Ontario (ON) designates English and French as official languages of instruction in schools, however the Ministry of Education has committed to developing and implementing programming and services to support First Nation, Métis, and Inuit cultures and languages. Still, Indigenous languages are commonly subjects in English or French-medium schools rather than languages of instruction.
Read: Is Ontario doing enough to preserve its Aboriginal languages?
Ontario’s school curriculum has included seven Indigenous languages: Cayuga, Cree, Delaware, Mohawk, Ojibwe, Oji-Cree, and Oneida. Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10: Native Languages (1999) replaced previous policy concerning the teaching of Indigenous languages. A curriculum for Grades 11 and 12: Native Languages (2000) details learning outcomes for secondary school Indigenous language courses. The Ontario Curriculum: Grades 1-8 for Native Languages (2001) outlines requirements for offering ‘Native Language’ programs. The languages program must be offered during the school day, with a minimum of 20 minutes allocated to the program per day in Grades 1 through 3 and 40 minutes per day in Grades 4 through 8. In addition to the grade-level curriculum guides, Ontario has published curriculum support documents unique to the seven languages.
Ontario has partnerships with Indigenous communities and organizations to support language revitalization. The Master Education Agreement (2017) describes the relationship between the Anishinabek Education System and Ontario’s education system, outlining several commitments including the “advancement of Anishinabek language and culture.” Additionally, MOUs with different communities’ express commitments to supporting Indigenous language learning and teaching.
At the post-secondary level, various institutions in Ontario offer teacher training programs for Indigenous language teachers. Further, recognizing the right of Indigenous Peoples to develop their own post-secondary institutes, the Indigenous Institutes Act (2017) is a response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report’s Calls to Action (TRC Calls to Action) and the UN Declaration (McIvor et al., 2022). One purpose of the Act states to “enhance educational opportunities for Indigenous students, and to promote the revitalization of Indigenous knowledge, cultures and languages.”
First published in 2016 and updated in 2020, The Journey Together: Ontario’s Commitment to Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples report further commits Ontario to funding and implementing the TRC Calls to Action, including support for Indigenous languages (McIvor et al., 2022).
References
McIvor, O., Chew, K., & Hemlock, K. (2022). Legislation, regulation and policies concerning the revitalization of Indigenous languages in Canada and Internationally. Assembly of First Nations.