Over the course of the two centuries the Indigenous population of Canada has been subjected to colonial educational models, cultural suppression and in many cases physical and emotional abuse through the institution of residential schools. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) gathered the testimony of individuals who attended residential schools, documenting the enduring generational and cultural effects of this government mandated policy. As a result, 94 Calls to Action were published to redress the systematic cultural genocide and continuing emotional trauma. Among these a significant number were addressed to educational and academic contexts.

This course will use the Calls to Action in the Final Report of the TRC as the framework for addressing reconciliation through music education in schools and universities. Students will research the work of current indigenous artists, collaborations between indigenous and non-indigenous artist/teacher/scholars, as well as identify curricular areas that could be implemented in response to the Calls. Students will examine scholarly literature on colonialism, decolonialism and reinscribing colonialism as they problematize issues surrounding ethical inclusion of cultural art forms. The TRC process in other countries will be referenced with the purpose of disrupting the role that the current discourse of multi-cultural music education plays in negotiating Indigenous music in the academy. Culminating research projects will explore a specific area of interest to individual students.