Socials 11

Canada in the post-WWII era (Text book, pp. 283-341)

2012-01-25T11:31:00.000-08:00

Thur, Feb 2

Political and social change in Canada after World War II: Overview Notes

Wed, Feb 8

Study Groups:

1. Discrimination (Africville, Inuit, Women's Rights)

2. French Canada

3. Diefenbaker/ Lester Pearson

4. Regional Disparity

5. Avro Arrow

6. Canada and the Cold War

Fri, Feb 10

Study Groups

Tue, Feb 14

Group Presentation and Panel Discussions

Thur, Feb 16

Group Presentations and Panel Discussion

Tue, Feb 21

In-class essay

Canada between 1968 and 2000 (Text book, pp. 342-410)

Thur, Feb 23

The Trudeau Era and Canada as an emerging nation in the World: Overview Notes

Mon, Feb 27

Study Groups:

1. Canada and the Third World

2. Trudeau/ Mulroney/ Chretien

3. National Energy Program

4. Canada-U.S. Relations

5. Patriation of the Constitution/ Meech Lake

6. Aboriginal People

7. Defining Canada

Wed, Feb 29 (Assemblies)

Study Groups

Fri, Mar 2

Group Presentation and Panel Discussion

Tue, Mar 6 (Term ends)

Group Presentation and Panel Discussion

Thur, Mar 8

In-class Essay

Effect of WW II on Canada

1. Population Changes: Natural Increase (Baby Boomers), Migration, Refugees, Displaced Persons (DPs): influx into western Canada and major Canadian cities. Result: Suburbia. Effect: Increasingly multicultural society. Two-car families.

2. Counter-culture: Holocaust, Human Rights: Young people blame older generation for war.

3. Continued segregation of minorities (Blacks, Asians, Aboriginals). Emergence of the hyphenated Canadian. Inuits as "human flagpoles". Women continue to be treated as second-class citizens when returning war vets wanted their jobs back. Result: increased feminism and Royal Commission on the Status of Women.

4. French Canadians: "La survivance"

5. Regional disparities. the west as Ontario's hinterland

Key Issues:

How to deal with the needs of new Canadians.

How to guarantee equal participation and acceptance of all Canadians

How to keep Canada united and deal with regional alienation

6. Canada-U.S. relations. Canada's population in relation to that of the US continues at a ratio of 1:10 (implication: relative weakness in economic terms). Economic ties that started with Branch Plants in the 1920s continue: St. Lawrence Seaway, Auto Pact, Acid Rain remained a concern until Mulroney and George Bush could agree on a solution.

7. As Canadian and American economies became more intertwined,Americans continued to take Canada for granted: to strengthen Canadian autonomy and sovereignty, Trudeau initiated the Foreign Investment Review Agency (FIRA) which was dismantled by Mulroney and replaced with a Free Trade Agreement.

Key Issues:

How to guarantee a growing economy based on resource trade when neighboring countries produce higher value manufactured goods that Canadians must buy?

How to avoid the power of brokers in big centers to control the price of resources and produce less income for Canadians.

To what extent must a Canadian government protect the national economy and at the same time open Canada up for business?

8. WW II changed the global alliance system and polarized the world. Result: Cold War and arms race for global military domination.

9. Canada at the crossroads, vulnerable, chooses the middle way and becomes a middle power.

10. New organizations emerge with the purpose of establishing a mechanism to resolve conflict and work toward world peace. Canada takes a lead role as peace keeper.

11. Population growth in developing countries escalates while the income gap between rich and poor countries widens. Canada takes a leading role in developmental aid. (North South dialogue, CIDA)

Key Issues:

How to prevent global annihilation.

How to prevent future mass migrations.

How to use international institutions to create peace and prosperity.

Assignments

1. You will research the theme of your study group as a team and discuss key issues related to your theme. Do this based on any facts you can pull out from your text and other resources. Conduct a panel discussion of some of the issues before the class.

2. Individually, write a response how the issue was dealt with in Canada at the time, in other words, what led to the problem, what solutions were found, how successful were these solutions?

3. Choose three different images from pp. 264-406 and write an essay of 1000 to 1500 words, typed, double-spaced in which you discuss the significance of these images as representative of their time. Try to connect the images from different categories so that you can develop a theme.

Battle of Hong Kong Questions

2012-01-08T21:43:00.000-08:00

1. When did the Canadians leave from where to go o Hong Kong?

2. Describe the first impressions upon arrival.

3. What was the Canadian and British view on the Japanese threat, especially the "Gin Drinkers Line?"

4. Describe the events that begin December 8, 1941 until surrender. Use a time line format.

5. What happened at Repulse Bay?

6. Describe the events at St. Stephens Hospital.

7. What happened to the POWs?

8. How would you assess the Canadian mission to Hong Kong?

WW II Project Criteria

2012-01-05T09:59:00.001-08:00

I. General Questions as overview: Criteria for assessment

1. Why did Canada go to war and what were the circumstances for Canada to join with the allies? 10 marks

Possible answers would include the following ideas:

Canada felt a need to stop Nazi aggression on neighboring countries and worried about totalitarian government in Europe

Canada saw her contribution to war as another method to bolster her international standing

Canada could use the war to expand Canadian resource development and create employment at home

Canada could use her independent declaration of war to show her political autonomy from Great Britain.

2. Where did Canadians fight and what was the outcome of the various battles? 20 marks

Possible answers:

Canadians fought in western Europe (Dieppe); Normandy (D-Day), liberation of the Netherlands

Ortona

Hong Kong

Battle of the Atlantic

3. How did Canadians at home support or oppose the war effort? 20 marks

Possible answers:

Volunteers/ Conscription (cautious approach toward conscription)

Protection of merchant marine

Commitment to BCATP

Women in factories and in the army

Aboriginal soldiers

II. Detailed questions for research:

Possible Answers:

1. Detailed Battle description with visual 20 marks

Various perspectives 10 marks

2. Discussion of an issue and diverse points of view on the issue 20 marks

3. Biography of a major contributor 10 marks

III. Presentation format

Originality 5 marks

Design 5 marks

Clarity 5 marks

Effectiveness 5 marks

IV. Assessment

Realistic 5 marks

Allows a range 5 marks

Total: 140 marks

January Schedule

2011-12-21T21:47:00.000-08:00

Day 1

Tuesday, January 3
World War II. Dieppe.

Thursday, January 5
World War II. Battle of the Atlantic.

Monday, January 9
World War II.Battle of Hong Kong. Project Work

Wednesday, January 11
World War II. Ortona. Project Work

Friday, January 13
World War II. The War at Home. Project Work

Tuesday, January 17
World War II. D.Day. Project Work

Thursday, January 19
Project Work

Monday, January 23
World War Project Presentations due.

Wednesday, January 25 [2143]
World War Project Presentations. Review for Term Exam

Friday, January 27
Review for Term Exam.

Tuesday, January 31
Term Exam. This will be a series of multiple choice questions focusing on World War I, the Inter-war period and World War II. It will also include an essay to be written in class.

Revised Schedule

2011-11-26T15:56:00.001-08:00

Nov 29:
CCF, Social Credit, Construction Party
HO Questions due

Dec 1:
Great Depression Poster Due with presentations.

Dec 5:
1920s/ 30s Review Test

Dec 7:
WWII Intro.
Discussion of WWII Project

Dec 9:
Selected war footage and discussion. Class time for project

Dec 13:
Selected war footage and discussion. Class time for project

Dec 15:
Selected war footage and discussion. Class time for project.

WORLD WAR II PROJECT DUE JANUARY 5, 2012.

Test Questions for Dec 5, 2011

2011-11-23T08:33:00.001-08:00

SS 11 Review Test Canada in the 1920s and 1930s

1. Why was it difficult for Canadian soldiers to readjust when they returned to Canada from the war?

2. Which ideology played an important role in labour unrest in the 1920s in western Canada in particular? What would have been a reason for this?

3. What was the goal of OBU?

4. Describe the events that led to the Winnipeg Strike and describe the outcome.

5. Mainstream political parties in Canada received most of their support from citizens in Ontario and Quebec. As a result, their interest in issues affecting western provinces was not as strong. What would be the result, especially once the Great Depression hit Canada?

6. What were the main irritants for western farmers?

7. Why did the Conservative opposition call for censure in 1926?

8. Even though the Statute of Westminster gave Canada full powers in becoming a country and having obtained its independence from Great Britain, Canadians chose to remain in the Empire. Explain.

9. The Big Three is a reference to what?

10. The Group of Seven can be seen as an expression of growing Canadian nationalism. Explain.

11. What was the purpose of introducing government-run liquor stores?

12. Describe how women made a mark in Canadian politics in the 1920s.

13. How did new inventions spawn job creation both in the USA and in Canada?

14. Explain how Canada's aboriginal people fared in the new prosperity?

15. Describe how Canadians tried to protect themselves from immigrant competition.

16. In the late 1920s, many people who didn't have the means tried to get rich quickly. Explain how banks encouraged this?

17. What happened as a result when loans became due?

18. What was the effect of protective policies on the world economy?

19. Canada's industry relied on resources. Why was this not in Canada's favour economically?

20. Explain these terms: pogey, riding the rods, hobo jungle, dust bowl

21. How did the Farm Rehabilitation Administration Act help farmers?

22. What was the "five-cent speech" and what was the effect?

23. What issues did the "twenty cent a day" payment for relief workers lead to?

24. What was the On-To-Ottawa trek?

25. Choose one solution to the Great Depression and discuss it in detail, focusing on its effects.

Review Link

2011-11-07T13:43:00.001-08:00

Review Link for each Counterpoint Chapter

November 2011 Assignments

2011-10-30T19:57:00.000-07:00

This November, we'll focus on a number of ideas: Growth of Canadian Autonomy, Great Depression, but also internal division in Canada following the end of World War I and labour unrest, not just based on the Winnipeg Strike but also dissent in western Canada and the Maritimes.

What is Canada at the turn of the century? Is it Ontario and Quebec, two ethnically diverse "nations" within one nation with an extension, or an appendix in the east, the Maritimes, and an appendix in the west, western Canada? In a way, this is the heartland theory: Canada's central area, Ontario and Quebec, is based on the hinterland, the supply area that provides resources that are manufactured in the heartland and then shipped out to the world, mainly Europe.

It is still largely based on the principles of the National Policy, high tariffs to keep cheaper U.S. imports out and protect central Canada's industry. The consequences for the hinterland are dire. Poor rail transport to the Maritimes, high freight costs to western Canada and not a chance of free trade or relief on import taxes. Result: unrest and dissension.

This unit also looks at American attempts to bypass Canada's National Policy practices by establishing branch plants in Canada. What are the pros and cons of such endeavours for Canada in particular?

