Question 1: During the first face to face we used the language of Urgent vs Important to help frame our thinking around our use of TIME. Reflect on why you joined Cohort 21 and your professional goals for this year. Now that the year has begun and you have met your students what IMPORTANT goal might you like to address and leverage this community to get support with.
I joined Cohort 21 for collegial support and ideas. My professional goals for this year are to continue to expand and deepen our work with indigenous studies.
I want to ensure that the children feel safe and supported now more than ever. I believe their social and emotional learning is a priority now more than ever. To that end, I would like to have the tools and the support to be able to ensure we take things slow and are patient and supportive with them.
Question 2: Which of the Season 10 Strands did you choose and why? Share what you feel is both urgent and important about it for you and your school at the moment and some of the questions you have around moving forward. Feel free to change strands should you want to.
I chose Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice because I am passionate about indigenous studies and truth and reconciliation. I have been working to incorporate lessons and PBL on residential schools since hearing Gord Downie speak at a WE day concert. Each year we are learning more and more as a country, and I think it is important that the students be able to research and understand the true history of their country and learn different perspectives. How do I ensure our initiatives continue when this topic is no longer in the spotlight?
So glad you joined Cohort 21! Looking forward to your posts.
@swhitmore
Looking forward to your response on our first two Season 10 prompts. Here is a video explaining how https://bit.ly/c21season10firstpost
@lbettencourt @gnichols
Hi @swhitmore,
I’m happy to chat and available to bounce some ideas off of if you like. The first blog post can be intimidating, BUT it doesn’t have to be.
L. 🙂
Finally in here and working on it, sorry to be late to the party!
Sheri
Great blog Sheri!
I saw your Twitter post https://twitter.com/SheriWhitmore21/status/1450447746712879105?s=20 for Secret Path Week. I think your comment about taking things slow, while we patiently support students is so important in reconciliation and indigenous studies. I showed a couple of films that week and I found the HotDocs website to be a fantastic resource.
For my class (Comm Tech. 11), we watched the documentaries “Turning Tables” (about a Pow wow techno pioneer, Joshua DePerry) and “Spirit to Soar” through HotDocs http://hotdocs.ca/p/downie-wenjack
Turning Tables – Student response: “I enjoyed how Josh was able to take his Anishinaabe culture and mix it into the thing he loves to do – creating music.” This film showcased a young talent inspiring his community through music, dance, and culture.
Spirit to Soar – Tanya Talaga tells the story of the seven First Nations high school students in Thunder Bay who died between 2000-2011. Our conversations in class were serious as we discussed the pain, suffering, loss, grief, racism, and most of all the injustice of these deaths,
I screened the Australian Dream as HotDocs wanted teacher feedback regarding the film’s appropriateness for students. The documentary begins with the story of a local athlete with celebrity status for being a hero in the community, and then uncovers the true reality of the experience. Profanity, verbal abuse, and violence are all present in the second half of the film. The message was powerful and with so many instances of racism in sport; often heard on the fields/court/ice, sidelines and in the stands. We need to acknowledge the problem and empower students to stand up to the injustice. Being back on the sidelines this fall coaching soccer, reminded me of this aspect of sport that should not be tolerated.
I would be interested to learn more about the PBL activities you are creating for your class.
Looking forward to connecting with you more tomorrow,
Lisa
Here are some additional resources that I found helpful:
The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund: https://downiewenjack.ca/our-work/legacy-schools-programs/
Hot Docs: https://www.hotdocs.ca/p/dfs-today-indigenous
TRC’s 94 Calls to Action – Appels à l’action published in 2015: https://ehprnh2mwo3.exactdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf
First Nations Map of Ontario: https://files.ontario.ca/pictures/firstnations_map.jpg
Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada: https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/
7 Truths from Tanya Talaga: https://www.audible.ca/pd/Seven-Truths-Podcast/B08NXZGC4X
The Inuit Experience of Residential schools:: http://www.weweresofaraway.ca
Hi Sheri,
Welcome! I wonder how the focus on indigenous studies and ways of knowing in your work might simultaneously lead towards your desire to focus on SEL and inclusivity/support for ALL students. It can be so rewarding when what seems like a specific area of focus at first all of a sudden extends its branches into so many other aspects of our practice.
@swhitmore
Happy new year! I hope you are managing during this remote learning period. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and reflection above. What a great catalyst for conversation.
We are looking forward to connecting this weekend. If you have a free moment before Saturday; create a 2nd post that answers the following 2nd F2F reflection questions and post your HMW question.
This will be really helpful to your coaches/facilitator in their support of your Action Plan. It should not take more than 5 minutes so don’t overthink it. We just want to pile on the support and the blog is the most efficient way to do it.
1) What was the process like in coming up with your HMW question at the last face-to-face? Where did you land? Share your first attempt so we can see where your action plan is headed.
2) Who should you talk to next to help guide your inquiry? In order to answer your HWM question, what voices and perspectives need to be consulted? What did you learn when you talked to them?
3) Why are you engaging in this line of action and inquiry? What important unmet need sits central to your question?
See you Saturday!
Justin