Reflection/Takeaways

After reading Jo Chrona’s “If Not Here, Then Where?” Blog post, I wanted to share my takeaways and reflect on my learning and my teaching practice moving forward. I really enjoy reading and hearing what Jo Chrona has to say. As a non-indigenous person entering the education system, I understand that it is my duty and my goal to learn about and teach my future student’s Indigenous knowledge and perspectives to share what has been a part of this land for so long. Even though I mentioned I am not an Indigenous person, I believe that we are all treaty people. That all residents on this land share the responsibility of taking care of it and each other. From the blog, it reinforced my position and understanding that Indigenous education is a crucial aspect to learn and necessary even when there are no Indigenous students present. Using the statement “we are all treaty people” really helps this point Jo Chrona is saying. It does not depend on the demographic of your classroom; we all have a responsibility to hold national accountability and respect relationships between all beings and land. Another takeaway I have is that Indigenous education is not the same as multicultural education. Indigenous education is learning about the original peoples of the land and their inherent rights, knowledge systems, languages, and sovereignty. While I do believe multiculturism is important to celebrate and allow students to teach fellow peers their background, it cannot undermine Indigenous peoples and values. Because these languages/literatures and knowledges do not exist anywhere else, it is much more important to learn and hopefully continue to grow/support and keep the culture alive. Indigenous education is a national responsibility, not just a demographic choice and all people living, visiting, and learning about Canada, share the responsibility for understanding the history and the truth about the past.

Education relations and moving forward…

In our assessment course, we learned about the Ktunaxa core competencies. If I am lucky enough to stay in this beautiful area and SD5, I would incorporate these as it allows all learners to deepen their understanding and responsibilities as a learner. If I am not in Ktunaxa territory, I would look for resources to the local Indigenous peoples and try my best to teach respectfully while sharing all perspectives and values. By putting the local peoples’ values/responsibilities as a priority, I can confidently spread the true knowledge that is so important. And finally, to relate this to the UVic Teacher Competencies, number 6 being “Practice respect for all learners from all cultures, including specifically Indigenous learners.” Indigenous knowledge will be a priority in my classroom as I am and will always be continuously learning throughout my entire career.