Something on my Mind: If I were the Education Minister (4)

They say that Canadian history is very bland and boring. Maybe the teachers were bland and boring, or the sources (books, magazines, DVDs, the press, course work) were.

But, I assure you, history,Canadian or otherwise, is neither bland nor boring

And that may be the reason why history, having been an erstwhile core subject, is being relegated to the sideline of school curriculum. I am not completely aware of what has replaced it, but I fear the worst: facts slip into feelings, dates are minimalized, present cultural norms are used to re-interpret (then re-invent) the past--a past which is no longer taught as vital to our present and certainly not to the future.

Is that too broad a brush?

A legitimate history course in any school setting—be it public, private, or home—should be characterized by the following core content:

--the history of political movements, trends, and philosophies; this would include seeing how the current ebbs and flows are rooted in the past;

--the history of nations, which would include the origins of race, language, culture, and overall ethnicity; this would end up being a celebration of our differences, though it would also show why multiculturalism does not work;

-- the history of different economic systems, both good and bad; this course would show why certain systems succeed (like free markets) and why others fail, and will always fail, no matter how dressed up they get as socialists markets;

--the history of religion and the quest for philosop;hy this could also include a thorough study on character, morality, and ethics, and how it is related to foundational natural law;

--the history of our legal system, as well as other legal systems, including the discovery the intriguing basis for them all; it would be a revelation, if you dared (and cared), to pursue the ultimate source of a just legal system.

The above is only a starting point. Granted, there are reams of books, and, by extension, curricula, that are out there, but too many of the good ones have been shut out of the public square. I'm not sure why, but I have my suspicions.

(Note: that's why Critical Thinking [as a course] must be introduced as soon as possible; it allows the ability to analyze all sources of information. It really should form the foundation of all new courses.)

Over forty-five years ago, I finished grade 12 (class of '72, for those who like precise dates). I recall very little of what I learned, although I do remember that my History 12 teacher, Mrs. G, did not like my wisecracks from the back of the class.

As a former teacher myself, I get it now, though back then I thought I was funny, and so did many of my peers (and some of them were pretty cute).

I have have had to fill in the missing gaps over the years, thanks to many different writer-historians. You can draw from many sources through many mediums. I just happen to like the book option.

They say that if we don't learn from the past we're bound to repeat it. That sounds ominous, particularly when we don't even know (and may not even care) what happened in the past.