Taking on something where I don't have the security of content knowledge feels like one of those risks in teaching that I describe in my teaching philosophy.

Course Context

I have co-taught this course twice with Lyana Patrick. The course was originally developed by Lyana Patrick and Nicole Berry, and it employs an effort-based grading system. It is designed to be co-taught by an Indigenous and Settler instructor.

I taught this course for the first time in Fall 2022, and I was asked to co-teach it because of my work to decolonize my teaching in HSCI 100 - Human Biology. The content covered in this course is new to me and is quite different from my original field of expertise and other courses I have taught. This course has recently become a mandatory requirement for students enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts Program.

Teaching Approach and Assessment Strategy

This course has an effort-based grading system, which means that students must complete all assigned coursework to achieve a good grade in the course. The workload is approximately 8 hours weekly, including pre-class reading, online assignments, and class attendance. Students are allowed to miss a set number of assignments without penalty. After that, their grades get systematically decreased with more missed assignments.

One of the course assessments is a student-hosted community forum that explores solutions to our chosen course theme. Students learn facilitation techniques and then organize a two-hour event inviting faculty, staff, and community members. The forum focuses on different topics each year, such as ways to rebuild community in the faculty post-COVID and how to train culturally safe practitioners for the new SFU medical school. 

Classes are held once a week and are three hours long. They usually begin with a land acknowledgement and a summary of homework reflections, followed by discussions on content, some lecture, forum preparation, and guest lectures. After class, they must write a personal reflection based on class material and the reading for the week.

Teaching Challenge and Reflection

My challenge in this course was to develop a co-teaching relationship and classroom rapport in a subject area in which I am not an expert and has a great deal of sensitive material. Areas that were new to me included the effort-based grading system and the community forum project. Initially, I struggled with some imposter syndrome and questioned whether I belonged in that classroom. Thankfully, my co-instructor was very understanding and encouraging. I also received much support from the course designer, Nicole Berry. I worked to find a niche and an identity in this course. 

I focused on my strengths in co-teaching this course. I managed the course technology and canvas updates so my co-instructor could focus on content and pedagogy and invite guests to our class. I relied heavily on facilitation skills and techniques I learned as an Instructional Skills Workshop Facilitator, which was critical for creating a relationship with the students and building a safe classroom space. I incorporated lessons on differences between knowledge systems and hierarchies and described my journey to teaching the course and how I process the ideas of Indigenous Science while acknowledging my bias towards Western Science. I focused on crafting strong questions on reading materials, reflection assignments and in-class discussions. 

In Fall 2023, I suggested that the course community forum address the development of culturally safe practitioners in the new SFU medical school. Despite a challenging term, the students pulled off a successful event. Leaders of the new SFU medical school were interested in the outcome of this forum, and we provided them with summary projects that will contribute to the medical school curriculum (report below). The students are excited to see their work have a real-world impact. 

I now have a much better understanding of the course. I see how my knowledge and skills fit into this class and see more opportunities to make it my own. I have included it in my exemplar courses because it shows the growth that I have accomplished in decolonial teaching. It also demonstrates how my facilitation skills have extended to new content areas. 

How I Express My Teaching Values

Mindset Transformation - This course challenges students' expectations about traditional grading and assessment practices. 

Owning Learning - Students have to be responsible for maintaining their workload in the class and prepare for class independently.

Connecting to our Shared Humanity - Human experience stories are a fundamental part of the course and build an understanding of course material and experiences of Indigenous people in the health care system.

Student Experience and Emotional Growth: We work extensively to build a team-based classroom environment that supports discussion of challenging issues.

Skills Over Information: Students develop facilitation and community consultation skills.

Integration of Technology: We use Socrative in this course to generate in-class anonymous Q&A sessions.

Importance of Reflection and Critical Thinking: Students undertake weekly self-reflection as part of their learning.

Systems Thinking: Students consider systemic issues, and how they impact populations and individuals.

Course Feedback and Improvement

During the last term we taught this course, we faced several challenges that led to the cancellation of some classes. My co-instructor tested positive for COVID-19, which affected our ability to hold classes as scheduled. Later, a Teaching Assistant strike occurred, presenting difficult choices for students and instructors about crossing the picket line. As a result, our original course plan had to be adjusted. We also had to continually readjust the guest lectures and course content, which created a lot of disruption for the students. 

We gathered feedback in class via Jamboard after a discussion. Students provided feedback on the course and a debrief to their forum experineces. Students noted that these disruptions made it hard to plan the forum and lost track of some of the homework and class preparation work they needed to do. Overall, students value the classroom culture, guest lectures and activities. They note that some lectures could be more engaging and that they would like more mixed media in class and homework. They requested that we clarify the forum report expectations earlier in the course. The effort-based grading system is appreciated by students as it decreases their stress; they know where they stand in the course. 

Though not based on student feedback, one area that requires refinement is the effort-based grading system. We need to recalibrate the grades, as the final grades are currently inflated. This issue is pressing for me as an administrator responsible for managing the faculty grading guidelines. I intend to create a community of practice to discuss this grading system and provide tips on improving it that we can share with the Faculty and University. For example, one student said our course was an "easy A." This is not acceptable to me because if the work is done properly, the internal shifts are anything but easy.