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FNST 030
First Nations Studies I

0 Credit

Description

First Nations Studies 030 is a Social Science course at the ABE Provincial level, equivalent to Grade 12 Social Studies. This course deals with various issues facing First Nations communities with a focus on First Nations in B.C.

Delivery Method

Delivery is self-paced, allowing you the flexibility to proceed through the course according to your own schedule. TRU-Open Learning has no admission requirements and you can register for this course at any time.

Prerequisites

ENGL 028 or English 11

Objectives

This course has two main objectives:

  1. To provide students with information to help them understand the various issues facing First Nations communities today, and to provide a framework for examining the numerous changes that have affected traditional First Nations lifestyles.
  2. To provide students with opportunities to develop Social Science skills at the Provincial level:
  • Citizenship--intelligent participation in social, economic, and political events. First Nations students of today will probably be directly involved in policy-making of the near future. By understanding how past policies affect their communities, they are better able to participate effectively. Non-aboriginal students are more likely to support First Nations efforts at change if they, too, understand the issues and their relationship to the larger issue of social justice.
  • Perspective--ability to evaluate events in the larger contexts of history, geography, politics, etc. This course shows how past ideologies have affected First Nations communities.
  • Critical thinking--this course encourages a balanced and systematic approach to forming opinions. Students will examine the assumptions and stereotypes implicit in many mainstream histories and social policies.
  • Value analysis--FNST 030 looks at how value systems and world views translate into actions. Students will have the opportunity to examine the particular strengths of First Nations communities, while examining their own values in the process.
  • Lifelong learning skills--will be encouraged by showing the relevance of history to present events and systems, and by exposing students to specific resources they can explore further.

Course Outline

These modules are your guide to working through the course. There are six modules. Each of them is devoted to a particular topic area as follows:

  1. First Nations Gifts to the World: This module begins with First Nations contributions to agriculture, medicine, architecture, and urban planning; then examines social and political structures, and contributions to the European Industrial Revolution.
  2. Contact and Conquest: surveys the European conquest of the Americas. The first part examines the Spanish conquest of Central and South America, and the impact of epidemic diseases. The second part presents two other examples of contact and conquest focusing mainly on an eyewitness account by an Ogalala Sioux man, Black Elk.
  3. Studying Traditional Cultures: discusses different ways of describing and thinking about culture, and introduces major anthropological concepts. The second part of this module applies these concepts to a case study of the Kwakwaka'wakw people of Vancouver Island.
  4. Looking at Other Traditional Cultures: focuses on aboriginal peoples of the Subarctic; the Cree people of northern Quebec, the Beaver people of northern BC, and the Tsaatan people of Mongolia.
  5. Aboriginal Rights and the Law: discusses how Canadian laws have affected the First Nations, looks at the history of aboriginal rights, and how the Indian Act has regulated the lives of Canada's First Nations.
  6. Enforced Assimilation: examines two ways the government tried to achieve assimilation: banning the potlatch, and required attendance at residential schools. Looks at the purpose of these policies, their effects on First Nations cultures, and First Nations resistance to them.

Maximum Completion

30 weeks maximum completion. Students may choose to complete a course in less than the allowed maximum time.

Required Text and Materials

  1. Brody, Hugh. Maps and Dreams. Douglas & McIntyre,
    Type: Textbook: ISBN: 0-88894-593-0
  1. York, Geoffrey. The Dispossessed. McArthur & Company,
    Type: Textbook: ISBN: 1-55278-061-9

The components of this course are as follows:

  • Textbooks
  • Course Manual
  • Modules 1-6
  • Assignment file
  • Video tapes
  • Audio tape of Black Elk Speaks

Additional Requirements

An audio cassette player and a VCR.

Open Learning Faculty Member Information

A course tutor is available to assist students, usually by phone and mail. The course package normally includes a welcome letter stating the tutor's name, address, phone number, and office hours.

Assessment

Your grade for assigned work will be made up as follows:

Assignments 60%
Participation 5%
Final exam 35%
Total 100%

General assignment description:

Questions, adding up to 100 marks, will be included in each unit. These are usually 70% short answer questions; 30% short essays. In Unit 2, however, the ratio will be 50% short answer questions, 50% research. News clippings or video clips will be collected throughout the duration of the course and then in Unit 6, this information will be analyzed in terms of the concepts presented in the course.

Individual centres may choose activities/assignments more suited to the needs of their particular communities.

You will be given a grade for the above assigned work and this grade will contribute 65% to your final grade for the course. The remaining 35% will come from your final exam which you will write at the end of your course work. You must pass the final examination in order to pass this course.

Exam: examination sessions are held every month. Your permitted exam sessions will be listed in your course welcome letter.



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