Aboriginal Student Engagement and Achievement

Culturally relevant programs hold the secrets to Aboriginal student engagement and achievement in Canada’s public schools.

A timely assessment of a successful initiative to support Aboriginal cultural ways and worldviews in one Ontario high school.

Lorenzo Cherubini specializes in teacher development and policy analysis and is the author of numerous books, book chapters, and articles. He is the editor of the AABSS Journal, an annual publication of the American Association of Behavioral and Social Sciences (AABSS).

Gabrielle Lindstrom:
Importantly, [this] book not only tells a story of Aboriginal students in public education systems but also situates the narrative within a broader socio-historical context that serves to provide the reader with significant insights into how the education system in Canada has failed Aboriginal youth ... Cherubini’s book offers a significant contribution to the landscape of Aboriginal education, opportunities to make further advances in this field, and expands on specific areas related to learning in order to provide increased clarity into the nature of how Aboriginal students learn most effectively.

Frank Deer, Department of Curriculum, Teaching and Learning, Faculty of Education, University of Manitoba:
A refreshing and insightful book. Most of what is published in the field of Aboriginal education focuses on historical, political, and narrative issues. Not enough has been written about in-school and in-class interventions. Cherubini offers us an unprecedented study of how policy manifests itself in practice, introducing us to students and staff directly involved in creating change.

Teresa Strong-Wilson, author of Bringing Memory Forward: Storied Remembrance in Social Justice Education with Teachers:
This book shows that Aboriginal culture can peacefully coexist within a mainstream school system and, more importantly, that sustained attention to Aboriginal culture and identity can advance Aboriginal students’ academic success and, fundamentally, their feeling of belonging in education.