Finally, World War I also brought the first sense of prohibition. Alcohol as the demon. White Canadian soldiers would go to Europe to get drunk, something a WASP mother was unable to permit if at all possible and thus contribute to the temperance movement that would ultimately lead to prohibition. Grain for bread for the hungry soldiers was more important than grain for booze. And then there was the death toll from the casualty count. Young white soldiers had died in large numbers, necessitating the prohibition of alcohol, tobacco and initiating baby showers. Eugenics is also interesting here as it focuses on Canada.

These are some of the highlights for this month.

Schedule:

Nov 1: WWI Review Test. Inter-war Overview

Nov 3: Post-WW I dissent and the emergence of the Roaring Twenties

Nov 7: Autonomy: Class Work

Nov 9: Class Work

Nov 15: Essay on Autonomy Due. The Great Depression

Nov 17: Class work. Depression Readings Discussion

Nov 21: Class Work

Nov 23: Great Depression Poster Due. posters must be presented in class.

Nov 29: Review Test

October Schedule

2011-10-03T13:18:00.000-07:00

Oct 3:
Work on Interviews.
WWI at home.

Oct 5:
Present Interviews to class

Oct 11:
Conscription Issue

Oct 13:
WWI Handouts due

REVISED!

Oct 17:
Book of War Classwork

Oct 19:
Book of War Due for Presentation

Oct 24:
In class essay: Assessing World War I. Choose one event that occurred in World War I and assess its importance for Canada. or choose one of the issues we discussed in class and take notes for your in-class essay.

Essay Criteria:

1. Your thesis statement arouses the reader's interest and provides a mini outline. (3)
2. Your main body examines details of your outline points. (6)
3. Your conclusion provides a general statement that lets the reader draw his or her own conclusions (3)

Oct 26:
WW I Review Test

Oct 28:
Canada in 1919 and after

Welcome to SS 11 for the 2011-12 school year

2011-09-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

Sep 9: Handouts on Laurier. Make sure you have read the handouts and have started working on the questions.

Sep 13: We will be spending 20 minutes on silent reading, taking notes and continue working on your handout questions. Be prepared to report to the class on some of the answers.

Sep 15: Laurier questions: final discussion and hand in your work. Review of major themes of the Laurier Era:

Laurier and Macdonald: Key Differences
Canada's Economic Development in Laurier's Era
Canada and the USA
Canada's relationship to Great Britain: Canada a divided country.

We will start organizing groups for your war booklet if you choose to work in groups. We will begin introducing some of the major issues in WW I. Be prepared for more summary handouts.

Sep 19: First review quiz based on Laurier handout and WWI intro. Discuss BOOKLET ON WWI.

Sep 21: Causes of WWI. Booklet on WWI due at the end of October. Handouts on WWI due within the next three weeks. Individual WWI webpage assessment project due within three weeks.

Sep 23: The war overseas.

SS 11 Review Sheet for Test end of January 2011

2011-01-07T10:13:00.001-08:00

1.Factors contributing to outbreak of WW I
2.Political conditions in Europe 1914
3.Alliance System
4.Schlieffen Plan
5.Canadian involvement in WW I
6.Sam Hughes' Role
7.Canadian involvement in WW I battles
8.Issues in Canadian army
9.Enemy Aliens
10.Support for the war effort
11.French Canada in WW I
12.Women's Rights
13.Halifax Explosion
14.Versailles Treaty
15.OBU
16.Winnipeg Strike
17.Regional Disparity
18.Stock Market Crash
19.Towards Canadian Autonomy
20.Great Depression
21.Laissez-faire vs. Keynes
22.CCF
23.Solving the Great Depression
24.Chanak/ King-Byng/ Statute of Westminster
25.WW II Ideologies
26.Alliance System
27.Appeasement
28.War tactics
29.Canadian Battles
30.Japanese Canadians
31.BCATP
32.Role of Canadian women in WW II
33.Effects of WW II on the home front

January 2011 Schedule

2011-01-04T21:13:00.000-08:00

Jan 5: How did WWII affect Canada? See http://mrmuellersocials.weebly.com/assignment2.html

Jan 7: http://socials11.blogspot.com/2009/02/social-studies-11-cold-war-ch-18-21.html

Jan 11: Classwork

Jan 13: Classwork

Jan 17: Cold war Propaganda

Jan 19: Review for test

Jan 21: Board Game Class Work

Jan 24: Social 11 Review Test

Jan 25: Final class work on board game

Jan 27: Board games due for presentation

December Schedule

2010-11-29T13:07:00.000-08:00

Dec 1:Time to finish pp.224-245/ group work on your WWII project

Dec 3:Dieppe and Propaganda

Dec 7:Battle of the Atlantic/ Propaganda

Dec 9: Human Rights Day.

Dec 13: WWII and the Home Front/ British Commonwealth Air Training Plan

Dec 15: Japanese Internment

Dec 17:Review of Key Ideas

SS 11 Review

2010-11-13T20:20:00.001-08:00

1. When Great Britain asked Canadians for assistance in the Boer War, Canadians were split on whether or not to lend support to Great Britain. How did Canadians react when Great Britain, once again, asked for support during the Chanak crisis?
2. Why were the Halibut Treaty, the King-Byng Crisis important stages in Canadian autonomy?
3. The Statute of Westminster allowed Canada to be self-governing. In fact, Canada could have been independent from Great Britain as early as 1931. Why did Canadians have to wait until 1982 before they would be fully independent from Great Britain?
4. In the 1920s, Canada continued to keep American goods out by means of a high tariff policy. How would Americans eventually bypass this form of protectionism?
5. What was the significance of the Person’s case?
6. American influence in Canada in the 1920’s increased. How? Canadians at that time believed that American cultural influence would take its toll on the development of Canadian culture. One example of “cultural” nationalism in Canada was the Group of Seven. Explain.
7. Economically, the invention of the automobile and the radio had huge repercussions in the sense that widespread prosperity resulted. Which major event in 1929, however, quickly proved that the economic prosperity did not have a solid foundation?
8. Explain the following terms: Bennett Buggy, Relief Camp, on the dole, on-to-Ottawa Trek, Regina Riot, New Deal.
9. Who was Keynes and why did both the American and Canadian governments use his theories to rekindle their economies?
10. In Canada, the Great Depression hit farmers more than any other group. Explain.
11. What was the purpose of the Farm Rehabilitation Act? What was its effect?
12. Many provinces opposed the introduction of a national unemployment insurance in Canada. What was the main reason?
13. Describe the purpose and findings of the Rowell-Sirois Commission.
14. What are equalization payments

World War Two Project Work

2010-11-05T22:44:00.000-07:00

World War II Project Worksheet. Topics to be covered.

1. Dieppe
2. Ortona
3. D-Day
4. Battle of the Atlantic
5. Hong Kong
6. Liberation of the Netherlands
7. Women in World War II
8. The Home Front

The class will form eight stations based on the topics above. Each group is responsible to do the following:

a. brainstorm ideas related to your topic;

b. organize and plan your research based on your initial and detailed brainstorming session;
c. Report your results to your teacher and discuss additional or sub-topics.(6 marks)

d. Prepare a detailed one-pager fact sheet on your topic. This fact sheet should follow the oral presentation made to your teacher and include time lines, issues, names, places where appropriate. This fact sheet serves as an initial organizer for further in-depth study and also as a study reminder of all of your key elements. (12 marks)

e. Prepare a station of your topic that illustrates the major and detailed facts.This could include images, speeches, quotes, maps, artifacts, models, video clips, or whatever your group can think of to make your presentation interesting and compelling. (30 marks);

f. Present your key ideas and controversial issues to the class and allow the class to debate one controversial point (20 marks)

Below are the dates that you will be given part class time for this project:

Nov 9: No
Nov 15: Yes
Nov 17: Yes
Nov 19: No
Nov 23: No
Nov 25: Yes
Dec 1: No
Dec 3: No
Dec 7: Yes
Dec 9: Yes
Dec 13: Presentations and Feedback
Dec 15: Presentations and Feedback
Dec 17: WWII Test

World War I Project Criteria

2010-09-22T21:36:00.000-07:00

Your project about World War I can be one of the following:

1. a poster
2. a skit
3. a speech
4. a diorama or model
5. an analysis of a film clip or film segment
6. an interpretation of a song, poem, or a piece of literature
7. a description and analysis of an artifact.

You must introduce your topic to the class and provide factual information about the significance of your concept, how it fits into the topic of war and why it is relevant to students of war today.

Imagine your project to be like the piece of a puzzle that contributes to the creation of a picture of war in the minds of your audience. Consider your audience and ask yourself what you want your audience to learn from your presentation. Consider building in some form of audience feedback so that you can see if your audience responds to the project the way that you intended.

Socials 11 Course Outline 2010/11

2010-09-08T19:25:00.000-07:00

http://vantech.vsb.bc.ca/ss/pm/ss11/docs/courseoutline 2010-11.doc

World War I in Review

2010-02-21T16:37:00.001-08:00

1. Causes: Nationalism, Imperialism, Militarism. Can you explain how each contributed to the outbreak of the war?
2. Alliance System: Triple Alliance, Triple Entente. Which countries belonged to each alliance system? What were their objectives?
3. Schlieffen Plan: What was it? How did it lead to trench war fare? Why was trench war a sign that the war seemingly had stalled? Describe conditions in the trenches.
4. Why did Canada get involved in WWI? How can you evaluate Canadian contributions? Which battles are noteworthy? Why?
5. Swam Hughes: Who was he? How did he contribute to both fame and infamy with respect to WWI?
6. What were the important contributions by Byng and Currie?
7. What was conscription? Why did conscription lead to a split between French and English Canadians?

Autonomy

8. What is the meaning of autonomy?
9. The following events in history are significant for Canada’s evolution into an autonomous country. Explain each and know how each element contributed to autonomy: (a) Canada conscripted soldiers into the war because volunteers had dried up; conscription does not occur until the success of Vimy Ridge, (b) Canada fights under her own colours and decisions are made by Canadian rather than British commanders when it comes to Canadian decisions, e.g. at Vimy Ridge; (c) Canada is a signatory at the Versailles Peace Conference and gets an independent chair aside from Great Britain; (d) in 1923, Canada signs the Halibut Treaty with the USA; (e) in 1926, Canada experiences the King-Byng crisis and reduces the powers of the Governor General as a result; (f) in 1931, Great Britain passes the Statute of Westminster following the Balfour Declaration and the King-Herzog principle, thus making each former British colony politically independent; (g) in 1965, Canada decides to have her own Maple Leaf flag; (h) in 1982, Canada patriates the Canadian Constitution.
10. At the close of the Great War, a number of events are noteworthy with impact on Canada. How did these events impact Canada? (a) The October Revolution in Russia (1917); (b) the Flu Epidemic; (c) the Winnipeg Strike in 1919.
11. The end of the war brings major economic changes: The pre-war economic slowdown and depression that resulted in large numbers of unemployed had returned when returning soldiers demanded jobs when no jobs were available as a result of the war economy coming to an end. The unemployed of pre-war Canada were absorbed in the military and remaining workers improved their social position through increased unionism. Women also filled many vacant positions. The returning soldiers now put pressure on the government to create peacetime jobs, which took some time and led to a small economic depression. The following groups had issues with the government: labor unions, returning war vets, and western farmers. What were their concerns and how, if at all, were these concerns addressed?
12. The time known as the roaring twenties was a time of rebuilding. Especially the USA economy benefited from the fact that Europe needed to be rebuilt. The result was an economic boom that spread into Canada. Explain.
13. What is speculation? What is the stock market? What is a bubble in stock market terms? What was the stock market crash? How did the stock market crash lead to the Great Depression?
14. How was Canada affected by the Great Depression?
15. What did the government try to do in order to solve the economic woes?

