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Who Killed Canadian History?
... Contention in the public domain has centered on museum exhibitions (Conrad, 2008;MacMillan, 2008), commemorations and memorials (Seixas and Clark, 2004) and filmic portrayals (Smith, 2006;Waiser, 9 March, 2006). In the domain of academia, debate has focused on whether political, military, or social history should provide the predominant framework for historical accounts (Bliss, 1991-92;Dummitt, 2009;Granatstein;1998). In education, curriculum (Cardin, 2010;Éthier and Lefrançois, 2011;Granatstein, 1998;Létourneau, 2011;Neatby, 1953;Osborne, 2000;Osborne, 2003;Osborne, 2004;Osborne, 2006;Osborne, 2011) and textbooks (Conrad and Finkel, 2003;Clark, 2006;Clark, 2008;Clark, 2014;Helyar, 2014;Humphries, 1968) have been at the center of the storms. ...
... Contention in the public domain has centered on museum exhibitions (Conrad, 2008;MacMillan, 2008), commemorations and memorials (Seixas and Clark, 2004) and filmic portrayals (Smith, 2006;Waiser, 9 March, 2006). In the domain of academia, debate has focused on whether political, military, or social history should provide the predominant framework for historical accounts (Bliss, 1991-92;Dummitt, 2009;Granatstein;1998). In education, curriculum (Cardin, 2010;Éthier and Lefrançois, 2011;Granatstein, 1998;Létourneau, 2011;Neatby, 1953;Osborne, 2000;Osborne, 2003;Osborne, 2004;Osborne, 2006;Osborne, 2011) and textbooks (Conrad and Finkel, 2003;Clark, 2006;Clark, 2008;Clark, 2014;Helyar, 2014;Humphries, 1968) have been at the center of the storms. ...
... In the domain of academia, debate has focused on whether political, military, or social history should provide the predominant framework for historical accounts (Bliss, 1991-92;Dummitt, 2009;Granatstein;1998). In education, curriculum (Cardin, 2010;Éthier and Lefrançois, 2011;Granatstein, 1998;Létourneau, 2011;Neatby, 1953;Osborne, 2000;Osborne, 2003;Osborne, 2004;Osborne, 2006;Osborne, 2011) and textbooks (Conrad and Finkel, 2003;Clark, 2006;Clark, 2008;Clark, 2014;Helyar, 2014;Humphries, 1968) have been at the center of the storms. ...
Este artículo profundiza en los debates históricos y actuales en Canadá sobre la historia nacional y la enseñanza de la historia en el complicado escenario de trece jurisdicciones educativas de Canadá. En este trabajo se analizan los debates sobre los contenidos en la enseñanza de la historia y en los libros de texto, así como los enfoques en la escuela. Se analizan las formas en que un enfoque de pensamiento histórico está consolidándose en todo el país en el período actual, con una mayor atención a la investigación en la enseñanza de la historia y su difusión y su mayor presencia en los planes provinciales. Se considera el papel del gobierno federal en estos cambios, las organizaciones privadas sin fines de lucro, y los proyectos financiados por el gobierno nacional, tales como el Historical Thinking Project y The History Education Network.
... (Moniot, 1974, p. 149, 151) Plusieurs critiques adressées, par des essayistes ou tribuns, à l'historiographie savante et scolaire prennent le contrepied des critiques énoncées par l'approche décoloniale et la vouent aux gémonies. Elles soutiennent que le développement de la PH à l'école se détache (à tort) de la pertinence scolaire et promeut la compréhension des questions du présent au lieu de celles du passé; que la production historiographique savante et sa transposition scolaire méprisent l'histoire politique nationale et prétendent qu'elle embrigade inexorablement, n'ont de considération que pour des histoires accessoires, partisanes et spécifiques (des Autochtones et francophones au Canada; des Bretons en France; des femmes, immigrants, noirs et ouvriers partout, etc.; culturelle, sociale, etc.); qu'elles sont antipatriotiques, éclectiques, postmodernes et relativistes; qu'elles empêchent la nation (celle de l'énonciateur) d'accomplir sa destinée (démocratique, pacifiste, etc.) manifeste, voire qu'elles entrainent le déclin de la civilisation (Cheney, 1994;Granatstein, 1998;Zemmour, 2010). Il n'y a donc pas d'unanimité dans les usages (sociaux) de l'histoire, mais des tensions qui reflètent les rapports sociaux contradictoires d'aujourd'hui. ...
Faire la part de la pluralité des identités culturelles, registres de connaissances et normes épistémologiques suscite des débats en enseignement de l’histoire. Certains courants décoloniaux allèguent qu’un enseignement de l’histoire centré sur la pensée historienne, définie par Seixas et d’autres, promeut une vision eurocentriste de l’histoire. Ces critiques s’appliquent à certains curriculums et historiens, non à l’opération de la pensée historienne elle-même qui valorise des normes épistémologiques réfractaires à l’instrumentalisation de l’histoire. Développer la pensée historienne en classe favoriserait l’autonomie intellectuelle, la pensée critique et la tolérance des élèves, contrairement à la substitution d’un récit par un autre. L’article émet toutefois des doutes sur la capacité de l’école, dans son état actuel, à fournir les conditions nécessaires à ce développement.
... We have a nation to save and a future to build. 11 Thinking more recently of the highly charged textbook controversy in Texas, it is obvious that questions of what to teach children about the past, how, and who gets to say so, are far from resolved. 12 Despite claims that the shift to a more inclusive representation of the past undermines efforts at a cohesive national identity, educational scholars writing in the historical consciousness stream argue that the traditional approach is no longer defensible. ...
... Identification through remembrance lies at the core of certain forms of history education, in which the aim is to promote common narratives or languages that bond citizens to one another. 13 In weaker forms of patriotic education, remembrance is used as a tool to engage young citizens in a common narrative while, at the same time, raising potential critiques of these narratives. 14 In both approaches, remembrance is pivotal to engaging young citizens in a shared discourse that connects history to the present, and informs the future. ...
