Aboriginal Literacy: Raising Standards, Blazing Trails

Abstract

The field of education is where the Aboriginal community can make the mostprofound contribution to the world by its relentless efforts to survive and prosper andin so doing to eradicate the negative effects of colonization. The oldest prophecies tellus that the Aboriginal peoples of the Americas—in particular the Ojibwe of the NorthAmerican region—have this task entrusted to them by the Creator. It is our duty toeducate and illuminate the world by sharing the Sacred Fire that we have kept alive.As one of the last groups of people to experience colonization, First Nations peopleshave managed to keep the fires of this sacred trust burning and thus have survivednear cultural annihilation. The tools with which to do our work were spiritual onesthat were given to us long before this struggle began. In the field of Aboriginalliteracy we have the opportunity to become distinguished for developing a uniquewholistic foundation for the healing and nurturing of minds, bodies, and spirits.Aboriginal literacy is not characterized by assimilation; it involves embracing andfulfilling our unique roles and responsibilities in the Sacred Circle of Life asAboriginal Nations. In this field knowledgeable front-line practitioners are not onlyteachers, but also warriors—in the traditional sense of peacekeepers. They are capableof consciously modeling resilience and Aboriginal ways of life and in the processadvancing the spiritual transformation of humanity.