The Indigenous Knowledge Implementation Packsack: A Handbook for Embedding Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Your Teaching was written by the Negahneewin Research Centre at Confederation College.
New HEQCO resource offers guidance on incorporating Indigenous Knowledge into postsecondary teaching practices.
Since the publication of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Calls to Action in 2015, many postsecondary institutions have been working to implement education recommendations such as the development of a decolonization strategy and the inclusion of mandatory Indigenous content. A new report published by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) offers guidance to postsecondary instructors looking to expand their classroom experience to one that recognizes the relevance and importance of Indigenous Knowledges and encourages critical thinking. The Indigenous Knowledge Implementation Packsack: A Handbook for Embedding Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Your Teaching is framed as a ‘Packsack’ which is a term used by Indigenous peoples in northern Ontario that references the canvas pack that hunters and trappers carried in the bush. It builds upon a previous resource, An Indigenous Mobilization Packsack: Utilizing Indigenous Learning Outcomes to Promote and Assess Critical Thinking and Global Citizenship, which provided guidance for institutions looking to implement Indigenous learning outcomes.
Before delving into the ways that instructors can bring Indigenous Knowledges into their classroom, this latest resource addresses anxieties that instructors may have about working in an Indigenous Knowledge Environment and answers some common questions that come up when going through this process. The guide encourages instructors to choose an aspect that fits with their style and teaching expertise and then follow the corresponding guide to inform their teaching.
The written portion of the guide is supplemented by four visual guides, one for each of the ways of navigating that can be downloaded and consulted separately from the report and are also included as appendices.