History of Education

The Constitution Act, 1867

(THE BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT, 1867)

WHEREAS the Provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have expressed their Desire to be federally united into One Dominion under the Crown of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, with a Constitution similar in Principle to that of the United Kingdom:
And whereas such a Union would conduce to the Welfare of the Provinces and promote the Interests of the British Empire:
And whereas on the Establishment of the Union by the Authority of Parliament it is expedient, not only that the Constitution of the Legislative Authority in the Dominion be provided for, but also that the Nature of the Executive Government therein be declared:
And whereas it is expedient that Provision be made for the eventual Admission into the Union of other Parts of British North America:
This Act may be cited as the Constitution Act, 1867

But what does this all mean for Education? How does all this British North American Mumbo Jumbo relate to the history of education? I'll tell you how.

The BNA Act was the legal instrument that established the responsibilities of the federal and provincial governments of the provinces. Education was established as a provincial responsibility. Therefore, the regional systems that had been developed would be preserved. The BNA Act of 1867 however, granted responsibility for the education of First Nations children to the federal government. Since the federal government was not really interested they downloaded the responsibility to the churches. In response, the churches established residential schools that have left long-lasting, dramatic, and negative effects on First Nation children's education today.

The goal of the early attempts of religious based education by Catholics and then Protestants, was to assimilate First Nations people into a European based society. The settlers considered their culture, values and education systems to be superior to those of the First Nations. Therefore what the First Nation people taught their children, what they needed to live in their society: unity of life, honourable conduct, family responsibility, individual responsibility, the importance of sharing, self-reliance, and survival skills, and how these lessons were passed on through stories, myths and legends, was deemed as inappropriate, incorrect, and had to be stopped.

Today, many years later, we are now trying to undo those actions. We want to bring First Nation values and beliefs back into the classroom; integrate their culture into the curriculum to improve their learning and the learning of ALL students AND teachers alike.

We got into a discussion in Professional Teacher today, which made a lot of people uncomfortable on both sides of the table. I myself don't have an issue with First Nation students, learning about their values and beliefs, their similarities and differences, and integrating their culture into my future classroom. In my education from Kindergarten to Grade 12 the population of First Nation students in my classroom increased from 10% to 50%. I did not see them as any different from myself or any of the other caucasian students. They had a longer bus ride than any of the other kids I knew, but they were there to learn just like I was, they had families and homes of their own and they were roughly my same age. They packed their lunches, they liked to play outside at recess and some played on the sports teams, in the school band or were in drama, just like me.

I think that is why when it comes to my personal teaching career and my thoughts about integrating First Nation education into my classroom I see it as a challenge I am willing to accept. I've seen some teachers that treat First Nation students like they are different, like they are a problem, that they don't want to learn. I myself will do my very best to treat all children equally, present them with opportunities to help them grow as individuals and make certain that my whole class no matter what skin color, religion, age, or gender, all learn to expand their minds, to open their hearts, and to share their lives with one another.

Teachers teach Children. Period.

Code of Professional Practice

What does it mean to be a professional?
Is it that you are very smart, very talented, the absolute best at what you do?
Does it mean that you take your career very seriously and there is no time for any nonsense? Do you wear sophisticated clothes? Use all of the latest and greatest technologies? Speak eloquently and demand respect the minute you walk into a room?

That was me simply stereotyping "the professional", however defining what a professional is, is no simple task. The dictionary itself provides not one absolute definition of what a professional is, but ten or more definitions of what a professional can be.

So here is the question, what does it mean to someone like me, just starting their teaching career, when someone hands you a Code of Professional Practice from the Manitoba Teacher Society? What are these thirteen statements summarized nicely on a single page document really about? How are they going to affect myself as an individual? My students, coworkers, administration, and parents? The people in my community and all others in my life? There's only one way to find out and that is to try. But let's talk about this before the day ever comes. It's always a good idea to have some idea of what you are doing before you get started.

You wouldn't just dive into the deep end without knowing how to swim, so before you start teaching, let's learn how to do it professionally.

The very first statement in the Code of Professional Practice states: A teacher's first professional responsibility is to her or his students. I truly believe that teacher's job is to provide the student with an learning opportunity. That means being responsible to and for the students, providing a safe and welcoming environment for one and all, and respecting ourselves and each other. Other statements that I find would influence the direct behavior, the actions, the personel of the teacher include number two, a teacher acts with integrity and diligence in carrying out professional responsibilities; Four, a teacher speaks and acts with respect and dignity, and deals judiciously with others, always mindful of their rights; And number six, a   teacher's conduct toward colleagues is characterized by consideration and good faith. The rest of the statements I believe would not affect myself as an individual so much as they are guidelines for how to go about problems and situations and how to represent myself as a member of the MTS.

