Introduction
My name is Marianne and I am taking this course as part of a Diploma in Education in Literacy. I completed my Bachelor of Education at McGill University and for the past several years I have been working as a teacher, both at the elementary and high school level. I’ve taught everything from Digital Photography to Physical Education to Career Planning. However, my main area of interest is English Language Arts, which is why I chose to pursue professional development through this diploma.
A few years ago, the B.C. curriculum was overhauled. One of the most significant changes included a greater emphasis on indigenous content, not just in social studies, but in ALL subject areas. (It seems that B.C., and many other areas in Canada, are beginning to make changes for the better in theireducation systems when it comes to indigenous education- one great example is the new education program that is a partner between McGill and a local Mohawk community).
With help from Cree/Metis artist James Michels, the students in my class and I explored First Nations legends before creating their own artwork inspired by the stories.
From my personal experience, most educators have embraced this new curriculum. However, one of the biggest concerns I’ve heard echoed among teachers is the feeling that they do not feel prepared to teach this content. On more than one occasion, I have heard teachers admit that they did not feel authentic when teaching this material, that they felt uncertain as to whether they were properly sharing the stories and the experiences of Canada’s First Nations people. I too will admit to feeling this way at times, and I attribute it to the fact that much of my primary and high school elementary education omitted stories told from an indigenous point of view.
I’ve been fortunate enough to participate in numerous professional development opportunities in my school district that have introduced me to stories that I may not have heard otherwise. For the past few months I have been on maternity leave with my twin boys, so have felt pretty out of touch with academia, but I have spent a good amount of time listening to podcasts from the 2018 CBC Canada Reads series, while reading many of the books off their list. I’ve always enjoyed Canada Reads, and loved this year’s theme: “One Book to Open Your Eyes”. The novels selected were written by Canadians of various backgrounds and many provided fascinating insight to different facets of Canadian culture and history.
While I’ve only just begun to explore this course and its expectations, I understand that ENGL 470 is an exploration of Canadian literature, with a particular emphasis on the power of stories, especially as they relate to the political creation of Canada and colonization. While reading the course overview, I was particularly intrigued by the phrase “stories we tell ourselves about being in Canada”. This phrasing caught my eye- we are not going to be exploring stories about “being Canadian”, but will be exploring stories about “being in Canada”. A small difference in wording, but an enormous difference in meaning, and I look forward to exploring the difference as the course progresses.
Have a great semester!
Works Cited
Curtis, Christopher. “McGill launches historic partnership with Kahnawake Mohawks”. Montreal Gazette. https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/mcgill-university-launches-historic-partnership-with-kahnawake-mohawks. 20 August 2018.
“Meet the Canada reads 2018 contenders”. CBC Books. https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/meet-the-canada-reads-2018-contenders-1.4505780. 23 March 2018.
Hi Marianne!
I enjoyed reading through your blog; the Canada Reads list has been on my radar for a while, did you have any favorites that stood out in particular?
In regards to the authenticity of teaching Indigenous literature, your concerns resonate with me because, as a consumer/reader of the material, there’s so many questions I have as well. Good catch with the difference between “being Canadian” and “being in Canada,” by the way. To what extent is land separate from identity? Where do our own cultural roots overlap with the ones sown into the geographical space that we occupy? Is there any academic discourse when it comes to hyphenated identities? I guess we’ll find out soon!
Last year’s Canada Reads picks were all great! The Marrow Thieves is a fascinating story from an indigenous point of view, but I also loved The Boat People, which looks at Canada’s past and current approach to refugees and many of Canada’s “invisible” people; Canada has a troubled history with its indigenous people but there are also so many other cultures that have contributed to the creation of our country who have gotten lost in the writing of the history books.
P.s. This year’s Canada Reads long list was just released today!
Hi Marianne!
Thank you for this insightful and personal post! As someone who also works in education – and is keenly interested in getting involved more formally with the school system down the line – I really appreciated your commentary on your own experience as a teacher and the revamped BC curriculum. When I moved to BC from Ontario just over six years ago, I was immediately struck by how much more tangibly present Indigenous artwork and culture was compared to back home – and my limited experience with the recent curriculum overhaul seems to suggest that the increased Indigenous content seems to go beyond cute Indigenous-inspired crafts (which was about as far into any Indigenous content as my own Ontario public school experience ever delved, apart from a solitary field trip to a longhouse…) into actually sowing the seeds of unpacking what it really means to inhabit and share a space, more bereft of colonial assumptions of ownership. On the whole, I find that the kids I work with these days are immensely more aware of and respectful towards a massive array of social issues and cultural and identity politics, and it comforts me that the recent changes in standardized academic curriculum seem to be continuing to steer the conversation in the right direction (as opposed to Doug Ford’s asinine attempts to derail any whits of progress made back home… sigh). I’d be really curious to see if kids in other provinces echo this sense of being generally more informed and culturally sensitive, or how much of this behavioural shift could be attributed to the social and school climate in BC specifically.
Have you noticed any such change in the kids you work with since this curricular face lift – or compared to your experiences working with kids in Montreal or anywhere else (if you have, that is)? I find that kids are incredibly resilient, and tend to be naturally pretty receptive towards proactive ideological shifts like that in the new BC curriculum, but am very curious to see how these pedagogical shifts manifest on the ‘bottom line’ of classroom experience – especially, as you mention, if many teachers feel tenuous about teaching Indigenous content. I confess that, put in that situation, I’d also feel pretty nervous – partially due to feeling perennially underinformed on my own right, but largely due to the pressure to ride the wave of proactive change and really do it justice – so I give you a lot of cudos for actively seeking out professional development to ensure you’re better equipped to walk the walk. Well done!
Thanks also for the Canada Reads booklist! A huge part of my taking this course was to prompt me to seek out and engage with more Canadian content, and all of these novels (especially Marrow Thieves) look awesome. If I can trade a more ‘soft sci-fi’ focused dystopian recommendation, BC author Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven is one of the most fun and thought-provoking books I’ve had the pleasure of reading over the past few years, and also revolves around the theme of the importance of preserving and sharing stories. I’ve been recommending it left right and centre, and am happy to do so here as well. Thanks again!
Thanks for stopping by! First off, I loved Station Eleven and also frequently recommend it to others looking for a “Canadian” book that is a little different from what we’ve come to expect from Canadian writing. If you liked Station Eleven you’ll definitely enjoy The Marrow Thieves!
I did teach in Montreal for awhile and you’re absolutely right… there is far greater sensitivity and knowledge of indigenous issues among BC students (for the most part- I’ve had students whose views on indigenous people have been so negatively shaped by their parents’ opinions). I only started teaching in BC after the new curriculum was implemented, though, so I’m not sure I can say how much of this is attributed to the curriculum. I do think that First Nations culture is generally more prominent in BC than in Quebec and, from what I understand, Ontario.
I think Quebec is, unfortunately, too focused on the French culture and their fear of losing it to allow too much of a focus on First Nations history. I’d like to say that I could see that changing but it certainly hasn’t changed much in my time…
A great Introduction and welcome – thank you Marianne.