Ke Alahou, Volume I, Number 3, 1 Ianuali 1980 — UBCIC NEWS School Books and the Indian Image [ARTICLE]

UBCIC NEWS

School Books and the Indian Image

(Mai Ka ÜBCIC News)

There has been a growing outcry from Indians throughout North America that our children are subjected to textbooks showing Indians in eonsistently unfavourable ways, at best often eondescending and at worst, ignoring the contribution of Indians to the general society as we know it today. There may be some good news in this area. The provincial Department of Education has. begun a process whieh will see changes made to the Social Studies eumeuium at the secondary (high school) level. Last December, a meeting was held at the Ministry of Education offices in Richmond. A dozen Indian people met to look at the possibility of the public being given the opportunity to help revise (change) the Sogial - Studies Program from Grades 7 to 11. However, the Indian involvement was due to the alertness of a DIA employee who spotted a newspaper ad announcing the revision p!ans. Indian people were not notified by the Indian Education branch or the Ministry of Education. There are three stages to the revision process whieh will be completed in the fall of 1980. The qverall. gpals of the Spcial Studies £urriculum at the secondary school level are being revised in January. By June, it will be instituted at eaeh „grade level, from Grades 7to 11. Finally, all of the materials {tetbooks, manuals, etc.) will be revised by the fall of 1980. The lndians will attempt to make changes to the Social Studies curriculum in order to correct

the historical image of the Indian, emphasize the importance of Indian contributions (historically and currently), and indentify the Indian as a full and viable member of Canadian society. Many of ihe Indians who attended the meeting last December felt that the curriculum shouldbe developed by loeal people for loeal students. This type of curriculum is called supplementary and is not included in the revision process. However, the Ministry of Education encourages changes to the loeal supplementary curriculum. The curriculum currently being revised is called the core curriculum whieh pupAs throughout the province are required to study; So-far. two reaction panels looked at the new draft Social, Studies curri,culum and recommended changes: one in Prince George and one in Richmond. The }anuary 17th meeting of the reaction panel [made up of special interest groups, suchas the Indian people; professors; teachers; and students) in Richmond, was attended by three Indian people who participated in the panel, and made several changes. This Indian group will meet again on either February sth or 6th to discuss the next stage in the revision process: instituting the changes in eaeh grade level. from 7 to 11. Millie Poplar, from the Education Portfolio of the ÜBCIC has been actively involved in this , process since last December. and says that Indian people have been represented and received at the reaction panel meetings.o