WW I Vignettes at NFB and other resources

2010-02-03T20:31:00.001-08:00

http://films.nfb.ca/front-lines/capsules.php

http://www.nfb.ca/explore-by/keyword/en/World_War_I/

http://www.nfb.ca/playlist/world-war-I-armistice/

http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/explore/online-resources-for-canadian-heritage/online-resources-for-canadian-heritage-military-and-naval-history3

WW I Introduction Class Review

2010-02-01T17:47:00.000-08:00

1. Explain these terms: nationalism, imperialism, militarism.

2. Explain how these terms are connected, i.e. would militarism lead to nationalism, or would nationalism lead to militarism?

3. What is the difference between national competition and imperial competition?

4. Why would industrialization be a major factor leading to both types of competition as mentioned in #3?

5. In terms of power, balance of power represents an important concept. We met this concept before when studying government. In government, a good balance between the executive, legislative, and judiciary powers provides for a good democracy. In terms of Europe in the early 19th century, balance of power was important for England because in her trade with Europe, no country was more powerful than France, and England and France could balance each other out. The unification of Germany with its strong military powers centered in Prussia threw a monkey wrench into the existing power relationship between England and France. Explain.

6. Germany was also vulnerable as it was located in the middle between two friendly powers, Russia and France. In order to eliminate a potential threat from being sandwiched between these two states, a diplomatic tie between Germany and Russia became a necessity. So, what would the logical consequence be?

7. Kaiser Wilhelm II fired Bismarck because the Kaiser wanted to pursue a new policy called "Weltpolitik." What did this mean?

8. What was the result when the Kaiser decided to join into an alliance with Austria-Hungary?

9. Austria-Hungary was a construct of many nations with as many languages and cultures, each striving for ethnic independence. In such a climate of separation, national tensions ran high. Why would a stronger feeling of independence by a small country as Serbia be considered a warning sign by Austria-Hungary?

10. Describe the political interests by Russia, Germany, France, and England.

11. Since Karl Marx published his book The Communist Manifesto, workers in factories across Europe considered themselves an important social force. How did industrialists turn them into pawns for their own purpose instead of allowing them to succeed in Marx's predicted social revolution at a global scale?

Yes, Laurier's Era is not part of the Provincial Exam. So, why do we need to know something about it?

2010-01-20T20:40:00.000-08:00

For starters, Laurier's Age provides a quick overview over the forces that shape Canada as it enters the 20th century.
What does this mean?

Canada changes from a predominantly agrarian society to an industrial society. As a result, Canada's contributions in World War I are still agriculturally based but are also based on the supply of important mineral resources and tools manufactured in industrial centers that are needed in the war. The fast pace of change has been the result of Laurier's population policies that saw the country prosper economically. The result was the development of a strong sense of confidence in the ability of Canada do become a great nation. This confidence becomes an important catalyst for the desire by many Canadians to fight overseas and use the war as a stepping stone towards nationhood.

Prosperity, however, was not spread out equally. Unequal distribution of resources, coupled with the need to overcome large distances, left some areas in Canada less developed or heading towards economic decline. This would lead later to the need to address regional disparities at the federal level and make arrangements by which the wealthier regions would have to share their wealth with the poorer regions.

Laurier's era is also an important time period to highlight serious differences between the French and Anglo-Canadians. These differences emerge when the relationship to Great Britain is examined and some people start to question close ties with the empire and the related commitment to provide military assistance. The Boer War is the beginning of such division and will lead to a slow but gradual attempt by French Canada to improve its position in the federation.

Finally, Laurier's era initiates tensions between central Canada and western Canada with its uneven distribution of the population. The west with its smaller population is not taken seriously as its voting power is diminished. Compounded with that is the fact that most migrants to the west are not of English or French origin and thus do not share the same cultural connections to central Canada. These facts will continue to further divide Canada. As the western population also tends to be more multicultural in origin, strong tendencies towards multiculturalism emerge. Taken together, Canada is seen as a nation dominated by mainly French, English, and southern European settlers in different parts of the country. The obvious racism that results becomes a strong element of division.

Given all these diverging elements, it is surprising that Canada continues to be one country to this day. What is it, then, that is the common glue binding all these parts together?

Komagata Maru

2010-01-20T10:20:00.001-08:00

http://picasaweb.google.com/peterofportmoody/KomagataMaru#

Sustainable cities

2010-01-04T06:53:00.001-08:00

http://agentsofurbanism.com/2008/04/sustainable-city-race-part-1-definition/

Climate Change Links

2009-12-08T09:16:00.000-08:00

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/12/07/science/20091207_CLIMATE_TIMELINE.html

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/12/05/world/climate-graphic-players.html

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/12/05/world/climate-graphic-background.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEfriG06Xt4&feature=player_embedded

http://blog.heritage.org/2009/11/10/video-the-cap-and-trade-youtube-the-obama-administration-does-not-wan-you-to-see/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pA6FSy6EKrM

http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90883/6840006.html

Schedule 2010

2009-12-07T19:52:00.000-08:00

Jan 4: Review Key Elements Population Geography
Jan 6: Collab Time
Jan 8: Environmental Issues
Jan 12:Environmental Issues
Jan 14: Canada prior to WWI http://docs.google.com/View?id=dn7fjf3_42hhb444fb
Jan 18: Canada prior to WWI
Jan 20: Canada prior to WWI
Jan 22: Canada prior to WWI
Jan 26: Exam Week
Jan 28: Exam Week

Feb 1: Canada and WWI http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0Adh1zsMYFuOuZG43ZmpmM180M2RqZHJmeGRw&hl=en
Feb 3: EXAMS Government and Geography.
Feb 5: Canada and WWI
Feb 9: Canada and WWI
Feb 11: Canada and WWI
Feb 16: Canada and WWI: ALL PRESENTATIONS DUE.
Feb 18: Canada and WWI: WW I Battles, Conscription
Feb 22: WW I and the Home Front; Interwar Period
Feb 24: Interwar Period
Feb 26: Interwar Period

Mar 2:Interwar Period
Mar 4:Canada and WWII
Mar 15:Canada and WWII
Mar 17:Canada and WWII
Mar 19:Canada and WWII
Mar 23:Canada and WWII
Mar 25:Canada and WWII
Mar 29:Canada and WWII
Mar 31:Canada in Post WWII

Apr 6:Canada in Post WWII
Apr 8:Canada in Post WWII
Apr 12:Canada in Post WWII
Apr 14:Canada in Post WWII
Apr 16:Canada in Post WWII
Apr 20:Canada in the 70s to 90s
Apr 22:Canada in the 70s to 90s
Apr 26:Canada in the 70s to 90s
Apr 28:Canada in the 70s to 90s

May 4:Canada in the 70s to 90s
May 6:Canada in the 70s to 90s
May 10:Canada in the 70s to 90s
May 12:Canada in the 70s to 90s
May 14:Canada in the 70s to 90s
May 18:Themes in Canadian History
May 20:Themes in Canadian History
May 25:Themes in Canadian History
May 27:Themes in Canadian History
May 31:Themes in Canadian History

Jun 1:Exam Prep
Jun 4:Exam Prep
Jun 8:Exam Prep
Jun 10:Exam Prep

Your link to urban studies

2009-12-06T22:18:00.000-08:00

Please visit the following website for study and be prepared for being tested on the material.

http://www.scalloway.org.uk/sett.htm

2009-12-04T06:38:00.001-08:00

Urbanization

2009-11-30T21:31:00.001-08:00

http://www.scribd.com/doc/23414300

Urbanization

2009-11-30T19:15:00.000-08:00

Urbanization is the process of city formation.

What are the roots of the urbanization process? What is the nature of cities around the world? What makes cities livable? What are some of the challenges cities around the world face and how are these challenges met?

1. Create an imaginary city on a large piece of paper and make it grow. What are the things you will have to consider in order to provide for what the city population needs? What issues emerge and how will you resolve them?

2. Consider this: Vancouver in the year 2050. What will Vancouver be like?

Animated Population Graphs Canada

2009-11-19T08:43:00.000-08:00

Animated Population Graph: Canada

INED Questions

Source: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/animations/world_population/

1.How many people are added to the world population every second?
2.What is the projection by the UN for the levelling off of the population?
3.When did the world population reach one billion?
4.What happened to the time interval between each of the next billions?
5.Why did the population grow so much faster after the18th century?
6.How was the world population kept in balance?
7.Which factors helped reduce populations?
8.What was the role of hygiene and diet play in the reduction of mortality?
9.In which stage of the demographic transition did the birthrate start to decline?
10.How long did the demographic transition last in Europe?
11.How has the demographic transition become a global phenomenon?
12.What will the future bring?

Source: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/animations/birth/

1.What is the reproductive life of the average woman?
2.What is the maximum number of children a woman could give birth to during this time?
3.What leads to a decline of this number to an average maximum of 15 children?
4.Which three factors would further reduce the number of children most women would give birth to?
5.Assuming that women do not have children until they get married, how would the age of marriage affect the number of children a woman gives birth to?
6.Which continent shows the youngest average age of marriage?
7.How many children in the world today are breastfed for at least 19 months?
8.Name the most common methods of birth control.

Source: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/animations/lifetime/

1.What is a survival curve?
2.What percentage of the French population did not even reach age one in 1750?
3.What is meant by the median length of life?
4.Which two factors have helped increase the median life?
5.How has the French median life changed from 1750 to 1970?
6.How has the median age changed from 1970 to 2000?
7.What are the major reasons for deaths at an old age?

Source: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/animations/fecondity/

1.Write a short paragraph in which you describe how demographers calculate the fertility rate.

Source: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/animations/life_expectancy/

1.Describe the concept of life expectancy.

Source: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/animations/age_pyramid/

1. Describe how population pyramids change and why.

Big Geography Review Handout Online

2009-11-18T18:59:00.000-08:00

Population Geography Review Package

Revised Schedule

2009-11-18T18:19:00.000-08:00

November 19, 2009: All INED questions due. #1 on your assignment sheet due.

November 25 and 27: Group Presentations on the Units due.Also, this week will be marked by a discussion of all your readings.

November 30: Last day for any of the above assignments or any previously assigned work. No assignments will be accepted after this date for the first term report card.

