Good Spirit School Division exposes education gap for Indigenous students

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Students of Indigenous ancestry have long been underachieving because of the inadequate systems that have been put into place, acknowledged Quintin Robertson, director of education for Good Spirit School Division (GSSD), regarding a student learning outcome report in February.

“It’s the system that needs to change, not our Indigenous students,” Robertson said.

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The report says First Nations and Métis students face unique challenges in education, lacking equitable support and opportunities. When their cultural backgrounds aren’t reflected in the curriculum, students’ confidence and academic performance are negatively affected. This disconnect can lead to higher dropout rates and long-term disparities in career opportunities.

For the 2022-23 school year, the number of K-12 students in Saskatchewan who graduated within the typical three-year period after beginning Grade 10 was 47.9 per cent for Indigenous students and 88 per cent for non-Indigenous students, according to the Ministry of Education.

About one in six students in the school district is self-identified as having Indigenous ancestry.

It’s not just about the grades. In the classroom, Robertson said racism rears its ugly head frequently across the school division.

Without understanding the rich history and culture of First Nations and Métis people, stereotypes and biases can persist, the report states.

“We understand that we need to do things differently,” Robertson said. “The Western way of educating needs to be adapted. We need to learn from our Indigenous partners, we need to explore other opportunities like land-based learning; we need to make sure that counselling services are in place, high expectations are in place, but support is also in place.”

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“We’re losing our way of life. We are trying to revive it,” said Andrew Quewezance, 70, a Kici-Anishinaabe elder, while holding the tobacco given by Robertson at the GSSD’s board of education meeting April 25, when speaking of carrying on the spirit of the treaties.

The room was quiet when Indigenous representatives were invited to share their knowledge on their traditional cultural events and celebrations with GSSD trustees at the meeting.

Elder Quewezance began his speech by putting away the microphone and expressing his gratitude for nature, then moved on to building relationships with the same philosophy.

“You want to learn the language, learn important words of the language, respect, share. Learn those words first: ‘how are you,’ ‘how are you feeling.’ Calm and simple,” Quewezance said.

The process of healing takes time, with generations of mistreatment and marginalization, thus cannot be rushed to meet the set timelines of reconciliation envisioned by the organization or the government, Quewezance argued.

Robert Severight, an Indigenous cultural advocate, nodded.

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As an educator himself, Severight said he drew strength from traditions and used stories and real life examples to help youths’ decision-making.

Saskatchewan has integrated Indigenous studies into K-12 classes since 1986. Indigenous education is one of four key priorities of the 2023 Provincial Education Plan with active involvement of representatives of First Nations and Métis education organizations, a Ministry of Education spokesperson said in an email.

The schools in the Good Spirit School Division have integrated measures of progress to meet the provincial education plan 2030 goal, such as student attendance and Grade 3 students reading at or above grade level.

“We have quite a few opportunities to meet with leaders and parents and knowledge keepers from our local nation to determine how we can do a better job with the students that are coming off the First Nations and those students who are from our urban and rural setting,” Robertson said.

“At the beginning of my career without being a board member, we used to go to Kamsack and the old high school, they’re in the gymnasium. We sat in a circle. It’s for five years in a row. Andrew, I believe you used to be there. We each need to shake hands and we went around and looked into the eye of the individual and around the circle and then back, sat down and shared information … And then we also had lunch,” recalled Bob Simpson, a trustee who covers Grayson, Melville and area.

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After the presentation Severight wrote thank you — Miigwech — in his language Nakawē, which is part of the Algonquian language family. He also wrote it in Cree — hai, hai.

“People are very forgiving. We’re very open and kind of share, willing to share, and teach,” Severight said with a smile.

Cleo Ding is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for the Canora Courier. The LJI program is federally funded by the Government of Canada.

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