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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Indigenous Canada by University of Alberta

4.8
stars
21,725 ratings

About the Course

Indigenous Canada is a 12-lesson Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) from the Faculty of Native Studies that explores the different histories and contemporary perspectives of Indigenous peoples living in Canada. From an Indigenous perspective, this course explores complex experiences Indigenous peoples face today from a historical and critical perspective highlighting national and local Indigenous-settler relations. Topics for the 12 lessons include the fur trade and other exchange relationships, land claims and environmental impacts, legal systems and rights, political conflicts and alliances, Indigenous political activism, and contemporary Indigenous life, art and its expressions....

Top reviews

MD

Jul 2, 2021

This course was very interesting and very informative. Not only did it help correct stereotypes or prejudices, it showed a wide range of subjects pertaining to global and specific Indigenous cultures.

LJ

May 5, 2022

I really enjoyed this course. I liked that it was taught by indigenous peoples from their perspective. I feel much more confident in my knowledge regarding indigenous issues and traditions. Thank you!

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476 - 500 of 7,644 Reviews for Indigenous Canada

By Judy B

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Dec 25, 2020

Now that I've completed the course, I'm going to miss the sessions! I learned much, and re-learned things I used to know and will return to in my work. I am particularly interested in re-matiration of the narratives of Indigenous life, both in the past, and also in today's fluid kaleidoscope of a world. I thought the inclusion of Leah's colourful and storyful artwork was inspiring and did in fact both ground the messaging and free the thought process...our speakers had a lot of acreage to cover, and did a grand job of communicating breadth and depth, and they are to be commended for their accomplishment here.

Well done ALL!

By Jenelle H

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Sep 25, 2020

This was an eye opening course for me. Living in Treaty 6 territory my entire life, I knew of the hardship (that seems like an understated word) that was imposed on the First Peoples in Canada but I didn't understand how it effected the First Peoples. I almost feel ashamed to call myself Canadian. What the settlers did was nothing short of terror and unjust. I will call myself a Canadian that lives in Treaty 6 territory. Thank you for allowing me to be apart of this. I will seek to understand and change my language to support all First People in Canada. Thank you, your culture and way of life is nothing short of beautiful.

By Jennifer Y

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Jul 31, 2022

Excellent introduction to Indigenous history, culture, life, art, music and community knowledge. I am so grateful to have been given access to this course material through Coursera and, as an alumni of the University of Alberta, I am proud to be associated with this work. Learning about how Indigenous societies managed illegal behavior has forever changed my thinking about the current challenges of our legal system; seperating people from society without an expectation of addressing the loss and hurt between families seems short-sighted to me now. I am excited to learn more from the Faculty of Native Studies, thank you!

By Alain V

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Nov 5, 2021

Bonjour,

J'ai vraiment apprécié ce cours et aussi la motivation des professeurs , Tracy, Alannah et Isaac, qui étaient tous les trois très intéressants à écouter. Evidemment , selon leurs conseils, j'ai continué la recherche sur l'histoire des Nations du Canada. Il était temps que je suive ce cours et je le recommande à tous les Canadiens.

D'autre part , je serais intéressé à améliorer la partie française de ce cours pour mieux identifier les paragraphes et les notes pour faciliter le suivi.

Merci beaucoup à Tracy, Alannah et Isaac

Alain Villeneuve, Ste Pétronille (Québec), Ile d'Orléans, refuge des Wandats en 1651

By Bea B

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Sep 14, 2020

I am so grateful that this course exists, as we did not get an understanding of indigenous history at all when I was attending school. It was all about the explorers and their conquests. It saddens me tremendously that this entire group of people had their evolution arrested, and there will never be any way of knowing how things would have been now, if their beautiful and noble trajectory had not been so forcefully interrupted and re-positioned.

Thank you for distilling this story into a course, and I do hope that many Canadians will take advantage of the course's availability, to help fill in the gaps a little.

Peace

By Christa C

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Dec 20, 2020

Additional facts and truth reshape and strengthen our history our minds and Canadian culture and diversity. This course has the potential to base a grade school and high school segment to awareness and Canadian history. My grade 4 teacher 1969 to his credit covered an impressive amount of information that is also in this course. His teachings were respectful factual and remembered and I now realize a man before his time teaching diversity. This course brought back those cherished teachings and so much more awareness into Indigenous Canada . Awareness can be a daily goal no matter how big or how small it is learning

By Danielle M

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Oct 27, 2020

This course was extremely informative and well done. All of my secondary and post-secondary education as a Canadian skimmed the surface of the founding of Canada and of course it was all from the settler perspective. I so appreciate how well laid out the course was and I find myself correcting people now as issues come up and redirecting them to proper information sources. My daughter is in her last year of college to become a Child and Youth worker and just completed the certificate version of this course on my advice as well. She found it very enlightening and is going on to complete San'yas studies too. Thank you

