This video series on Indigenous Education has been posted by Lakehead University. The website includes a variety of different sources of information including “Why Indigenizing Curriculum and Pedagogy is Vital for Our Survival”, “decolonizing Teaching Indigenizing Learning Resources” and a video service on “Exploring indigenous Education. I looked specifically at the video series where Professor of Aboriginal Education Susan Dion spoke to current changes in the education system with regards to Indigenous ways of knowing, how educators can have the greatest impact for students, and what educators can do to support the learning for all students. Her words and her stories are impactful. The are a good reflection of current issues in education today with regards to incorporating Indigenous education in schools. She specifically describes the story of a student who needs help, needs her teacher to be an ally. Instead of helping the Indigenous student to navigate a tricky and somewhat racist remark by another child the teacher turns away. Teachers cannot turn away, teacher must be allies. We must help students Indigenous students to express who they are and we must encourage non-Indigenous peoples to be open to listening to perspectives they might not be accustomed to. These stories and perspectives are vital to my final project as they provide the context to WHY we need to Indigenize our curriculum and the support that it provides for Indigenous students and all students.
Thanks for pointing us to this resource, Whitney. This is exactly what I’ve been looking for, more evidence that Indigenizing content is not only a more inclusive path to equitable content, but also that doing so improves the learning outcomes of all learners. Looking forward to spending more time with these videos.