Author Archives: KENDRAGAUTHIER

I am a primary trained teacher teaching a Grade 5/6 split and Substitute Teaching. I call Quesnel, BC home and enjoy travelling.

Post 5- Excuse me: who are the first peoples of Canada?

This article written by Erica Neegan gave me a new perspective on viewing the Education System in Canada. Written by a woman who is a visible minority whose partner is Cree, her view on how the education system is Eurocentric and the way schools are set up provide limited support for visible minorities and the schooling system is viewed as being unsupportive for First Nations people. There is a lot of fear around teaching about who the First People of Canada are, but there is also fear around the Canadian education system and its Eurocentric Colonial structure. This perspective shows that there is a lot we can learn from Canadian history and there are many changes that could be made in our own classrooms and schools to be more supportive of all students and their cultures.

Neegan, E. (2005). Excuse me: Who are the first peoples of Canada? a historical analysis of Aboriginal education in Canada then and now. International Journal of Inclusive Education,9(1), 3-15. doi:10.1080/1360311042000299757

Post 4- Healthy Education for Teachers and Students

After listening to Lee Brown’s interview in Module 1, I realized that he has a lot of insight into making inclusive classrooms for First Nations Students.  I have downloaded his thesis Making the Classroom a Healthy Place: The Development of the Affective Competency in Aboriginal Pedagogy and begun to unpack what he is noticing in classrooms.

There is a lot of fear for teachers when teaching about cultures that are not their own, but Lee Brown helped me to realize that it’s not specifically about the academics, but about the emotional attachment, the values, and the connection to each other and our place, that will create more culturally inclusive classrooms.

Post 3- Evaluated Resources

After the discussions around critically viewing Nanook of the North and how to teach students to critically evaluate what they are exposed to in order to determine the authenticity of the item, I was brought back to a session I attended at a workshop about BCERAC. This group critically analyzes and considers what is an authentic story,  or book focussed on First Nations culture, traditions and history.

One of the requirements that was discussed in my workshop was what story is being told and who is it being told by. There are many books about Residential Schools that are written by people who did not experience first hand this part of history, or who have dramatized what occurred. The books that appear on the Evaluated Sources website are written by First Nations people and are factual, to allow the author to share their stories, not for someone else to profit off of.

 

https://k12.bcerac.ca/

Post 2 – Inuit Influence

After watching Nanook of the North and realizing how cultural representations, whether made by an outsider or by local people, can be great ways to share about a culture.

The APTN has recently begun to broadcast Anaana’s Tent, to help share the Inuktitut language.
There are many interesting activities that children can participate in with familiar songs sung in Inuktitut. This is a great example of sharing language and culture in a digital age.

http://www.anaanastent.com/en/home/index

Post 1 – Truth and Reconciliation in the Classroom

While researching Truth and Reconciliation in the classroom, I came upon this resource, focussing on the 94 calls to action. I found the variety of multimedia articles and interviews to be very engaging and helpful to support student understanding. Many of the videos on this website allow students to realize how our past history influences people today, and puts a face to the the history to create a more personal connection.

https://curio.ca/en/collection/beyond-94-truth-and-reconciliation-in-canada-2586/

Post 5- One Useful Book

Indigenous and decolonizing studies in education : Mapping the long view.

When I first registered for this course, I was very nervous. I had no idea what I was getting myself into or how it would challenge my way of thinking. I was very nervous and thought I should do some scholarly reading before the course began to get myself ready for what could be coming down the line. This book, although it is set to be officially published in 2019, has really opened my eyes to some of the views I hold and how I need to shift my sense of belonging to better understand how I am impacting my students.  Chapter 10, titled, Decolonization for the Masses? Grappling With Indigenous Content Requirements in the Changing Canadian Post-Secondary Environment by Adam Gaudry and Danielle E. Lorenz really piqued my interest in universities requiring mandatory Indigenous studies courses and how they are paving the way towards supporting the Truth and Reconciliation Commissions Calls to Action.

Tuhiwai-Smith, L., Tuck, E., & Yang, K. W. (2019;2018;). Indigenous and decolonizing studies in education : Mapping the long view. Milton: Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780429505010

Post 4- Limited Teaching about Residential Schools

“Teachers lack confidence to talk about residential schools, study says” (CBC)

 

When an article has a headline like the one above, I find that it is directly pointing out the challenges with the education system. Many provinces require education about Residential Schools, but there are limited resources for teachers to use and teachers do not feel comfortable leading discussions on such a traumatic event. I personally struggle to teach my students about residential schools. I can read Shi Shi Etko, I can share Phyllis’ Story, we can watch a video, but to lead a deep and meaningful conversation about the trauma and atrocities experienced in these buildings is extremely challenging. I fit in with many of the non-indigenous teachers who lack the confidence to discuss and teach this topic, and it’s something that I need to learn how to do.

 

CBC News Article, August 20, 2017: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/residential-schools-edmonton-1.4254947

Post 3 – Educating the Educator

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/st-paul-questionnaire-residential-schools-1.4831707

 

This article created a lot of dialogue on my Facebook and Twitter feeds this week. This article and the comments that followed created a lot of discussion about blaming the teacher, blaming the school district, and blaming the provincial curriculum. Asking “A positive effect of residential schools was…” is problematic on numerous levels and how this was ever approved to appear in any course shows the lack of education and for some, the lack of compassion and understanding of such a traumatic time in Canadian history, that is needed to educate future generations. 7 years ago, I entered into my Education Degree in Regina. 7 years ago it became mandatory that all students graduating with an Education Degree from the University of Regina must have completed an “Aboriginal Studies” course. 7 years ago, there were many universities that I had considered attending in Western Canada that did not require a single course on Aboriginal or Indigenous studies in Canada.

How are teachers supposed to teach about Residential Schools in an appropriate manner, when they have no education on that area or event themselves?

 

 

Post 2- Reconciliation Through Language

Many of the class discussions during this first module mentioned how technology can be used to share languages and continue the learning of traditional languages. I have noticed more communities and attractions are using the local people’s language in the name of attractions. Whether it is the Ancient Forest/Chun T’oh Whudujut Provincial Park and Protected Area on Highway 16 in BC, Maskwacis (formerly known as Hobbema) in Alberta, to the learning of the traditional names of various locations in Stanley Park, many provinces are moving towards reconciliation by acknowledging the impact that colonization had on traditional lands. .

This news article that was shared in my local newspaper brought to mind the names of places I have visited and how acknowledging traditional lands is a small step towards reconciliation.

 

https://www.quesnelobserver.com/news/vancouver-park-board-passes-motion-to-learn-indigenous-place-names/

 

Post 1 – Interactive Media

While working through the readings about the cultural neutrality of technology in education, I could not stop thinking about a link that was shared with me. This link is an interactive map of Residential Schools. While the pain and cultural “white washing” suffered in these institutions is still felt today, this map was an eye opening experience for myself and my students. Realizing the years that some of these institutions closed in, and knowing that was in the lifetime of some of my student’s parents, it made discussing Residential Schools more real. I enjoy allowing my students to explore history through the use of laptops and the internet, and this tool was very useful, both as a research tool and initiating conversations at home.

 

https://www.cbc.ca/news2/interactives/beyond-94-residential-school-map/

 

Children posing in front of a school with two nuns. Circa 1950. [Digital image]. (n.d.). Retrieved September 19, 2018, from http://collectionscanada.gc.ca/pam_archives/index.php?fuseaction=genitem.displayItem&lang=eng&rec_nbr=3601415