Aboriginal Worldviews and Perspectives in the Classroom

Emphasis on Identity
Implications for Educational Practice
‣ ¾ Embrace learner-centred teaching practice.
‣ ¾ Encourage student self-awareness grounded in knowledge of family origins, cultural
background, place of origin, allegiance and affiliation, citizenship, and other identity
“markers.” Student self-expression via writing, speaking, and representation is an
opportunity to address and revisit this theme at various stages during their K-12 schooling.
‣ ¾ Acknowledge and celebrate the cultural identities of all students represented in your learning
cohorts.
We need to encourage knowledge of self — the sense of place: “Where are you from?”
participant, Tsaxis
Perspective on how you perceive the world
is a part of who you are. A sense of how
one belongs and is connected is essential
to learning. We need to understand our
connectedness, particularly to the land.
participant, Tsaxis
All children should be acknowledged for
their ancestry; it is their identity and what
they bring. You’ve got to know where you
come from to know where you are going.
participant, Tsaxis
To better represent Aboriginal
perspectives in the classroom,
education needs to help people
understand their roots, their
culture — encourage the
identity journey.
participant, Burnaby
Because kids tend to be conformist, especially at the
grades 7-9 levels, [and because past and ongoing racism
results in people feeling denigrated and devalued
on account of their origins and ethnicity,] efforts to
celebrate and promote distinctiveness in identity,
including cultural identity, are important; Aboriginal
kids need to be affirmed in exploring their identity.
participant, Williams Lake
26 Aboriginal Worldviews and Perspectives in the Classroom: Moving Forward