Hello,

My name is Maya Sandiford and I am half Japanese, a quarter English and a quarter Trinidadian. Presently, I’m in the interdisciplinary studies program at UBC, with my primary discipline Sociology and my secondary disciplines  Family Studies and Humanities. While I am in my third year at UBC and this is my first time taking online courses, I have already completed the first two and a half years at UBC’s Vancouver campus. After two and a half years of living in Vancouver with its gloomy weather, and attending university directly out of high school, I have become a little tired of my routine.  I have chosen to take online courses this semester so I can travel, intern and further my studies. I must admit I am slightly nervous about completing all of my second semester courses online. However, I am also feeling rejuvenated and excited to get back to school after a mellow winter break!

English 470A taught by professor Erika Paterson, is an insightful course, which aims to provide an in-depth and unbiased understanding of Canadian Literature. This course focuses predominantly on the relationships between European and Indigenous traditions in literature.  We will learn to recognize whose stories have been typically told and circulated in regards to the history of Canada, and whose stories have been disregarded and oppressed.

As I have primarily grown up on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, apart from living in Japan from age 5 to 11, it is the place I call home. And as a result, I feel some obligation and interest to to better understand and comprehend the history of Canada and its people. Almost every Social Studies class in grade school had a small section that briefly touched on first nations people but in retrospect I think the content and information was one- sided and more than likely inaccurate. I look forward to learning the history and more complete, unbiased stories of the first nations people of Canada.