Three weeks in December:

We will be discussing issues related to the environment, urbanization, and spend some time on in-class essay writing and some form of test preparation

Lively Introduction

2009-11-09T20:56:00.000-08:00

1. After your reading of Lively Introduction, prepare a short speech in which you describe how the elements of fertility, mortality, migration have affected your own family and shaped your family's behaviour as it might be relevant to demographics.

2. After reading The Basics, describe what changes you have personally seen in your life time that would illustrate how human population has changed and affected the natural landscape and what measures have been undertaken to resolve some of the potential environmental damage that may have occurred.

3. According to the article on Age Structure, populations can have an impact on political stability of countries. Explain.

4. Prepare a summary visual that depicts what you consider the key information in the Measuring Development handout.

Please be prepared to share your thought on the above questions and issues in class with either the whole class or in small groups by next week, November 23-27

WW I Music

2009-10-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/donttakemydarlingboy.htm Don't Take My Darling Boy Away

November Assignments

2009-10-26T20:36:00.001-07:00

November and December are dedicated to the study of population geography and environmental issues.

You will please visit http://vantech.vsb.bc.ca/ss/pm/ss11/pdf/index.htm and make yourself familiar with the first four readings.

The Unit readings are for group presentations.

Please follow the handout for details on class assignments.

We will be working through some of the websites in class but you are also expected to work through them on your own.

The final test will include all readings together wilth the readings for group presentations.

Language Laws

2009-10-24T08:44:00.001-07:00

Language lunacy — again

The Ottawa CitizenOctober 24, 2009 9:15 AMBe the first to post a comment

To describe this week's Supreme Court ruling on Quebec's Bill 104 as a victory for minority language rights may be an overstatement.

True, the country's highest court struck down a law that prevented some parents from sending their children to English schools. Yet despite the ruling the law remains in place. Apparently the province has only to do some tweaking in order to address the court's constitutional concerns. The court even said that the objective of the law is "important and legitimate."

Where that leaves the 25 parents who took the province to court over the law, and who believe their children have a right to be educated in English, is unclear.

And yet the ruling is significant, if only because it has -- perhaps inadvertently -- highlighted the negative impact the province's language laws are having on recent immigrants, something that should concern all Quebecers. By thwarting the efforts of immigrants to have their children educated in English -- the international language of commerce and technology -- Quebec is driving these hard-working, ambitious families to other parts of the country or right out of Canada.

It's hard to imagine a more self-defeating policy. With birthrates as low as they are in Canada, immigrants play a key role in securing our future prosperity. Quebec in particular is struggling to address the problem of a low birthrate. So desperate has the situation been that the province has enacted what are virtually emergency response measures, such as paying women to have babies ("baby bonuses") and the creation of day care that is almost entirely government subsidized.

Quebec needs immigrants, but they won't stay with policies that deliberately handicap their children by depriving them the opportunity to be educated in English.

Under Quebec's controversial language legislation, Bill 101, parents must prove that they, or at least one of their children, have a link to English schooling in Canada before any of their children can attend English language school. Families were able to get around this stipulation by sending their children for a brief period to an English language private school, which would then allow them to be educated at English public schools in the province. Bill 104 closed that loophole, leaving parents with few options.

Virender Singh Jamwal, one of the parents who has challenged the constitutionality of Bill 104, took dramatic steps to secure for his children an English-language education. According to media reports, the Montreal resident moved his wife and children to Ontario -- to Hawkesbury -- while he remained in Montreal. After two years, they moved back to Montreal, where they then qualified for English-language school in Quebec because they had been to an English school in Canada.

This is a good father, and a determined one. Many immigrants who come to Canada assign a high value to educational success. They recognize that education is the means to a better future. And it is perfectly reasonable that immigrants, no matter where they settle in Canada, should desire for their children fluency in English. The truth is that children of immigrants often speak several languages.

It's unfortunate that Quebecers still need to be reminded every so often that the legitimate desire to promote French in the province does not allow them to run roughshod over minority rights.
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

Constitutional Crisis

2009-10-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

http://www.mta.ca/about_canada/study_guide/debates/meech_lake.html

Charter of Rights and Freedoms

2009-10-16T10:35:00.000-07:00

http://www.scribd.com/doc/6089285/The-Charterppt

Geography Readings online

2009-10-16T10:15:00.000-07:00

Use this link for your Geography readings

http://vantech.vsb.bc.ca/ss/pm/ss11/pdf/index.htm

Use this link for geography videos on various population issues:

http://video.unfpa.org/?v=701904191103440892009

Bill of Rights

2009-10-14T13:33:00.000-07:00

Read the Bill of Rights

http://laws.justice.gc.ca/PDF/Statute/c/c-12.3.pdf

1. Why has the Charter of Rights replaced the Bill of Rights?

Review

2009-09-21T08:28:00.000-07:00

1. Define democracy.
2. Difference between direct and representative democracy.
3. Difference between executive, legislative and judiciary function.
4. What is a political spectrum?
5. Name the parts of the Canadian system of government.
6. How are these parts chosen?
7. Why do we need checks and balances in government?
8. How do these chacks and balances work in Canada?
9. What are the names of the political parties in the House of Commons?
10. What is a constitutional monarchy?

Assignments Government Section

2009-09-16T16:41:00.000-07:00

1. After researching the system of government in Canada, choose one of the countries listed below and examine how their system of government compares. Present your results to the class. You need to focus on the following: Parts of the system, Function, How the parts are selected, checks against power abuse.

USA, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran, North Korea, Singapore

Due date: Sep 29, 2009

2. Study one of Canada's political parties and examine their historical change. This can be a political party at the federal or at the provincial level. You must discuss party philosophy and platform, leadership issues, controversies, successes and failures. These discussions should focus on economic as well as social policy performance.

Due Oct 7, 2009

3. Examine election results from the last election in either Canada or British Columbia and prepare an election primer for immigrants that clearly outlines, in simple terms, how elections are conducted in Canada, what issues are at stake locally, regionally or nationally, and how individuals can participate.

Due Oct 15, 2009

4. Write an essay on one aspect in Canadian government that you see as flawed and that you would like to see reformed. Explain how your efforts at reform would improve the political process.

Due Oct 20, 2009

Welcome to Socials 11 2009/10

2009-08-27T04:53:00.000-07:00

Welcome to SS 11 for 2009/10

This course has three main sections: Government, Geography, and History.

SS 11

Unit I. Government 25%
a. Citizenship
b. How government works

Unit II. Geography 35%
a. Demography
b. Environmental Issues

Unit III. History 40%
a. World War I
b. Post World War I
c. World War II
d. Post World War II

We'll be starting with Government and will spend about six weeks on this section. The main focus of this section will be on citizenship and how the Canadian government works.

As there is no appropriate text, we'll be using the following handouts:

1. Citizenship
2. Class Notes
3. Selected websites

For this section, you will have to do the following:

1. Explain the purpose and role of government and describe how government works.
2. Explain your role as an active citizen in government.
3. Identify a current issue and propose solutions that take a variety of perspectives into account.
4. Prepare a speech.
5. Prepare a debate.
6. Write an essay about a current issue and explore solutions.

This section will be amended as time permits.

Let's write!

2009-04-22T06:58:00.000-07:00

Below are a series of topics for you to review important subject material and practice your writing.

You must write on a minimum of five topics. For each additional topic, you will receive one percent bonus to a maximum of three percent.

Grind your teeth, moan, smile, and get started. Deadline for all this is the third week of May. After that...zilch!

1. Racism, Immigration, and Human Rights Legislation throughout the twentieth century in Canada.

2. Prohibition of the Sun Dance, Potlatch, Residential Schools, Oka, The White Paper: Has anything changed for Aboriginal Canadians and how would you know?

3. What are we doing in Afghanistan and is this mission still part of Canada's role as peace keeper?

4. Technology and war: Comparing two world wars involving Canadians.

5. Canadians are the oil hogs of the world - it's time to become green.

6. CIDA and the third world: has Canadian aid made a difference?

A Must-See!

2009-04-14T20:55:00.000-07:00

http://video.google.ca/videosearch?q=population+growth&hl=en&emb=0#

Early Populations: Homo Sapiens

2009-04-14T20:27:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PgvG7BpI3c&feature=related

Global Issues

2009-04-14T08:50:00.000-07:00

Recyling is a good thing!

1. How many computers do you have in your household?
2. How many of these will you likely throw out or recycle in the near future in order to replace them with a newer, faster model?
3. What will you do with the old one?
4. Where will it go when you recycle it properly instead of just dumping it in the local trash?
5. Here is an interesting story for your consideration:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5944615355863607664

Cell Phones are my life!

1. Do you have a cell phone?
2. Is this your first cell phone or have you ha a cell before?
3. What will you do with your present cell when it dies or a better version comes on the market?
4. Have you thought about coltan? Well, then, check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OWj1ZGn4uM

Would you like a job?

1. Are you looking for a job?
2. How do you think you are going to get one if you don't have an education?
3. Look at these, then tell me what their future is likely going to be.
http://www.childlaborphotoproject.org/bazan1.html

Population Studies: Readings

2009-04-06T10:33:00.000-07:00

Population Institute: http://www.populationinstitute.org/population-issues/

Population Action International: http://www.populationaction.org/Publications/Fact_Sheets/Index.shtml

Population Connection: http://www.populationconnection.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=396&Itemid=18

The Habitable Planet: http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/unit/index.php

Earth in Peril

2009-03-31T14:14:00.001-07:00

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worldbalance/earth.html

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worldbalance/trends.html

Earth in Peril

2009-03-31T14:14:00.000-07:00

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worldbalance/earth.html

1970s

2009-03-30T09:51:00.001-07:00

http://www.scribd.com/doc/13780829/1970s-Timeline

Geography: Population

2009-03-21T18:04:00.000-07:00

100 People Flash Animation
Another terrific flash animation! This one shows the statistics of what it would be like if there were only 100 people on earth.100 People Flash Animation
Another terrific flash animation! This one shows the statistics of what it would be like if there were only 100 people on earth.

Geography Matters

2009-03-14T19:29:00.000-07:00

Geography Matters
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyhSHDGg-cw&feature=related

2009-02-24T20:10:00.001-08:00

Social Studies 11: Cold War (Ch 18-21)

Following World War II, the world entered what is now generally described as the Cold War Era. This time period was characterized by escalating hostilities between the two superpowers that emerged as superpowers after World War II: The United States and the Soviet Union.
As a result of increased tension between these two nations with their corresponding satellite nations, the world was divided into two opposing blocks, one block following western democratic ideas and the other following communist or socialist ideologies. A third block of nations was characterized by poorer, still developing nations whose interests shifted between the super powers depending on the amount of money these super powers were willing to give in exchange for resources or the ability to host their weapon systems.
It is during that time that Canada’s foreign policy started to take a major shift away from a close ally to the United States to that of a middle power.
The following questions are designed to shed light on this process and help the student understand why Canada changed directions.

