Learning about and honouring MMIWG

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/01/2019 (2688 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s always something interesting going on at Collège Churchill High School.

This school year, students in the justice transition class, learning assistant centre class and the Excel program have been working many hours on an inquiry based project on missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in Canada.

Students were given the opportunity to demonstrate their learning in any way, though writing, art, sculpture, technology and drama. Some of the students made huge art projects, others made murals, some did research, made poster boards, and then presented their work to their classmates and others.

All the students really connected to the inquiry based learning model. The group used overarching themes that connected to English, art, cultural exploration, geography and history.

Justice transition home room teacher and co-ordinator Kate Tucovic said the student projects were quite significant.

“These inquiry themed projects are important for our class because they provide authentic learning opportunities for students to connect their learning to multiple credits on topics that are of high interest to our youth,” she said.

“The hands-on component to our learning helps cement the students understanding of these concepts. Our staff are so proud of our students and their ability to create such beautiful work.”

She also added that much of the work was “very raw and real and struck a chord with many of our students.”

Kate also told me that the program was “a proactive approach to help build healthy relationships between our students, and demonstrates to the community that our school and our youth care about the issue of missing and murdered women in our city and country.”

The group wanted to show that the missing and murdered women are being honoured in an appropriate and sensitive way and ensure that as the next generation of youth grow older, they have the power to change the way our society perceives the issue of missing and murdered women, and learn to live with each other in a good way.

The justice transition classroom also provided community resources for youth who might be struggling and connected with parents and elders to make this project as authentic as possible.

The program involved students from Grades 7 to 12 and the projects are on display in the library at Collège Churchill High School.

Dan Sylvestre is a teacher at Collège Churchill High School and a community correspondent for Fort Rouge.