Truth and Reconciliation - All Year Round
Last month, the CALP community gathered in circle with Elders Dave, John, and Lucille to reflect on the tragic and painful legacy of Residential Schools. Together, we remembered the children who never returned home and honoured the survivors, their families, and communities. While these conversations are difficult, acknowledging these truths is a vital step in the reconciliation process.
As part of our commitment to reconciliation, we issued a call to action: to seek out further learning. To help us do that, we invited Faye Beauchamp, Indigenous Liaison – North, to guide us as we continue our personal journeys of reconciliation. Faye also offers valuable suggestions for incorporating truth and reconciliation into adult learning opportunities.
One meaningful thing you can do in your adult learning class to honour Truth and Reconciliation all year round is to integrate Indigenous voices and perspectives into your teachings on an ongoing basis, not just on significant dates like September 30th.
For example, you might:
- Regularly include Indigenous authors, story tellers or Knowledge Keepers in your libraries and/or guest presentations
- Use land acknowledgements as teaching tools, encouraging learners to reflect on the history and the meaning behind them
- Incorporate discussions about Indigenous history; resilience and contributions into lessons within different subjects such as literacy, workplace and life skills, etc.
This shifts Truth and Reconciliation from being a one-day event into an ongoing practice of respect, learning, and relationship-building!
- Once a month or so, you can dedicate 10 minutes of class time to highlight an Indigenous voice, story, or teaching
- Choose a short poem, quote, video clip or song from an Indigenous artist to discuss
These suggestions can be integrated into reading, writing, and conversation activities—in Adult Literacy or English Language Learning (ELL) programs. Over time, they help build awareness and support inclusive engagement with Truth and Reconciliation.
Song
The seven teachings include love, respect, honesty, courage/bravery, truth, wisdom, and humility and each teaching is represented by an animal.
Each animal helps teach us how we can live our lives respecting animals, people, and the environment—every living thing.
Story
The annual Orange Shirt Day on September 30th opens the door to global conversation on all aspects of Residential Schools. It is an opportunity to create meaningful discussion about the effects of Residential Schools and the legacy they have left behind.
This is a discussion all Canadians can tune into and create bridges with each other for reconciliation. A day for survivors to be reaffirmed that they matter, and so do those that have been affected. Every Child Matters, even if they are an adult, from now on.
Poetry
“I Lost My Talk” is a poem written by Rita Joe that was published in 1978. She was a Mi’kmaq poet and songwriter from Nova Scotia, Canada. At the age of 12, she was admitted to the Schubenacadie Indian Residential School in Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia. There she was forced to give up her Indigenous language, culture, and true identity.
Etuaptmumk
Albert Marshall is a respected Mi’kmaq Elder whose concept of two-eyed seeing recognizes the strength of both Indigenous and Western ways of knowing and uses both competencies together.
Etuaptmumk (eh-doo-ahp-duh-mumk) or Two-Eyed Seeing is the gift of multiple perspectives in the Mi’kmaw language.
“The truth about stories is, that’s all we are.” ~Thomas King