Indigenous Canada is a Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) offered from the University of Alberta. It is a 12 lesson course (one lesson per week) and like many MOOC’s, it is free. Something I struggle with when it comes to broadening my knowledge of Indigenous peoples in Canada is putting everything in a timeline in my head. For example, when I was in high school, which is a critical age in building a knowledge foundation, I was able to develop a timeline of the events of world war 1 and 2 and can easily refer to them in my head. This is because I was taught them repeatedly. But I did not develop this for the major historical events in Indigenous history. Instead, I learnt about it later in life and still have to refer back from time to time to construct a time line. It appears this MOOC discusses the fur trade, treaty making, legal traditions, Indian Act and residential schools to name a few topics. Having topics instructed in a connective sequence allows me (or reminds me) of how we got where we are. Part of me believes the next generation of students would benefit from hearing, or being remind on historic events in order.
I took this course when it was first released and I think all Canadians should take it. It gives us all the confidence to learn, connect, and understand our histories. I know our schools now are having conversations and teaching more about Indigenous culture, language, land, Peoples, Treaty’s etc. I currently teach Indigenous Studies 30 with my Métis colleague and it is incredible to see students transform throughout the class. We need to continue to help our students learn so they can share their knowledge with their grandparents and other friends and family members who may not know or have a strong understanding of our past and current issues that still exist today. Thanks for reminding me of this valuable resource.