I remember standing in my classroom in the months following the Lahaina wildfires in 2023 feeling disconnected from the curriculum I was teaching my students. We had all been through so much and although the goal for teachers when we finally returned to our high school campus that October was to provide some sense of normalcy amidst the chaos, the disconnect I felt seemed to be felt by my students too. I had become interested in enrolling in the University of Hawai`i’s Ethnomathematics Graduate Certificate program the year prior to the fire as I hoped to enhance my teaching practice with a curriculum that was more culturally relevant for my students. While I had put that thought aside due to the new challenges we all faced, being in the classroom with my students that day became a turning point.

The resiliency of my students through such tragedy served as inspiration for me to proceed with pursuing my endeavors of enrolling in the program. As my community navigated through the various challenges and obstacles as a result of the fire, I realized the greater purpose I needed to serve for my community as we moved forward would be in my role as a teacher. Given the loss many of us experienced, I envisioned for my students new learning opportunities that would allow them to develop and instill within themselves a better sense of place, belonging, and purpose. Providing a richer curriculum embedded with meaningful, relevant content they could connect with was now important than ever.

My participation in the program has motivated me to embrace many new teaching practices that will be so much more engaging for my students, fostering a deeper understanding and ownership of their learning. As part of this transformative process, I have explored encouraging student voice by incorporating students’ cultures and interests into lessons, developed opportunities for my students to participate in virtual huaka’i’s (field trips) and service learning experiences, and looked into partnering with community organizations for off-campus connections to help solve real-world problems. Going forward, I would love to not only promote learning where students are able to make personal connections between what is learned in the classroom and themselves, but also form stronger connections with their community.

Although challenging, learning to incorporate Ethnomathematics in my lessons has been enjoyable and eye-opening. As we prepare to adopt a new math curriculum at my school, the knowledge I’ve gained on culturally relevant teaching has influenced me to consider how I can implement an Ethnomathematics approach throughout each unit I teach. While I am still working to improve my practice, it has been fulfilling to watch the excitement and determination in my students as they participate in lessons and grow in their learning with me.

Ultimately, my goal is to encourage my students to become stewards of their home. It is my hope that by cultivating equitable learning practices through the implementation of Ethnomathematics in the classroom, students may develop the knowledge needed to contribute positive solutions to the challenges we face in our community and become active participants in the rebuilding and rebirth of our town.