Jenna Wiebe (Blog 4)

Blog 4

            It has been quite interesting learning about the roots of education and how the system came to be in Canada.  I think that as future educators, it is important to understand why our system is the way that it is. 

I was not aware that attendance in kindergarten was not mandatory in most provinces.  I feel that kindergarten is an important step in preparing children for their elementary school careers.  Kindergarten can provide the first experience of schooling, and I feel that it would be easier for any child to have some experience of school rather than just be thrown right into a full day of school at the start of grade 1.  However, “in some provinces, notable Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador, however, attendance in pre-elementary is mandatory” (page 90).  Looking back at my own experience, I am thankful that I had the opportunity to attend kindergarten.  Not only did it allow me a chance to make friends, but it helped me get used to the school that I would be attending for the next number of years, and accustomed to being away from home.  I think that it is important to include a pre-grade 1 experience for children, as it would be extremely difficult to simply enter grade 1 without having any schooling experience or any experience being away from home for an entire day. 

            Another point that stood out to me while reading this chapter was that, “Quebec has a different structural arrangement of its elementary and secondary programs than the rest of the country”, as instead of grades, schooling is divided into cycles (page 91).   I was completely unaware that Quebec had a completely different set up throughout their education system.  I think it would be interesting to learn more about how this system works, and why Quebec uses this system.  Each cycle is the equivalent of two grades—so I wonder if Quebec focuses on multi-age classrooms?  This type of learning has multiple benefits and I would be interested to see for myself what the Quebec schooling system looks like and how it functions.

            This chapter introduced an interesting term:  unschooling.  I had never before heard of this and was quite interested to find out that “unschooling is home-based education without curriculum, schedules, tests, or grades.  The approach is entirely child-led” (page 107).   I think that the idea of having child-led education is important and valuable, but I wonder if children miss out on different social aspects of a public school environment.  I feel that there could be pros and cons to unschooling, and it would be interesting to interview parents and children who have gone through this process. 

Discussion Question:  Attendance in kindergarten is not mandatory in most provinces.  What are the benefits of attending kindergarten?  Why might parents be hesitant to send their children to kindergarten?