Canadian & World Studies · Grade 12

Active learning ideas

Indigenous Governance & Self-Determination

Active learning transforms abstract governance concepts into lived experiences for students. Role-plays and mapping exercises let learners see how sovereignty and treaties operate in practice, not just in policy. This approach builds critical thinking by letting students test ideas through collaboration and debate, which is essential for complex topics like Indigenous self-determination.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• ON: Indigenous Governance and Self-Determination - Grade 12
• ON: Rights and Responsibilities - Grade 12

• 35–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Structured Academic Controversy
• 50 min · Small Groups

Role-Play: Treaty Negotiations

Assign roles to students as Indigenous leaders, federal officials, and provincial representatives. Provide background on a real treaty like the James Bay Agreement, then have groups negotiate terms for 20 minutes. Conclude with a whole-class debrief on compromises reached.

Explain what Indigenous self-governance and sovereignty look like in practice.

Facilitation Tip

During the Role-Play: Treaty Negotiations activity, assign students as representatives from Indigenous nations or federal/provincial governments to ensure balanced perspectives.

What to look for

Facilitate a class debate using the prompt: 'To what extent has Canada fulfilled its commitment to a nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous peoples?' Students should cite specific examples from historical policies, modern treaties, or current events to support their arguments.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Gallery Walk
• 40 min · Small Groups

Gallery Walk: Land Claims Maps

Groups research and create posters mapping one ongoing land claim, such as Tsilhqot'in Nation territory. Students rotate to view posters, add sticky-note questions or insights. Facilitate a discussion on patterns across claims.

Analyze how modern treaties and land claims are reshaping the relationship between Indigenous peoples and Canada.

Facilitation Tip

For the Gallery Walk: Land Claims Maps, place maps at eye level and provide sticky notes for students to add questions or observations as they move between stations.

What to look for

Provide students with a short case study of a specific Indigenous nation's governance structure or a modern treaty negotiation. Ask them to identify two key elements of self-determination present in the case and one challenge the nation faces in exercising its sovereignty.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Structured Academic Controversy
• 35 min · Pairs

Framework Design: Nation-to-Nation Models

In pairs, students review curriculum key questions and design a visual framework for partnerships, incorporating self-governance elements. Pairs present to the class, with peers voting on strongest features.

Design a framework for true nation-to-nation partnership.

Facilitation Tip

In the Framework Design: Nation-to-Nation Models activity, provide colored pencils and poster paper to help students visualize the interplay between Indigenous authority and federal obligations.

What to look for

On an index card, have students define 'nation-to-nation partnership' in their own words and list one practical step an Indigenous nation and the Canadian government could take to strengthen this relationship.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Jigsaw
• 45 min · Small Groups

Jigsaw: Governance Systems

Divide class into expert groups on specific systems, like Haudenosaunee Confederacy or modern band councils. Experts teach their peers in new groups, then discuss self-determination applications.

Explain what Indigenous self-governance and sovereignty look like in practice.

Facilitation Tip

During the Jigsaw: Governance Systems activity, group experts by governance type (e.g., clan-based, longhouse, modern band council) to deepen comparative analysis.

What to look for

Facilitate a class debate using the prompt: 'To what extent has Canada fulfilled its commitment to a nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous peoples?' Students should cite specific examples from historical policies, modern treaties, or current events to support their arguments.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

A few notes on teaching this unit

Start with concrete examples before abstract concepts. Research shows that students grasp sovereignty better when they see it in action through negotiations or maps, rather than through lectures. Avoid framing Indigenous governance as ‘lesser than’ or ‘alternative to’ Canadian systems; instead, highlight how these systems coexist and interact. Emphasize primary sources, like treaty texts or governance documents, to ground discussions in real-world evidence.

Students will demonstrate understanding by articulating how governance structures function, comparing systems, and evaluating modern cases of self-determination. Success looks like students using evidence from activities to explain shared sovereignty, treaty impacts, and the role of Indigenous-led decision-making in shaping Canada’s political landscape.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Role-Play: Treaty Negotiations, watch for students assuming Indigenous nations seek full separation from Canada.

  Redirect discussions by reminding students that the role-play materials include constitutional provisions, such as Section 35, which affirm rights within Canada. Encourage them to reference these during negotiations to practice shared sovereignty.

• During Gallery Walk: Land Claims Maps, watch for students viewing modern treaties as minor updates to historical agreements.

  Use the maps to highlight new governance structures, like land ownership or resource management, created by modern treaties. Ask students to point to these changes on the maps to correct the misconception.

• During Jigsaw: Governance Systems, watch for students assuming traditional Indigenous governance lacks democratic structure.

  Provide excerpts from Indigenous governance documents, like the Great Law of Peace, and ask students to identify consensus-based decision-making methods. Have them compare these to parliamentary models during their group discussions.

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Methods used in this brief

• Structured Academic Controversy
• Gallery Walk
• Jigsaw