Page 267 - THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 to 12 | First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies

LEGAL INQUIRY AND THE CONCEPTS OF LEGAL THINKING
Educators are encouraged to refer to the general discussion of the research and inquiry process that appears in the introduction to this document (see page 24) for necessary information relating to all First Nations, Métis, and Inuit studies courses. What follows is a brief discussion of the legal studies inquiry process, and the concepts of legal thinking, in the context of the present course. For further information on these topics, teachers may wish to consult The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Canadian and World Studies, 2015, p. 510.
In this course, students use the legal studies inquiry process to investigate issues, events, and developments related to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit governance in Canada; to gather, analyse, assess, and evaluate evidence from a wide variety of sources, including Indigenous knowledge sources; to make informed judgements and reach viable conclu- sions; and to communicate those judgements and conclusions effectively.
As in all courses that consider events, developments, and issues from a legal perspective, it is crucial that students not simply learn various facts but that they develop the ability to think and to process content in ways that are most appropriate to the material. To that end, this course focuses on developing students’ ability to apply the following concepts of legal thinking:
• legal significance
• continuity and change • interrelationships
• legal perspective
In the context of the present course, the concept of legal significance requires students to consider the impact of treaties, land claim agreements, legislation, court decisions, and legal/political structures on First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities. Students also apply this concept to help them analyse the importance of legal principles, case law, and social forces in the evolution of laws affecting Indigenous peoples in Canada. The concept of continuity and change is also relevant to investigations into the evolution of laws, as students determine how and why laws, legal structures, and legal issues relating to Indigenous governance have changed, as well as what issues remain unresolved and why. When students apply the concept of interrelationships, they consider how laws have affected and continue to affect Indigenous peoples in Canada and how Indigenous peoples have affected and continue to affect laws. In addition, they focus on interactions between First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities and colonial, federal, provincial, and territorial governments. Finally, the concept of legal perspective requires students to consider key legal principles, including those related to self-determination, sovereignty, and self-governance, land claims, Crown duties, recon- ciliation, and Aboriginal rights under the Constitution Act. Students are encouraged to consider the perspectives of different stakeholders – First Nations, Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities as well as federal, provincial, and territorial governments – on issues relating to Indigenous governance.
It is important to note that, although students use the concepts of legal thinking to guide and structure the inquiry process in this course, the topics they investigate are not only legal but also political, economic, social, and cultural. Any study of First Nations, Métis,
COURSE INTRODUCTION: NDG4M
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