1. What is meant by the term Cold War?
2. Which countries neighbour Canada?
3. Which important organizations were formed after the end of World War II? What were their goals?
4. Which countries belonged to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)?
5. Which countries belonged to the Warsaw Pact?
6. What was the so-called iron curtain?
7. The League of Nations had proved itself impotent in the mid-1930s and was unable to prevent the outbreak of World War II. What was an essential mechanism that was lacking for the League to perform her role?
8. What was the United Nations?
9. Describe the events surrounding the Gouzenko Affair.
10. Why was the Marshall Plan invoked? How did this plan have similarities with the Dawson Plan?
11. What results did the discoveries of the Holocaust have on western allies?
12. What are Civil Rights? Where did this movement begin?
13. What are Human Rights? How are Human Rights laws and Civil Rights linked to the Holocaust?
14. The end of the war brought a large number of displaced persons (DPs) to Canada. What effect did this have on Canada’s economy, society, and relationship with the world?
15. What is multiculturalism?
16. Who was Diefenbaker?
17. Describe the purpose of the Avro Arrow and the consequences of the development of the Bomarc missile.
18. What was the significance of the following conflicts: Bay of Pigs invasion, Cuban Missile Crisis, Berlin Wall, Suez Canal Crisis, Vietnam war, Korean war?
19. What did the Canadian government do to provide more social services to Canadians?
20. Describe the four most important Canadian issues at home: French-English relations, western alienation, increased regionalization, Canada’s Aboriginal people.

Canada Explained by Rick Mercer

2009-02-04T21:39:00.001-08:00

via videosift.com

Social Studies 11 The Interwar Period [Chapters 9-13]

2008-12-11T19:31:00.000-08:00

1. Discuss the outcome of the Paris Peace Conference and the Versailles Treaty.
2. Aside from the high casualties from World War I, what were two other events that caused the loss of lives both worldwide and specifically in Canada?
3. Demobilization was not an easy feat as the winter weather was severe and delayed the homecoming for many soldiers. Explain.
4. During the war, the Canadian government had made a number of promises that it was now unable to keep. Explain.
5. What issues did Canadian soldiers face upon their return to Canada?
6. An important factor in the post-war time period was the need to shift industrial production back to a consumer society. What problems occurred as a result?
7. Explain the term: “full re-establishment” and what happened to this idea.
8. The time period after World War I was marked by ideological changes in Russia where communism took hold as a result of the Bolshevik revolution. How did this fear of Bolshevik movements indicate itself in Canada?
9. What is usually referred to as OBU?
10. Outline the different perspectives connected to the Winnipeg Strike.
11. Right after the Great War, the economy faced a number of years of adjustments. This time period was replaced by a feeling of prosperity and speculation as demand in Europe for resources to rebuild led to increased wealth in Canada and the United States. However, this wealth was not widespread. What was it based on? What was the effect of this wealth not being more widely spread across a broader section of society?
12. How did speculation affect the economy?
13. In a country like Canada, some regions are more diverse than others. What does this mean?
14. Describe the different regions of Canada and what their economic base was like.
15. What were some of the events that led to the stock-market crash in 1929?
16. How did the different provincial economies weather the economic storm?
17. Who was Mackenzie King and what were his policies?
18. Who was R.B. Bennett and how did he deal with the Great Depression?
19. Describe what life would have been like in Canada during the Great Depression.
20. Many people believed that the traditional mainstay political parties, the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party, had no real solution to the economic problems caused by the Great Depression. How did this lead to the emergence of new political parties?
21. Many women had gained the right to vote during the war and right after. Who were the famous five and what did they do to contribute to the emancipation of women?
22. The invention of the car and its widespread availability brought many Americans to Canada. What was the effect of this on Canada in economic terms, cultural terms, and political terms?
23. What was the prohibition and what was its purpose?
24. How did World War I affect migration to Canada?
25. During World War I, Canada had been a British colony that was required to go to war when Britain went to war. What are some important elements in the interwar period that brought about changes to the relationship between Canada and Great Britain?

Social Studies 11 World War I Individual Skill Sheet

2008-11-01T19:55:00.000-07:00

1. Terms: alliance system, triple entente, triple alliance, neutrality, Ross rifle, imperialism, militarism, nationalism, patriotism, shrapnel, trench, trench warfare, trench foot, battalions, racism, enemy aliens, pacifists, enlistment, voluntary enlistment, draft, conscription, suffragists, Victory Bonds, mustard gas or chlorine gas, shell shock, blockade, parapets, artillery barrage, creeping barrage, Lusitania, storm troops, reparations, pandemic, flu, no-man’s land, bayonets, YMCA, coloured YMCA, Canadian Patriotic Fund, Hodgin’s memorandum, Doukhobors, Mennonites, Hutterites, Military Service Act, internment, Van Doos, Married Women’s Relief Act, Halifax Local Council of Women Nellie McClung, Cora Hind, Francis Beynon, Wartime Elections Act, convoys, saps, blighty, League of Nations, demobilization, fuelless Mondays
2. Names of people and places: Valcartier, Austria-Hungary, France, Prussia, Russia, Sarajevo, Serbia, Schlieffen, Sam Hughes, Battle of the Marne, Salisbury Plain, Berlin, Ontario (Kitchener), Banff, Alberta, Robert Borden, Joseph Flavelle, Mont Blanc, Imo, Halifax, Ypres, Passchendaele, Sommes, Vimy Ridge, Courcelette, Red Baron, turnip winter, City of Memphis and Illinois; Arthur Currie, Byng, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Mons, David Lloyd George, Haig, Versailles Treaty,
3. Important statements or quotes: Explain! “…an astonishing 8 per cent of the nation’s population;” “a strong sense of pride in one’s country,” “policy of building up military forces,” “the ‘back door’ of Belgium;” “it was manufactured in Canada;” “the war to end all wars;” ”men crumpled the leaflets up and threw them to the ground;” ”soldiers of the soil;” “you are doing nothing to show your appreciation;” “All citizens are liable for the defence of their country;” “’in the interests of human freedom and [for]their benefit;” “…clawing their throats…brass buttons green…bodies…swelled…writhing on the ground;” “a whale-shaped hump of land;” “Versailles had sowed the bitter seeds of World War II.”
4. Draw a world map and show the British Empire and label each country part of that empire; show Germany and the Triple Alliance as well as the Triple Entente.
5. Where did Germany intend to obtain her resources? How did Russia feel about German policies?
6. Discuss these issues: profiteering, children in war, conscription
7. How did women participate in the war effort at home and overseas?
8. Assess Canada’s participation in World War I.

Canada in World War I

2008-10-29T20:43:00.001-07:00

A. This is a group project.

Please work with the people at your table groups in order to provide a sense of understanding to the questions below. Use your imagination and visuals to highlight important points, people, events, or issues as they emerge in your research and presentation. You will be responsible to present your answers in a succinct and clear, but interesting way to the class. Your project should be multi-level and multi-faceted and can include a variety of formats such as posters, power point, digital cameras, cell phones, You tube clips (made by you), action skits. Ensure you also use a variety of primary documents and explain your choices and relevance to the project.

You have to present November 12, 2008 and November 14, 2008 for debriefing. Your presentation time should not exceed 25 minutes.

1. World War I broke out for ideological reasons just as much as breakdown in diplomacy as well as a clash of economic interests. Explain. [Your answer must include a brief explanation of the concept of nationalism, imperialism, and militarism. Your answer should also include references to German interests in Africa and the Balkans and references to Russia’s interests in access to the seas.]
2. Canada and Great Britain remained in an imperial relationship that left Canada no choice but to go to war at the same time as Britain. Explain.
3. What was the reason that Britain declared war on Germany?
4. What was the German attack strategy towards her neighbours? (Mention the Schlieffen Plan in your answer).
5. Describe Canada’s mobilization process and how Canadian soldiers got to be overseas.
6. Who was in charge of overseeing Canada’s overseas engagements?
7. Describe the conditions Canadian soldiers would find themselves in overseas, first in England’s Salisbury Plains and then in various theatres of war. Do not forget to mention the situation involving trench warfare.
8. Provide a brief description of major battles involving Canadians and provide a sense of geography using maps or other descriptions.
9. Create a timeline of overseas involvement in war and battles.
10. Wars cannot be fought overseas alone but must receive the support from the home front. Explain how this happened.
11. What is propaganda and how was propaganda employed in Canada to persuade Canadians to join the war effort?
12. Wars do not always invite only support but also opposition. Comment by giving precise examples to support criticism of the war.
13. While wars are generally not positive experiences, wars can provide economic and political benefits. How would this be true for Canada?
14. How did Canada’s participation in World War I affect different groups of people during the war and after?
15. How would you assess Canada’s contributions in World War I?

B. Essay. Each student will be responsible to generate one research essay based on your text readings and class presentations. This essay should discuss a controversial topic related to World War I in particular, e.g. Profiteering and the Ross Rifle, Underfunding in the military, The Conscription Crisis, or any other clearly identified issue of your choice. Please consult with your teacher.

Brainstorm and organize your ideas in the space below and submit by November 10, 2008. Your good copy of your essay is due November 18th, 2008.

Social Studies 11 Review Test

2008-10-29T20:41:00.000-07:00

1. As a federation, Canada’s constitution focuses on power division. Explain. Make sure you also refer to the historical origin of this concept.

Canada’s Constitution follows, in principle, that of Great Britain. This would mean that national law could break regional law if regional law is violating the rights of people and the people seek relief from the national government. However, as the provinces existed prior to Confederation as colonies and had already established colonial powers, they were unlikely to give up their rights upon joining Confederation. Therefore, power sharing and power division became two workable solutions to convince the colonies to join Canada, give up some of their rights and yet retain some already established powers. This led to the creation of s.91 and s92 of the BNA Act allocating federal powers to the federal government and regional powers to the provinces.

2. What is meant by the phrase: “peace, order, and good government”?

The phrase “peace, order, and good government” stems from the time of Confederation. It is based on the concept of unity. If a province seeks to pas laws that could create injustice and inequality in relation to how people in other regions are treated, the onus would be on the federal government to step in and seek remediation where the law would permit. If this meant interference into provincial jurisdiction, which would not have been possible due to the constitutional arrangement of the BNA Act, the federal government could have passed laws to alleviate the problems caused by provincial legislation. A case in point would be language protection for minorities as a result of educational laws that prohibit instruction in a language other than English or French. Minority protection would be in the hands of the federal government and thus a federal law could attempt to solve the problems caused by provincial laws.

3. Governments can not be truly democratic. Under what circumstances would such a statement be true? [Your answer should elaborate on the meaning of the word democracy and how governments are chosen in democracies. It should also refer to the result of elections in order to support some element of the above statement].

Democratic systems allow people to choose their governments freely. In between elections, however, people often have no recourse if a majority government breaks its promises made during an election campaign other than attempting to petition local MPs to change the laws that people find unacceptable. Governments in a majority position also have to choice of pushing laws through Parliament without proper opposition if closure is used, a device to limit debate in the House of Commons.

