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A student enrolled in the Cree Bilingual Education program at St. Francis of Assisi School in Edmonton emerges from a tepee, where the morning’s smudging ceremony takes place. Smudging is a ritualistic way to cleanse a person, place or object of its negative energies, spirits or influences. The smudging ceremony involves burning sacred plants and herbal resins, and then passing an object through the resulting smoke or fanning the smoke around a person or place. The spirit of the plant purifies whatever is being smudged. The school also operates a First Nations, Métis and Inuit School–Community Learning Environment program.
Teachers in Alberta are working to make a difference in the lives of First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) children and youth. The Alberta Teachers’ Association’s (ATA) Diversity, Equity and Human Rights Committee has taken a lead role in infusing FNMI education into the curriculum and encouraging teachers to establish a learning environment in which Aboriginal students feel safe, valued and respected.
In 2006, the ATA published Education Is Our Buffalo: A Teachers’ Resource for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Education in Alberta. Written by Aboriginal educators, the resource seeks to broaden the learning experiences of the province’s teachers and students by expanding their knowledge, understanding and appreciation of the rich history and culture of FNMI peoples.—Photo by Koni Macdonald
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