Considering Indigenous education as more than graduation rates: Opinion

In a recent editorial, Doug Cuthand, who is the Indigenous affairs columnist for the Saskatoon StarPhoenix and the Regina Leader-Post, discusses Indigenous graduation rates and traditional education. Cuthand discusses the recent annual report by Saskatchewan provincial auditor Tara Clemett and the gaps in the data regarding Indigenous student graduation rates. Cuthand writes that while students previously had to leave home to pursue a “substandard” education, new opportunities have opened within Indigenous communities taking control over their education. This includes the development of the First Nations University of Canada and the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies, which Cuthand writes have had steadily increasing graduation rates. The author argues that Indigenous education needs to be re-examined to improve outcomes, since Indigenous students often have challenges fitting into the provincial “one-size-fits-all formula.” Additionally, Cuthand emphasizes that education happens within a variety of informal environments, and that Indigenous communities need to use their own metrics to evaluate education.