4. The Canadian system of government can be referred to as constitutional parliamentary democracy, yet it has elements of federalism following closely our neighbor to the south, the United States of America. Explain.

Canada’s system of government follows closely the federal system used in the USA. This means that the federal government has a provincial counterpart and it means that at the federal level the Senate, made up of representatives from the provinces, attempts to protect provinces from federal legislation attempting to reduce provincial powers. At the same time, Canada’s system also follows that of Great Britain. This means that a Governor General represents the monarch to create a sense of unity amongst Canadians and act as Head of State with the task to ensure that government will always take place. In the USA, this role is taken on by the Vice President who takes control if something happens to the President. While government in the States continuous seamlessly in case of emergency, in Canada, the Governor General will appoint another leader until an lection can be called.

5. Briefly describe how laws are made in Canada.

Laws in Canada start in the Cabinet as an initiative of a minister in charge. This minister discusses new legislation with his caucus and seeks approval before getting the legislation ready for the first reading in the House of Commons. Following the First Reading, the bill is discussed and debated in the House of Commons and advice on the impact of the bill is sought in various committee meetings. This process allows the Official Opposition and the other parties to amend the bill if numbers allow changes to take place or oppose the bill if the opposition has a majority, After the second reading, the bill moves into the Third Reading Stage and the final vote. Hereafter, the bill is passed on to the Senate for all three readings and, if passed, is signed by the Governor General. At this stage, the bill is law and is published in the Canada Gazette.

6. Explain how and why laws must be examined for their validity.

Laws in Canada are closely examined by the opposition trying to make important ideological changes to the bill as the opposition represents the portion of the people who did not vote for the government. Another important mechanism to determine the validity of a bill or law is when someone challenges the law against the constitution. In Canada, all laws must adhere to the Constitution as this document is seen as the cornerstone of our legislative existence. A law that tries to place itself above the constitution would be seen as arbitrary and abuse of power and can lead to totalitarianism. In a free and democratic society, such a law would be unthinkable. It is therefore in the hands of the courts to examine any laws that have been challenged and determine their constitutionality.

7. People often point out their rights to others. What is wrong with this picture in terms of citizenship?

Canadians are proud of their rights as citizens and take the right to vote for granted. However, the most recent election has also shown that some Canadians did not vote at all. Rights are like one side of a coin; responsibilities are the other side of the coin. A non- voter can not complain about bad government if he chose not to vote. We know that each vote counts and that one vote can make a difference. So, being interested in political affairs, daily events, issues that need decision making, all those are important responsibilities Canadians must perform as active citizens.

8. Canadians have a variety of views on different issues that affect their daily lives. Choose one issue of interest to you and discuss it from the point of view of two different ideologies.
9. How do the different institutions in Canada get to be and what roles do they fulfill?
10. If given the chance to propose one major reform to the way government in Canada functions, what would it be and why? Elaborate.

A quick review of our September work:

2008-09-29T20:11:00.001-07:00

You should know the following:

1. The purpose of government.
2. The three arms of government.
3. The political spectrum
4. At least five major ideologies and some of their differences.
5. The structure of the Canadian government.
6. Checks and Balances
7. How laws are passed.
8. How elections work.
9. The difference between minority and majority governments.

If you don't know any of this or do not remember, you have to let me know.

Next on our agenda:

1. The Constitution and the Charter of Rights
2. The Judicial System
3. Provincial governments and municipal governments.
4. Project: Create your own representative government.

How geography affects how Canadians vote

2008-09-25T21:02:00.000-07:00

Canadians are spread out across Canada unevenly. As a result, political ridings across Canada are not uniform in size but vary according to population density. This is based on the principle of representation by population, which means that each riding should hold approximately the same number of voters. As more Candians live closer to the American border due to climate and trade relations with the United States, it is clear that the ridings in southern Canada are more numerous but also smaller in size. The average city, such as Vancouver, can easily contain four to five ridings alone while a sparsely populated area in northern Canada, holding about the same number of voters, can be the size of a small country.

The size of the ridings and their location also has quite an effect on both campaigning and on how people vote. It is much harder for a northern politician to meet all his constituents living huge distances apart or hold so-called townhall meetings to demonstrate the reasons why he is the best candidate for the job. At the same time, it is much harder for the average voter in the north to make it to the polling booth on election day because of the large distances involved. Voters in southern Canada, therefore, have it much easier to meet their candidates or vote on election day.

These geographic issues are much more pronounced when the government decides to hold an election in winter. Voter turnout can be severely restricted and one must ask if democracy is served under such conditions.

Perhaps it is possible in the future to engage technology for the federal vote and allow people to cast their ballot from home. Candidates would be able to talk to voters directly through email or webcasting and voters could cast their ballot by secret login at a given time.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canadavotes/map/2006/#

Socials 11 Essay Topics. In class first week in October

2008-09-23T21:49:00.000-07:00

Below are several essay topics. You are asked to choose one and prepare notes for an in-class essay in the near future. Be prepared to look at a number of different angles and prepare your arguments in a clear, logical way.

1. Some people say that their vote won’t make a difference, and that is why they sometimes decide not to vote. I believe these people are wrong. Let me explain.
2. In Canada’s recent election campaign, it has come to light that some candidates did some things in the past that has come to light now and that has hurt their reputation. In your opinion, do you think that bygones are bygones and that some of the things we did in the past are irrelevant for what we stand for now? Please take a position.
3. From our study in class we have learned that the Prime Minister is a powerful man. He is able to appoint many people into office. He determines who the Governor General will be, and he determines when to call an election. We also learned that it can be important in government to control the power of different arms in government. Outline what reform you could envision in order to curb the powers of the Canadian Prime Minister.

Government Structure: Canada

2008-09-10T21:13:00.000-07:00

Think of our diagram in class as we tried to show the main elements of the Canadian structure of government.

First, each society has three arms of government: the executive, the legislative, and the judiciary function.

The executive function is the policy function. The leaders of government, the Prime Minister and other Cabinet Ministers, decide on how to move the country forward. They decide what direction the country should take and what kinds of laws are needed to accomplish the job.

Once an idea has been formulated, and this can happen as a result of special interest groups trying to sway the government to take a certain direction, a bill is drafted to implement the BIG idea. When this bill is introduced in the House of Commons, the legislative function of government takes over.
The bill is introduced in the House of Commons and goes through several stages of debate, called readings. At these times, the opposition has the opportunity to ask questions of the government, study the impact of legislation on certain groups in society, oppose the bill or attempt to change the language of the bill in order to give it a different direction or impact.

Once this debate is finsihed and the vote for approval has come, the bill either passes or dies. It shape of the bill depends very much on whether or not the government party has a majority or a minority.

After the House of Commons is finished with the bill and has passed it, the bill is debated in three different readings in the Senate. The Senate is not an elected body. Therefore, it has no right to reject any bills that deal with public money. Those bills can only be stalled for some time if it is felt that the majority of Canadians are opposed to such a bill. Eventually, the Senate will have to approve such bills. Once approved, the bill passes to the Governor General where it is proclaimed as an act or statute. After this, the bill is published in the Canadian Gazeteer and has the force of law.

It is possible that some laws are later challenged as unconstitutional. If this is the case, an application must be made to the courts, the judiciary, to hear the case. It is the judiciary that is in charge of interpreting the bill and the intent of parliament. If a bill violates the constitution, it must be struck down and becomes invalid.

This is how the three arms of government work together.

It is important to have checks and balances in place to ensure that one arm of government does not dominate and leads to a dictatorship of sorts.

Essay Writing Practice

2008-05-22T21:30:00.000-07:00

Discuss the pro and cons of the “first past the post” system.

Q. What are you expected to do?

1. You are to discuss. This means to present the various points of view in a debate or argument, engage in written discourse on a particular topic, process, or concept..

Q. If you hadn’t known this, how could you have figured this out?

2. The words pro and con tell you to talk about all the things in favour and all the things in disfavour, all the advantages and all the disadvantages. These are naturally opposing points of views on the same subject.

Q. Now that the task is clear, you have a new problem. What is it?

3. You are confronted with a term you may never have heard about. Now what? If you really don’t know, a little brainstorming might help.
“First by the post” suggests something or somebody is the first. How do you get to be the first? You get to be the first by winning. As we are talking about a post, it suggests that you have past the post before anyone else. And what do you usually get when you win? A prize. So, first by the post could be expressed by saying the winner gets a prize. But what a price would it be? And what about the others who tried and failed? The word first suggests that there were others in a race. Now think more globally. What are we testing in this exam? It is probably a question about government. In which section on government are we talking about competition of sorts: government structure, law-making, ideology, political parties, elections, the constitution, the judiciary? Well, you figured it out by now: Elections are like a race to the top. Whenever there is an election, political parties are competing for power and candidates are running for office hoping to be elected by their constituents. So, first past the post then is about the end results on election night. It is about tabulation and analyzing who won and who didn’t and what it all means for the next few years of the country while the new government comes to power.

Q. Now that you have brainstormed a little bit, let’s see what else we might come up with.

4. We know elections are for government. We know there are different political parties, and we know there are candidates running for office in each of the 308 ridings or constituencies in Canada. Each riding produces only one winner and that person will get a seat in the House of Commons.

Q. Does such a system seem fair?

5. Maybe or maybe not. Imagine we have three political parties called A, B, and C with each party running a candidate hoping to win the riding. If there are 10, 000 votes cast in the riding with the following results: A: 8, 674; B: 900, and C: 426 we can say clearly that the candidate for party A is the most popular and wins the riding. Not everyone supported that person but since we believe in a system of majority rule, we are content with this choice.
What would our feeling be, however, if the results turned out like this: A: 4,123, B: 3, 456 and C: 2,421. A would be the clear winner, but what about the people who chose B and C? Taken together, they make up 5,877 opposition votes, clearly something that the winner has to take into consideration when he takes his seat in the House of Commons. The winner of this riding could only get 41.23% of the popular vote while the opposition received 58.77% of the vote. This so-called popular vote tells the real story behind the election results and must be noted by all candidates in their analysis of election results.

Q. This is an example for one riding only. What does this matter overall?
6. It may well be an anomaly in one riding alone, it might also be a systemic problem with how elections are run in this country. Imagine we had a similar situation in, say, 120 ridings and clear results only in 30 ridings in favour of the winning party. Then, the winning party would have a total of 150 seats. With the opposition parties sharing the rest, the winning party would hold power but would also be unpopular with the majority of the popular vote against it.

Q. What does this mean for democracy?

7. Democracy means rule by the people for the people. So, if the people chose the opposition and the opposition gets no power, how does this serve democracy? How can it be guaranteed that those who got their seat “on a margin” can be trusted to reflect the wishes of the majority? There are no guarantees for that and that is why this system is flawed? When the system was conceived, it seemed natural to assume that the winner would be accepted by all and that the winner would do his or her best to serve all the people in the riding. This sounds like a paternalistic attitude like “father knows best” but is really a relic from the past. People have learned not to trust their politicians and have demanded that safeguards are built into the structure of the election machine so that abuses of power cannot take place. The “winner-take-all” or “first past the post” system does not do this anymore in the 21st century. It is an antiquity and should be changed.

