Photo Credit: https://www.hrpa.ca/hr-insights/national-day-for-truth-and-reconciliation-and-orange-shirt-day/orange-shirt-day/

On September 18th, Niigaan Sinclair was invited to host a workshop on behalf of Indigenous Day of Learning, a Professional Development day in School District #57. As a teacher candidate, I had the opportunity to be apart of his workshop and listen to his knowledge and experience with regards to Truth and Reconciliation. Niigaan started in the educational field as a drama teacher. His main priority of this role was to take on his very first Jewish play, something he felt very uncomfortable with. It didn’t take long before Niigaan started to realize he needed some help with undertaking this somewhat foreign act, and therefore reached out to his community for advice. In this vulnerable act of courage, Niigaan developed many new friendships throughout the community, ones he still honours and is connected to today. I think it’s safe to say that Niigaan’s rocky start led him to an understanding that one’s curiosity can lead to knowledge and its okay to not have all the answers right away. This style of forward thinking could possibly become a familiar approach to how we can navigate the hard facts about Truth and Reconciliation as a community.

Niigaan’s workshop focused on Truth and Reconciliation, more specifically how does one incorporate Indigenous education into our schools. How do we remove the stigma that many Indigenous students face today? Yes, we see bits and pieces here and there through wall posters, and a few textbooks, but how do we incorporate their culture and values in such a colonized environment to where our Indigenous students feel safe and celebrated? Niigaan suggested we start by weaving the following four ideas into our everyday classroom. These consist of community, egalitarianism, putting children and elders first and practicing democracy. Honouring these principals can not only provide inclusion for all students, but also honour traditions and opportunities for Indigenous voices to be heard.

Niigaan also mentioned we need to first look through an Indigenous lens and approach our learning using a holistic lifelong learning model. This model represents that learning is often interconnected, having one component feed off another to reach a level of wholeness that embodies various sources and inner reflection. It is through combining your sources and knowledge with your collective well-being that represents the view of Indigenous Peoples approach to learning. As Niigaan stated, Canadians seem to be missing this holistic approach and the very root of this specific model. Understanding this framework of learning and growing could perhaps benefit everyone in understanding the diversity and complexity of which stands behind breaking down the 94 calls to action at a student level.

Photo Credit: Marie Battiste, First Nations Holistic Lifelong Learning Model

It was a pleasure to hear what Niigaan had to say, and I am very grateful for workshops that open my mind up to different way of thinking and learning. As a teacher candidate, hard discussions like this help frame potential challenges down the road, and it’s opportunities like this that help guide and discern what is most important and why.