AMC celebrates and acknowledges all teachers on World Teachers’ Day
October 6, 2021
Treaty One Territory, Manitoba
alexpapineau
Treaty One Territory, Manitoba – On World Teachers’ Day 2021, The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) is celebrating and recognizing all teachers for their dedication to all students and to all First Nations learners within the provincial school systems. The AMC acknowledges all teachers throughout the province for what they have endured during the pandemic to work with students at all levels of lifelong learning and for continuing to find innovative ways to keep students and all learners connected to school and learning.
The AMC especially acknowledges our local teachers who work within our First Nations schools for all their important contributions to all our First Nations in Manitoba.
Grand Chief Arlen Dumas stated, “On World Teachers’ Day, I cannot thank our teachers enough – especially those teachers working in our K-12 First Nations schools – for your commitment to children and for what you have endured during the pandemic. You are to be celebrated as front-line heroes, for going above and beyond in the fight against the pandemic within our schools and within our First Nations, and for your dedication and concern for the well-being of children. You have demonstrated remarkable dedication and amazing innovation in teaching all our learners under extremely difficult circumstances. Remote teaching and learning via technologies such as Zoom is an impossibility in our Nations due to a lack of existing broadband infrastructure throughout most of the province. But you have persevered and come up with innovative ways to teach, and to keep many of our students engaged with school and learning over the last 18 months.”
“I want to encourage you to keep doing what you are doing for your schools, for our First Nations school system and for First Nations in general as we recover from the pandemic,” added Grand Chief Dumas. “Most importantly, it is important to keep up with routines and, if necessary, more innovative ways of teaching. During the upcoming school year and as we work to end the pandemic, these measures will be important for the well-being of our children and all our learners, including those within our institutions of higher learning. We must all work together to ensure that education continues to be the most important activity within our Nations and that our schools continue to remain the central hubs for our communities going forward and as we recover from the pandemic.”
“But we are not through the pandemic yet. It is very concerning that just as in-class learning was just getting underway that a few of our First Nations schools have had to close over the last several days due to rising cases of COVID-19,” said Grand Chief Dumas. “I want to assure teachers and parents the AMC Education Directorate, the AMC Chiefs Committee on Education, the Pandemic Response Coordination Team, and all First Nations leadership continues to monitor the situation very closely and are prepared to offer support and guidance for reducing the effects of the pandemic on children and within the schools if the situation gets worse. We must do all we can to ensure that our schools remain open, and that includes having all staff and citizens vaccinated, following public health orders, and practicing the fundamentals for social distancing and sanitizing.”
“I thank all teachers and educators who have been immunized against the virus. We want to ensure that you stay safe for not only your loved ones but for the benefit of schools and students as well. Classroom teachers have always been the foundation of our education systems and are critical to the well-being and day-to-day routines of our First Nations, so we want to ensure that they are well protected and continue to be the most important parts of education systems throughout the province and within First Nations,” concluded Grand Chief Arlen Dumas.