Author Archives: aldene crew

The educational disadvantage of indigenous groups has to be seen in a context where illiteracy is one component of many compounding factors within a vicious circle of poverty, poor health, high unemployment, drug abuse and crime. In Canada unemployment rates among Aboriginals are approximately double of that of the non-Aboriginal population. Many factors have contributed to the erosion of culture in indigenous communities including in the case of the Canadian Aboriginals the Indian Act. Along with its attendant “reserve” system and residential schools, several generations of children have been systematically removed from their families/ communities and punished for speaking their Aboriginal language

In the 1991 Aboriginal Peoples Survey conducted in Canada, 17% of the aboriginals aged15 to 49 reported no formal schooling or less than grade 9 as their highest level of education, this was true for only 6% of the same age group of the total Canadian population. This gap was even larger in the group aged 50 to 64:53% of aboriginals compared to 26% for the total population.

http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0014/001460/146004e.pdf

Many Aboriginal people live in poverty. And the disparities between the standard of living in First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities and that in non-Aboriginal communities continue to grow, in large part because of differences in literacy levels. Federal, provincial and territorial governments must make it an absolute priority to improve the relatively low quality of life of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples. Indeed, the cost to address the low literacy rates in Aboriginal communities is minimal compared to the money Canada will need to spend 20, 10 or even five years from now on social services if the country fails to take nationwide remedial action on Aboriginal literacy issues.

http://www.nald.ca/library/research/issues_aboriginal/issues_aboriginal.pdf

On April 10, 2014, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Bernard Valcourt introduced Bill C-33 – the First Nations Control of First Nations Education Act. The proposed legislation responds to the five “conditions for success” that were identified by the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, and endorsed in a resolution by the Chiefs Assembly in December 2013. The proposed legislation is a transformative step in efforts to close the gap in education outcomes for First Nations on reserve. It provides for stable, predictable funding that increases at a 4.5% rate of growth, clarifies roles and responsibilities, establishes First Nations control of First Nations education as a central principle. The introduction of Bill C-33 builds on the February 7, 2014 announcement of an historic agreement between the Government of Canada and the Assembly of First Nations to reform the First Nations elementary and secondary education system through the proposed First Nations  Control of First Nations Education Act.

https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1358798070439/1358798420982

The Government of Canada funds elementary and secondary education for First Nations students ordinarily resident on reserve, and provides post-secondary education financial support for eligible First Nation and Inuit students. Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC) works with First Nations and provinces/territories to support quality education for First Nations students so they can acquire the skills needed to enter the labour market and be full participants in the Canadian economy.

Despite these efforts by the government the level of illiteracy is still high among first nation people.

https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1100100033601/1100100033605

Indigenous people reside on lands rich in natural resources, however exploitation and various restrictions on first people governance structure has hindered their growth and development. This has led to significant levels of poverty which has been compounded by high levels of unemployment and illiteracy.

http://www.firstpeoples.org/who-are-indigenous-peoples/the-challenges-we-face

For decades, high level government inquiries, federal audits and international human rights bodies have repeatedly and consistently pointed to an unacceptable gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in the enjoyment of basic human rights. Despite living in one of the world’s wealthiest countries, Indigenous families and communities in Canada continue to face widespread impoverishment, inadequate housing, food insecurity, ill-health and unsafe drinking water. Indigenous peoples have demonstrated extraordinary resilience in the face of historic programs and policies such as the residential school program that were meant to destroy their cultures, but they must still live with the largely unresolved legacy of the harm that was done.
http://www.amnesty.ca/our-work/issues/indigenous-peoples/indigenous-peoples-in-canada

Indigenous peoples across the world have been affected by the introduction of technologies from foreign culture for hundreds of years. Modern technologies allow indigenous people to participate in larger societies and economies around them.
htttp://www.ischoolutexas.edu./v.library/edres/pathfinders/ajohnson

Although worldwide there has been significant growth in access to computers and the Internet, the lack of access to such resources continues to be a major form of social and economic exclusion for many peoples across the globe. Among these are indigenous peoples who, both in developing and developed countries, often experience the greatest disparity in access to the educational opportunities afforded by information and communication technologies (ICTs).
http://iite.unesco.org/files/policy_briefs/pdf/en/indigenous_people.pdf

Indigenous Peoples worldwide continue to be among the poorest of the poor and continue to suffer from higher poverty, lower education, and a greater incidence of disease and discrimination than other groups, according to a new World Bank study. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2010/04/26/indigenous-peoples-still-among-poorest-in-world

Indigenous Peoples are culturally distinct societies and communities; the land on which they live and the natural resources on which they depend are inextricably linked to their identities, cultures and economies. There are approximately 300 million Indigenous Peoples worldwide. Although they make up roughly 4.5 percent of the global population, they account for about 10 percent of the poor.
http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/indigenouspeoples/overview