History of Education in Canada

In Canada, education has had a complicated and diverse history that has stemmed from the colonization of North Amercia. French, English, First Nations, and religious traditions have all influenced the way in which modern education has amalgamated today. Some areas of Canada retain their historical roots more than others. Acadian and French language education is still prevalent in their regions in Eastern Canada because of the fluctuation of French establishment in the 1600-1700's. British influence was prevalent in most of Central and Western Canada through settlement of the Hudson's Bay Company. Additionally, influence increased with British dominance over the French. Slowly, catholic religious teachings of the French diminished with more English protestant education.
As each region developed their own education system based on the colonial ethnic background, First Nations people were either forgotten or assimilated. Through the BNA Act of 1867, the educational responsibilities of First Nations children became a federal responsibility; meanwhile, the educational responsibility of the remaining population fell under the provincial government. Since education developed regionally, I believe it only made sense for it to become a provincial responsibility so that the demands of the local diverse populations could become met. In Manitoba it was declared that if ten or more students at a school required language accommodation, the school would have to reciprocate, or an alternative school would be opened. This seems to be a great rule and very accepting of cultural diversity. Unfortunately, for First Nations their treatment through the federal government meant harsh assimilation, loss of culture, religion, and sometimes abuse. The switch to structuralist British religious schooling was rough because it differed greatly from their traditional moral based, survival skill education trough oral history. The way that education developed definitely did not benefit all parties involved, but it is evident that many origins of  educational roots are still present through language, values, structure, and curriculum.
Lastly, since the development of modern day education, new opinions of how to best educate our children are still debated. Home schooling, I believe has its benefits; however, it can be damaging socially and depending on the teaching, can be detrimental to their education. Distance education and virtual schools are becoming more popular, as it is convenient. However, I firmly believe that learning best occurs in a safe environment where the student is familiar with the teacher.
Education in Manitoba and throughout Canada is rapidly changing, as the demands are constantly changing. More EAL instruction, reading recovery programs, and special needs assistance are needed to help our schools run more effectively. In order to have a clear vision of where to go with education it is important to know where it originated. Therefore, the same mistakes that have occured in the past should not be made again.