Creating Citizens: History and Identity in Alberta's Schools, 1905 to1980

How does one learn to be a good citizen? A good Canadian?Creating Citizens looks at the role schools have played in creating and sustaining a sense of Canadian identity for generations of Alberta students.

History and social studies classes, more than others, are designed to prepare young students for meaningful citizenship and address issues of identity by interpreting the country’s and the region’s past. By examining history and social studies curricula and textbooks used in Alberta schools from 1905 to 1980, von Heyking shows how these materials helped shape the ways in which Albertans have identified themselves and their place in the world around them.

The complex process of curriculum development is also explored; by clarifying how the framework of decision-making regarding school content was created, von Heyking provides valuable insights into current debates about the purpose and content of public education.

By tracing the evolution of this curriculum over the course of seventy-five years, Creating Citizens gives the reader a unique opportunity to analyze the images of the nation and the region as they were taught to generations of Alberta schoolchildren.

About the Author

Amy J. von Heyking is an Associate Professor in the Department of Education at the University of Lethbridge. She has published journal articles on the history of school curriculum and has authored a number of history and social studies teaching resources.

Table of Contents

 

Acknowledgements

Introductions

Schooling for "Good Character", 1905 to 1920

An Education for "Group Living", 1920 to 1935

Nurturing Social Activists: The First Progressive Revision, 1935 to 1945

An Education for Utility: Defending Democracy in the Cold War Era, 1945 to 1970

Citizenship as Self-Actualization: Neoprogressivism in the 1970s

Conclusion

Appendix 1: Curriculum Overview

Appendix 2: Notes on Sources

Notes

Bibliography

Index