Addressing structural violence and systemic inequities in education: A qualitative study on Indigenous youth schooling experiences in Canada

Abstract

In this qualitative study we demonstrate the critical ways that Indigenous youth experience structural violence and systemic inequities in the context of education. In particular, this youth-engaged study explores three key themes regarding (1) the social ecologies of education, (2) curriculum, and (3) pedagogy. Considerations of how these issues factor substantially in Indigenous young peoples’ experiences of education in Canada are explained. The implications of our study point towards concrete changes needing to be addressed in the field of education to ensure that every student is reflected in the educational curriculum and supported to meet the needs of succeeding in a colonized world while still upholding Indigenous rights, traditions, identities and values.