... historian Jack Granatstein criticized programmes that offered what he called an unrecognizable, fragmented and victimized narrative, in which the heroes of yesteryear were gone (Granatstein, 1998). Granatstein argued that the abandonment of the traditional national narrative for a history reflecting multiple perspectives (e.g. ...
... In Canada, historical thinking is guided by a framework that evolved out of Seixas's (1993Seixas's ( , 2017) theoretical research around how historians 'tackle the difficult problems of understanding the past' (Seixas and Morton, 2013: 7). This call for educational reform was rooted in Canada's 'History Wars' of the 1990s, which took place at a time when nationalists such as Jack Granatstein (1998) and the Dominion Institute rallied for the revival of history in schools -for the purpose of promoting national unity (Seixas, 2010: 19). Rather than engaging in battles regarding which national narrative should be taught over another, however, Seixas proposed that Canada set its 'History Wars' aside, and instead adopt a common framework for historical inquiry, by which students could learn to investigate the past for themselves. ...
In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada released a Final Report containing 94 Calls to Action. Included were calls for reform in how history is taught in Canadian schools, so that students may learn to address such difficult topics in Canadian history as Indian Residential Schools, racism and cultural genocide. Operating somewhat in parallel to these reforms, social studies curricula across Canada have undergone substantial revisions. As a result, historical thinking is now firmly embedded within the curricula of most provinces and territories. Coupled with these developments are various academic debates regarding public pedagogy, difficult knowledge and student beliefs about Canada’s colonial past. Such debates require that researchers develop a better understanding of how knowledge related to Truth and Reconciliation is currently presented within Canadian classrooms, and how this may (or may not) relate to historical thinking. In this paper, I explore this debate as it relates to Indian Residential Schools. I then analyse a selection of classroom resources currently available in Canada for teaching about Truth and Reconciliation. In so doing, I consider how these relate to Peter Seixas’s six concepts of historical thinking (Seixas and Morton, 2013), as well as broader discussions within Canada about Indigenous world views, historical empathy and Reconciliation.
... Paquet (1988) considère que le multiculturalisme entretient des inégalités au sein de groupes culturellement diversifiés, l'égalité n'étant qu'une illusion parce que le multiculturalisme est un facteur pouvant conduire à des conflits, facilitant l'importation et la perpétuation de conflits ethniques et religieux en provenance d'autres pays (Garcea, 2008). Une autre limite du multiculturalisme est le fait qu'il a produit une mauvaise allocation des ressources gouvernementales pour l'intégration des immigrants, qui, par la suite, n'ont pas pu acquérir l'identité nationale de ce pays (Granatstein, 1998). Fleras et Elliot (2002) considèrent qu'il y a 5 grandes catégories d'aspects qui peuvent provoquer des effets à la fois positifs et négatifs en termes de multiculturalisme : division versus unification, essentialisation versus hybridation, marginalisation versus inclusion, hégémonie versus hégémonie, déception versus catalyse. ...
Le multiculturalisme est une nouvelle ère de mondialisation et la diversité culturelle est inévitable, mais cette diversité peut ajouter de la valeur aux entreprises. À l’avenir, il y aura une relation de plus en plus étroite entre la mondialisation, la diversité culturelle, le management opérationnel et la gestion des relations avec les parties prenantes.Le sport est caractérisé par une concurrence féroce. Les organisations sportives sont de plus en plus contraintes de transposer les pratiques managériales présentes dans les entreprises et d’adopter les caractéristiques opérationnelles et structurelles des entreprises commerciales. La pression pour atteindre les objectifs économiques et la concurrence exercée par les organisations sportives a encouragé les dirigeants sportifs à considérer les outils et les concepts appliqués dans les affaires tels que la culture organisationnelle. Contrairement à d’autres domaines d’activité, le sport présente certaines particularités. La plupart du temps dans le sport, une seule organisation peut atteindre son objectif de remporter la compétition, et les situations dans lesquelles plusieurs équipes atteignent leur objectif sont rares. Toutes les équipes, quel que soit le sport et quel que soit le niveau de ressources disponibles, essaient de gagner chaque match et chaque compétition. Aucune équipe qui se respecte n’entre sur le terrain avec l’idée de perdre. Ainsi, au fil du temps, il y a eu des exemples d’organisations qui, avec des ressources minimales, ont réussi à dépasser dans les classements et les organisations de compétitions avec des ressources beaucoup plus précieuses.Tout d’abord, la question du management multiculturel prend de plus en plus d’importance à mesure que la société se mondialise de plus en plus. Ainsi, dans le contexte de la mondialisation, de plus en plus d’individus différents doivent travailler ensemble et former une équipe, et cet aspect est de plus en plus visible dans le sport.Deuxièmement, chaque société et chaque organisation ont besoin de règles pour fonctionner dans un environnement optimal. Ces réglementations doivent être proposées par un organe décisionnel légitime, qui donne confiance à ceux qui sont sous l’influence de ces réglementations. Dans une société de plus en plus mondialisée, il y a à la fois des réglementations internationales et nationales, et celles-ci peuvent influencer positivement ou négativement l’activité des organisations sportives multiculturelles. Par exemple, il y a des réglementations nationales qui exigent un nombre minimum de joueurs locaux ou interdisent l’accès des joueurs qui n’ont pas joué pour leur équipe nationale. D’autre part, il y a des réglementations qui facilitent l’obtention plus rapide d’une citoyenneté ou des réglementations qui interdisent les confrontations sportives entre certains pays ayant connu des conflits historiques.
... Students in Grade 1 continue to learn about roles and responsibilities and while grade 5 students will still learn about government and citizenship, there is a marked shift in notions of citizenship, one in which citizenship is now largely defined in relation to active involvement in the community.3 AsGranatstein (1998) argues, the national-political narrative should be the "standard history" and argues this in light of what he sees as a threat to its hegemony. Needless to say, such an argument has elicited various retorts from scholars (seeMcKillop, 1999;Stanley, 2000). ...
