activate the structural changes needed in the school system so that current at-risk youth will remain actively engaged until they graduate in a school that meets their needs.

Prior to these projects, Armstrong was engaged in a SSHRC project entitled Redefining Productivity to Enhance Social Development and Well-Being. This research involved a qualitative study, including a questionnaire and structured interviews, conducted with university faculty that explored the connections between productivity and social development and well-being. Interviews that formed the central findings of the study revealed that there is a strong theme that was important to the focus of the study, namely that employees’ estimation of their well-being and social development was related to their engagement in work and to their efficacy in completing its mandated tasks, to a certain level. Interviewees expressed ambivalence, however, about the effects of their work (and work in general) and the perceived expectations of the university. Drawing upon data of employees’ perceptions, this study examined these perceptions in a framework that identified several dimensions of well-being and social development and included recommendations for improved public policy in relation to the issues examined.

Armstrong has published two edited volumes that address issues in educational administration: Examining the Practice of Educational Administration in Canada (2005), and The Praxis of School Administration and Teacher Leadership (2004). As well, she has published her research in a number of journals and presented at many conferences. She may be reached at 204-727-7329 or by e-mail at armstrongh@brandonu.ca