PRINCE ALBERT — Indigenous language programming in the Saskatchewan Rivers School continues to grow.
At the board of education’s regular meeting on Monday Superintendent Jennifer Hingley gave an update on developments over the past year.
A major one, according to the report, is that students at John Diefenbaker School taking part in the Cree language program now make up a significant part of the population of the school.
“All of our Indigenous language programs are having success, the one that sticks out to me is the one at JD where 30 per cent of their overall population is involved in that programming,” Director of Education Neil Finch said.
The school division began Indigenous language instruction as a step towards truth and reconciliation. Finch said the goal is to ensure Cree and Métis students can access culture and language to nurture and sustain their cultural identity.
Of the 319 currently enrolled students at John Diefenbaker, 93 are in the program. This breaks down to 20 in Pre-K, 21 in Kindergarten, 18 in Grade 1, 15 in Grade 2, and 19 in Grade 3.
A Grade 4-8 Cree Language support teacher has been added to the program to support students' ongoing language acquisition.
Finch said the courses serve a need in the community, and that’s why they’re in demand.
"I think there's an appetite when we're talking about the indigenous languages there,” he said. “There is an appetite in our community and the larger community, not just Prince Albert, but in all of Sask Rivers. There's an appetite from our families to have some different options when it comes to Indigenous culture and language options.”
PACI and Carlton offer Cree and St. Louis is offering Michif 10 as an elective, with plans to expand to offer Michif 20 and 30.
Michif Language programs at Queen Mary Public School and St. Louis Public School are thriving with connections to community Elders and Land-Based Learning.
A Michif French locally developed course has also been created by Michif Early Learning Program Coordinator Angela Rancourt along with St. Louis Elders and community.
"St. Louis is a Métis community, with a high percentage of Métis population and the uptake and engagement in Indigenous language and culture is high,” Finch said.
At St. Louis, the instruction is Michif-French and at Queen Mary, the instruction is Northern Michif. In St. Louis, there are 10 Pre-K and 8 Kindergarten students enrolled. At Queen Mary, there are 18 students enrolled in Kindergarten.
Programming at Queen Mary has expanded to add land-based learning. Students can learn regularly on the playground, in the community and the wider community.
Hingley said in her report that she is excited to see how language is supported in Grades 4-8 and beyond.