Literature on teacher education and encounters with race highlight some of the difficulties that teacher candidates face when they confront their own racialized subjectivities. However, many of these projects focus exclusively on Whiteness studies, explicating how White teacher candidates come to witness their own racialized Whiteness in relation to their epistemological understandings of the world. In this paper, I diverge from this pattern of thought, exploring a subset of the tenets of critical race theory, that of silences and exclusions, pervading my own teaching in a primary/junior social studies methods class and exploring how these structured my lessons. Specifically, I look at how counternarratives, critiques against liberalism, and multiculturalism and encounters with racialized and colonial supremacy were involved in my pedagogical strategies. I conclude by suggesting that although these methods may seem daunting for the primary/junior classroom, they can provide valuable insights for teacher candidate orientations to their own pedagogies. Keywords: social studies pedagogy; anti-racism in practice
... Ces deux monographies, 3 Notre traduction de: « a nation, as a whole, as a society, and not as a collection of races, genders, regions and classes. » (Granatstein 1998, 77) 4 On pourra lire avec grand intérêt le texte de J. M. Careless (1969) dans lesquelles l'auteur n'hésite pas à parler du Canada comme étant une terre occupée par plusieurs peuples, ont été publiées durant la crise constitutionnelle du début des années 1990. On y dépeint un Canada composé par de multiples nations, communautés, régions, identités de genre et de culture. ...
This article seeks to assess the Canadian federation's ability to meet the challenge of diversity in a multinational context. To do so, the author looks back at competing historical narratives and how political leaders proceed to advantage a vision or disqualify others as not reflecting the country's specific values. Second, the author explores the phenomenon of diversity – whether it is societal, ethnocultural, religious, linguistic or national in nature. This is one of the greatest challenges facing contemporary societies. Then, in a third step, the author discusses the central government’s adoption of a minimalist recognition policy inspired by constitutional patriotism. Finally, the analysis focuses on the vision proposed by the Liberal government of Justin Trudeau, which is synthesized in his statement that Canada would be nothing less than the first post-national state in the world.
Cet article veut évaluer la capacité de la fédération canadienne à relever le défi de la diversité en contexte multinational. Pour ce faire, l’auteur fait un retour sur les récits historiques en concurrence et sur la façon dont les chefs de file politiques s’y prennent pour les faire cohabiter en les mettant en valeur ou, à l’opposé, en cherchant à les disqualifier comme ne reflétant pas les valeurs propres au pays. Puis, dans un deuxième temps, l’auteur explore le phénomène de la diversité – que celle-ci soit de nature sociétale, ethnoculturelle, religieuse, linguistique ou nationale. C’est d’ailleurs ici un des plus grands défis auquel les sociétés contemporaines sont confrontées. Puis, dans un troisième temps, l’auteur discute de l’adoption par le gouvernement central d’une politique de reconnaissance de type minimaliste inspirée par le patriotisme constitutionnel. Enfin, l’analyse se concentre sur la vision proposée par le gouvernement libéral de Justin Trudeau, laquelle est synthétisée dans sa déclaration voulant que le Canada constituerait rien de moins que le premier État post-national à l’échelle planétaire.
... Historical research and thinking has been promoted in Canada through the establishment of a website (Then/Hier). Discussion has occurred over whether history in schools should aim to develop a common national consciousness in students (Bliss, 2002;Granatstein, 1998) or to develop historical mindedness and methods (Seixas, 2002). ...
This paper compares the similarities and differences in Ontario, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia’s Social Studies curriculum documents. It finds a number of similarities in the curriculum documents including in structural form, aims, and content. It also finds some differences based on historical contingencies and regional conditions. The paper then analyses possible reasons for the similarities and differences found, with a focus on key individuals involved and contexts, and comments on whether calls for a national Social Studies curriculum should be implemented.
... 7 On the other hand, the postmodern challenge to traditional historical canons and the attempt to open the teaching discipline to different voices in society has prompted fierce opposition on the part of researchers, intellectuals, public figures, and educators alike. 8 Alongside the postmodern discourse, much attention has been devoted, in recent decades, to the return of religion to the political arena and to the center of social life in many parts of the world. 9 The "postsecular condition" that results from this process is postmodern, but not in a deconstructive-epistemological sense. ...
In recent decades, the impact of postmodern approaches to history teaching has triggered an extensive worldwide debate that accommodates diverse and contrasting voices. This article examines how the education system of Religious Zionism, one of the most important ideological movements in Israel, copes with this issue. This inquiry, which is based on Peter Seixas’s conceptualization, analyzes the system’s history curriculum, its latest textbooks, and an array of lesson plans. The analysis reveals a complex method of coping with postmodernism, including the adoption of clearly postmodern attitudes at the declarative level and the neutralization of their influence in practice.
... T'as l'impression de changer de pays même si tu restes au Canada. (MSS female student) From this research, however, we cannot conclude so freely that Québec history courses contribute actively to the formation of sovereignists as claimed by some Canadian critics (see Nemni, 1996;Granatstein, 1998). Of course, programs, textbooks, and teaching practices of teachers are influenced by Québec political and ideological trends, as noted by the following teacher. ...
This article explores how British Columbia and Québec high school students construct and understand their citizenship in light of their history/social studies experience. Two multi-ethnic high schools, one in Montréal and one in Vancouver, provided a window into Québec history (grade 10) and B.C. social studies (grade 11). Key citizenship concepts (rights, participation, cultural pluralism, and identity) developed in political theory guided this study. Using a multiple case study design, this qualitative study employed multiple data collection: document analysis, school and classroom observations, and semi-structured interviews with key participants. The findings suggest that, despite different programs and teaching approaches, students in both sites accord an importance to citizenship. Yet, contrasts emerge between francophone Québécois and anglophone British Columbians, particularly in terms of identity.
