By Jonathan Boone and Tara Corneau
Imagine a nutrition class that never baked, a science class that never conducted experiments, or a drama class that never performed a play. All of us would certainly raise an eyebrow and wonder about the rationale behind the lack of creativity and planning on the teacher’s part. The same could be said for a grade 12 social studies class about First Peoples that never left the comforts of the classroom to venture out into an Indigenous community for an extended period of time. This was the driving rationale behind a field trip that was originally created in the spring of 2004. At that time, Jonathan was teaching a new provincial course at Bulkley Valley Christian School (BVCS) in Smithers, BC, called BC First Nations Studies 12. Out of a desire to make the learning more meaningful and to confront students’ assumptions and unhealthy stereotypes about Indigenous people, a five-day, four-night field trip to Haida Gwaii was hastily put together.
In 2004, this island archipelago approximately one hundred kilometers off the north coast of British Columbia was still known by its colonized name, the Queen Charlotte Islands. As this first-time field trip took part over a long weekend and was presented as an extracurricular option, only a small group of six courageous students and one other supervising adult signed up. There was a lot of trepidation in that first trip: how would these students from a homogenous background react to being an ethnic minority within their own province? Would they be good ambassadors of their school? Of their own community? Of Jesus? Would the Haida people they met even welcome them in the first place?
There was a lot of trepidation in that first trip: how would these students from a homogenous background react to being an ethnic minority within their own province? Would they be good ambassadors of their school? Of their own community? Of Jesus? Would the Haida people they met even welcome them in the first place?
Thankfully, the success of that trial run led to the course becoming a permanent course offering at BVCS, and the success of that first field trip to Haida Gwaii (officially renamed in 2010 when the Haida nation ceremonially gave the colonial misnomer back to the provincial government) led it to become a significant component of the same course. So despite the initial trepidation, the field trip was a success, and the next year, nearly the entire class signed up for a longer, more demanding field trip. Tara Corneau has recently taken over the teaching of this course at BVCS and has successfully led the same field trip several times. The testimonies of students about its life-changing impact on them continue to be a common theme, as students wrestle with how they shall now live out their Christian faith in light of what they learned and experienced during their time on Haida Gwaii.
Adapting the Haida Gwaii Experience
In 2017, as part of his graduate studies in education at Dordt University, Jonathan adapted this same trip to be an opportunity for BC Christian school educators to have an Indigenous place-based professional development learning experience. Each trip has included a wide range of Christian school educators from diverse backgrounds: seasoned administrators, educational assistants, veteran classroom teachers, newly graduated teachers still looking for their first placement, and those from both urban and rural school settings. Some of these educators had never traveled within the province outside of the greater Vancouver area, and remarkably, some had never met an Indigenous person to the best of their knowledge. What each educator has had in common is a commitment to learn about, from, and with Indigenous people so they can in turn help write a better story for those entrusted to their care within their own educational settings.
These trips for educators not only provided Jonathan with the data he needed to complete his graduate studies, but they more importantly helped satisfy the growing desire among Christian school educators to learn about Indigenous ways of being and knowing so that they in turn can be better equipped themselves as Christian educators and leaders.
These trips … helped satisfy the growing desire among Christian school educators to learn about Indigenous ways of being and knowing so that they in turn can be better equipped themselves as Christian educators and leaders.
The Case for Place-Based Education
This growing desire to expand our understanding of Indigenous people complements a larger movement within British Columbia and within Canada to come to grips with our country’s colonial history and historic mistreatment of Indigenous people. Ultimately, this movement toward reconciliation with the Indigenous people of Canada challenges the dominant settler narrative of who we are and how this country came to be. The dominant narrative has deep roots and has shaped generations of Canadians and many institutions—including Christian schools. As one might imagine, challenging dominant narratives is not easy; there is always resistance as students (and their parents) and educators wrestle not only with seeing things from a different perspective but also with the implications of what this new perspective might entail. A paradigm shift then becomes necessary, and out of that shift, they find that seeking justice for Indigenous people becomes part of their Christian identity and a part of their own relationship with Jesus. Christian educators naturally wrestle with how to help students see things from a better, more culturally aware perspective. While conventional pedagogies and learning activities within a classroom certainly help achieve this target, a field trip to Haida Gwaii becomes an effective, sometimes life-changing opportunity for students and educators to begin to see things in a new way and to join in God’s story of “making all things new.”
[A] field trip to Haida Gwaii becomes an effective, sometimes life-changing opportunity for students and educators to begin to see things in a new way and to join in God’s story of “making all things new.”
Traveler Testimonies
Consider these quotations from some of the students and educators who have taken part in this place-based learning experience.
Keji:
Haida Gwaii is a very special place, and you realize that as soon as you get there. It’s absolutely gorgeous, and the Haida culture is also extremely rich. It was very cool to see that the Haida are so in touch with their culture, especially the young tour guides. Everyone we met there had this close attention to detail that we often lack, and in that, I really think they reflected Christ.
Paul:
The grade 12 trip to Haida Gwaii exposed me to the beauty of a thriving and vibrant culture. Walking through and learning about the way of life that these First Nations have lived and preserved through the years was amazing. I admired totem poles carved from beautiful cedar, walked through thick wooded forests, and sat to listen to ancient stories passed down through generations. This trip not only introduced me to another culture but also inspired me to learn more about my own lineage, as I saw the power and importance of it through the people of Haida Gwaii.
Eden:
I am so grateful that our class had the opportunity to explore and experience the beauty of Haida land and culture. The morning we arrived on Haida Gwaii and watched the beautiful sunrise at Balance Rock, I knew it would be an unforgettable trip, and I still feel that way. I loved learning about the old ways and traditions of the Haida people from all of our tour guides throughout the trip because they beautifully displayed the continuous resilience and pride of the Haida Nation.
Olivia:
In September of 2021 I visited Haida Gwaii with my grad class; this was the most influential trip I have been on. We were warmly welcomed, and it was evident that we were going to be well-fed, well-guided, and well-provided with priceless knowledge of the Haida culture directly from Indigenous influence. A particularly powerful moment was being led through the forest to an ancient tree that was intended to be carved into a canoe but was left incomplete because of the smallpox epidemic—an experience that left me honored by the people’s willingness to share it with us. I think so highly of the passionate, dedicated individuals we met who choose to share, care for, respect, and fight for their culture. This is an abridged version of this article. To read more, subscribe to the print or digital edition of Christian Educators Journal.
Work Cited:
Lewis, C.S. The Chronicles of Narnia. New York, Collier, 1970.
Jonathan Boone is the vice principal at Vernon Christian School, and lives in Vernon, BC, home of the Syilx people since time immemorial. He is passionate about experiential learning that disrupts the status quo and about helping Christian schools do good work toward reconciliation with Indigenous people.
Tara Corneau is a high school teacher at Bulkley Valley Christian School in Smithers, BC, the ancestral unceded territories of the Wet’suwet’en people. She is convinced that Christian education should empower students to be agents of reconciliation within their communities as they are called to love justice, seek mercy, and walk humbly alongside all peoples.