First Impressions

As I embark on the beginning of my journey through PME 821 Policy and Models in Canadian Aboriginal Education I hope to build upon the important skills I gained in PME 820 Leadership in Aboriginal Education. I am cognizant that I am a guest on the traditional territories of the Treaty 7 People of Southern Alberta. This includes the Kainai, Piikani, and Siksika Nations that comprise the Blackfoot Confederacy and the Tsuu T’ina and Stoney Nakoda First Nations as well. I am working towards consistently incorporating traditional ways of knowing in my classroom as a sophisticated methodology that is beneficial for all learners.

Before I begin to engage heavily in the course content I decided to look at the current Aboriginal Education model in Alberta. Below is a link to the document: https://www.alberta.ca/first-nations-metis-and-inuit-education.aspx As I read the “overview” of the policy it is clearly stated that the aim of the policy is to close the achievement gap between Indigenous students and their peers within Alberta. One area that is particularly striking to me in the overview is the section stating that this policy aims to “ensure all Alberta students are knowledgeable, understanding, and respectful of the rich diversity of First Nations, Metis, and Inuit cultures”. The importance of this goal cannot be understated. The current economic climate and push towards the construction and expansion of pipelines in this province has authored a narrative that places Indigenous people squarely as obstacles to economic prosperity. However, this narrative has existed historically as the Canadian government has regularly violated treaty agreements to promote the rapid expansion and development of Canada at the expense of the wellbeing of our First Nations. My biggest concern as a professional is that policy does not translate into action. While I value the aim of this area of the Indigenous educational policy, I personally have yet to witness students in my school who are knowledgeable about Indigenous culture. I do believe they make attempts to be understanding and respectful of the wide amount of diversity that is found in our school community so this perspective is a good starting point to acknowledging the importance of Indigenous culture in Alberta.

Finally, this brings me to the role of teachers in meeting the outcome of this policy. Recently, Alberta Education revised the Teaching Quality Standards (TQS) to reflect competencies of a modern education system. Within these standards TQS #5 highlights the responsibility of the teacher to have a “Foundational Knowledge of First Nation, Metis, Inuit culture”. While many of my colleagues have made attempts to meet this standard I believe that it has led to generalizations of Indigenous cultures and surface level attempts that lack authentic understanding of Traditional ways of Knowing. If it is the aim of Alberta Education to ensure that students are knowledgeable, understanding, and respectful of Indigenous culture it has to start with the teachers in the building first. Connecting this outcome to the TQS is a step in the right direction, however it remains to be seen if it has been implemented effectively. I am really looking forward to engaging in the course content and gaining a better perspective of how policy can be translated into a better future for our Indigenous students in Alberta.