... 10 En un reciente trabajo, J.L. Granatstein critica la política del multiculturalismo por promover el separatismo, y fomentar "la idea entre los inmigrantes... de que Canadá, y en particular el Canadá de habla inglesa, no tiene cultura ni nacionalidad propia" . 11 Cuestiona la visión del gobierno federal de que la identidad canadiense no está basada en una cultura nacional, sino en los principios de justicia, paz y solidaridad comprensiva, y defiende que tal identidad debería basarse en "la historia y el patrimonio inglés que comparten los canadienses" . 12 Tal y como lo ve Granatstein, "ya que los inmigrantes han venido a una sociedad ya formada, deben aceptar sus costumbres y adaptarse a sus normas" , al tiempo que el gobierno debería convertir a los inmigrantes "en ciudadanos canadienses tan rápido como fuese posible, a fin de proporcionarles el conocimiento cultural que necesitan para comprender y para prosperar en nuestra sociedad" . ...
Well-meaning assimilationists, as well as those threatened that the predominantly English culture in Canada and the United States will be overwhelmed by cultural elements brought by ethnocultural immigrant groups with them, have led the strident attacks against multiculturalism in both countries. Though apparently persuasive, close analysis of these attacks in Canada shows that they are based on lack of understanding or ignorance of the multiculturalism policy. The policy can be understood best by making a distinction between a multination state, with sovereignty rights claimed by national groups within it, and a polyethnic state, with polyethnic rights claimed by its cultural minority groups. The Canadian policy of multiculturalism pertains to the latter. Analysis of its intent and its constituent principles reveals that it is consistent with the democratic ethos of the country; as well, its philosophy has found expression not only in official pieces of legislation but also in the constitutionally entrenched Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Litigation in the courts sustains the view that Section 27 of the Charter, drawing from this philosophy, has given recognition to, and protection for, the rights of ethnocultural members in the country. Indeed, in light of court decisions, and the philosophy behind the policy, there is no need to worry about a kind of multicultural education in which citizenship education occupies a prominent role.
... Historianopetuksen merkitys kansallisen identiteetin vahvistamisessa on jälleen nostettu voimakkaasti esille (esim. Granatstein 1998;ks. myös Perussuomalaisten aateperusta 2013). ...
Historiantutkimuksessa on viime vuosikymmeninä tapahtunut mittavia muutoksia sekä tutkimuskohteiden, tutkittavien aineistojen että menetelmien osalta. Yliopistollinen historianopetus on kuitenkin uudistunut tänä aikana vähemmän, erityisesti jos muutosta verrataan tutkimustyössä ja ympäröivässä yhteiskunnassa tapahtuneeseen kehitykseen. Nämä muutokset ovat heijastuneet opetukseen lähinnä sisältöjen osalta: uudentyyppiset lähteet, tutkimuskohteet ja menetelmät ovat vähitellen siirtyneet myös osaksi akateemista historianopetusta. Itse opetusmuotoihin sekä tapoihin opettaa ja suhtautua niin opetukseen kuin opiske-lijoihinkin tämä muutos on vaikuttanut vähemmän ja heijastuen lähinnä yksittäisten opettajien toiminnassa. Epäsuhta ei toki ole vain kansallinen vaan koskee historian oppiainetta globaalisti. Tämä artikkeli pureutuu yhteen historian akateemisessa opetuksessa varsin sitkeästi istuvaan käytäntöön, arvioinnin opettajajohtoisuuteen.
... saw national historians and regional and social historians debate the merits of each other's approaches in a variety of books and articles. For more on the history wars see Granatstein(1998), McKillop (1999, and Palmer (1999), as in the References section below. ...
This article examines the state of Atlantic Canadian digital history. As Canadian granting agencies increasingly favour applications deemed relevant to business interests, it is difficult to secure funding to present Atlantic Canadian digital history. In order to secure the funding necessary to conduct Atlantic Canadian digital history, interdisciplinary team research strategies must be adopted, as Canadian granting agencies display greater willingness to support broad, multi-institutional collaborations. Moreover, such institutional partnerships will hopefully revitalize Atlantic Canadian digital history – which thus far has simply replicated the print paradigm – by encouraging historical presentation in novel and engaging ways, such as through educational gaming.
... Por supuesto, se habrá comprendido que los hechos de los que se reclama aquí la orgullosa transmisión, son los acontecimientos relacionados con el relato nacional de la mayoría blanca descendiente de la colonización inglesa a la que pertenecen las élites locales… La Inglaterra de la Sra. Thatcher sufrió presiones análogas en los años 1980 y 1990 por el retorno de «acontecimientos notables» de la historia nacional (Enrique VIII, la victoria de Nelson en Trafalgar, etc.) (Balwin, 1990), así como en los Estados Unidos, algunos años más tarde, con la querella de los National History Standards (Clark, 2006). En Canadá, durante los años 1990, el ataque de J. L. Granatstein (1998) y de otros contra la historia enseñada en las escuelas (una historia que habría -sin razón, según él-capitulado bajo los obuses de las reivindicaciones feministas, nacionalistas quebequenses, etc.) se inscribe igualmente en los mismos parámetros. Para Clark, los conservadores deploran «la ignorancia» factual del pasado solamente cuando ella concierne a ciertos hechos precisos relacionados con la valoración del nacionalismo. ...
Este articulo presenta y analiza un ejemplo del debate sobre la ensenanza de la Historia que tiene lugar en la mayoria de los paises del mundo desde hace ya varios anos. En este caso, es
el que se realiza en Quebec sobre la ensenanza de la historia nacional en la escuela secundaria desde la reforma iniciada en 2001. Se senala que la ensenanza de la historia en Quebec se centra
desde hace tiempo en la formacion de ciudadania, se muestra la reforma de los programas y el debate que han generado. A continuacion, se analiza la relacion entre los cursos de Historia
actuales y el nacionalismo de Quebec y de Canada. Por ultimo, se analiza la posicion de algunos estudiosos en este debate. Los autores no ocultan su oposicion a los discursos nacionalistas
de los chauvinistas de Quebec incluso si son ellos mismos nacionalistas de Quebec y no apoyan el programa o el estado, incluso si quieren negar las habladurias de los opositores
del programa y si apoyan la idea de centrar el programa en el desarrollo de las habilidades y actitudes criticas relacionadas con la Historia. Con este articulo se quiere contribuir a una
internacional de especialistas en didactica que luchen contra el mismo problema.
