Lesson 5 – Learn in Relationship With Others

Learn in relationship with others

The Indian Residential School System in Canada was designed to forcefully separate children from their community and cultures; in stark contrast, Indigenous educational practices emphasize that the knowledge that an individual holds is embedded in a web of relationships that sustain their community. In many Indigenous worldviews, learning is not something that happens in isolation: it is shaped through relationships and connects to community, land, and story (Gleeson & Fletcher, 2022; Steele et al., 2024).

We spoke with Kerry Potts (Indigenous Pedagogy Consultant and Teme-Augama Anishnabai of mixed heritage) about traditional Anishnaabe understandings of education. She shared that the concept of relationality teaches that we are interconnected and interdependent with other human beings, with all elements of the natural world. It underscores the importance of ethical relations with the world around us. By incorporating such teachings, both teachers and students will be encouraged to build health relationships with each other, with peers, to the community around them (Potts, personal communication).

Rather than testing the individual student’s knowledge through quizzes, tests, and exams, you might try incorporating assessments that foster the student’s relationships with their peers and to their community.

Emphasize feedback and learning as an ongoing, relational process rather than as an evaluation of completed work.

What might this look like in practice?

• Guided discussion
• Self-assessment
• Peer-to-Peer Learning (Mentorship)
• Peer Review — Students gain a deeper understanding of the subject matter by providing feedback on each other’s assignments before submitting them to the instructor for marking.
• Group knowledge-building — Students collaboratively work to develop, refine, and expand collective knowledge on a specific topic. Everyone contributes to and takes responsibility for advancing the group’s understanding.

Examples

• Electrical Engineering Technician — Students participate in a team-based assessment where they design and install a functional electrical system. Their work is evaluated through peer and instructor feedback.
• Automotive Service Technician — Upper year students mentor first- or second-year students by providing diagnostic feedback in a workshop setting, rather than an assignment that requires individually submitting a repair report.
• Environmental Management and Assessment — Students engage in group knowledge-building to determine the most effective climate policies across different countries. Each student is assigned a country to research. Students meet to discuss their research and draw comparisons before building a comparative framework for evaluating climate policies. At the end of the term, the group presents a joint policy recommendation report.