A groundbreaking educational tool and timely release, a Vancouver Island-based creator has released an Indigenous educational board game right on time for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
“The Truth in Truth and Reconciliation Educational Board Game” was launched on August 16th, and has since sold over 1000 copies—serving as a vital tool for individuals, families, and educators.
The game invites players aged 14-years-old and up to seek truths of Indigenous histories and experiences on Turtle Island, and to explore the realities of colonization and its impact.
You can play with two to nine players.
Victoria Buzz had the pleasure of speaking with creator, James Corbiere (Waabi Makoohns), a Bear Clan member from Wii kwem koong, on the inspiration, process and eventual release.
“Initially it was intended as a set of flashcards for my students to study Canadian history, when I was teaching back in Sault Ste. Marie,” Corbiere said.
“They liked the idea…then I made it a little more challenging, so I’d have them race around Turtle Island and try to survive the colonization process.”
Corbiere shared that he thought the current curriculum was missing a lot of important information, and the game’s purpose was to fill in those blanks and provide his students with a more accurate understanding of what happened.
The game began to evolve even further, eventually adding his own artwork, a medium of ink and copper on white ash wood, of which he started in 2015. These works were added to the game’s final look in 2017.
In the end, he said that it was his students that encouraged him to push the game further than the classroom, which inspired the continual evolution of his project into what it is today.
He took the prototype to a meeting with Nelson Education Canada and they were very interested in taking a closer look at it, and hopefully eventually publishing it.
Corbiere, in anticipation of Nelson Education’s commitment becoming more finalized, was able to digitize the game, taking it from hand-drawn to a sleek, more finished-looking product in 2018.
However, Corbiere soon hit a significant roadblock with Nelson Education regarding one of the key game components.
In the game, as you move across the board, the Crown and Church players earn ‘shame’ cards for harmful historical events they participated in.
“The Catholic Church in Ontario wanted the ‘shame’ cards removed,” Corbiere said.
“Their reasoning was that they didn’t want their Catholic students to be questioning why the church would earn a ‘shame’ card. That was their reasoning, so they asked me to remove them. I said no.”
Soon after Corbiere’s refusal to remove the cards, Nelson Education Canada dropped the game.
“I think they call it ‘ghosting’. I was ghosted,” he laughed.
He wasn’t deterred, however, as Nelson Education’s initial interest had been genuine and he’d been given validation from many others, so he wanted to see the game continue.
He began looking for publishers or trying to figure out how he could self-publish. Eventually, someone pointed him towards Medicine Wheel Publishing.
At first, Corbiere was skeptical as Medicine Wheel appeared to only work with books, but he was convinced to send an email anyway and see what happened.
“We got together [in June last year] and [Medicine Wheel] liked the idea…he was blown away. It’s pretty amazing,” he said.
Despite Medicine Wheel Publishing’s focus on books, they decided to take a chance on Corbiere’s game, making it the first-ever board game published by them.
“Hate to use the phrase, but it’s a game changer,” Corbiere laughed.
Together, they worked out final details, and Corbiere made sure that it remained very close to the original. He shared that his expectations were high, and he didn’t want anyone trying to change fundamental lessons or key elements.
The final product is a powerful educational tool that enables players to walk in someone else’s shoes, experiencing a glimpse of what it means to lose language, culture and sense of self.
“The Truth in Truth and Reconciliation Educational Board Game” is available for purchase from Medicine Wheel Publishing directly, or in local stores such as School House Teaching Supplies, Munro’s Books and Bolen Books.