... cation and heritage projects by national and local governments, churches and religious groups, grassroots movements, and the tourist industry (Black, 2005;Lowenthal, 1998Lowenthal, , 2015Grever et al., 2012). These practices have resulted in clashes, known as "cultural wars" or "history wars" (Anderson, 1996;Ghandi, 1998;Granatstein, 1998;Grever & Stuurman, 2007;Haydn, 2012;Macintyre & Clark, 2004;Taylor & Guyver, 2012;Windschuttle, 1994). Despite the variety of interventions and critiques regarding history education-that is, teaching, learning and the making of educational materials-, in countries all over the world, the idea of an eroding national framework still evokes fierce emotions and concern for politicians, policymakers and the public at large (Carretero, 2011). ...
In the Introduction Carretero, Berger and Grever present an overview of the main issues that are currently discussed in relation to historical culture and history education. They introduce the 38 chapters of the Palgrave Handbook of Research in Historical Culture and Education written by scholars from the Americas, Europe and Asia, providing an international and global perspective on these matters. The Handbook is organized into four parts: (a) Historical Culture and Public Uses of History; (b) The Appeal of the Nation in History Education of Postcolonial Societies; (c) Reflections on History Learning and Teaching; (d) Educational Resources: Curricula, Textbooks and New Media. The Introduction also explains the interdisciplinary approach of the Handbook, evidenced by contributions from History, Education, Social and Cognitive Psychology and other Social Sciences.
... Around the globe, public controversies on collective memory and history canons are always a good indicator for problems and tensions within or between societies. 1 Usually, the spokespersons of these debates criticize the supposed lack of historical consciousness, referring to the selection of topics in the school history curriculum and other historical representations (e.g. Windschuttle 1994;Granatstein 1998;Macintyre and Clark 2004;Grever and Stuurman 2007). But sometimes they also challenge the premises of historical thought. ...
Around the globe, public controversies on collective memory and history canons are always a good indicator for problems and tensions within or between societies. Usually, the spokespersons of these debates criticize the supposed lack of historical consciousness, referring to the selection of topics in the school history curriculum and other historical representations (Granatstein, 1998; Macintyre & Clark, 2004; Grever & Stuurman, 2007). But sometimes they also challenge the premises of historical thought. In Canada, for example, some educators call for an incorporation of oral traditions and cyclical conceptions of time in the history curriculum, including claims for "indigenous epistemologies" as alternatives to modern historical consciousness (Seixas, 2012). Studying the social and cultural consequences of these debates and the last mentioned developments requires a framework of analysis which also involves conceptions of history, allowing us to better understand the dynamic interaction between human agency, tradition, performance of memory, and historical representations and their dissemination. The concept historical culture, broadly defined as "people’s relationships to the past", offers a good opportunity to construct such a framework.
In this chapter we start by outlining the rise of the concept of historical culture. Building on the impressive work of particularly German historians and philosophers, we will also critically assess the various changing meanings of the concept. Next, we will discuss historical culture as a concept of three mutually dependent and interactive levels of analysis: 1. historical narratives and performances of the past; 2. mnemonic infrastructures; 3. conceptions of history. We will conclude with some reflective remarks about our approach, especially in relation to history education practices.
... Similar criticism has been made elsewhere in Canada (see Osborne, 2003;Sandwell, 2012). For historian Jack Granatstein (1998), the educational focus on multiculturalism, whole-child development, and civic education has led to a generation of teachers who "scarcely teach history, so busy are they fighting racism, teaching sex education, or instructing English as a second language for recent immigrants" (p. 3). ...
Cet article s’interesse a la conscience historique des futurs professeurs d’histoire au Canada. Realisee aupres de participants benevoles (N=233) a l’aide d’un outil de sondage en ligne s’inspirant de la recherche pancanadienne Les Canadiens et leurs passes, cette enquete etudie les connaissances de base, la perception de la fiabilite des sources, l’experience en classe d’histoire et la vision de l’histoire en milieu scolaire de futurs enseignants. Les resultats mettent en lumiere le fait que peu d’entre eux possedent une connaissance approfondie de l’histoire canadienne. De plus, ceux-ci ont peu d’experience des methodes d’enseignement basees sur l’enquete historienne. Cependant, une majorite des futurs professeurs a une representation tres pregnante de ce qu’est l’histoire en milieu scolaire et de ses fins. Cet article aborde les retombees de cette recherche, notamment le besoin de communautes professionnelles d’enseignants de l’histoire.
... Historians of the 1970s and 1980s, he charged, had spent most of their time researching and teaching students about pork-packing, Marxist labour organizers, prisons and insane asylums, parish politics, and what he derisively described as "the history of housemaid's knee in Belleville in the 1890s." "Really," he added, "Who cares?" 40 The Ontario high school history curriculum did gradually come to reflect that "limited identities" outlook. After the introduction of a new History and Contemporary Studies curriculum in 1987-88, Canadian history came to be taught in Grade 9 or 10 under the rubric "Life in Contemporary Canada" and again in Grade 13/OAC level within a North American comparative history framework. ...
Ce texte vise à comparer la culture stratégique de la société québécoise francophone avec celles des Premières Nations au Canada en examinant leur rapport avec la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Au Québec, le discours dominant semble avoir évolué depuis le milieu des années 1990 et l’on assiste à une (re)découverte de la contribution des Québécois francophones à ce conflit. On peut y voir un indice d’une transformation de la culture stratégique québécoise qui, toujours fidèle aux principes internationalistes, est plus flexible quant aux critères qui rendent acceptables le recours à la force et la participation aux institutions militaires. Chez les Premières Nations, le récit de la guerre sert de catalyseur à l’expression d’une identité distincte et des revendications contemporaines. En conclusion, ce survol tend à indiquer que la mémoire de la Seconde Guerre mondiale des sociétés autochtones et québécoise est « parallèle » et sans point de contact.
