Report on the Extension of the SEII Phase II
May 31st, 2006

Education Resource Package: Building Social Inclusion by Combating Racism

The Education Resource Package developed in SEII Phase II includes a wide variety of cross-curriculum lessons at the high school level addressing racism as it relates to Aboriginal youth. With funds from the SEII Extension, Lakehead Social Planning Council negotiated a proposal with the Lakehead Public Schools to select nine of the most important lessons for further development. Social Science teachers chose lessons that directly apply to the Ontario Ministry of Education grade 9 Geography, grade 10 History, and grade 11 Anthropology and Sociology to which they added resources, assessment strategies and assessment tools, creating complete, class-room ready packages. The History and Geography subjects are compulsory, and the Anthropology and Sociology are electives that are very popular with students. Therefore, a large number of students will experience the enhanced social inclusion lessons over a period of three school years. The gradual and repeated approach to teaching about social inclusion increases the possibility that social inclusion can become a life skill for students.

Involving the teachers in the design ensures that they will have ownership of the lessons and will utilize them as social inclusion teaching tools in the classroom. It is the classroom teachers who are the closest to the students and who can play the most influential role in fostering awareness of racism, its negative impacts and who provide learning opportunities that will help close the distance between Aboriginal youth and other youth. The enhanced lessons will be included as part of the Education Resource Package and distributed to high schools in Thunder Bay and throughout northwestern Ontario at the end of April, 2006. They will also be included on the Lakehead Social Planning Council website. The Lakehead Public Schools has also made a commitment to provide an orientation to the enhanced lessons to 30 social science teachers in the fall of 2006, using their own resources. Through this process, it is intended that the classroom teachers will embrace the new lessons and the whole Education Resource Package, continue to update it and build upon the work already done in SEII Phase II. Invitations to participate in the orientation will be extended to teachers in the Thunder Bay Catholic District School board as well to teachers from school boards in the region. The commitment of the school board to continued support is a significant factor in creating sustained change.

Magnus Theatre
Lakehead Social Planning Council partnered with Magnus Theatre during SEII Phase II to write a play on racism as it applies to Aboriginal youth. Closing the Distance, a thirty page script, involved the input of high school students and serves to create awareness of the negative impacts of racism and to motivate youth to embrace positive thinking leading to positive action.
Though the SEII Extension funds, Magnus Theatre agreed to further develop the script, involving consultations with more Aboriginal youth, Aboriginal community leaders and educators. In addition they agreed to produce a play with an all high school cast comprised of Aboriginal and non Aboriginal students, as well as a study guide as a tool for educators to facilitate follow up discussions and activities after students have seen the play. The play and the study guide will be included in the Education Resource Package in print and on the LSPC website.

Script Development
Meetings were held with aboriginal youth who had not participated in creating the original script, including youth from three high schools and the Thunder Bay Indian Friendship Centre. The purpose of these meetings was to further develop the script by seeking fresh input in order to clarify the script’s message and improve its dramatic impact. In the meetings, the youth were asked to read sections of the script out loud and then to comment. Some of the questions they were asked during informal discussions included: Did you make any connection with the stories? Do they ‘ring’ true? Do they reflect what actually happens in schools? If a particular section came across as negative, why did it? What changes would you make to improve it? Is the script biased? Are there stories that are not in the script that should be included? Is racism a problem in schools? Have you been personally affected by racism? Is this a worthwhile project? Will you consider taking part in this project? Not all questions were answered and at times there was some difficulty in getting the students to speak at all. However as each session went on they did voice their concerns regarding certain sections of the play. Their comments have been considered and appropriate changes made increasing the play’s overall potential for dramatic impact and authenticity.

Consultations
Future plans include meetings and consultations with educators at the Dennis Franklin Cromarty High School (a high school for Aboriginal students only); community leaders with Dilico Ojibway Child and Family Services; a newly appointed Aboriginal Board member for Magnus Theatre, a lawyer at the Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services Corporation. There will be others, as the intent is to consult with as many aboriginal organizations and individuals as possible to solicit their input and support for the project.

Study Guide
A Study Guide will be made available to schools. The Study Guide will develop into a more comprehensive tool for follow up discussion and activities as the script develops over the rehearsal period. A section to assist students to mount their own production of the play will be included.

Performances
The next phase of the project will be comprised of an extended rehearsal period during which the script and the actors will develop together in order to present the best possible production of Closing the Distance. This phase will engage youth to create by further developing and honing the script and by performing their work for their peers.

The Production Process
• A cast will be chosen from the various students that have worked on the play.
• Rehearsals will take place after school hours in the early evening over an extended period of time.
• Early rehearsals will include discussion of the ideas in the play and how to best present them on stage. This period will also include discussion of set, costumes, lights, props, and so on.
• Script development and staging of the play will continue throughout rehearsals.
• The actors will continue to rehearse, learning the staging, their lines and the various roles.
• Sets, costumes, props, lighting and so on will be created by Magnus Theatre staff and students working together.
• Later rehearsals will involve running the play, incorporating acting notes from previous runs.
• Technical rehearsals to bring together all the production elements with the actors will complete the rehearsal process.
• The play is presented to the public.

Marketing/Promotion
• Magnus marketing professionals will create all publicity and marketing materials to create awareness of the project and to attract an audience.
• The Lakehead Social Planning Council/Magnus Theatre partnership will be acknowledged in all marketing materials.
• Marketing materials will include some or all of the following: public service announcements, media releases, posters, handbills, print media ads, radio and television exposure, program inserts, school and community centre newsletters, bulletin boards, etc.
• Shaw Cable’s assistance will be solicited to video tape the presentation in order to broadcast the Closing the Distance on cable TV over an extended period.

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