Considerations for your teaching practice
In 2021, September 30th marked Canada’s first official National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (NDTR).
It’s a statutory holiday. So, we get it off with pay, right?
Well, yeah… but this statutory holiday has a different intention than you may be used to. Most stats are opportunities for celebration of Western or Christian holidays. Alternately they are celebrations of political or civil events and in British Columbia, there is one day set aside for focusing on families. September 30th is a day to learn about First Peoples’ history, current barriers they face, and the tenuous relationship between non-Indigenous people and the Canadian government due to that history.
September 30th, NDTR, is a call to learn about how residential school and the policies of “killing the Indian in the child” led to generational trauma that is still perpetuated in many Indigenous families. Those that attended lost not only their cultures and identities, but their role models for parenting and traditional family units.
An important aspect of Truth and Reconciliation work is committing to your own awareness and self-education of the complex histories as well as ongoing issues facing Indigenous Peoples across Turtle Island.
Making Change
Further, this day is a call to act out your own part of reconciliation by identifying how you will make a difference to mark positive changes. One way we can do this is through educational change.
Perhaps you can:
- sign up for a TCDC workshop on including Indigenous Ways of Knowing in your assessments.
- attend Langara’s NDTR events here on campus, September 25th-27th. Refer to the volunteer sign-up page to explore potential opportunities for your class.
- give an authentic and personalized land acknowledgement in your classes.
- spend time learning more about the history of residential schools and contemporary Indigenous issues in Canada.
- Introduce yourself to the staff in the Gathering Space.
- participate in a cultural event also offered on September 30th.
- read a book or article relating to Canadian racism against First Peoples to inform yourself about the truths as opposed to stereotypes. (i.e. 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act
To familiarize yourself with the background of the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, and the Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC), the following video (approximately 15 minutes) gives a world context, national context, and the findings of the TRC.
Message from Chancellor Emeritus Murray Sinclair (2022)
Wai Wah!
Desiree Marshall-Peer
Indigenous Specialist and Curriculum Consultant TCDC
