Page 122 - THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 to 12 | First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies

Grade 11, University Preparation
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9–12 | First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies
A2. Deconstructing
Throughout this course, students will:
Viewpoint
A2.1 determine how the messages relating to
First Nations, Métis, and Inuit cultures con- veyed in various contemporary and historical Indigenous text forms, and, as appropriate,
in non-Indigenous texts, might change if they were presented from a range of different per- spectives (e.g., the perspectives of contemporary federal politicians, Métis community leaders, First Nations women affected by gender discrimination in the Indian Act, children in residential school, women whose lives are depicted in the text, settlers, priests), and make appropriate inferences about how the viewpoint of the creator/author is shaped by factors related to historical period, gender, culture, sexual orientation, ability, and/or politics
Sample questions: “What viewpoint did the author want to express about the topic? Who benefits from the perspectives expressed in this text?” “How might this text have been different if First Nations, Métis, and Inuit women’s voices had been included or better represented?” “Why is it important to interpret text forms related
to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit cultures from various perspectives, using a range of analytical approaches?”
Contradictions
A2.2 identify contradictions in how First Nations, Métis, and Inuit cultures have been depicted
in various contemporary and historical Indigenous text forms, and non-Indigenous texts (e.g., “noble” and “philosophical” versus “uncivilized”“savages”, sovereign nations versus wards of the government, economically diverse versus impoverished, spiritually rich versus irreligious), and analyse the reasons for the divergence of views
Sample questions: “Do you think this editorial
response in a mainstream newspaper to an issue of importance to First Nations, Métis,
or Inuit communities is accurate, fair, and complete? Why, or why not? How might it contradict an authentic First Nations, Métis, or Inuit response to the issue? How do you explain these differences in perspective?” “What contradiction underlies the concept
of the ‘noble savage’ as depicted in some mid-twentieth-century movies?” “What are some factors that have helped change depictions of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals
in text forms in Canada over time?”
Positioning
A2.3 make inferences of increasing subtlety about attitudes towards First Nations, Métis, and Inuit content in various contemporary and historical text forms, providing explanations that draw on a range of appropriate evidence to support their opinions (e.g., relative amount and prominence of material; placement of First Nations, Métis, or Inuit content in relation to other content; integration of First Nations, Métis, or Inuit content into, and/or degree of relevance to, the main theme or argument of the text; reliance on primary or secondary sources of information)
Accessibility
A2.4 describe a range of contemporary and historical factors affecting public access to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit text forms, including cultural text forms (e.g., the role and reasoning of the courts in regulating First Nations, Métis, and Inuit self-expression in the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century; the number of people with knowledge of writing systems, such as the Inuktitut syllabic system, that are used in various First Nations, Métis, and Inuit text forms; the number of speakers of Indigenous languages used in various oral text forms; the role and reasoning of Elders, Métis Senators, knowledge keepers, and/or knowledge holders in protecting traditional and/or sacred knowledge)
Asymmetries
A2.5 describe a range of issues related to attempts to apply Western cultural criteria to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit text forms, including cultural text forms (e.g., issues arising from copyright law and notions of individual ownership of cultural products; the privileging of Western text forms, such as print, over other forms, such as oral expression; non-Indigenous appropriation of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit traditional knowledge)
Sample questions: “What do non-Indigenous writers and publishers need to consider in relation to truth, sensitivity, and respect when they collect and publish stories that draw on First Nations, Métis, and Inuit knowledge, oral stories, and cultures? In what specific ways can applying Western cultural criteria to artistic and cultural expression lead to the appropriation of Indigenous knowledge?”
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