Everyone Should Be a History Major (And The World Would Be a Much Better Place).

Oh History.  How I love thee.  I am that girl who reads History textbooks for FUN!  So now I am faced with the arduous task of making an interesting post about History?  How does one make History interesting?  Isn't the simple joy of learning about our glorious past enough?

No?

How can anyone not feel deeply grateful that we have come a long way from the early French Catholic tradition in education, where boys and girls were separated, and boys were given the better education?  You bet your bottom dollar that makes my blood boil!  Focusing on a religious and needs-based education would not be MY idea of superb schooling.  Or how about those English Protestants?!  They were a real fine bunch too, believing that your wealth (or lack thereof) dictated the quality of your education.  (Unfortunately, this practice still exists today in many societies, including our own).  At least they saw to it that everyone had some opportunity to gain knowledge, as the children of poor families were able to be educated by the church, or in 'Dame Schools'.  The American loyalists who moved in weren't a whole heck of a lot better.  Being British to the core, (their surrounding layers having been Americanized), they were essentially of the same mindset as the English, just more of a focus on college preparation.

Who didn't want to stand up and let out a big "WHOOP WHOOP" when we got to the section on Scottish influence?!  What a progressive and brilliant band of skirt-wearing Scotties!  Democratic, everyone attends, no class structure, boys and girls as one, elementary and secondary focus, science and art included...I couldn't be prouder to be able to trace my lineage back to these visionaries.

The individual provincial accounts are just as mesmerising.  Quebec followed the French/Catholic model until the protestants showed up around 1760 and started forming their own schools.  So there were two completely separate school systems.  Sounds like the setting from a terrific turf-war movie, doesn't it?

Nova Scotia demonstrated just how gracious the British can be, when they took over the province in 1750/60 and forced the French-speakers to leave.  While the Society for the Propagation of the Bible (can't you just picture these snappy stalwarts spreading the good word?) took care of the schooling, the place became re-populated with US Loyalists and those promoters of equality:  The Scots!  Due to their large influence, the school system in Nova Scotia became awesome (the state was responsible for the schools, and financing came from taxation based on local property assessments).

Apparently no one wanted to live in New Brunswick (reminds me of the town I grew up in), so there was plenty of space for those Union Jack-loving anti-Americans (US Loyalists) to move in and provide their upper class British education (church and state working together harmoniously) to the protestants.  Then the rest of Europe decided to move in and upset the delicate balance.  (BAH!  Just stay in Europe why don't you?!)  1871 saw everyone come to their senses, and a free, non-religious school system funded by taxes was born. 

Prince Edward Island (which will forever be my favourite province because of Anne of Green Gables and their potatoes) doesn't seem to have had anything too crazy in their path to enlightenment.  Just the usual bickering between Catholics and Protestants over the role of the church in school.  In 1873 they passed a Public School Act for non-denominational schools funded through taxes based on property assessment.  (Gotta love those Scots!) 

Now anyone who loves long-withstanding bitter feuds will adore Newfoundland!  This province is terrific for so many reasons, most of all for the fact that they only joined Canada (many quite resentfully) because no one else wanted them.  Who wasn't completely dumbfounded when it was brought to our attention that until as recently as 1998 there were still two entirely distinct school systems throughout the province, Protestant and Catholic?  THAT takes some determination, my friend.  It's nice that they were all funded though. 

Labrador had some missionaries that were pretty hip for their time.  While the main goal of the educators in the Church of the United Brethren (Moravian Church) was to convert the Inuit people to Christianity, they also had a strong focus on helping them to become literate in their own language.  That's pretty darn noteworthy, if you ask me. 

Ontario became saturated with loyalists demanding American-style grammar schools that would prepare their children for college.  Everyone worked out their issues, non-denominational public schools were developed, and both public and private schools were funded.  The best thing to come out of Ontario in my opinion (besides my family) was the declaration that "Whenever 20 students could be gathered together, the state will offer funding".  That seems pretty reasonable to me. 

The Prairies.  What a fascinating expanse of farmland.  They were controlled by the Hudson's Bay Company for a LONG time.  They also had their typical Catholic/Protestant squabbles, and based their education around religion.  1885 saw an immigrant BOOM, and the dynamics of the prairies have never been the same.  Marvelous Manitoba decided to stand out and allow some protesting Ukrainians to influence the education system (I think there was a lot of perogie-bribing going on).  English would be front, right and center, but wherever ten students or more requested language accomodation, they would get it. 

I totally would have been a British Columbian Gold Rusher had I been alive in the day.  Must have been pretty wild in BC at the time, since 1858 saw people arrive from all over the world.  These people wanted free education, thought religion should be left out, and in 1860 they got it. 

Had I not been a gold rusher, I might have been a northern explorer.  I dig snow.  A lot.  I probably wouldn't have received the greatest education though, being that the territories were too poor and sparsely populated to establish a system.

I can't imagine anyone honestly not having an interest in the history of residential schools for First Nations children.  This is powerful stuff that would help anyone to have a better grasp on our society today.  It all starts with the British North America Act of 1867 delegating responsibility to the individual provinces for education, but the responsibility of educating the First Nations children to the Federal government.  This wasn't in their line of interest, so they passed down the responsibility to the churches, who in turn established residential schools.  I'm not going to begin to get into this topic here, it could fill up a blog (or ten) by itself, but I will say that although it was tragic, wrong, and unfair, I do believe that the people involved (mostly) truly believed in what they were doing.  They thought they were doing the right thing.

Our more recent history of education is full of excitement, such as advanced opportunities in education (a basic education just isn't enough anymore), women starting to fulfill the demands for more teachers (despite not being as respected as men, these working gals were real heroes), dealing with the effects of industrialization, increases in technical training, the ongoing issue of rural depopulation (again, this is a topic that needs its own blog, or ten), and students actually completing school ("Golly!  They're not all farming by age nine, we need to add on another grade or two!").  Universities began offering education programs (thank goodness!  Where would my life be without the Brandon University Faculty of Education?), and educational psychology and pedagogy started to be considered.

What I love about history it that it's amazing to look back and realize that these people from our past were just like us.  They were doing what they felt was best for their children and their world.  Someday, people will read about this piece of time in the history of education and perhaps have a laugh or two, wondering what the heck we were thinking?!  We get to learn so much from the trials and tribulations of others.

Wow.  That was far too much excitment for one night, all that fabulous history.  I cannot wait to dream up my next post, the gloriousness of governance.