G10 HUMANITIES CURRICULUM ADDS NEW THREADS

G10 HUMANITIES

CURRICULUM ADDS NEW THREADS

In 2015, Alexandra McIntyre, Upper School Humanities Teacher, was selected by the BC Ministry of Education to review the humanities curriculum. Her application highlighted not only her recently acquired Master of Education, but also her independent school perspective. “The team recognised the blind spots in BC’s outdated humanities curriculum and set about reimagining it for the 21st century. Grade 10 was a natural spot for restructuring as it focuses on both critical and historical thinking,” explains Alexandra.

We live in an ever-changing world, yet the injustices of the past continue to resonate today. Racism, whether overt or systemic, has fuelled much of this injustice and it is essential that students are equipped to be informed upstanders and advocates. The deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, as well as violence towards people of Asian descent, sparked ongoing conversations for Mulgrave students this year as they learned about history, economics, and geography. Our faculty are passionate about discussing current events and build these important elements into their teaching framework.

In 2017, Alexandra finalised the new G10 curriculum with the BC Ministry of Education threading in important issues and events including LGBTQ+, gender equality, the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and the civil rights movements in Canada and the United States; furthermore, there is a renewed emphasis on environmental activism, and First Peoples identities and governance. “The units are designed to be open and include broad issues that incorporate diversity, equity, inclusion, social justice, and decolonisation. A challenge in humanities is ensuring graduates are well-versed in a wide range of topics and able to have varied conversations with individuals around the globe,” mentions Drew Vodrey, Humanities teacher.

As an IB school, Mulgrave embraces the philosophy and mission of the IB curriculum, which focusses on developing inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. We work on integrating current events into the curriculum so students have a global perspective while understanding the varied opinions and perspectives of others. As true global citizens, our graduates have social responsibilities which are critical in our ever-changing world.

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP: NEW GRADE 10 CURRICULUM

In the coming academic year, we are excited to introduce a new humanities course for all of our Grade 10 students. The main objective is to enable students to become familiar with, and reason about, key social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion issues in a 20th and 21st century framework.

During the study of this course, our G10 students will explore a range of social science methodologies; additionally, they will develop higher level thinking and problem solving skills that will serve them well when they move on to more specialised social science subjects. The course is called Global Citizenship 10, and it sets out to equip students to become responsible, active citizens within the diverse communities to which they belong. By further developing their critical thinking skills and understanding of complex societal issues across the globe, students will learn how to better communicate about significant developments, events, and issues that impact them directly and indirectly. Each unit will support the skill development needed for individuals to become active and informed citizens who participate purposefully in civic affairs and can influence public decision making.

The Grade 10 Global Citizenship course is organised into the following six units: • Social Justice: Engages with understanding one’s identity in relation to others and supports students’ analysis of social injustice that has occurred within

Canadian society. • Human Rights: Explores the notion of equity and violations related to racial rights, LGBTQ+ rights,

Indigenous rights, and workers’ rights. • Peace and Conflict: Focusses on understanding the complexities of colonial legacy and genocide as well as the mechanisms to promote peace and inclusion globally. • Sustainability and Poverty in a Globalised World:

Focusses on the role that poverty and environmental degradation play in diversity, equity, and inclusion and analyses the policies and political institutions needed to create meaningful change in our societies. • Engaged Citizen Project: a Diversity, Equity, and

Inclusion investigation: Applies the theories and concepts learned throughout the course through a critically evaluative position on the challenges and solutions associated with diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Our humanities courses provide students with opportunities to explore a variety of perspectives in order to solidify their own point of view. By exploring these complex and inter-related topics, students will also engage in an in-depth reflection on the factors that inform their own identities, as individuals and as citizens, in addition to refining their understanding of local and global citizenship as active, responsible, sustainable, and aware.