Q. How could such a change take place?
8. Other countries, e.g. Germany, have a system of proportional representation. There, the candidate with the largest number of votes wins the riding, but, if there is a large popular vote against that candidate, it is possible to select the second largest winner. This makes government much larger and costly as more Members of Parliament have to be elected. However, it makes it also more democratic, and who says that democracy is cheap. The cheapest form of government is that of the dictator who rules with an iron fist and eliminates his enemy. People in a democracy deserve better and so election reforms should be undertaken to change the system.

Q. Who seems to be served with the current system?
9. Well, the people if the results turn out to be like in the first example. But when they turn out to be like the numbers in the second example, then it is clearly the government that is being served under the guise of democracy.

Q. Can you follow my train of thought and my logic? Do you have some better idea how to write your own essay on this subject? Then go ahead.

E-Exam Practice

2008-05-07T20:02:00.001-07:00

http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/eassessment/

Socials 11 Government Worksheet

2008-04-28T21:23:00.001-07:00

Source: href="http://canada.gc.ca/howgoc/glance_e.html"

1. How and when and why did the Canadian Maple Leaf flag become Canada’s national flag?
2. What are the lyrics of Canada’s official national anthem?
3. What is Rideau Hall?
4. Who was Canada’s first Governor General?
5. Bill C-53 was introduced in the House of Commons April 14, 2008. What is the full title of this bill?
6. Canada’s Conservative government has passed a number of bills into law since it came to power. These bills are categorized into five classes? What are these?
7. What is the category bill C-34 fits in?
8. Forsay discusses a number of government topics, among them, Parliamentary Government. What is that?
9. Describe the Opening of Parliament.
10. What is the Hansard for?
11. Libby Davies is the MP for Vancouver East, the location of Vancouver Technical School? What is the most recent population figure for this riding?
12. How long is Question Period?
13. Who is Canada’s Prime Minister?
14. Who is Canada’s present Minister of National Defence?
15. What is the difference between a public bill and a private bill?
16. What happens before a bill goes to first reading?
17. What happens to a government bill after it has cleared the House of Commons?
18. What does it mean when we say “first past the post?”
19. Which political parties registered under the Elections Canada Act for the 39th general election?
20. How many members are in the House of Commons and in the Senate?

Government. Based on Government. Participating in Canada.

2008-04-16T09:36:00.001-07:00

Government. Based on Government. Participating in Canada.

Below is a list of 35 questions. These questions require some basic research on your behalf. Do not just restrict yourself to your text. Consult other sources, such as the internet, appropriate websites given to you by your teacher, as well as make reference to the newspaper.
Use these questions as a basis for discussion in small groups and in class. You will be expected to elaborate on each question thoughtfully and factually and will attempt to incorporate various perspectives.

1. Why do we need government?
2. How is government in Canada structured?
3. What is the function of each branch of government?
4. Why is it necessary to have different branches?
5. Canada is a federation. What does this mean?
6. What are the three levels of government in Canada?
7. How are these levels of government chosen?
8. How do municipalities get their powers?
9. What are some of the powers assigned to each level of government?
10. Are there overlaps? Where are they?
11. What is a constitution?
12. Why did confederation come about and what was the main purpose?
13. What are some important provisions in the constitution that regulate the relationship of the national government to the regional, or provincial governments?
14. How many provinces are there?
15. How many territories?
16. On a map of Canada, show which political party is in power of each province and territory at the moment in 2008.
17. Which political party is in power in Canada?
18. Which party or parties form the opposition in Canada?
19. What does it mean when a government is described as a minority government?
20. How can such a situation quickly lead to an election?
21. Different political parties usually stand for different ideas or ways of doing things. What do the main political parties in Canada and in British Columbia stand for?
22. Governments govern. What does this mean?
23. What are the tools governments employ in order to make their ideas become reality?
24. How do the various political parties differ in their approach towards governing?
25. Imagine you were in charge of addressing the problem of homelessness in Canada. In table form, outline a possible approach to such a problem from the view point of the three major political parties, i.e. the Conservative Party, the Liberal Party, and the New Democratic party.
26. Some of your measures would involve the spending of public money. Where would the money for your initiatives come from? What effects would your decisions have?
27. How can you as an individual participate in government?
28. In Canada, people are generally free. This means they have rights. What are some of these rights and how are they guaranteed?
29. What would happen if a government tried to restrict some of these rights through legislation?
30. Discuss the ideas behind individual rights as opposed to public rights.
31. Just like a coin has two sides, so a citizen of Canada does not just have rights but also responsibilities. What does this mean?
32. How do Canadians choose their leaders?
33. How does an election take place?
34. Make a list of five historical challenges Canada faced in the past and describe how these were overcome by government.
35. Make a list of at least five contemporary challenges and describe how these should be addressed.

Assignments for this section:

1. Know the answers to the above questions and be able to articulate them in writing and concisely.
2. Choose one issue from the newspaper or other sources. Clearly identify the issue and propose one solution from the point of view of one political party ideology. Outline what criticism might result from different viewpoints.
3. Research some of the major events that have taken place in Canada with reference to Canada itself or Canada and other nations. Examine how the government dealt with these issues and how the various opposition parties reacted. Based on your research, how would your knowledge help you decide which political party to choose for government if an election was held within the next month or so?

Population Geography Handouts: #4 The Demographic Transition - A Contemporary Look at a Classic Model

2008-03-24T16:41:00.000-07:00

Please go to this web address to download the data sheet for this exercise.

http://www.prb.org/pdf06/06WorldDataSheet.pdf

Revised March/ April Schedule

2008-03-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

March 26: Handout #1: Population Quiz: Discussion of Answers. Handout #2: Population Throughout History. Discussion. Homework Reading Assignment: Handout #3: Malthusian Model and Demographic Transition.Handout: Factsheet: Why Population Age Structure Matters to a Safer, More Equitable World (New Handout)

In-class work. Working with Population Pyramids and interpretation of Data. What do the data mean and how do they fit into policy making?

March 28: Reviw Question on Handout #3 and Fact Sheet. Classwork on Handout #4.

April 1: Country Study. Howto do it. Resources: Criteria Discussion and relevant webbsites. Individual Project to be presented in speech format to the class April 15. No exceptions. You should have a power point presentation of no more than three slides and use this to provide an overview over your country's population issues using facts.

Homework Reading:Handout #5: The Rising Tide of Poverty, Handout #6: Stop Aids Love Life in Ghana.

April 3: Discussion of Handout Materials.

April 7, 9, 11: Handout #8: Plaintiff: People of Bangladesh v. the Industrial Nations of the World. You will form teams and develop a court scene in which the following players are required: Judge, Plaintiff, Defense, Climatologist, Geographer, Agricultural Expert, and a Demographer. (7 people) The purpose of this assignment is to simulate a trial in which the people of Bangladesh are taking industrialnations to court and attempt to get compensation for their losses.

Students not engaged in any group will be news reporters whose task it is to report on the issues and outcome of the trial.

Decide if you have enough information. The job of the Plaintiff is to supply enough evidence against the defendant; the job of the Defense Counsel is to repudiate or lessen claims by the plaintiff or make counter claims.

You will be given three classes to prepare.

All trials are due April 15

April 9: Trial Prep

April 11:Trial Prep

April 15: All trial presentations DUE. Prepare yourself for a discussion on: Handout #9: The Challenge of Sustainable Lifestyles

April 15: Presentations due. Plan for no more than 30min sessions total

April 17: Overflow presentations

April 23: Class Discussion: Handout #9

March Schedule

2008-02-26T21:11:00.000-08:00

March 3: All presentations are due!!.
March 5: Introduction to Population Geography Concepts
March 7: Thomas Malthus vs Demographic Transition Model; Reading Population Pyramids and assessing their implications on policy making

Marks cut-off for all Term 2 Assignments. No exceptions.

March 11: Group Project
March 13: Readings Discussions

March 17-25 Spring Break

March 26: Group Projects Presentations
March 28: Environmental Issues. Acid Rain, Ozone Hole, Global Warming.

Canada Timeline Poster for History

2008-02-20T22:13:00.001-08:00

Criteria:

Due date: End of March: Each student must produce their own poster. This is NOT a group Project. This project will be marked. You will get a maximmum of 10 marks per section for a total of 60 marks. You need to present some of it to the class, and you must be able to use it effectively for review for your provincial exam in June.

If you are sloppy, your' exam prep will also be sloppy.

Timeline starts with World War I and ends in the year 2000.
You need to include the following:

A. all WWI events, important people, terms and issues both at home and overseas. Be sure to include controversy and little area maps to remind you where what happened and in which order.

B. all WWII events. Same as above.

C. all events in-between WWI and WWII, mostly focussing on labour issues right after the war, economic upswing, Great Depression, social issues, such as the social gospel, new political parties, federal-vs provincial powers, regional issues.

D. all events post WWII: Cold War, Canada's social changes, population changes, welfare state.

E. Role of important Prime Ministers throughout: Borden, Mackenzie King, Bennett, Diefenbaker, Pearson, Trudeau, Mulroney, Chretien.

F. Canada's relation to Quebec, the USA, the world

SS11 Geography Topics and Schedule

2008-02-15T21:16:00.000-08:00

March 3: What is population geography? Terms and Concepts; Introduction to resources.

March 5:Stages of development; Thomas Malthus; Neo-Malthusiasm vs Demographic Transition Model.

March 7:Working with Population Statistics

March 11: Country Presentations Due

March 13: Group Project: Class Work

March 26: Group Project: Class Work

March 28: Group Presentations

April 1:Essay Test

April 3:Environmental Issues: Acid Rain, Global Warming, Ozone Layer

April 7:Issues and Problems associated with population change, both growth and decline. Class Discussion

April 9:Individual presentations due

April 11:Group Project: Class Work

April 15:Group Project: Class Work

April 17:Presentations

April 23:Catch-up Day for missing assignments

April 25:Test

April 29:Intro Government

Socials 11 Project

2008-02-06T19:59:00.000-08:00

Following WWII, Canada's face has been changing. The class will divide into groups in order to examine these changes.

We will follow this format:

Each group will be responsible to take charge of one chapter. You will be responsible to present the following from each chapter to the class in both oral and visual form: a. Key concepts and ideas, b. Key events, c. Key people.

In addition, you will identify d. at least three issues of the time period under study and present these issues from different points of views. One issue should be tackled in the form of at least two speeches that take opposing views; one issue should be tackled in the form of a debate; one issue should be tackled as a class discussion where the presenters present key information and ask the class to contribute their views.

Finally, your presentation will include a test in which students will be quizzed on terms, timelines, personalities. This test must be a combination of short and paragraph-style answers.