I find the second statement to be a little vague in it's description. "A teacher acts with integrity and diligence in carrying out professional responsibilities." No where is it defined what professional responsibilities are. So, how does one ensure consistency across all teachers in the profession without a proper knowledge of what the professional responsibilities are? In the first statement we are told the first professional responsibility is to the student but what are the rest of the professional responsibilities that teachers must carry out?

I do believe that having such a guideline is very important and all teacher's should be well aware that they are being held up against a certain standard and provided with that standard for their own reference. I myself will do everything in my power to adhere to the criteria included in the code of professional practice, starting beginning, middle, and even after the end of my teaching career. I believe once a teacher always a teacher. There's no such thing as taking the teacher hat off so inside, outside, inside-out of the classroom, be professional, follow the code, and you will be a successful professional :)

Who Inspired You To Teach?

Once upon a time there was a little girl named Raisa who took a trip out of the small town she called home to the big city of Edmonton, Alberta. There she visited an enormous mall with hundreds of stores, an indoor water park, skating rink, mini golf course, amusement park, and her personal favourite, a marine life display where a beautiful dolphin swam, dove deep into the depths of the tank and jumped high out of the water. Never had she seen anything like it. From that moment on she was determined that someday she would be the trainer in the tank with the dolphin swimming about and teaching it cool tricks.....

However that dream was short lived and here I am today, four years into my combined Bachelor of Arts/ Bachelor of Education Degree. It was not a tough decision for me. Growing up it became very evident that as cool as it would be to swim with dolphins, I greatly enjoyed working with children of all ages as well. I had many great opportunities to work with kids as a life guard, a skating instructor, a basketball coach, and as a volunteer with big brothers big sisters. On top of all that I was stuck in the middle, fourth in the line of eight children, so there were always kids left, right and centre. Through my experiences it became obvious that someday, I would teach.

Aside from personal experience there were a few key characters in my decision to teach. For starters there was my Dad. He is not an educator by trade, he is actually in the field of social work. Seeing my Dad help the hundreds of children that he did inspired me to someday find a way to help hundreds of children as well. Then there was my Mom of course. Growing up I hated hearing "oh Raisa you are so much like your mother," but as I got older I realised that it wasn't so bad. My Mom is an extremely kind and compassionate person, always willing to help, making the most out of any opportunity and not limited by what people tell her. If she thinks she can, she probably will. The woman is the most determined person I know. These qualities were instilled in me as well and will greatly help me to teach someday.

In terms of my school experience and particular teachers that inspired me there is really only one that stands out. Mr. Frankl my Grade 10, 11, 12 shop instructor. Don't get me wrong I had a pretty great school experience, had some very fun teachers, made a lot of friends, was always at the top of my class. But when it came to inspiring me to teach most of the time I thought...

if I ever become a teacher I will do things differently than my teachers have; I will try to make things more interesting so school is not such a drag; I will try to challenge my students and cater to their learning; I will make sure kids go to school for the learning and not just to play sports; make them want to come to school everyday not think well why go it's totally unnecessary since I know everything there is to know already or I can teach myself this stuff at home.

But Mr. Frankl WAS different. He was fun, and energetic, with a great sense of humour. He was kind and compassionate, knowledgeable and totally flexible. He was there to help me learn whatever it was that I wanted to learn. He did not hold any stereotypes against me because I was one of three girls in the Industrial Arts class and in fact encouraged me to try as many things as I wanted, offering assistance when needed but only enough to help me learn. Never would he just do it for me.

That 45 minutes two or three times a week were some of my greatest memories in high school and I learnt things that were completely practical and that I will be able to use everyday for the rest of my life. I learnt how to jack up my car and change a tire, check the fluids and change the oil during an automotive unit. I learnt how to build speaker boxes and cut out a variety of shapes and puzzles, carve designs, even build and shingle a shed in a carpentry unit. I also took a unit on electrical work building a miniature wall and wiring electricity to lights from switches and from switches to outlets, both at the same time or perhaps a switch to control each. He even took us out to a job site and allowed us to apply some of our skills, building cabinets and installing them in a kitchen and bathroom.

His teaching went beyond anything required in the curriculum, went beyond the classroom, went beyond my school experience. I may not remember which wire goes where and how to work every saw, sander, router, tool in the box. But I did learn some very valuable life lessons that I will cherish close to my heart for the rest of my days. I can only hope to be half the teacher, the mentor, the friend, that Mr. Frankl was for me.

Thank you Frankl for your inspiration. You've truly made a difference in my life :)