This course is being offered by NVision Insight Group but you must register through CDHA to receive the special rate. Note that training and certificates will be provided by NVision.
Course Description
The Path: Your Journey through Indigenous Canada offers important insights into First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples, communities, and governments in Canada. The five online modules showcase defining moments in the history of Indigenous peoples and their relationships with European settlers, the British Crown, and the Dominion of Canada. The course demystifies some of the legal issues pertaining to the Indian Act, historical and modern treaties, Indigenous law, and the Canadian court system in the context of asserting Indigenous rights. Additional topics covered include residential schooling, forced Inuit relocations, the ‘60s Scoop, disease epidemics, and the treatment of Indigenous peoples in the Canadian justice system. The course also provides context to improve our understanding of the importance of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis cultural traditions and values, and how to strengthen relationships with Indigenous peoples.
The program meets various Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) calls to action for Canadians to learn about the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, treaties and Indigenous rights, Indigenous law, and Indigenous–Crown relations. CDHA plans to offer additional skills-based training in the future to further support members and fully meet the TRC calls to action.
The five modules are as follows:
Module 1: What’s in a Name?
Topic 1: Indians, Inuit, and Métis
Your journey begins with an introduction to First Nations and Inuit, the original peoples on this land. You will also learn how the Métis Nation emerged with the birth of the fur trade in this country and how these three groups are represented by national organizations today.
Topic 2: Name Calling
This segment will demystify the use of such terms as “Indian,” “Native,” “Aboriginal,” “Indigenous,” “First Nation,” “Eskimo,” “Inuit,” and “Métis,” and help you understand which terms to use when identifying various groups in different contexts. You’ll also review and debunk some of the stereotypes and myths propagated in media and popular culture regarding Indigenous peoples.
Module 2: Defining Moments in History
Topic 1: History—Pre-Contact to the Mid-Nineteeth Century
This segment will introduce you to several creation and origin stories of First Nations and Inuit peoples. The lesson also explores some of the current theories on the migration of paleo-Indigenous peoples to the Americas and presents an overview of different Indigenous groups that populated Canada prior to European contact.
Topic 2: Inuit Across the North
This segment will examine pre-contact Inuit culture, the major events that have affected Inuit since the arrival of Europeans, and how each unique Inuit region came to be shaped and defined through the land claim process.
Module 3: More Defining Moments in History
Topic 1: A Colonial History
This segment will review the colonial relationship established by the Indian Act; the tragic legacy of residential schools; Métis resistance; Métis scrip; the hardships imposed by forced Inuit relocations; the tuberculosis epidemic and Indian hospitals; the fostering and adoption of Indigenous children during the “Sixties Scoop”; and the underlying causes and events that fueled the Oka Crisis.
Topic 2: Milestones Along the Path
This segment will highlight the resilience of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples over the past four decades as they have sought a renewed relationship with Canada. Topics include the birth of social movements, such as Idle No More, and the creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. This section will also introduce you to some successful Indigenous artists and public figures.
Module 4: It’s the Law
Topic 1: Understanding Historical Treaties and Métis Assertion of Rights
This segment presents the historical and legal framework that shapes Canada’s current legal and constitutional relationship with Indigenous peoples. You will also learn about the various ways in which the Métis Nation has and continues to assert rights.
Topic 2: Understanding First Nations and Métis Rights, Title, and Modern Treaties
This segment explores the resurgence of Indigenous rights prompted by the release of the federal government’s 1969 “White Paper” which ironically sought to eliminate them. It distinguishes between modern treaties (comprehensive land claims) and historical treaties, and explains how the courts, international law, and the Canadian government are evolving to embrace a recognition of rights approach.
Module 5: Relationship Building with Indigenous Peoples
Topic 1: Cultural Values and Traditions
This segment examines some of the cultural values and traditions of Canada’s Indigenous peoples, and describes how they shape Indigenous perspectives and views of contemporary Canadian society.
Topic 2: Relationship Building
This segment offers some suggestions on how to work and communicate with Indigenous colleagues and partners and to strengthen your relationships. It emphasizes the importance of becoming culturally aware and pursuing truth and reconciliation.
Questions?
For questions regarding course content, please contact NVision Insight Group at thepath@nvisiongroup.ca.
For questions regarding course registration, please contact CDHA at 1-800-267-5235 or info@cdha.ca.
More Course Information
Relevance to Practice
In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada published its final report detailing 94 calls to action across a wide range of areas including child welfare, education, health, justice, language, and culture. Canadian dental hygienists must move forward with reconciliation through reflection and the creation of safe, inclusive health care experiences for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. Dental hygienists are also required to practise cultural humility and promote cultural safety, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Indigenous-specific racism and discrimination negatively affect Indigenous clients’ access to oral health care and health outcomes. To support Indigenous peoples in achieving optimal health and wellness, it is imperative that dental hygienists acknowledge and understand the ways in which values, biases, assumptions, preferences, and worldviews affect dental hygiene service provision.
Format for Learning
The course is available in English and in French.
You must register for this course online through CDHA. A link will be made available on your My Profile page immediately after registration. This link contains the information you need to access the course through NVision’s learning management system (LMS). Training will be done entirely online through NVision. Note: The enrollment key to access the course is unique to you, so please do not share it with others.
The Path is a series of five online modules on Indigenous cultural awareness. Each module is approximately 30-40 minutes in length and consist of two topics and videos. The online course meets accessibility requirements; closed captioning of all videos is available. Each video is accompanied by a short quiz with approximately 10 questions. It is expected that the entire course will take you four to five hours to complete. All the modules are taken online, in the comfort of your own home, at your convenience and pace. The learning is self-directed.
A certificate of achievement will be provided to you by NVision. Upon successful completion of all modules and quizzes, you can print a certificate of completion directly from NVision’s LMS. Certificates are created and dated the day you select the “Certificates” option. You may generate your certificate of completion at any time up until the course expiration date (based on your registration date). Please note, however, that the date on your certificate will be the date when you click the “Certificates” option. This date cannot be amended once a certificate is created. Certificates cannot be created or downloaded once the expiration date has passed.
Course Developers
NVision Insight Group is a majority Indigenous-owned consulting company with First Nations, Inuit, Métis, and non-Indigenous shareholders and staff. NVision is an authorized vendor and provider of cultural awareness training for the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB). It has been offering Indigenous cultural awareness learning opportunities that delve into First Nations, Inuit, and Métis histories and stories across Canada for approximately 10 years.
The Path: Your Journey through Indigenous Canada was developed with input from adult learning experts, instructional designers, and curriculum developers. All course content has been vetted by First Nations, Inuit, and Metis advisors and reviewers. Please note that the course has also been vetted by an Indigenous lawyer for accuracy related to legal references.
This course meets various Truth and Reconciliation Commission calls to action for Canadians to receive “cultural competency training.”1 It was launched in 2018 and updated in 2020.
1Various calls to action urge different sectors to “receive appropriate cultural competency training, which includes the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal– Crown relations. This will require skills-based training in intercultural competency, conflict resolution, human rights, and anti-racism.”
For questions regarding the course that do not relate to initial course registration, please contact NVision Insight Group at thepath@nvisiongroup.ca.