ECS 203 Blog Post 3: Curriculum Policy by Ben Levin and Treaty Education Curriculum

 According to Levin's article, school curricula development has lots to do with the political systems like the government. They spend time examining the existing curriculum, and try to meet a agreement about a new curriculum. The curriculum process can take several years for a new curriculum to be made. Before reading this article I did not think the government had this much to do with the development of curriculum, but it is all depended on the government systems like jurisdictions. It is surprising that higher expertise help make the curriculum with subjects because most teachers cannot teach how they do. We have to get away from the formal curriculum, and build one based on reality in the school systems. For the development of curriculum it is good to see the government is allowing more forms of nonexpert participation in reviewing curricula. It is shocking how little educators have to do with curriculum, since they are the ones who teach it to the students.  

After reading pages 1-4 of the Treaty Education document, many great goals/outcomes are stated about what students should understand about Treaty Education by the time they finish high school. I never learned as much as I should have in elementary and high school about treaties. I just learned mostly about residential schools. Now being in university, I learn about it in almost every class, and my knowledge has expanded but has yet to be finished. Comparing this document to the article, they are both different. Levin's article talks about politics and how the government controls the curriculum. Local individuals and members made the Treaty Education curriculum of the First Nations community. Some tensions about where the Treaty Education would fit in might have played a part in developing the curriculum. They would have had to move things and get rid of some things to have space for the Treaty Education curriculum. It is important they made a Treaty Education curriculum because it is an important part of Canadian history, and all students should learn the truth of the past.

Works Cited

Levin, B. (2008). Curriculum policy and the politics of what should be learned in schools. In F. Connelly, M. He & J. Phillion (Eds.), The SAGE handbook of curriculum and instruction (pp. 7 – 24). Los Angeles, CA: Sage. Available on-line from the University of Regina library: https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.libproxy.uregina.ca/lib/uregina/reader.action?docID=996458&ppg=24&pq-origsite=primo.

Treaty Education Outcomes and Indicators. Saskatchewan Ministry of Government. 2013.

Saskatchewan Treaty Education document. 


Comments

  1. Eden WellsMay 31, 2023 at 8:24 AM

    Hi Morgan!
    I too was like you and did not realize how involved the government is when evaluating and creating curriculums for schools. As society changes and develops, so should the curriculum, which makes sense how the government would be a part of the making. However, I personally still find it hard to believe how little influence teachers actually have in the decision-making of it all. They are the ones who are in the classroom and see how the children learn, should they not have more say in it all? What do you think?

    I agree that it was important that they implemented Treaty Education into the curriculum because you're right, it is a part of Canadian History. I had learned about treaties briefly in high school, but not nearly enough in elementary school. I think you made a good point of the tension that likely would have occurred when finding a way to teach Treaty Education. Something might have had to be cut out of the curriculum, or perhaps altered in a certain way. Hours in the day could not have been extended, so change must of had to happen. Something that I noticed was that the government had a lot of say in this addition to school's curricula. They were made aware that this was missing and how crucial it is to be taught in schools and acted accordingly.

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