Category: Reading Analysis

In a small northern community, nestled at the bottom of Hudson Bay Mountain, my life and education began. School provided a warm environment where parent-teacher relationships were fostered. Between my home and school, it was apparent that the child’s needs and well-being were the priority. Though this luxury I enjoyed was not the case for all, I feel as though it was an ideal that many worked towards. As seen in the mid to late 1900’s, the role of feeding, bathing, and getting children to school on time belonged to the mother. Looking at my childhood, I would describe it as average and fitting into the social norms of societies expectations. This being said, I think the ‘classic childhood’ is often played up and fewer children actually get the chance to enjoy it. That being said, childhood in today’s society is a time of nurturing and protecting children.

What has been and continues to be required of students and teachers during times of national crises and uncertainty?

Gleason, Mona. “Disciplining Children, Disciplining Parents: The Nature and Meaning of Advice to Canadian Parents, 1945-1955,” in Sara Burke and Patrice Milewski (Eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings in the Canadian History of Education, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012: 357-375.

• Gleason starts her article with the legislative consequences seen as a result of crime comic books: the Fulton Bill. This made it a criminal act to ‘print, publish, sell or distribute any magazine or book that was devoted to the pictorial presentation of crime.’ This act shows the intentions of the government in their pursuit of creating psychologically sound young humans. From here, the intervention of psychologists and the government into Canadian lives only increases. ‘The psychologically informed advice of the experts helped to shape attitudes towards genders and, by claiming to safeguard the mental health of the country’s children, legitimized the intervention of outside institutions into the private real of the family.’ More often than not mothers and female teachers alike were made the scapegoats for unruly children, whether it is in the home or in the classroom. With new information on parenting, regarding youth’s psychological vulnerability, flying around, approaches to parenting were constantly being revised. In turn, this created the need for parents and teachers to continuously relearn the appropriate methods in childrearing. Constant scrutiny of others followed children’s behavior reflected teachers within the classroom, and mothers in regards to home life. This article shows that parents required disciplining themselves (by experts), in order to properly discipline their children in a socially acceptable way to meet social norms.

 

Neff, Charlotte. 2000. “Youth in Canada West: A Case Study of Red Hill Farm School Emigrants, 1854-1868.” Journal of Family History 25, no. 4: 432. Complementary Index, EBSCOhost (accessed November 4, 2017).

• Within this article, Neff depicts the changing roles within the family as compulsory schooling came to play. As children spent a longer time at home and attending school, the age in which most children left home rose to age 16-21. This implies the degree of dependency that parents fostered in their children. School attendance accounts for significant lifestyle changes for most children. Though it was only mandatory 4 months of they year, many in rural areas attended periodically. Neff shows that attendance declined gradually after age 12 and dramatically after age 16, but reliance on the family refuses to wafer. This article takes into account the benefits of living away from home as well: “being able to enjoy a degree of choice, mobility, and freedom, not shared by those living with their families, particularly those still in school.” This allows the reader to interpret the changing requirements of children and adolescents, whether they live with or without their families.

 

John, B. (1996). Hidden Workers: Child Labour and the Family Economy in Late Nineteenth-Century Urban Ontario. Labour/ Le Travail. 163.

• This article explains the roles of children aged 7-14 years old, and how their duties contributing to economic stability were necessary for a successful home. For a home to survive financially, many mothers entered the work force, leaving the children responsible for domestic duties. Often these domestic duties included working out of sweatshops. With a surplus of workers, employers are able to lower wages leaving the workers to compete with one another. This issue meant that many brought their work home for those precious overtime hours. ‘The more the sweating system exploited the free or cheap labour of children, the less of a chance adults faced of ever receiving a fair wage for their own work.’ This cycle allows insight as to how families were stuck in ruts, just making ends meet. With education in question, it was an unfortunate reality that the achievement of education brought no occupational reward to children and they were more beneficial as wage earners or contributing to the household in other ways. Everyone had to pull their weight. Though there are many differences between rural and urban life, John Bullen points out that despite where they lived, workers still found ‘their most reliable and effective support system under their own roof. This is a key note as it allows insight as to how all work that was needed to be done in and around the home was a family affair. The parents often were not out to be cruel, but for economic survival it was necessary for everyone to contribute.

 

Racialized Childhoods and Segregated Schooling

How is separate schooling today similar or dissimilar to segregated schooling in Canadian history?

Barnes, Rosemary, et al. “Residential Schools: Impact on Aboriginal Students’ Academic and Cognitive Development. “Canadian Journal of School Psychology, vol. 21, no. 1-2, 01 Jan. 2006, pp. 18-32.