This chapter examines the historical basis for the precarious status of women’s history narratives in history teaching today. Historically, women have been featured in history texts and resources for their unique stories but have remained outside the historical canon as their stories have been celebrated through separate units or courses. The authors demonstrate how the past 50 years reflect ongoing government and educational resistance to major systemic change for more integrated and diverse gender representation in curricula. Despite rich scholarship in the field, and ongoing societal demands that have broaden the definition of gender, school history resources have centred on an “add women” approach, resulting in limited change to curricula over the last several decades.
La dècada 2020-2030 podria ser favorable a l’arribada del federalisme multinacional a escala internacional. Davant el malestar creixent de les grans potències i les organitzacions internacionals per la creació de nous estats, el federalisme multinacional és un camí que cal explorar. A canvi de la lleialtat de les nacions minoritàries a l’Estat sobirà, aquesta estructura política els permet reprendre, si no restaurar, la seua sobirania original, tot considerant les necessitats de coordinació, consulta i convivència amb els socis polítics dins dels grups federals o en procés de federalització.
En aquesta tercera part d’un projecte assagístic iniciat l’any 2007 amb ‘Més enllà de la nació unificadora: al·legat en favor del federalisme multinacional’ (Premi Josep Maria Vilaseca i Marcet) i aprofundit, l’any 2012, amb ‘Temps d’incertituds. Assajos sobre el federalisme i la diversitat nacional’ (finalista del premi Donald Smiley), tots dos traduïts a diverses llengües, s’aborden les relacions entre majories i minories, alhora que s’exploren els avenços teòrics en la recerca sobre el federalisme i els nacionalismes contemporanis, tot fonamentant l’anàlisi en l’estudi dels primers pobles i les nacions minoritàries en un context democràtic. Avui dia és crucial avaluar les reivindicacions conflictives tenint en compte la noció de legitimitat més que no pas la noció massa estreta de legalitat
The recent revision to the social studies curriculum in British Columbia is built around Seixas’s and Morton’s “Big Six” historical thinking concepts. The Big Six, however, omit some significant pedagogical objectives valued by teachers, including that of helping students to care about the past. This dissertation presents the Historical Process Constructs (HPCs), a hermeneutic teaching tool designed by the author in his practice as a secondary history teacher. The HPCs are designed to guide students in historical interpretation while keeping their pre-judgments in play, and to promote empathetic and transformative judgements in interpreting traces of the past. The philosophical and historiographical underpinnings of the HPCs are discussed, and it is situated in relation to select current literature on the teaching and learning of history.
A design-based research study is then presented which examines 162 students’ work with the HPCs in the context of a document-based inquiry carried out in 8 Vancouver-area history classrooms with four volunteer teachers. A variety of student data, including pre-surveys, responses to the questions that compose the HPCs themselves, and post-interviews with a small number of participating students, were analyzed inductively as part of a qualitative-dominant mixed-methods research design. The empirical portion of the study provides suggestive evidence that the HPCs may help students gain a deeper understanding of the complex nature of historical interpretation, and may prompt empathetic and transformative engagement in the interpretation of historical traces. Importantly, the qualitative data analyses produced as part of the study provide the basis upon which assessment instruments can be developed that would support stronger causal claims about the value of the HPCs as a teaching tool.
Keywords: historical interpretation; analytical hermeneutics; Paul Ricoeur; historical thinking concepts; Design Based Research; empathetic and transformative engagement
L’article s’intéresse aux débats entourant l’enseignement de l’histoire au Québec et au Canada en puisant dans les écrits qui portent sur les controverses scientifiques et publiques. Il présente l’émergence et l’évolution de controverses au Canada et au Québec de la fin des années 1980 à nos jours. Il propose une réflexion sur les facteurs qui ont fait en sorte que la controverse a été soulevée avec beaucoup plus de force au Québec et qu’elle a mené à des changements significatifs dans les programmes de formation.
This article seeks to go some way toward shedding light on a certain dimension of Canadian intellectual history, specifically that dimension wherein the changing theoretical approaches to the phenomenon of Canadian political culture is the core subject matter. Canadian political culture will be defined here as that collation of ideas, principles, thoughts and opinions which foster the establishment and continuation of a set of political structures and institutions which are liberal democratic at their foundations. With this as a guiding definition the article examines the “paradigm shifts” in the study of English Canadian political culture that have taken place from the days of “The Makers of Canada,” through the ascendancy of the “Fragment Thesis,” to the more contemporary postmodernism of the “Liberal Order Framework.” The foundational assumption of the article is that debate and discussion about the Canadian experience in such fields as political philosophy, intellectual history, party ideology, constitutional structure, legislative procedure, executive power, judicial authority and local governance will tend to be shaped by the historiographical paradigm which has been most successful in making itself the accepted “orthodoxy” in the academic and intellectual circles of the period.
Cette analyse de contenu s'intéresse aux commentaires du public, dont de jeunes adolescents , sur la réception d'un film historique controversé du réalisateur Pierre Falardeau: 15 février 1839 (Payeur et Falardeau, 2001). Ce film traite de la pendaison de Patriotes à Montréal et semble exacerber les sentiments d'opposition entre francophones et anglo-phones. L'étude illustre qu'au-delà du biais apparent du réalisateur, les réactions aux films semblent plutôt dictées par le niveau de conscience historique du public ainsi que par la construction collective d'identités liées à la nation et à la race. Il est discuté du potentiel d'un film controversé sur la problématisation de la nation et la possibilité de favoriser une discussion critique afin de dépasser les lieux communs. Des implications didactiques à l'usage du film historique sont proposées pour une intégration en classe.
Public commemorative art adorns the landscapes of virtually all places in the world. Communities and individuals create artistic representations to reflect who they were, are (or perceive themselves to be), what they value today, and who they want to be in the future. These representations emerge from particular perspectives on and orientations to the past, and are fraught with problematic particularities and absences. This chapter examines the potential of public commemorative art to provide important points of convergence for examination in history education. It uses examples of commemorative art from a range of places to examine the potential for studying: the differences between the remembered past and academic history; the multiple historical eras represented in commemorative sites; the connections and disconnections between history and heritage education; and the relationship between history and citizenship education.