By Tanya F

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Sep 19, 2021

Well developed and present course. Great balance between important reminders and new learning. I especially appreciated that the presenters/instructors were of First Nations descent. I'd highly recommend to anybody want a solid starting point and foundation to help them better understand the basics Canadian Indigenous life pre-colonization to current day. Once you understand what really happened in history, you'll appreciate why things are not right today; and, if you have a heart you'll not only empathize and sympathize with our Indigenous population, but you'll want to contribute towards truth and reconciliation.

By Deb C

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Dec 12, 2020

I thoroughly enjoyed the course. It was well presented and the format was easy to follow. I majored in Native Studies and got my degree from Trent University ,Peterborough Ontario in 1978. I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to take the course and increase my knowledge . It was disappointing to learn that the same issues that were of great concern in the 1970's are still being discussed today with the Federal Government. Hopefully with courses like this the general public will become more informed and support for Aboriginal causes will increase. Thank you for making this course available for anyone to take.

By Paula M C

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May 30, 2019

I thoroughly enjoyed this course, and the instructors! It has provided me with a much broader understanding of Canada before and since colonization, and of the painful and poignant struggles that the Indigenous peoples of this land have endured at the "divide and conquer" whims of colonial and European powers. I am most impressed with the resilience and the power of community action of First Nations, Métis and Inuit people in Canada to effect positive change for all. I will highly recommend this course to my colleagues here at Western U. It was my first MOOC and I'm happy it was with you, Professor Bear! Miigwetch!!

By Melvin R W

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Dec 28, 2018

This well constructed and designed course offers an excellent introduction to native peoples from a variety of perspectives....anthropological, geographic, historical, cultural, philosophical, political, spiritual, artistic. The teachings are clear and the mixed used of lecture, interview, image and quiz carries one of an engaging journey which can be taken an one's own pace and in one's own time. I'm an American MDiv in Interfaith Spirituality and Comparative Religion and found this a valuable addition to my repertoire of knowledge. Thank you to the scholars at the University of Alberta who developed this course.

By Jon P

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Mar 23, 2022

This course is compreshensive as can be touching on the historical and modern culture of Aboriginals and their mistreatment. I appreciate they try to touch on all subjects within the time limit of this course and it will never be enough because there is so much more to learn and understand. The only thing I would like see changed would be to add more interviews of people living today and their challenges. While it is discussed, seeing those plights will hopefully give people a new understanding that continue to exist today. I recommend checking out some of the vast documentaries that can help demonstrate this.

By Liam W

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Jan 9, 2021

I have learned a considerable amount from this course. Most importantly, I became aware of how different my view of community is from the various forms of Indigenous community covered in the content. I answered many of the questions incorrectly in the multiple choice quizzes because I do not have a strong sense community as it is expressed in this course. Reviewing the notes and retaking the quizzes helped improve my understanding. I would need to live a different life to be able to know these answers right away. However, knowing the difference and understanding my lack of comprehension has improved my character.

By Maureen P

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Aug 14, 2021

This course was well structured and gave me an overview of Indigenous history in Canada. It has also given me a hunger to explore so much more of that history, such as treaties and the progress being made in areas such as land use and conservation, and of course the burgeoning Aboriginal arts communities. I am heartened that the First Peoples of Canada are gaining recognition and being celebrated for their contributions to Canada's culture. We have so much to learn from those who have inhabited this country for thousands of years. Thank you for creating this course, which has inspired me to explore so much more.

By Brooklyn D

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Jan 7, 2022

Unbelievable, yet the most believable teaching of history that I have taken. Where I thought my schooling lacked, I was astonished to learn the scope of what was missed, avoided, and continues to exist in today's teachings of Indigenous culture. This course should not be optional for anyone over the age 25. It has opened, my already open, eyes to a world so much greater than my own. All I can say is taking this course is a MUST DO. It is intriguing, heart breaking, and insightful. Thank you to the U of A, and all involved for the creation and delivery of this program. I will echo it's praises for years to come.

By Renee C

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Apr 9, 2021

Thank you, thank you, thank you for creating and offering this essential course! I learned so much and enjoyed doing so throughout these 12 weeks. I especially appreciated the course material on the Fur Trade and the Treaties. So glad Dan Levy recommended this course, as I would never have known about it otherwise! Can't recommend this course enough -- every Canadian should take this. I also liked how there were videos of the material which made it more engaging for me. Thank you again, from an Acadian living as a guest on the traditional and unceded territory of the Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) and Mi'kmaq peoples.

