TPS Touchpoint: Integrating Indigenous topics, perspectives and worldviews

In honour of Indigenous History Month, June’s highlighted results from the Teaching Practices Survey (TPS) focus on integrating Indigenous topics, perspectives and worldviews.

• 59% of respondents incorporate a land acknowledgement in the syllabus, class meeting, or other materials, which is a 39% increase from 2018.
• 33% of respondents incorporate assignments/assessments that allow for the inclusion of Indigenous perspectives and/or allow for Indigenous worldviews and contemporary realties relevant to the subject area.
• 21% of respondents include a positionality statement on decolonizing and/or Indigenizing in the context of their course.
• 29% of respondents (on the open-ended question about their approach to integration) mention the role of expertise, such as receiving training in Indigenous methodologies/history /research; inviting community guest speakers; including Indigenous students as knowledge keepers; drawing on their own Indigenous worldview; and collaborating with non-Indigenous colleagues.
• 10% of respondents (on the open-ended question about their approach to integration) address the role of course design in Indigenization/decolonization, including using Indigenous methods, aligning with TRC calls for action, consulting with Indigenous community members, and creating/using culturally relevant OER materials.

One of the goals under the Centre for Teaching and Learning’s Strategic Plan Priority #1 is to “advance decolonized and Indigenized curriculum and teaching practices.” We acknowledge the challenges with integrating Indigenous approaches into a course in a meaningful way (24% of responses in answer to the open-ended question related to challenges).

For ideas on how to choose an entry point that makes the most sense for your context, visit “Exploring Role in Decolonizing/Indigenizing Teaching” on the CTL Reflection and Feedback web page. There you can also find resources related to positionality statements that can communicate to all learners how an instructor’s identities and perspectives shape their teaching approaches and course-related choices, including those related to decolonization.

Once you are ready to advance to making concrete changes, consider the resources available for Indigenization through course (re)design. If you already have ideas but need some guidance and dedicated time to make progress, apply to take part in the CTL Course (re)Design Intensive June 24-28th! Also, feel free to reach out to Jessica Bayer, Educational Consultant for Indigenous Initiatives, to schedule a conversation around your ideas on Indigenizing and decolonizing in your teaching.