Teaching Tradition Teaches Us

Abstract

Teaching of Indigenous traditions in the context of an Aboriginal counselling pro­ gram located in a Eurocentric university context can be viewed as both exemplary and contradictory. This article documents how we at the First Nations and Aboriginal Degree Program (FNAC) are challenged to excel at revitalizing tradition­ al healing and teaching strategies while acknowledging the domination of Western theories and practices. Contradictions that have arisen in our daily lived experience of bringing tradition into a modern context are posed as lessons to learn from. Resolv­ ing these controversies on an ongoing basis evidences the struggles and successes of FNAC as a modelofexemplaryIndigenouseducation.