Positive Behaviour Teachings
Last year I had the chance to listen to David Bouchard speak at a Professional Development session. During his talk, David shared his knowledge of the Medicine Wheel and the Seven Teachings. David explains the Seven Teachings as “a message of traditional values and hope for the future. The Teachings are universal to most First nation peoples. These Teachings […] are a link that ties First Nation, Inuit and Metis communities together” (Bouchard, n.d.). While I listened to David speak, it struck me that these teachings summarize or outline the way we would want all students to conduct themselves at school. Prior to this session, I had done a considerable amount of research into RTI (Response to Intervention), PBIS (Positive Behaviour Intervention Systems) and MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Support) while completing the summative project of my Master’s course work. One of the key elements in those systems is the Behaviour Matrix – a chart that clearly outlines the goals for student behaviour in all areas of the school or parts of the school day. The RTI at Work model (Buffum, Mattos & Malone, 2018) recommends schools create “school-wide processes to identify, teach, and support students in learning essential behaviours”.
It occurred to me shortly after listening to David Bouchard that the Seven Teachings are essential behaviours which come from an Indigenous way of knowing how to be. While an RTI/PBIS/MTSS model would recommend 3-5 behaviour goals, I thought that it could be purposefully stretched to include all 7 teachings. So, I decided to set out on a task to merge the Seven Teachings and Behaviour Matrix into something that schools could employ to honour Indigenous knowledge while creating consistency within the language that we use to talk with students about their behaviour and our expectations for them.
My first attempt was a traditional chart, and while it got the idea across, it felt too fixed.
So back to the drawing board I went and came up with my second draft. I used the Medicine Wheel model and placed the Seven Teachings in the quadrants that they are connected to. I decided on the Medicine Wheel model after reading an article by Dr. Nicole Bell. In it, she states:
“In many Indigenous cultures, the Medicine Wheel1 metaphor contains all of the traditional teachings and can therefore be used as a guide on any journey, including the educational process. While there is some variation in its teachings and representations, the underlying web of meaning to Medicine Wheels remains the same: the importance of appreciating and respecting the ongoing interconnectedness and interrelatedness of all things. Therefore, there is no “right” or “wrong” way of representing or using Medicine Wheels: all forms hold particular meaning to the various Indigenous nations while all transmit a common understanding of the interconnectedness and interrelatedness of all things.”
I think that this model does a better job of showing how the teachings are all connected – your behaviour and how you act is reflected in all aspects of your life.
This is most definitely both a draft and a working document. I am open to learning more about both the role that Indigenous knowledge can play in schools, and school-wide behaviour intervention supports. I would value any feedback from those who know more than I do about the Medicine Wheel, Seven Teachings or Behaviour Matrices.
References:
Bouchard, D. (n.d.). Seven sacred teachings. Retrieved from https://www.davidbouchardbooks.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ISBN+978%2D0%2D9784327%2D2%2D0
Bell, N., Dr. (2014, June 9). Teaching by the medicine wheel. Retrieved March 18, 2021, from https://www.edcan.ca/articles/teaching-by-the-medicine-wheel/
Buffum, A., Mattos, M., & Malone, J. (2018) Taking action: A handbook for RTI at Work. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press
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