Decolonization is On-Going: In and Out of the Classroom

Through decolonizing efforts, students should be viewed holistically by providing support or guiding students to where they can find support for their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. The whole student should be cared for holistically. This holistic care should also be seen in the lessons completed in class. The holistic learning should include a community-based approach as well as a land-based approach. Material and lessons should be culturally relevant to the needs of the student with multiple opportunities to demonstrate understanding- including non-Western ways of knowing. There should also be a connection with home support partners to have them involved in student learning. We all need to work together to ensure a caring and sustainable upbringing, with connection to the world we live in. Our care for our students needs to extend to the care of the world we live in as everything is connected. Connecting with various supports, from Elders and Knowledge Keepers to community mentors and educational assistants, can help us achieve more well-rounded support that one teacher cannot offer. Decolonizing the way we view the world can help us be more critical of the current systems of power and what we can do to bring equitable treatment to Indigenous people.

Often youth are not treated with respect due to their age. However, treating others with respect is vital if you wish for respect to be returned. Respect for students should also extend to where they learn - the classroom, the environment, and the community. Students should have equitable supports, such as IEPs or Indigenous Graduation Coaches that can help the student. With the classroom, there should be a shift from the Western narrative (especially in classes such as History) to include different knowledge and Indigenous narratives which were often removed or altered by Settler points of views. Students should have their voices heard and respected within the classroom, which can be seen via co-creating rubrics and classroom expectations, as well as giving choices for assignments and a selection of materials. Classroom expectations should include respect for everyone and their surroundings. Working with Elders and Knowledge Keepers, we can help our students learn to respect traditional knowledge and ways of knowing, and why peace and friendship is based on mutual respect and sovereignty.

Decolonizing means continuously learning. We need to model to our students that learning does not stop when they leave the classroom. As such, we need to exemplify constant drive to improve and learn via reading, attending various PD, taking AQs, and meeting with others to learn from them. There are opportunities around us to learn from Elders, Knowledge Keepers, or Indigenous people in general if we look around. I found the library to be an excellent start, not only due to the books from Indigenous authors, but various learning opportunities such as an nature hike with a Knowledge Keeper. Connecting with others to learn allows us to have different points of view and respect different perspectives as we learn how to decolonize our worldview. However, we also need to demonstrate to them honesty when we make a mistake. Through continuous learning and self-reflection, we need to be able to make adjustments in what we say and do to better reflect what we have learned. Our students should also be supported by a team. We should work with not only those within the school, but those outside of the school to be able to support the student.

With our students we need to be demonstrating fair and equitable behaviour to them. We need to be honest with our students to build this trust, this includes acknowledging when we do not know something, but be willing to circle back to the initial question after learning more. Students should feel the classroom, and the teacher, will listen to their needs and respect their thoughts and ideas. The classroom needs to be a safe space where students can share their questions and ideas. To gain trust with our students, we need to give it back. We also need to trust the supports that we can offer the students such as Jordan’s Principle and community partners, as we all work as a team to support the student’s overall wellbeing.

After these modules, I have more focus on the land than before. There is a bigger influence on land stewardship than when I first started this AQ. I have also learned more about connecting with others to help support students - including out of school supports. It was something that I could speak to the necessity to, but now there is a shift from “teacher and/or home support partners and/or outside supports” to “teacher and home support partners and outside supports.” There is also a greater consideration for holistic support. Previously, I did not include emotional and spiritual, as they fell under the category of mental for me. Finally, one thing that persists, but is strengthened, is the need for continuous growth. There is much to learn, but I need to remember that I have learned a lot. I have grown in my knowledge over the past seven weeks, just as I did last summer in part one. Learning is ongoing and exists outside of the classroom (virtual or in-person). As long as we can keep learning, we can always improve, which will in turn, benefit our students and the community.