Opinion: Indigenous education; don’t forget the 97 per cent
By Maurice Switzer
When Ontario launched its First Nation, Métis, and Inuit (FNMI) Education Policy Framework in 2007, some concerns were expressed that its sole emphasis seemed to be on improving achievement levels for Indigenous students, who represent 3 per cent of K-12 students in the provincial public school system.
The headlined objective was justifiably “to improve education outcomes among Aboriginal students.”
Former Premier of Ontario Dalton McGuinty’s Liberal government introduced the long-overdue and welcome initiative, acknowledging that a 20-40 per cent achievement gap between Indigenous and other students “has been strongly affected by Residential School experiences and has resulted in intergenerational mistrust of the education system.”
In addition to the horrific legacy of Indian Residential Schools, the government also identified systemic under-funding of on-reserve schools, socioeconomic barriers, and a lack of culturally-relevant curricula as contributing factors.
So far, so good.
Now, some asked, what’s being done to ensure that the remaining 97 per cent of provincial students – and teachers – are contributing to an environment that makes improved learning experiences more likely for Indigenous students?
Granted, there was some FNMI Framework language that seemed to address this concern.
A Policy Statement promised that Ontario schools would “provide a curriculum that facilitates learning about contemporary and traditional First Nation, Métis, and Inuit cultures, histories, and perspectives among all students, and will also contribute to the education of school board staff, teachers, and trustees.”
Within the first year following its 2018 election win, the Conservative government under Premier Doug Ford’s leadership began watering down Liberal promises about mandatory Indigenous learning.
The Ministry of Education scattered Indigenous content across several compulsory-credit courses – like literature, politics, and history – without seeking any meaningful input from Indigenous communities.
Diminishing curriculum emphasis on the impacts of colonialism on Indigenous peoples, and minimizing our achievements and contributions in all sectors of Canadian life, flies in the face of recommendations of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Ontario’s very own Ipperwash Inquiry into the 1995 shooting death of Anthony Dudley George by an Ontario Provincial Police sniper included several recommendations calling for increased public education about Indigenous peoples and treaty rights.
There are other indications that the Ministry of Education intends to lower the profile of Indigenous learning.
Across the province, a number of senior Indigenous school board positions are being phased out or minimized. These positions interact with teachers and have had a significant influence on Indigenous learning in their boards.
Some boards appear to be incorporating Indigenous education into their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion portfolios, thereby downgrading the constitutional recognition accorded to First Peoples to the status of ethnic groups.
Conservatives across Canada – both small and capital letter “c” – are demonstrating signs of ” reconciliation fatigue.”
British Columbia politicians are hastily backing away from their previous commitment to harmonize provincial laws with the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
New Brunswick’s government has censored land acknowledgements by provincial employees.
Right-wing think tanks are actively and very publicly supporting a cabal of academics who are spouting Indian Residential School denialism.
The good news is that Ontario has joined Nova Scotia as a jurisdiction signing a master education agreement designed to improve educational outcomes for Indigenous students in provincial schools. The agreement guarantees culturally-appropriate learning for Anishinabek Nation students in classrooms where their languages and perspectives are respected.
Anishinabek educators and political leaders will be monitoring the results of an initiative that impacts fewer than 3 per cent of the province’s students.
The level of success experienced by Indigenous students depends very much on how much emphasis Ontario’s Ministry of Education places on Indigenous learning by the other 97 per cent of its students, as well as on pertinent professional development of teachers, administrators, and trustees.
Repairing the puncture in a tire means little if the wheel’s rim is broken.
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Maurice Switzer is a citizen of the Michi Saagig of Alderville. He serves as president of the North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre.