On May 20, 2020 thirty DCDSB English secondary teachers together with members of the board's Indigenous Education Advisory Circle participated in a virtual meeting with Indigenous author, Jesse Thistle. Mr. Thistle spoke to teachers about Homelessness vs. Houselessness. He explained how an Indigenous child became homeless when removed from his/her traditional land and how the child became house less when he/she moved into his/her grandparent's home.
In September 2020, the Durham Catholic District School Board will implement the Grade 11
English: Understanding Contemporary Indigenous Voices
course at all of our secondary schools. The meeting with with Jesse Thistle was an opportunity for teachers to learn more about how to engage students in contemporary Indigenous Voice, while learning about Indigenous culture.
Mr. Thistle's book, From the Ashes is one of the books Grade 11 students will be reading that is designed to incorporate Indigenous perspectives across the curriculum.
The new course will support the development of each learner as articulated in the Catholic Graduate Expectations, will fulfill the mandatory Grade 11 English requirement for the Ontario Secondary School Diploma and are recognized by all post-secondary institutions.
We are excited to extend this innovative program to our board which reflects our shared commitment to reconciliation and will provide our students with the opportunity to examine contemporary issues in the English classrooms.