History
History
Abstract
In History classrooms, teaching towards reconciliation can be a complicated process, especially considering the diverse pre-existing understandings and knowledges of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. Indigenous students often come to the classroom with lived experiences of the histories we discuss, and re-learning it in a formal way can be re-traumatizing, especially if handled inappropriately by the instructor or if student comments during classroom discussions go awry. Settler and non-Indigenous students, on the other hand, often need more foundational help understanding what, specifically, needs reconciling; this can involve both learning for the first time about colonial histories and the legacy of those pasts, as well as unlearning colonial stereotypes. In all cases, the work that goes into this kind of learning can take a serious emotional toll on students and faculty. As a participant on this roundtable, I will draw on my experiences teaching in History and Indigenous Studies to explore on the high degree of emotional labour that goes into the decolonial teaching and learning needed to set the stage for reconciliation.
Madeline Knickerbocker, Kwantlen Polytechnic University