Open education often emphasizes digital access and sharing, but I’ve been thinking more about the relationships that actually make openness possible. In this session, I reflect on a community Pow Wow hosted at Cambrian College as an example of “another kind of open.”
As someone working in reconciliation education, I’ve come to see the Pow Wow as more than an event. It’s a space where learning happens through connection, respect, and reciprocity, a space where social justice and intercultural exchange are lived and felt. I see Indigenous pride and allyship in action. Helpers each play a unique role in creating an inclusive space rooted in Anishinaabe culture.
The Pow Wow encourages me to question the idea that openness is primarily digital, and to think about how the ethos of open education lives in relationships and community practices. I’ll invite attendees to reflect on how these observations might influence their own work and understanding of openness beyond the screen.
Attendees of this session will be able to:- Describe how a community Pow Wow can function as a site of relational learning and “another kind of open”.
- Reflect on how relationships, roles, and responsibilities shape meaningful open practices.
- Identify ways that openness can extend beyond digital spaces into community-based contexts.
- Consider how reconciliation education, allyship, and Indigenous-led spaces can inform their understanding of open education.
- Apply insights from this session to re-think their own approaches to openness in their teaching or work.
