I want to be the kind of teacher that encourages diversity, and motivates students to always learn – outside of the curriculum.
I hated how excited she was to be in school, and was really let down. All I could think about was how I never want to be a teacher that discourages a curious learner. Though the story uses light tone and content to work with its younger audience, the context of the story is still extremely upsetting.Īs a teacher candidate, I was also upset about the exploitation of Olemaun’s eagerness to learn. There is so much anger and bitterness among that generation due to all of the injustices of the catholic residential schools – physical and emotional abuse, as well as a complete robbery of their culture. The older generation – who were a part of the residential schools – never talk about their experiences however, when reading this novel, I could not help but think of them. Though I have had very little exposure to my aboriginal background (as we moved frequently, and I only spent two years in the North when I was 20), the majority of my extended family has lived there their whole lives, dating back to early settlement. Her parents recognized the silence as abnormal and picked her up in the Spring.īeing an indigenous aboriginal to the Northwest Territories, I found the innocence of the narrative to be very saddening. In a attempted cry for help, Olemaun decides to be completely silent during a radio call. The only communication that she has with her family is through letters in English that are screened for content, and monitored radio callings, giving her no way to tell her parents the truth about school. Olemaun quickly sees that the outsiders are not her friends and are not there to help her learn.
She, along with the many other students, are made to do chores all day in terrible conditions, and stripped of their culture and language.
Olemaun spends two years of her life at the residential school where she is emotionally and physically abused. Though her parents are extremely reluctant, as they are aware of the injustices of the residential school system, they allow Olemaun the chance to see for herself. Motivated by her intense hunger to learn, she begs her parents to let her go to school, unlike the other children who would cry as they were taken away from their homes.
To Olemaun, these lucky children were sent away to “outsider school” where they learned to read all day. Eight year old Olemaun Pokiak is intrigued by the life of the “outsiders” – catholic priests and nuns that take aboriginal children from their homes and take them to residential schools. This true story focusses on the hardships of young northern aboriginals that were sent to residential schools.
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