By kathy g

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Apr 23, 2023

AS a social worker, working with Indigenous peoples, I feel that everyone in Canada should take this course. In school, the portrayal of Indigenous peoples was not even close to the truth. Indigenous peoples were viewed as simple, unorganized, and violent. This course presents the truth of Indigenous histories across Canada and other parts of the globe. This course assists with understanding why the Indigenous families we work with, are having the issues they have. GREAT COURSE!!! I have spoken to government heads of child welfare and encouraged them to have their staff all take this course. Thank you for this

By Cheryl D

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Dec 2, 2020

I found this course to be a very informative overview of the subject. Excellent instructors made the subjects accessible and easy to understand. Being non-Indigenous and in my 50s, all of my schooling took place in a white-washed environment - I learned nothing about Indigenous people or the terrible treatment meted out to them by Canada. This course has given me a firm foundation to build on as I relearn the history of this land, and more importantly the people who have been here from time immemorial. The course notes are an excellent resource that I will refer to often in the course of my continued learning.

By Joanne D

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Nov 17, 2020

Everyone should take this course. I had many misguided beliefs in regards to Indigenous people. The modules on beads and Native women marrying outside the tribe were especially revealing to me. In my childhood I had friends that had Native mothers and European fathers and I was aghast at the fact that Native mothers marrying outside the tribe were no longer members of the tribe, yet a Native man marrying outside the tribe remained a member. I could not understand how the tribe could be so cruel and hypocritical. I now know that it was the Indian Act and not the tribe that made such a devastating ruling.

By Darlene F

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Nov 8, 2020

This course was very informative on the History of the indigenous and Canada. I have asked my son to take the course as his grandparents are Metis, but my son never learned about his grandparents culture. As his father and I are divorced and his father does not have a relationship with his son, I want my son to learn more about his heritage,

So I thank you for making this course available to all, as Its very important for Canadians to learn about their history.

I have also introduced the book Indian Horse to my book club, and look forwarded to talking about it tomorrow night.

Thank you again for this course.

By Ashley A

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Apr 6, 2021

Being native myself I've grown up with a caucasian lifestyle not knowing a lot about who my people were or what they have dealt with in-depth (high school doesn't teach even close to this), this course was informative and inspiring for me to go and research more and really get to know who my people are and stand up with them against injustice. I've noticed the effects In my life I've never noticed before that are affected by the earlier settlers and it makes me sad. This course was a real eye-opener and I'm very glad I took it. Great job to the UofA for putting this on and those who helped bring it to life.

By Debra R

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Dec 19, 2020

I have lived in Canada in small communities my whole life. I have always been closely connected to the aboriginal community. I truly believed and this course has brought me a whole new understanding of aboriginal experience. Thank you. I am lucky to live on the Sunshine Coast BC where our school system is very keen on teaching Aboriginal education to all students. I have often felt a sense of relief that my children are being educated honestly on topics that are so important, and that the public school system is recognizing the importance of Indigenous education. Thank you again for offering this course.

By Theresa P

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Oct 24, 2020

This course was very instrumental to me in the aspect of assisting me gather increasing knowledge of the ongoing struggles of the Indigenous people. This should've been taught in the school curriculum when I was young, and should be taught today in schools everywhere, so that we all have a better understanding of how colonialism has deeply affected so many generations in such an abusive manner. We have so much to learn and appreciate from the Indigenous people and their ancestors when it comes to the respect of land, water, animals and most importantly each other.

Thank you for such an imformative course!!

By Donald J W

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Sep 29, 2020

As a person from down south of you in the US, I want you to know I learned a lot that I did not know about the start of Canada and how Indigenous people helped shape your landscape and culture there. Very informative and a special thanks to Tracy Bear for explaining each module there was in user friendly terms. I would recommend this to everyone!! And a VERY big thank you to Mr. Dan Levy from whom we learned about this course from because he was planning to start and invited us fans of him and Schitt's Creek along for the ride to discuss and learn. Wonderful. Whole new look at Canada for me!! Thank you all!

By Ann C

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Mar 17, 2023

This was one of the most insightful , informative and meaningful courses I have ever taken. It was exceptionally well taught with a variety of methods to make it feel interactive and truly bring us right into the subject matter. It has truly changed my thinking on history. The lecturers were outstanding and inspirational. They were poised and clear. They spoke with such grace on such difficult subjects. Beyond impressive. I'm recommending the course to many others. Absolutely great job to all involved in bringing this to us. Everyone in Canada and beyond should take this course. Much gratitude, Ann