Robust Respect

Abstract

This paper is rooted in an assumption that the tenacity of deficit thinking in family literacy programs in Canada is partly a reflection of our colonial settler history. I explore how embracing an ethic of “robust respect” may offer a way of re-orienting family literacy programs away from deficit thinking and towards relationships. Drawing on observation of the Traditional Aboriginal Parenting Program, I describe how “robust respect” is characterized by building respectful relationships, valuing the other, and acknowledging the historical and political context in which family literacy work is located.