As I sat down this morning to start my daily readings I came across something that shocked and appalled me.
The Globe and Mail had an excellent piece on the lack of teaching of Canadian History within the High School classroom's all over Canada. Appropriately, they called the article, "Canada is failing history." The entire article is worth a read, but these facts alone were enough to make me cringe:
"The results, found in the just-released Canadian History Report Card (the full report is available at report-card.dominion.ca), are troubling. The institute's analysis of provincial and territorial curriculums revealed that:
- Four provinces failed and deserve the F they received;
- No province received an A;
- Only four provinces - Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and Nova Scotia - require Canadian history as a mandatory course in high school. The others do not;
- Most provinces simply offer courses in “social studies,” catch-all courses that generally ignore Canadian history (with the notable exception of British Columbia)."
Now of course being a history student immediately makes me biased, however, how can a nation who claims to be so proud of their "peacekeepers," multiculturalism and way of life know next to nothing about their own history? Are people simply falling into the stereotypes that are brought up when a snippet of our nation's past is seen on a ten minute CBC video clip? Maybe. Or is it perhaps because we as Canadians tend to be too humble and choose to ignore our accomplishments and sacrifices that have helped create this country we call Canada today? There is no right or wrong answer other than that Canadians don't know or seem to care about their past.
The Dominion Institue nailed the issue right on the head,
"The Dominion Institute recommends that a core body of knowledge and terms of national significance be developed and included in all history curriculums across the country. It is unacceptable to think that students can graduate from high school without learning about the First or Second World War, Canada-U.S. relations or about the history of aboriginal Canadians."
In my opinnion that's a generous statement. What about the entire history of French-English relations in Canada? The execution of Thomas D'arcy McGee and Louis Riel? What about the founding of the West and the war of 1812? Of course, it would be naive to think that all of these events could be covered in a one year high school history class, but maybe that's the problem - one credit in our nation's history is simply unacceptable.
Our youth and even elderly are not nearly as educated as I would imagine our American counterparts are in their own history. American history is ingrained in the minds of American youth through history books, countless Hollywood movies, memorials and commemorations. Of course, some say that Americans are "too" patriotic, whatever that's supposed to mean, but one thing is for sure we as Canadians are not patriotic enough when it comes to celebrating our history.
Regardless, Canadians cease to care or remember their own history because it isn't placed within most people's reach. You have to look, research, read and understand the glorious past that this nation has. So while you're drinking beer, spending cash on fireworks and lighting up the BBQ this coming Canada Day (July 1st) take a second and learn something about our history. For if we don't start too, I fear it may be lost forever in our apathetic shadow.
Full article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/canada-is-failing-history/article1184615/
- Ty
Posts
I have to say this isn't all that surprising. Ironically in high school I had no real interest in history, yet looked where I ended up. The only problem with teaching history in high school like any other subject is that few students care. For those who do they usually further their education in one way or another. Another problem is that schools are now becoming increasingly diverse which begs the question to what history do you teach? Regional, national, international, who's to say?
ReplyDeleteNow personally if there is going to be any change then why not let it come on teaching the function, role and rights of or federal government, for we all say what happens when the masses are not educated (coalition anyone?).
I would love to see more Canadians educated about there past, but reality is hitting me hard; I don't think it's possible. Hence why there's post-secondary education.
Z.R. Nissen
Fair enough. But what about the way in which Canadian history is taught? I remember not being interested in history because it was taught straight from the text book (most likely because most teacher's have limited knowledge beyond the text book) or an hour long documentary which was so dry I often fell asleep.
ReplyDeleteWhy not engage students in their history? More field trips, more hands on learning, less memorization and more interaction. For example, my sister's current history teacher (grade 10 I believe) doesn't even have a history teachable. They simply needed someone who could fill the position. It's things like this that are part of the problem. Also, post-secondary education isn't for everyone and maybe if there was more initiated by teachers in high school more students would be prone to explore a post-secondary education.
Thanks for the comment though.
PS - we need a night or day to chat and maybe play around with the site? I'm really glad I'm posting again on here.
Take care,
- Ty