Indigenizing "Six Historical Thinking Concepts":

Heres the central issue with mainstream approaches in designing and delivering history
curricula: we are held captive by the invisible (to us) epistemic and ontological framings that
we all hold, unconsciously, as part and parcel of the Eurocentric world-view in which our entire
culture operates.

This is major problem, because Euro-centric pedagogies do not embrace heart/spirit learning.

Most history teachers are ill-prepared to consider the impact that their students can effect in the
world when all the historical thinking concepts are engaged within an action-based framework
-- an Indigenously-influenced framework.

What I am proposing in Indigenizing The Six Historical Thinking Concepts , is a purpose for
teaching history that goes above and beyond creating and nurturing historical thinkers.

The purpose of teaching history must be to do, or create history and to do so using the
learning objectives as understood by the nation on whose land the educating is taking place (i.e
on Algonquin territory, it would be the Anishnabe grandfather teachings.) Engaging The Six
Historical Thinking Concepts is how we get to the place where students begin the act of
transforming their world by using the knowledge that has been created.

What might Indigenizing The Six Historical Thinking Concepts look like?

An analogy: imagine the six concepts are eggs. They need nurturing. They are a family in need
of a home, and this home is the nest. The nest provides connectivity, relationality, and meaning-
making. It also provides safety, comfort, and stability, and place. The nest provides the
framework from which the potential that is in the eggs can be realized.



The nest represents the Indigenization of historical consciousness -- and with this, the clear
arrival of our responsibilities of citizenship. It is the actualizing of all six historical thinking
concepts that enables educators to help their learners master the instructional objectives that a
decolonizing (Indigenous) pedagogy demands. Inviting and enacting such ethical engagement
moves the learners and the teachers from the conceptual into the physical, where heart/spirit
knowledge can be honoured and incorporated into the dominant western pedagogical
framework.

Before the explanation and subsequent enacting of a de-colonizing historical project can begin,
its assumed that traditional Indigenous knowledge-holders have been consulted and the project
and the assessment tools being used, are consistent with the pedagogies and the preferred
outcomes of the nation/peoples whose learners are participating in the project.

Instructional objectives of the Original Peoples on whose territories the educational project is
being undertaken must be clarified through consultation with the Indigenous wisdom-holders.

This may vary from territory to territory. For example, in Ottawa, if an Algonquin student is
participating, the desired instructional outcomes of the Algonquin people are courage, honour,
love, wisdom, truth, respect, and humility. These life-long learning goals guide the assessment
process. It will be important for the participant-learner to do a self-assessment and a copy of
this should accompany the project to wherever its being sent. This step is very important
because in traditional Indigenous societies, its vital for learning be collegial, as well as self-
motivated. The teacher is a guide, but the hard work of assessing heart-spirit learning can
only come from the learner him or herself.