The Gabriel Dumont Institute is renewing ties with the University of Saskatchewan.
Officials from GDI and the university’s College of Education have signed a five-year agreement.
GDI executive director Jordy McCaffrey says the school’s training program for teachers has produced over 1,000 teachers since its inception.
McCaffrey says a strong emphasis on culture and tradition has proven its worth:
“What happens is these teachers that are trained at SUNTEP, they become experts in incorporating Metis and First Nations culture into their lesson and unit plans. And so the benefits of that are they go into the school system, and they can identify with students of First Nations and Metis ancestry — and they can create curriculum that captures these kids and recognizes the unique culture that these children are bringing into the school system.”
He adds the cultural knowledge learned by students gradually gets woven into their teaching style down the road, even if they’re non-Aboriginal.
McCaffrey also says SUNTEP operates on a buddy system, so students have each other to lean on.