Indigenous Education Isn't Multicultural Education: an Interview with Jo Chrona [S5 E159]

Listen to the full episode below:

Did you know that British Columbia is home to the largest number of First Nations in the entire country? There are more indigenous languages spoken there than the rest of Canada combined. We learned this and so much more from our interview with Jo Chrona.

Jo is an educator, author, and advocate for indigenous education and is here to share her wealth of knowledge and experience with us. Throughout the interview, Jo emphasizes the importance of creating environments that respond to the whole person and the need to model a commitment to lifelong learning for our students. Plus, she highlights the powerful impact of the First Peoples Principles of Learning in Canada

This episode is a valuable resource for any educator looking to deepen their understanding of anti-racist and indigenous education and take actionable steps toward meaningful change in their practice.

One way that you can take the next step in your learning journey as an educator is by reading Jo’s book, Wayi Wah! Indigenous Pedagogies – An Act for Reconciliation and Anti-Racist Education 2022, which was written for non-indigenous educators. This book asks a lot of great questions for you to reflect on, while also being an accessible read.

Don’t forget to sign up for Camp BNT, where you can share your takeaways from this conversation in our private Facebook group filled with like-minded teachers!

Meet Jo Chrona:

Jo Chrona is an education consultant, speaker, and author, supporting professional learning opportunities in the areas of Indigenous education and anti-racism.

Her professional experience includes over 25 years teaching in both K-12 (secondary) and post-secondary education, working as a Faculty Associate in SFU’s Teacher Education Program, an Advisor with the BC Ministry of Education, and a Policy Analyst and then Curriculum Manager, for the First Nations Education Steering Committee in British Columbia. 

Over the past two decades, she has also been actively involved in the areas of curriculum development and resource writing, professional learning through inquiry networks, literacy development, and Indigenous education. She was also involved in various aspects of transformation in the BC education system, and also managed the development of authentic Indigenous teacher resources.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

  • Jo’s background as an Indigenous educator

  • How the First Peoples Principles of Learning are transforming classrooms

  • Who exactly Wayi Wah! Indigenous Pedagogies – An Act for Reconciliation and Anti-Racist Education 2022 was created for

  • Different ways that Jo envisions educators to approach the text

  • A debrief of big concepts from Jo’s book that will help teachers understand which terminology to use 

  • Getting past the fear of making a mistake in teaching topics that you aren’t as knowledgeable about

  • Distinguishing between indigenous education and multicultural education 

  • Culturally responsive pedagogy techniques

More about Brave New Teaching:

Join hosts Amanda Cardenas (Mud & Ink Teaching) and Marie Morris (The Caffeinated Classroom) in discussions about being brave, trying new things, and all things teaching! As seasoned classroom teachers, Amanda and Marie bring their experience, insight, energy, and oh, so many opinions and ideas... It's time for all teachers to take their classroom and teaching practice into their own hands!

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