Résumé Cet article propose une interprétation divergente de la controverse sur les programmes d’enseignement de l’histoire du Québec. Il soutient que les opposants au programme se trompent lorsqu’ils affirment que l’éducation à la citoyenneté est une nouveauté. Depuis le rapport Parent, l’histoire devrait familiariser les élèves avec l’attitude et la méthode des historiens, pour en faire des citoyens plus autonomes, critiques et rationnels. Les auteurs de ce texte appuient cet aspect du programme, mais déplorent le rôle de l’école dans la reproduction sociale. L’article montre que ce programme repose sur un nationalisme civique québécois, et non sur le fédéralisme, et que certains historiens et sociologues critiques du programme défendent en fait un nationalisme chauvin. Les auteurs considèrent que la lutte contre l’oppression nationale des Québécois a plus à gagner avec la formation de l’esprit critique qu’avec la mémorisation d’un récit apologétique et qu’avec l’endoctrinement, quel qu’il soit. Enfin, l’article tient ce débat non pour le signe d’une tare propre au Québec, mais pour une situation normale qui trouve son pendant ailleurs. Abstract This article offers a new and different interpretation of the controversy surrounding the history curriculum in Quebec. It argues that the opponents of the current program are mistaken in claiming that its emphasis on citizenship education is a new development. Since the Parent report, the history curriculum has attempted to expose students to the approaches and methods used by historians, with the goal of making them into more autonomous, critical, and rational citizens. The authors support that aim, but deplore the role played by schools in social reproduction. They demonstrate that the current program is based around civic Québécois nationalism, and not support for federalism, and that some historians and sociologists who have criticized it are in fact proponents of a more chauvinistic nationalism. The authors believe that Quebec’s struggle against national oppression will benefit more from the development of critical thinking among students than from the memorization of justificatory narratives or indoctrination of any type. Finally, rather than viewing this debate as a problem unique to Quebec, the article asserts that it has numerous precedents elsewhere in the world.
Le Québec a fait le choix original, il y a dix ans, d’implanter un nouvel enseignement d’éthique et culture religieuse obligatoire pour tous les élèves des écoles primaires et secondaires. Ce programme propose une approche culturelle de l’étude du phénomène religieux en vue de favoriser sa compréhension dans la diversité des formes qu’il peut emprunter. Or, faire des religions un objet d’apprentissage scolaire parmi d’autres ne va pas sans susciter nombre de critiques et de résistances qui témoignent d’un rapport difficile au religieux dans la société québécoise. Le regard porté sur les religions, parfois négatif et simplificateur, tend à en faire des objets nuisibles, du moins désuets, devant être jugés à l’aune de valeurs contemporaines, et ce, au détriment de l’analyse informée de réalités historiques complexes, ainsi que d’une réflexion favorisant la compréhension du monde contemporain et de l’humanité dans l’ensemble de sa riche diversité.
Versailles 1685: A Game of Intrigue was a historical videogame released in 1996. It claimed to be the first ludo-educational videogame. This paper intends to highlight the conflictual creation of the game Versailles 1685 through the study of its creation process. During the design of this game, two visions were at odds with each other: a historical approach versus an entertainment approach. According to our findings, this conflict shaped the final gameplay of the game, which led to inconsistencies and the limitation of the players' "historical agency." Although, in 1996, the debate between story and history was private for Versailles 1685, the question of the scientific authenticity of historical games is now a topic of interest for both scholars and videogames players. We hope that this paper will help understand Versailles 1685 and shine a new light on this question.
After briefly reviewing relevant public schooling history and how it has contextualized the development of social studies, heated debates are described. Two main perspectives are portrayed: the progressive developers’ views and those of their critics. The paper concludes with an attempt to bridge this seemingly insurmountable ideological divide.
De 2006 à 2015, Stephen Harper a cherché à redéfinir l’identité canadienne en remplaçant le nationalisme libéral par un nationalisme néoconservateur. S’inspirant des « études du nationalisme », cet article propose trois conditions nécessaires à l’émergence d’un nouveau nationalisme : sentiment d’exclusion sociopolitique ; mobilisation politique de ce sentiment ; redécouverte et réinterprétation de l’histoire nationale. L’article explore cette dernière condition, soulignant l’importance de la politique étrangère et de l’histoire militaire dans la reconstruction du nationalisme canadien par le Parti conservateur sous Harper. L’analyse des travaux de Jack Granatstein montre que celui-ci a contribué à « redécouvrir » un passé national dont le projet identitaire néoconservateur s’est inspiré.
Over the past years, memory has developed as an important theme, as much in public space in general as in the historical field in particular. Now, it can be perceived circulating around historical education. What benefits can we expect from this? After having recalled the modern conception of historical education and its goals, the paper considers, first, the place and role that memory occupies in the field of history, and, second, its possible place and role in the field of history education. Before concluding that the advantages to be drawn from this tendency are not evident, it may be wise to anticipate some effects opposite to what is expected from a modern historical education.
The French Association for Canadian Studies (AFEC) was created in 1976, immediately after the creation of the Association for Canadian Studies in the United States and the British Association for Canadian Studies. From their respective beginnings, these three national associations have been concerned with the major challenges Canada has faced, in particular the relations between Quebec and the “rest of Canada,” the recognition of First Nations and the US–Canada relationship. In France, Canadian studies programs have been established at several universities since the 1970s. The institutionalization of Canadian studies has been reflected through the creation of AFEC and 18 centers of Canadian studies, the creation of a professional journal, Études canadiennes/Canadian studies, published for over 40 years, an annual conference, and extensive research contacts between scholars and institutions in France and those in Canada and Quebec. This dense and vibrant network of Canadian studies received a setback as a result of the Canadian government’s 2012 decision to end support for Canadian studies abroad. Nevertheless, France’s Canadian studies community has shown remarkable resilience, due largely to the personal and professional relationships that have been forged between academics and institutions in the two countries for over 40 years.
