Impact and non alignment of the white man's ways in the Okanagan territory. The author talks about the language and the deep meanings of simple words that English speakers take for granted. 

The article describes the frustration of settlers and western history creating dispossession of ancestral domains by naming geographical features to something else. The renaming takes away the significance of the mountain, river, or hill. 

The conversation lasted a little over an hour. It was supposed to be a study hall but it turned into an SHP yap session. We went through my slides and discussed each one. The one we took the most time on was the first slide because he wasn’t familiar with how tribes worked in Mexico. Since Avery is a human development teacher, he had a lot to say about how underequipped health classes are to talk about all forms of sex. Avery had a lot of quality insight about why people view sex as a taboo. One of our main points was that it was an introduced construct with colonialism. He also talked about how excluded the LGBTQ+ community was and didn’t have a role in the community. The last bit of the conversation was on a whiteboard where we spiderwebbed out our theories and ideas. An idea that stuck with me the most was how in the spring time we don’t hunt because we respect the animals reproducing. But why are pregnant women murdered or victims of domestic violence?

This conversation lasted an hour as well but it was pretty informal but we still discussed topics around the subject of sex. We brainstormed some ideas for an action plan, and who I would invite. The first thing that we explored was how do we have the conversation. The idea of ‘Contextual heterosexual’ was a great concept that we explored. What it means is how the gender and sexuality of sex is already assumed based on societal norms. The phrase really stuck with me because it encapsulates that idea of whose sex is acceptable. Victoria and I talked, using science as a base, to discuss gender and sexuality as it appears in nature. She has a background in biology so it makes sense and we also used science to debunk the idea that gender identity is a socialized construct.

The conversation was 16  minutes long. We discussed the biological side of sex and general reproduction. Martinez is a freshman biology teacher and she says the culture changes all the time around sex and sexuality. Depending on the time and what was going on with the government. Attitudes towards the topic were changing every year. There were some students that were more mature than others when it came to the topic. Of course in biology you can think of reproduction in a scientific way then there's a social way. 

The conversation was 16  minutes long. We talked in her classroom about her teaching career and her history in education. The idea was to discuss how education impacts the way students think about things. Penny is a member of the LGBTQ community and was happy to discuss the intersectionality of my topic. Although it was not included in my original thesis I am aware that people on the spectrum experience sex very differently than neurotypical counterparts. We discussed how when sex is talked about from a cis neurotypical perspective which excludes her students and community. Penny also acknowledges the cultural aspect of teaching sex and how “disabled” children are viewed.

In Australia a series of interviews were conducted in 2020 to better understand the inclusion/exclusion of aboriginal youth. The interviews were compiled into a study that serves as a marker to analyze the social, cultural, emotional wellbeing. In past research and as the conductors of this research were compiling resources they realized that in all of the years that studies were surveying the youth in Australia, they never had a sample group of  LGBTQ aboriginal youth. For further referencing and to obtain some knowledge on what to expect from tribal youth, the conductors of the study looked towards Canada and the US for their perspective on two-spirit individuals. Although their references were countries across the world their indigenous youth face parallel issues. LGBTQ aboriginal youth in the foster care system report feeling very disconnected from their cultures and traditions and have led to their poor well being. The cultural disconnect made the youth feel different and isolated from their foster families who were mostly non aboriginal Australians. Meanwhile when children remained in their communities they experienced a lot of homophobia and transphobia expressed towards them. In order to keep their health intact many LGBTQ youth eventually move into more urban areas. The youth said that they found more accepting spaces in cities but would experience racism in said spaces. 

People with intellectual disabilities experience school and life very differently. Sensations and the world are perceived uniquely. Hence, sex and sexual education are going to be different for these individuals. Neuroscientists from the University of Indonesia Sarawak worked with special education teachers to compile data on how to educate students with intellectual disabilities about sex. Exposure and language is very important to how and what the students will repeat. The study also emphasizes that neurodivergent and mentally disabled people are more likely to do high risk behavior compared to their counterparts. In addition to high pregnancy rates among neurodivergent youth, there are high rates of sexual abuse on dissabled children. However, it was also mentioned in the study that the children are less likely to report or disclose to adults because they lack the vocabulary and/or mental capacity. This study and curriculum is a major triumph for the disabled community in academia to obtain the complete resources they need to thrive. I believe that special education departments across the world could implement an educational program for students with special needs. 

November 13, 2025 was when I hosted my action plan. I wanted to show students the history of the region we reside in and where the taboo of sex originated. There was an assortment of healthy snacks to entice the students' presence. We began with an opening question to help get an idea of the students' knowledge about sex. Along the way with learning about the taboo I would have the students say the word sex to relieve their stigma a little bit. Eventually at the end of the event all of the students felt confident in being able to say the word sex. I challenged them to keep practicing saying the word sex and question their feelings about the word itself.

For my second action plan on February 9, 2026 I gathered a group of students for a discussion with intentions to start a conversation. We had food and all sat in a circle. Anyone was open to posing questions, answering questions, leaving whenever they felt and whether they wanted to engage in dialogue or not. All was based on consent and comfort levels. We began with self affirmations and intentions for the circle and gave each other room to exist in the same experience as everyone. I felt this was an important step for having a deep conversation about a sensitive topic. The impact of our conversation varies per person and I can only speak on my own experience but I believe it was a healing experience.