Until recently I believed that citizenship was only related to where you are from or the country you call home. While that is still true, I now realize it goes much deeper than that. Citizenship is not limited to living in a country, finding a job, and working until you retire. It goes deeper and connects to your actions, opinions and involvement in your community. Citizenship is understanding who you are and how you are interconnected to those in your community through shared experiences and motivations. Every person wants our communities and our lives to be better and your citizenship plays a role in that. 

 

In Joel Westheimer’’s interview he discusses the importance of schools and educators contributing to one’s citizenry. Westheimer states “schools are, at least in part, about getting kids to be the best version of themselves that they can be” (2015). Rather than teaching the robotic or standardized learning of skills, but rather teach kids about being a good person, and teach critical thinking skills so they can go into situations with the ability to see the root of an issue and find a solution. Citizenship is also about being a good neighbour. Every person has differing opinions on various situations or problems but we need to “teach kids we don’t all agree on things and that they need to familiarize themselves with different perspectives” (Westheimer, 2015). Education is vital in teaching kids to be open-minded and accepting of differences, and this can and will contribute to a sense of involvement and importance in their place and citizenship. 

 

When it comes to Treaty Education and its relation to citizenship we are lacking in the field of education. Treaty Education needs to be emphasized in curriculum as it is a vital part of our country’s relations to Indigenous communities. And while Treaties were an agreement between the government and the Indigenous nations we are all impacted and that fact was not taught in schools until recently. But, even though there have been improvements in our efforts of treaty education there is much room for improvement. Land acknowledgements are a way to bring attention to the presence of Treaties in our communities but they are often done with little thought of why they are important. Dr Mike Cappello mentioned something a student had said to him that stuck with me, “If you are not growing in your relationship with and understanding of the people you name you are using us for political correctness” (As quoted by Capello, 2019). Without understanding the history and the importance of acknowledging our presence in Indigenous communities and history in our land acknowledgements we are simply doing it to look good. But, we are all citizens of treaties and if we understand our impact and our place we gain the potential for a sense of community. Education is vital in this as it is the starting point for learning about Indigenous history and contributions. Citizenship is more than just where you are from or where you live, it is a starting point of our identity and teaching all parts of our history can create and develop a more understanding and unified society.