How to teach the nation without churning out little nationalists? How to bring young people to adopt a critical stance about the(ir) nation while passing national reference points along? How to represent the nation in its dissonances and ambiguities while making sense of what she was and is? Létourneau argues that presenting the nation as an open rather than a closed place, as a reality that can be questioned rather than proof that must be preserved, and as a composite rather than unambiguous historical shape may be a promising path for teaching the transforming nation to a young audience. He maintains that by initiating them to the true and the good and giving them a foothold on the world they, in turn, can build it in their own way.
Par le biais d’une serie de propositions modestes, cet article cherche a aller au-dela de deux courants historiographiques lies a l’etude de la communaute politique quebecoise qui occultent la place des Premieres Nations au sein du recit historique national. L’auteur suggere des analyses du « fait indien » qui feraient mieux dialoguer les historiographies plus ou moins etanches portant sur le Quebec, d’une part, et sur sa population autochtone, de l’autre. En insistant sur des problemes methodologiques, souvent emergeant directement des projets politiques contemporains, ainsi que sur differentes manieres possibles de depasser ces derniers, l’objectif de ce texte est d’encourager un renouveau de la recherche en histoire autochtone au Quebec (recherche qui est, par ailleurs, deja en cours), non pas pour assimiler cette derniere au recit historique national, mais pour assurer que ces deux historiographies distinctes mais liees interagissent et s’inspirent mutuellement.
The Simon and Garfunkel classic, “The Sound of Silence,” criticizes silence that perpetuates oppression. Living amid familiar darkness, people struggle to hear others screaming for recognition. Social movements, some of which have used this song, have slowly changed the faces of oppression.
When O’Brien is torturing Winston Smith in the Ministry of Love, a certain Party slogan is repeated between the two men: ‘Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past’ (Orwell, 1962, pp. 204–5). In order to own the past, one has to control both written records and human memories. The ultimate power of the Party in 1984 resides in its ability to erase history; true freedom is to be aware of the past in all its various shades and representations, not just that decided upon by Big Brother and the censors at the Ministry of Truth. Or, as Simon Schama put it in his own discussion of 1984, having a ‘future, a free future at any rate, presupposes keeping faith with the past’ (Schama, 2002, p. 558).
As the previous chapter has suggested, there is much to be said for regarding the period from 1870 to 1914 as witnessing ‘the zenith of the nation state’, seeing as it did the reconstruction of the United States in the aftermath of the Civil War, the unification of Italy and Germany, and the consolidation of the great industrial democracies of France and Britain.2 But as was also made plain, from the standpoint of the early twenty-first century, this no longer seems quite so complete or convincing a picture, even for Europe, let alone for the wider world beyond. At the beginning of the twentieth century, there were relatively few sovereign states then in being, compared with the massive increase in numbers that would take place from 1945 onwards, and again after 1988, and many of those which did then exist were so complex in their histories, so sprawling in their jurisdictions, and so elaborate in their governing arrangements that the phrase ‘nation state’ describes them very inadequately and very incompletely. Britain, Russia, Germany, Spain, Italy, Austria-Hungary, China (and the United States) were all multi-national entities, each with a bewildering number of lands, regions and territories, inhabited by many different ethnic groups with fierce and sometimes competing national aspirations, and all of them held together under a no less bewildering variety of laws and constitutions. All of these essentially composite countries had been put together across the centuries, often as the result of dynastic arrangements and royal ambitions, and as such, they were not so much nation states as multiple monarchies, latter-day survivals (and developments) from the early modern European world.3
When the Dutch columnist and right-wing populist politician Pim Fortuyn, who was assassinated in 2002, published his diatribe Against the Islamisation of our Culture (1997) he used a historical narrative to illustrate what was most essential to ‘our’ culture.’ This is not so remarkable, in that since the nineteenth century one of history’s most important — and most contested — uses has been the justification, characterization and marking off of national identities. What was remarkable, however, was what he considered the most important historical change in the Netherlands since the emergence of the welfare state. After a brief overview of the history of the emancipation of women and the liberation of homosexuals in the final decades of the twentieth century, he concluded: ‘It is my moral judgement that this is humankind’s greatest mental and cultural achievement in the modern world since the creation of the welfare state. At any rate, I do not know of a greater accomplishment and effort of civilisation with more far-reaching results.’2 As Islam did not acknowledge equal rights for women and did not tolerate homosexuality at all, his argument went, Islam was a threat to a tolerant Dutch society at large.
Three years after the merger of the Progressive-Conservative and Reform parties, the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, Stephen Harper, won the federal election and formed a government, ending an era of Liberal dominance. The year 2006 was a turning point in recent Canadian history and the beginning of a period of fundamental transformation of numerous policies. During that time Conservative politicians launched a series of changes in Canadian public policies, which, among other things, encompass alteration of the official discourse on Canadian history. Subsequent victories in 2008 and especially in 2011 strengthened the Harper Conservatives and enabled them to continue the long term plan of changing the way Canadians perceive their past.
2014 brings an opportunity to look at the process of redefining the meaning of history in contemporary Canada. First, this year is marked with bold celebrations of the centenary of the First World War, which is in line with the more militant interpretation of history pursued by Stephen Harper’s government. The commemorations already resulted in restarting a debate among politicians, journalists, and ordinary Canadians, on what should constitute Canadian “remembered history.” The discussion in Canadian academia was heated up in May when Yves Frenette, professor of history at Université de Saint Boniface published an article in Canadian Journal of History entitled “Conscripting Canada’s Past: The Harper Government and the Politics of Memory.” Second, in November 2014 Stephen Harper became the sixth longest-serving prime minister. After more than eight years of Harper’s leadership it is becoming clearly visible what the main features of the “reinventing the nation project” are.
This essay uses this time frame opportunity and presents how the meaning of history is being redefined in contemporary Canada. It is divided into four parts. The first one tries to define the term “politics of memory.” The next section refers to how history was used in the past by Canadian politicians and also briefly depicts recent “history wars” among Canadian historians. The main part presents Stephen Harper’s politics of memory project. The last part tries to assess the programme and answer (from the perspective of a Polish scholar interested in Canadian studies) the question why the changes matter.
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