Focus Question 3: Truth & Reconciliation
Core Questions: Describe what you learned in your K-12 education about Indigenous history in Canada. What have you learned as an adult through media, family, friends and other learning experiences? As you read through the TRC booklet-Truth & Reconciliation: What is it about? What messages resonate with you? What do you need and want to learn more about? What would you do for a call to action?

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In my K -12 education, I did not learn much about Indigenous people until grade 12 when I opted to take Native Studies. My social and history classes surprisingly taught little about Indigenous history in Canada. Although we discussed things such as hoop dancing, Bannock making, Indigenous creation stories, and Residential Schools (RS) throughout elementary and high school, I never felt I was learning anything of substance. For instance, though we were consistently learning about RS, what we were taught was highly repetitive; I felt my knowledge was not expanding. I wanted to know names, survivor experiences, locations, lasting effects, and more, but they never delved into the details. This was unfair to my peers and I, who wanted to learn more. To build on this, I was eleven years old when I began learning about RS. However, I had minimal previous knowledge about Indigenous culture, so I found myself confused and not comprehending the enactment of the schools. I believe there needs to be more early elementary education about the way of life, culture, and spiritualities of the Indigenous people so children can better understand the mistreatment of First Nations and Metis peoples during colonialism as they get older. Particularly, it would be wonderful for more Indigenous speakers and teachers to be hired to teach from their perspective and share first-hand experiences (rather than teaching majority-white perspectives). The TRC booklet we read delved into the ugly truth about RS. The content was heavy but informational. I liked that they weaved in statements from survivors. Hearing from impacted people developed another layer of reality and comprehension, which prodded at my heart. Further, I loved that they provided ideas for moving forward with the “I can” and “we can” statements. A quote that resonated with me from the booklet states, “For me to just say SORRY wouldn’t even begin to make up for the situation, but I would mainly want them to know I was there to LISTEN and HELP in any way I could.” For me, this highlights the fact that words mean nothing until they are put into action. We must do more than apologize, as we could never say sorry enough to make up for the tragedies. Therefore, I appreciate the booklet providing ways to act. Moving forward, I want to learn more about what I can do to physically act on reconciliation. I would additionally like to learn more about Indigenous identity and culture.