A quick survey indicates that because diversity courses are so varied in the United States, there does not appear to be a lot of consultation with the minority groups that are the subjects of the course. Rather, courses must meet a set of criteria laid out by the university. The University of Wisconsin did consult with the directors of the Council of Independent Colleges of African American studies programs in Chicago; while outside of their institution, this is still an academic source. In Montana, all levels of education have been required by state legislation to include “Indian education” since 1999, after which the Office of Public Instruction called together tribal leaders, elders, and cultural experts from each of the 12 Tribal Nations to discuss what should inform the curriculum and together provided a wealth of resources for educators, which is continually being expanded.

In Australia, the process of Indigenization of curricula has been guided by a series of national commissions and reports, such as the 1982 Commonwealth Aboriginal Studies Working Group. In 1999 a scholar collaborated with several Indigenous communities to produce comprehensive Aboriginal studies teaching/learning materials for faculties of education, which have been taken up by several universities. The Council of Aboriginal Reconciliation in 2000, much like the TRC, gave recommendations which led to Aboriginal courses. At the University of Queensland, consultation was done with Indigenous stakeholders, the University’s Indigenous Education Centre and faculty to design a critical curriculum. In the design of one course, Carmen Roberts from the University of Regina was an external evaluator.

In Canada, this process is more recent and consultations are beginning to take place. The University of Manitoba has just begun the process for a required course; a memorandum of understanding was signed with the Treaty Relations Committee of Manitoba to bolster treaty education, but so far consultations have been within the university. Vancouver Island University prefers Indigenization of the entire curriculum; its First Nations Studies program is community-based and has elders in residence. Simon Fraser also prefers this approach and has a focus on Aboriginal languages in partnership with Indigenous communities. While Trent University does not have an Indigenous learning requirement, it has one of the few Ph.D. programs in Indigenous Studies, which was made in close consultation with Aboriginal communities and scholars. Finally, St. Paul’s University College at Waterloo has a non-mandatory Indigenous Studies course that is taught in partnership with Six Nations, which appoints a visiting professor to teach it each semester.

April 8 – Meeting with Elders and community leaders
Gordon Martell, Superintendent from the Greater Saskatoon Catholic School Board
Michael Gatin, Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation senior admin staff member
Tish Karpa, Sask Teachers' Federation
Louise Halfe
Paulette Hunter (STM)

• need to have a ground rules for students in the room- respectful dialogue- what are the interventions for the intellectually hostile students
• there will need to be some authentic assessment - a scenario that allows students to demonstrate this understanding
• make the diversity among instructors and students a deliberate feature that we celebrate
• ensuring there is a rigour in these courses - academic rigour and indigenous rigour
• a localized frame of reference that can be used as a foundation- we have amazing treaty teachers in this territory
• use problem- based learning and do it online- do not use lectures anymore
• can there be a way to engage the students and reflection - need to have a web-based interface or app
• we need to be thinking about relationships and how they will be redefined through this experience
• we need to create opportunities for healing talking circles are very helpful and important
• community service learning would be nice as well but requires more resources then we will have available
• we want a paradigm shift -we want students to see the world from other perspectives- to open their minds
• content: Aboriginal people should not be depicted from a deficit position but from an appreciation perspective
• principles for instructors leads to an ethical space frame - start with self -reflection positionality and bias: how do you create relationships with the students - how do instructors acts like the aunties or uncles and support the cognitive and emotional processing rather than leaving students with the visceral reactions
• This core set of principles should be agreed on by all instructors - discursive repositioning themselves to demonstrate to students they are evolving
• don't say ‘aboriginal issues’ or ‘issues facing’- do a better job of framing- example- ‘our shared challenges’- that brings us all into the circle -get away from the binary ‘us’ and ‘them’ -it is a continuum- situate yourself on it
• we are preparing students for the University journey- use humour -balance with unrealized opportunities - different seasons different things are taught -this could be used to breathe life into ‘indigenization’ and building a relationship with the land- unpacking the course could be an experiment and curiosity
• language talking circles are really powerful- so much is within one word
• impact- interaction in the classroom with 500? instructors should encourage students to interact with them or have elders have a discussion with each other and have students observe to start each class there could be a routines such as acknowledgment and honouring the teacher and the territory - have to be very careful around how the teachers comport themselves - what are we doing internally within the system- are these structures things that need changing and might undermine the success of the class?
• learning objectives- modelling protocol multiple ways of meaning and knowing and making meaning
• Recognizing our roles and treaty relationships students- should be able to identify where they are situated in a treaty relationship- if students have some tools this can help them build skills for dialogue people -will need to learn how to enter dialogue respectfully
• Student should know the local contribution of Aboriginal cultures here as opposed to all around the globe -what is special about here and the local knowledge?
• meet with Gwenna Moss staff to make sure our instructors are doing things right
• paradigm shift will hurt- things are uncomfortable -student should be supported throughout

April 12 Indigenous requirement WG meeting with faculty:
19 faculty members invited; 5 attended:
Ryan walker, Jim Waldram, Sarah Nickel, Allyson Stevenson, Ron Hudson

• Won't have success with forcing bigots to take a course about people they are prejudiced against. Not appropriate to force people to learn something, but rather set the conditions for making them want to come. You can't take a history of people being forced to learn by now forcing people to learn.
• College has been indigenizing for a very long time- we should continue on the track we are on, rather than ghettoizing indigenieity.
• This would be a massive job to organize these courses.
• Pedagogical model - could be sterile, some students could be disruptive. Proposal - needs thematic integrity, rather than a collection of keywords. Key issue is contemporary context. Need a coherent thread to hold the 4 courses together.
• separate mode of course delivery from the criteria, as this is a different issue.
• With large sections, this will be about passively receiving information, and may not be the best way for students to learn, with a line of guest profs. How will this course to more than raise awareness and sensitivity? Real reconciliation happens between individuals.
• This is something the whole college owns. Intellectual leadership is in the right place, indigenous studies. What's the possibility for experiential learning opportunities?
• Weekly tutorials would not be possible with this amount of work and people, and TAs may come with their own biases.
• College students and faculty could come together in a way that they never have before. Incredibly innovative, but huge logistical problems. Where do you put every one and when- what are the lecture halls?
• Aboriginal students in these courses should have the opportunity to meet with each other outside of this class. Plus, aboriginal peoples are not a homogeneous group themselves. Safety and counselling implications.
• Jill- rationale should expand on resource implications that we see and are hearing.
• Pilot the course for one year and work the bugs out. It would have to work as a non-mandatory elective the first year. Attach a strong research evaluation component to the pilot, and ask for resources for 3 years. Important to start it, and commit to continuous improvement. We cannot get the perfect start.
• How is this course fundamentally different than what's being done in the 107 course? That course has tutorials, and it's within 1 single dept. content of breath would be fundamentally different.
• Vetting instructors to teach this - less of a concern as it's modularized. We are not going to say o someone they can't teach it. The people who want to teach it will have to dedicate a fair amount of their resources.
• 1cue courses would be good too- but we live in a 3 cue culture.
• Doing this work collaboratively tells the student body that entire university and college thinks this is important, not just your degree program.
• Winona- if this course goes through, they will lose enrolment in 107, which is the dept’s lifeline. This is a sacrifice that the dept is making.
• Jim- college underutilizes WHP. This could be a field trip destination. Or a 1-day program, with elders.

Those who say yes and want to be involved- Ryan, Sarah, Allyson, Jim.
Neutral and involved in discussion- Rob

Ask elders how they feel about the mandatory nature of this course.