I pulled my car into the gravel lot outside Ladysmith Secondary School on a bright Tuesday morning. The vibration of drums pulsed through the halls, drawing me toward the gymnasium where thirty students sat in a circle, each with a hand-crafted drum resting on their lap.
This wasn’t your typical music class. For these Vancouver Island students, drumming has become a bridge to understanding Indigenous cultures that have shaped this land for thousands of years.
“The drum represents the heartbeat of Mother Earth,” explained Elder Mary Thomas, who has been working with Ladysmith schools for over a decade. “When these young people learn to make and play their drums, they connect to something much deeper than just music.”
The program, now in its fourth year in School District 68, combines traditional drum-making with lessons about Coast Salish traditions. Students spend weeks learning to stretch hide over wooden frames, decorate their instruments with culturally significant designs, and finally, master the rhythms passed down through generations.
Principal Jennifer Short watched from the sidelines, visibly moved by the students’ engagement. “What we’re seeing goes far beyond cultural appreciation,” she told me between drum beats. “This is reconciliation in action.”
The drumming initiative emerged from calls in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action, specifically those focused on education. According to Indigenous education coordinator Robert George, programs like this one directly address Call #63, which urges age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, treaties, and Indigenous contributions to Canada.
“These students aren’t just learning about Indigenous culture – they’re experiencing it firsthand,” George said. “That’s the difference between reading about reconciliation and living it.”
Grade 10 student Madison Wilcox has been participating in the program since it began. The shy teenager spoke with surprising confidence about what drumming has taught her.
“Before this, I honestly didn’t know much about the First Nations people whose land we’re on,” she admitted. “Now I understand how the drum connects to their spirituality and community values. It’s changed how I see everything.”
Recent polling from the Angus Reid Institute suggests programs like Ladysmith’s are increasingly important. Their 2023 survey found 68% of Canadians believe Indigenous history should be a required component of K-12 education – up from 51% in 2015.
The provincial government seems to agree. British Columbia’s Ministry of Education provided $350,000 in funding last year to expand Indigenous cultural programs across Vancouver Island school districts. The initiative aligns with B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, legislation passed in 2019 to implement the UN Declaration throughout the province.
What makes Ladysmith’s approach unique is its community integration. Local Stz’uminus First Nation members regularly visit classrooms, while students take field trips to the reserve to learn about traditional territory and governance structures.
“We’re not treating Indigenous knowledge as something separate or extra,” explained teacher Claire Morrison, who helped develop the curriculum. “It’s woven throughout our learning, just as Indigenous peoples have always been integral to this country’s story.”
Not everyone initially embraced the program. Some parents questioned whether drumming belonged in schools. Others worried about religious implications or cultural appropriation.
The school addressed these concerns through community information sessions and by emphasizing the educational rather than spiritual aspects of drumming in their curriculum. Today, the waiting list for drum classes exceeds available spots.
Grade 11 student Trevor Johnson, whose family came to Canada from the Philippines five years ago, said the drumming circle helped him find his place in a new country.
“In the Philippines, we have our own traditional instruments,” he explained. “Learning about Coast Salish drums helped me see connections between cultures and realize that respecting each other’s traditions is universal.”
The impact extends beyond cultural awareness. Teachers report improved attendance, reduced behavioral issues, and stronger peer relationships among participating students.
“The drum circle creates a space where everyone is equal,” said counselor Maria Santos. “Students who struggle academically often shine here, which builds confidence they carry back to other classes.”
As my visit concluded, I watched students carefully wrap their drums and store them on specially designed shelves. Each instrument bore unique markings – some with eagles, others with killer whales or wolves – symbols connecting to Coast Salish storytelling traditions.
Elder Thomas gathered the group for closing words. “When you take these teachings home, you become teachers yourselves,” she told them. “That’s how we heal – by sharing what we’ve learned with others.”
Outside in the parking lot, I spoke with local Stz’uminus parent James Williams, whose daughter participates in the program.
“When I was in school, we learned nothing about our own people,” he said, emotion evident in his voice. “Watching my daughter learn these traditions in a classroom setting – traditions that were once forbidden – tells me Canada is finally changing.”
As federal and provincial governments continue implementing TRC recommendations, Ladysmith’s drumming circles offer a compelling model for meaningful reconciliation education. By bringing Indigenous knowledge from the margins to the mainstream curriculum, these students are quite literally drumming a new rhythm for Canadian education.
For communities across the country looking to answer the calls to action in their own schools, the lesson from Ladysmith seems clear: reconciliation isn’t just about acknowledging the past – it’s about creating shared experiences that build a more inclusive future.
