Representing First Nations, Metis and Inuit in My Physical Education Classroom
With my primary teachable coming out of Teachers College being physical education, it is important to me to find ways to represent and educate my students on various diversity topics including First Nations, Metis and Inuit. One way for me to do this is through simple discussions with my classes revolving around different cultures and how these cultures impact the way people play sports as well as the value they place on them. Instead of competition, other cultures focus on things such as community and cooperation, however because these don't relate to the dominant North American ideals we often do not experience them in our "traditional" competitive games. When discussing these ideas with students it is important to be respectful of others and for everyone to be positive and open minded.
Along with discussing sports, getting students to play traditional First Nations, Metis and Inuit games in class can open their mind and get them to realize how these games impact the culture. When playing the games it is important to discuss with students what these games build within the participants and why they may be significant in a community. For example, the finger pull is a traditional game that is used to strengthen fingers so that people were prepared for the fishing season in order to provide food to their families (Cho, 2005).
Playing various games is simply not enough to get First Nations, Metis and Inuit students to continue to take physical education throughout their schooling. As discussed by Halas (2011), contact zones outside of class such as the change rooms are a major barrier that prevent these students from taking physical education. Systematical racism that oppresses those who are not white often rears its head inside of these change rooms and prevents those who are not in the dominant norm to discontinue their pursuit of physical education. In order to counteract this, as a teacher, I must deconstruct this idea of systematic oppression and through dialogue with my students get them to realize that no one person is better than another and that respect for one another in and out of class is crucial for growth as an individual and a society.
Creating an inclusive and safe community within my classroom is crucial in being able to educate and include a wide range of students into my classroom. Not only do students need to be able to feel safe and included in order to learn but physical education is particularly difficult when stigma and bullying are often very prevalent. This does not only relate to diverse culture in the classroom but other factors such as mental health, sexuality, gender norms, SRI and racism. The underlining solution in my mind is that classrooms need to be a safe and inclusive place where students feel a sense of community and safety in order to have conversations on these topics in order to educate students and reduce stigma regarding them. When students have a voice in your classroom they are willing to be themselves and as a result come ready to learn and grow each and every day.
 |
| https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RtPcMD15OGs/maxresdefault.jpg |
Playing various games is simply not enough to get First Nations, Metis and Inuit students to continue to take physical education throughout their schooling. As discussed by Halas (2011), contact zones outside of class such as the change rooms are a major barrier that prevent these students from taking physical education. Systematical racism that oppresses those who are not white often rears its head inside of these change rooms and prevents those who are not in the dominant norm to discontinue their pursuit of physical education. In order to counteract this, as a teacher, I must deconstruct this idea of systematic oppression and through dialogue with my students get them to realize that no one person is better than another and that respect for one another in and out of class is crucial for growth as an individual and a society.
Creating an inclusive and safe community within my classroom is crucial in being able to educate and include a wide range of students into my classroom. Not only do students need to be able to feel safe and included in order to learn but physical education is particularly difficult when stigma and bullying are often very prevalent. This does not only relate to diverse culture in the classroom but other factors such as mental health, sexuality, gender norms, SRI and racism. The underlining solution in my mind is that classrooms need to be a safe and inclusive place where students feel a sense of community and safety in order to have conversations on these topics in order to educate students and reduce stigma regarding them. When students have a voice in your classroom they are willing to be themselves and as a result come ready to learn and grow each and every day.
References
Cho, M. (2005). Dene games. Retrieved from: http://denegames.ca/introduction/index.html
Halas, J., M. (2011). Aboriginal youth and their experiences in physical education: "This is what you've taught me". PHENex Journal, 3(2), 1-23.
Comments
Post a Comment