• This article dives into the long term effects that residential school students face. The conditions of residential schools including the racism, maltreatment, inadequate curriculum, staffing, instruction time and lack of parental influence are all factors in creating generations of indigenous people having delayed psychological development. Approaching this issue from a psychological epistemology allows it to demonstrate the key issues that surround indigenous peoples psychological development

Knight, Claudette. “Black Parents Speak: Education in Mid-Nineteenth-Century Canada West.” in Sara Burke and Patrice Milewski (Eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings in the Canadian History of Education, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012: 225-237.

• This article discusses how through the mid 19^th century the government was supportive of black access to public schooling; however, the local white prejudice was often the limiting factor. With the struggle for work, competing against Irish immigrants of whom were equally willing to work for exploitive pay, a majority struggled financially and were often poorly prepared for winter months. Many hoped black inferiority might be destroyed once blacks gained educational opportunities. Within the west, public education was altered by the elite of upper Canada. Egerton Ryerson dealt with many racial disputes, many of which he sided with the blacks rights to public education, however there were some cases in which he sided with the white elites. During this time black parents sought more educational opportunities for their children and along them there were white racists opposed to integrated schooling. This view point in comparison to today is similar, but on a smaller scale. There is still subtle racism within the schools today and black parents continue to show active concern for the education of their children as initiated in the 1840’s.

Matheson, K., Bombay, A., Haslam, S. A., & Anisman, H. (2016). Indigenous Identity Transformations: The Pivotal Role of Student-to-Student abuse in Indian Residential Schools. Transcultural Psychiatry, 53(5), 551-573.

• This article connects the feelings of shame brought on by severe neglect and abuse accompanied by the constant reminder from authorities that being Indian was shameful, to accumulated anger by the students. An emotion that they were unable to express towards anyone except their peers. Matheson is able to conclude that such intragroup aggression would fundamentally alter the social identity dynamics that might otherwise have protected the esteem and identity of indigenous children. This article is important in helping understand how the residential school environment was so traumatizing and the long-term effects it had on the students.

 

Sager, Eric W. “Women Teachers in Canada, 1881-1901 in Sara Burke and Patrice Milewski (Eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings in the Canadian History of Education, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012: 140-165.

• This article demonstrates the appeal of teaching to young women. As many came from small town farms, becoming a teacher was often the sole cash income for the family, as well, many occupations were still closed to women. A majority of the young teachers still lived with their family, and along with contributing economically came a degree of respect. Though barred by gender from achieving the status of a professional, teaching was still associated with authority. For many, the decision to become a teacher was based on the family needs and the job market/ conditions. This article depicts the limitations of being a female and how the rise of education created job opportunities for women. Children are forced to attend school at a very influential age and by having a majority of teachers being female might instill stereotypes of how gender plays a role in society.

 

Wilson, J. Donald. “’I Am Here To Help If You Need Me’: British Columbia’s Rural Teachers’ Welfare Officer, 1928-1934,” in Sara Burke and Patrice Meliwski (Eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings in the Canadian History of Educatoion, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012: 201-22

• This article takes a deeper look into the lives of rural teachers and the impact that isolation and loneliness had on them. Though it didn’t have a long-term effect, Wilson describes the positive influence the Rural Teachers Welfare Officer had on the young female teachers. As many of them were at the mercy of loneliness, isolation, difficult & unfriendly trustees, parents and landlords, the RTWO would come along to the communities and tend to the social and psychological needs of these young women. This paper shows that there were many factors that teachers had to consider if they were to fit into the community. Who she involves herself with and the community politics could often prove to be deal breakers if the community wasn’t accepting. An unaccepting community paired with the fact that these girls were away from home for the first time could create a stressful environment. The fact that a RTWO existed was reassuring for many parents and teachers. This article shows the importance of being social and the drastic lifestyle change for many women entering this occupation. Schools that proved to be difficult or dangerous for young women required a male teacher. Showing the reader that men were able to handle difficult schools and communities more so than women.

 

Elias, Mignone, Hall, Hong, Hart, Sareen. (2012). Trauma and suicide behavior histories among a Canadian indigenous population: An empirical exploration of the potential role of Canada’s residential school system. Social Science & Medicine, 741560-1569.

• This article argues that suicidal behavior and poor mental health is directly related to the trauma experienced as a result of colonization. With the federal government anticipating that these children and subsequent generations would contribute economically to modernizing Canada, many residential school children experienced a loss of culture, language, traditional values, family bonding, life and parenting skills, self respect, and respect for others. This was a multigenerational issue were a high percent of the population sustained traumatic exposure, influencing their own and others offspring. The authors of this paper go on to show that children with parents or grandparents who attended residential schools often mirror psychological problems of their parents and have an increased chance of experiencing abuse, neglect and poor mental health due to poor parenting styles.