Sep. 29 2026
For organizations involved in education and literacy, such reflection carries a particular responsibility. Education was used as a tool of colonization. Reconciliation therefore requires us to examine not only who has access to education, but also whose languages are valued, whose knowledge is recognized, who defines success, and who has the power to shape learning.
A new research report from the Ontario Native Literacy Coalition offers an important contribution to that conversation. From Literacy to Legacy, prepared by Bundled Arrows, an Indigenous-led Research Firm, examines Indigenous adult literacy needs and opportunities at the community level in Ontario. Rather than simply documenting literacy gaps, the research explores lived realities, systemic barriers, and the conditions needed to create meaningful, community-driven solutions.
Three key themes stand out.
The findings remind us of an important truth: challenges related to Indigenous adult literacy are not the result of individual limitations. They are connected to historical, structural, and cultural barriers created through colonization, with impacts that continue across generations.
How we understand a problem will shape how we respond to it. If literacy challenges are framed as learners needing to adapt to existing systems, the solution often adapt to existing systems, it shows a lack of responsiveness or understanding of people's needs.
The report invites organizations to ask a different question:
How can systems better support learners and communities?
The research draws important connections between Indigenous adult literacy and several of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's Calls to Action, including those related to education, Indigenous languages, self-determination, reconciliation, and equitable access to employment and training. These connections offer important considerations for organizations seeking to advance reconciliation in meaningful ways.
In a recent conversation with United for Literacy, researcher Ron Deganadus McLester offered an image that captures one of the most powerful lessons from this work:
“Cultural literacy is the central fire... that was the most important fire. From that central fire, other forms of literacy can emerge.”
This idea challenges a narrow understanding of literacy. Reading, writing, numeracy, and digital literacy are important. But Indigenous learners and communities remind us that culture, language, identity, and Indigenous ways of knowing cannot simply be added to a program after it has been designed. They belong at its centre.
The report “From Literacy to Legacy” similarly concludes that cultural and language inclusion is essential to learner success and that communities themselves must be able to define what success looks like and how it will be measured.
The report also challenges us to think about what organizations can concretely do, beyond land acknowledgements.
As McLester put it:
It is a challenging observation and an important one. Acknowledgement can be meaningful. But reconciliation asks more of institutions.
It asks us to examine decisions, resources, and relationships. It asks who is designing programs, who is determining outcomes, whose knowledge is valued, and whose language is present.
For United for Literacy, this means continuing to listen to and learn from the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities and organizations with whom we work. Through these partnerships, we continue to learn from Indigenous-led approaches to literacy and lifelong learning. It also means supporting locally determined approaches, strengthening community capacity, and recognizing that communities themselves know what successful learning looks like.
Listening, learning, and taking action are ongoing responsibilities, not one-time commitments.
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation invites all of us to reflect on the history and continuing impacts of residential schools.
But September 30 cannot be the end of the conversation.
As we look beyond September 30, we encourage our community to read From Literacy to Legacy, published by the Ontario Native Literacy Coalition, and to learn from the knowledge, experiences, and recommendations shared by Indigenous communities and leaders.
As we look beyond September 30, one question remains:
At United for Literacy, we believe literacy helps create opportunities for people to learn, grow, and participate fully in their communities. We remain committed to listening, learning, and supporting community-led approaches to literacy and learning.
Learn more about our work. Our Story, including our History Acknowledgement.
