Georgian College

Bachelor of Human Services

SOSC- 3001 - History of Education in Canada

Winter 2022 – Online Delivery

Instructor: Dr. Geoffrey Booth

Email: Geoffrey.Booth@GeorgianCollege.ca

 
This course surveys the origins and development of education in Canada within a
broader context of historical themes relevant to this pursuit. Specifically, the course
explores the purposes, both intended and otherwise, of schooling as it developed in
major geographic regions in Canada. Particular attention will be paid to central
Canada, as it is this area of the country that served as the template for much of
what would today be recognized as the model for a system of state schooling in the
country. Throughout, issues of class, race and gender and the ways in which
current social attitudes about these ideas both informed and in turn were shaped by
the systems of education that developed. Through the lectures, readings, and
assignments, students will have an opportunity to compare personal and popular
conceptions of the purposes of education historically, and how these notions
express themselves in film, music and literature.

Required Course Materials

NOTE: There is a considerable amount of scheduled reading and writing in

this course. Please seriously consider this requirement before “signing up”.
Your success will depend in large part upon your commitment to this
expectation.

1. Sara Z. Burke and Patrice Milewski (eds.), Schooling in Transition: Readings

in Canadian History of Education, University of Toronto Press, 2012.
2. Paul Axelrod, The Promise of Schooling, University of Toronto Press, 1997.
3. Geoffrey J. Booth, “From Wretched Employment to Honourable Profession”:
The Changing Image of Teachers in Nineteenth-Century Ontario,” (M.A.
thesis, University of Toronto, 1999).
(available online in Blackboard course shell, and at the University of Toronto
virtual library website: https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/browse?
type=author&order=ASC&rpp=20&value=Booth%2C+Geoffrey+J.)

Evaluation
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5 Film Reflections - 25% 5% each, submitted bi-weekly

5 Tutorial Comparisons - 25% 5% each, submitted bi-weekly
Mid-Term Exam OR Essay*- 25% Feb. 21
*5% of essay option mark will be assigned to abstract submission, due on Jan. 31.
Final Exam - 25% April 19

EVALUATION DETAILS

Bi-weekly Film Reflections

During the course of the term, students will screen five films, each representing a
particular historical theme of education. Following the screening of each film,
students will complete a brief assignment, based on discussion points provided by
the course instructor. Submissions are due no later than Sunday midnight of the
week in which they are scheduled (max. one page, single-spaced). Each
submission is worth 5% (graded out of 10).
Late submissions receive a ‘zero’ grade.

Bi-weekly Tutorial Article Comparisons

There are five sets of articles included in the course readings (in weeks where there
are no films). Students will compare similarities and difference between the two,
using the following criteria:
1. Content – basic theme of each article
2. Similarities/differences of each article
3. If applicable, how they relate to the core reading and other course materials.
4. Other discussion points that may be offered by the course instructor.
Submissions are due no later than Sunday midnight of the week in which they are
scheduled (max. one page, single-spaced). Each submission is worth 5% (graded
out of 10).
Late submissions will receive a ‘zero’ grade.

Essay Requirements (for students NOT writing the mid-term)

Students will write an essay on a significant aspect of the history of education in

Canada.  The paper should be typewritten, approximately 6-8 pages in length,
double-spaced, properly noted and referenced.  In preparation students will be
expected to submit an abstract of approximately 100 words, outlining their topic
choice.  The submission will include at least five references, three of which must
come from reputable, peer-reviewed journals (see instructor). Note the due dates
and plan your time accordingly. Abstract/essay is worth 25% (graded out of 100).
Late submissions will be penalized 10% per day.
Schedule of Weekly Topics, Films and Readings
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(NOTE: Unless otherwise cited, all readings are from Burke and Milewski’s
Schooling in Transition).

Jan. 10 Introduction, course overview

“Education – historical approaches, perceptions, misconceptions”

Jan. 17 The Origin and Emergence of State Schooling

Video Oliver Twist – film reflection 1 – 5%

Jan. 24 “In the beginning….” Origins of Education in Western Civilization

Core Reading: Promise of Schooling, pp. 3-23.

Articles H. Smaller, “Teachers and Schools in Early Ontario”

N. McDonald, “Egerton Ryerson and the School as an Agent of
Political Socialization.”

- article comparison 1 – 5%

Jan. 31 Building the Educational State

ABSTRACT DUE – 5% (only for students choosing the essay option)

Core Reading: G. Booth, M. A. thesis, Introduction, ch. 1: “A Wretched

Employment”, and ch. 2: “A Good Master”).

Video Tom Brown’s School Days – film reflection 2 – 5%

Feb. 7 “Casting the Die”: Education in Central Canada

Core Reading: Promise of Schooling, 24-43.

Tutorial G. Booth, “Managing the Muses: Musical Performance and

Modernity in the Public Schools of Late-Nineteenth Century
Toronto”, Historical Studies in Education, 25, no. 2 (Fall 2013),
1-20. NOTE: This article is available in electronic format on
the Blackboard course shell.
C. Clubine, “Motherhood and Schooling in Victorian Toronto.”

- article comparison 2 – 5%

Feb. 14 Women Who Taught – The Feminization of the Profession

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Core Reading Promise of Schooling, 44-68,.

Articles K. Dahli, “They Rule By Sympathy: The Feminization of

Pedagogy.”
S. Andrew, “Selling Education: The Problems of Convent
Schools in Acadian New Brunswick, 1856-1886.”

- article comparison 3 – 5%

Feb. 21 MID-TERM EXAM, ESSAY/REPORT DUE

Feb. 28 NO CLASSES - READING WEEK

Mar 7 Indigenous Education – Vision and Nightmare

Articles J. Barman, “Schooled for Inequality: The Education of British

Columbia Aboriginal Children.”
M. Batiste, “Enabling the Autumn Seed: Toward a Decolonized
Approach Toward Aboriginal Knowledge, Learning and
Education.”

- article comparison 4 – 5%

Video We Were Children (no film reflection)

Mar. 14 Standardization and Adaptation: Part 1 – Progressive Education

Core Reading G. Booth, “An Honourable Profession” (M. A. thesis, ch. 3 and
Conclusion).

Video Why Shoot the Teacher? - film reflection 3 – 5%

Mar. 21 Standardization and Adaptation: Part 2 - Race and Ethnicity

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Core Reading Promise of Schooling, 69-87.

Articles T. J. Stanley, “White Supremacy, Chinese Schooling and

School Segregation in Victoria: The Case of the Chinese
Students’ Strike, 1922-1923.”
Robert J. MacDonald, “Hutterite Education in Alberta: A Test
Case in Assimilation,” in Western Canada, Past and Present,
ed. A. W. Rasporich (McClelland and Stewart, 1975), 133-149.
NOTE: This article is available in electronic format on the
Blackboard course shell in Course Documents/Tutorial Articles.

- article comparison 5 – 5%

Mar. 28 Making Schools Work: Adjusting to a Modern Age

Core Reading Promise of Schooling, 104-122.

Article M. Gleason, “Disciplining Children, Disciplining Parents: The

Nature and Meaning of Advice to Canadian Parents, 1945-
1955.”

Video Blackboard Jungle – film reflection 4 – 5%

Apr. 4 Schools, Families, Communities

Video The Trotsky – film reflection 5 – 5%

Course review, study tips for the final exam.

April 12 FINAL EXAM