Chapters are:

18,
19,
20,
21,
22,
23,
24,
25,

This project is due the last week in February.

Social Studies 11 January Mid-term Review

2007-12-21T09:02:00.001-08:00

Answers should start out with general concepts in mind and be followed up with concrete examples for support in order to receive full credit.

1. What were the ideological causes that led to WWI and WWII? How are these causes similar and how are they different?
2. What were the essential differences in both wars when it came to Canada’s participation?
3. Describe Canada just prior to and during World War I?
4. How did the war affect production in Canada?
5. Many Canadians believed that if they fought for Canada with enthusiasm, the country would benefit and participation would yield long-term dividends. Explain how such a statement could be supported.
6. How was the battle of Vimy Ridge an important factor in (a) developing autonomy, and (b) the call for conscription?
7. Describe the battles in Ypres, Passchendaele, and the Somme and assess their importance for Canada. Include a timeline to enhance your assessment.
8. Who was Sam Hughes? What was his role in the war? How did the Ross rifle controversy tarnish his reputation?
9. Why was it important for Canada to sit in at the Versailles Peace conference?
10. During the war, women began to see changes in their role in society. Explain.
11. What is propaganda and how was it used to convince Canadians to support the war effort?
12. Returning war vets faced many problems. What were they and how were they solved?
13. Immediately after the war, Canada’s economy fell into a depression. Explain why.
14. Both the OBU meeting in 1919 in Calgary and the Winnipeg Strike in 1919 in Winnipeg have been connected to Bolshevik attempts to advance left-wing ideologies in Canada. Explain the connection between these two events, whether there is any truth in the allegations of Communist conspiracy, and connect these events to the Russian Revolution. Explain briefly why Winnipeg would be the center of radical labour activities.
15. What was the Person’s Case?
16. Describe the situation of miners in Glace Bay.
17. Who were Nellie McClung and Marjory MacMurchy?
18. How did women in Canada become enfranchised? Why was this not applied to all women? Were immigrants able to vote or were there exceptions? What about First Nations people?
19. The 1920s and 1930s were characterized by a climate of racist attitudes. What was the role of eugenics in this context?
20. What was the purpose of prohibition? Why was prohibition in Canada not introduced at the same time as in the USA? What problems resulted from this?
21. Describe how the following events can be linked to Canada’s desire to become more autonomous from Great Britain: Canada gained a seat at the Versailles Peace Conference, Canada joined the League of Nations, Canada was free to join into the Halibut Treaty with the United States, the King-Byng Crisis, Chanak Crisis, Balfour Declaration and Westminster Statute.
22. How are the Maple Leaf flag and the Patriation of the Constitution part of the process of Canada’s developing nationhood?
23. With global warming threatening that arctic ice will melt, thus opening the Arctic Ocean to international shipping, what challenges lie ahead for Canada’s sovereignty?
24. What was the role of the automobile and the radio in spawning economic prosperity and expectations of high returns in the stock markets?
25. What was Black Tuesday, and how did this day change the world?
26. Compare the Great Depression in Canada with that of the USA.
27. Why was the Canadian government not able to solve the crisis of the Great Depression?
28. Describe the relief camps set up by the government in Canada?
29. Who was Canada’s Prime Minister during the Great Depression?
30. Why did Mackenzie’s “five-cent speech” cost him the election prior to Bennett’s win?
31. How did the Great Depression affect Germany?
32. Describe how the Versailles Treaty’s determination of war guilt, the political instability during the Weimar Republic, and the effects of the Great Depression brought Hitler to power.
33. Describe the events that led up to the outbreak of WWII.
34. Describe Germany’s strategies to take over Europe and the world.
35. How did Canada help Britain in WWII?
36. What considerations did the Canadian government have to make in order to help Britain in her war effort and prevent internal division at home?

SS11 December Schedule

2007-11-28T19:47:00.000-08:00

3: WWII Video & Discussion; What do we need to know about WWII? Terms and Concepts
5: Due: #1: Understanding Historical Facts: #1-5 p. 223; Canada's involvement in battle overseas. The Issue of Dieppe.
7: Holocaust and the Atom Bomb
11: Due: #2: Understanding Historical Facts: #1-4 p. 245; The War at Home
13: Due: #5. Detailed, annotated map of Canadian events
at home and involvement overseas; Japanese Canadians

17: Issues of WWII at Home: BCATP, Conscription
19: Due: #8: Group Project Due Groups of 4 to present their work to the class. Max time is 10 minutes
21: Due: #6: In-class Essay

World War Two Project

2007-11-26T21:03:00.001-08:00

In groups of no more than four, design a World War II project that involves (a) original historic research, (b) textual interpretation, (c) timeline events, (d) personalities, (e) key events from different perspectives, (f) map references, and that (g) shows at least two related themes examined from the viewpoint of the past and the present-day lens.

This project needs to be (h) presented to the class or a small group so that (i) feedback can be provided on both the content and the performance. Presentation must include digital media in both visual and audio formats. Please incorporate cell phones, as well as digital cameras in this project and explain how you have utilized this technology in sharing and learning.

The goal of this project is to take the audience back in time and view the events of the past through the eyes of a character and thus obtain a deeper sense of understanding of the past. Feel free to examine original documents, images, interviews either online or through personal contacts if available and incorporate them with appropriate referencing.

This project will be worth 50 marks. A detailed breakdown of marks will follow shortly.
As this is a group project, ensure that all group members share their commitment in this project and that each member is accountable to the group for their contributions.

Welcome to WWI

2007-09-18T20:30:00.000-07:00

Please use the following link for your research:

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/website/topic/index-e.html#e

EXAM REVIEW

2007-05-30T21:25:00.000-07:00

Stephen Harper
Conservative 2006.02.06
Paul Martin
Liberal 2003 - 2006
Jean Chrétien
Liberal 1993 2003.
Kim Campbell
Progressive Conservative 1993 -1993 Brief interim leader
Brian Mulroney
Progressive Conservative 1984 -1993 End of Cold War (Fall of Berlin Wall)
John Turner
Liberal 1984 -1984
Pierre Elliott Trudeau
Liberal 1980 -1984 Canada-US disagreements to be settled through “quiet diplomacy”
Joe Clark
Progressive Conservative 1979 -1980
Pierre Elliott Trudeau
Liberal 1968 -1979 Trudeaumania; new foreign policy shifting away from following U.S. policies (China, USSR, Cuba); expansion of NORAD; FLQ crisis, War Measures Act; post-war prosperity (Ontario, Alberta, B.C.); anti-American resentment due to Vietnam war; Canada not to be a mirror image of the US
Lester Pearson
Liberal 1963 -1968 Bi&Bi; social safety net, Maple Leaf flag; Quiet Revolution, Auto Pact, CIDA
John Diefenbaker
Progressive Conservative 1957 -1963 Northern vision; Africville; Avro Arrow; Equalization grants; Tommy Douglas (father of medicare); St. Lawrence Seaway; Cuban Missile Crisis
Louis St-Laurent
Liberal 1948 -1957 Holocaust, NATO, United Nations; Suez Canal crisis; Counter culture; la survivance; Massey Commission
William Mackenzie King
Liberal 1935 -1948 WWII: Dunkirk, Dieppe, Ortona, D-Day, liberation of Holland; Hong Kong, Pearl Harbor, Japanese internment; BCATP, Battle of the Atlantic; Gouzenko Affair
Richard Bennett
Conservative 1930 -1935 Great Depression; Relief Camps, CCF, On-to-Ottawa trek, Regina Riots, New Deal
William Mackenzie King
Liberal 1926 -1930 Stock market Crash (Black Tuesday, 1929)
Arthur Meighen
Conservative 1926 -1926
William Mackenzie King
Liberal 1921 - 1926 Halibut Treaty (1923); King-Byng Crisis (1926); Balfour Declaration & Statute of Westminster (1931)
Arthur Meighen
National Liberal and Conservative Party 1920 - 1921 mini depression
Sir Robert Borden
Unionist 1917 - 1920 Conscription (1917); Russian Revolution; Versailles Peace Treaty; League of Nations; returning war veterans; Spanish Flu Epidemic; Winnipeg Strike, OBU
Sir Robert Borden
Conservative 1911 - 1917 WWI: Ypres (1915), Somme (1916), Vimy Ridge (1917) Passchendaele (1917), Halifax Explosion

World War I

Battle of Ypres 1915:
In 1915, the second Battle of Ypres established the reputation of the Canadians as a fighting force. The 1st Canadian Division had just arrived on the Western Front when they won recognition by holding their ground against a new weapon of modern warfare - chlorine gas.
• 6035 Canadian casualties in 48 hours
• More than 2000 Canadians died
Summary of the Battle of Ypres 1915 :
• The 1st Canadian Division had just arrived at the front and were moved to Ypres Salient, a bulge in front of the City of Ypres in Belgium.
• The Germans held the high ground.
• The Canadians had two British divisions on their right, and two French army divisions on their left.
• On April 22, after an artillery bombardment, the Germans released 5700 cylinders of chlorine gas. The green chlorine gas was heavier than air and sank into the trenches forcing soldiers out. The gas attack was followed by strong infantry assaults. The French defences were forced to retreat, leaving a four-mile wide hole in the Allied line.
• The Germans did not have enough reserves or protection against the chlorine gas for their own troops to take immediate advantage of the gap.
• The Canadians fought through the night to close the gap.
• On the first night, the Canadians launched a counter-attack to drive the Germans out of Kitchener's Wood near St. Julien. The Canadians cleared the woods, but had to retire. More attacks that night resulted in disastrous casualties, but bought some time to close the gap.
• Two days later the Germans attacked the Canadian line at St. Julien, again using chlorine gas. The Canadians held on until reinforcements arrived.
Battle of Beaumont Hamel:
The opening day of the Battle of the Somme was a slaughter for the Allies, and the 1st Newfoundland Regiment was virtually annihilated at the Battle of Beaumont Hamel. In Newfoundland and Labrador, July 1 is Memorial Day to commemorate Newfoundland's heavy losses in the Battle of Beaumont Hamel.
• 733 of 801 men in the 1st Newfoundland Regiment were killed or wounded
• Total Allied casualties on the opening day of the Battle of the Somme were 57,470, of which 19,240 were fatal.
Battle of Beaumont Hamel Summary:
• The "Big Push" was a mainly British offensive on the Somme in France. The plan was to break the German defences and clear a path for the cavalry through to the English Channel.
• The Newfoundlanders were assigned, with a battalion from the Essex Regiment, to take the third enemy line, by which time it was expected there would be little opposition.
• The Germans not only knew of the planned assault however, but the earlier Allied siege to weaken their defences had also missed many of its targets.
• At 2 am July 1, the 1st Newfoundland Regiment completed a five-hour march to the trenches.
• At 8:45 am the Newfoundlanders were ordered in to support the 87th Brigade.
• The Essex Regiment was delayed by clogged trenches and the Newfoundlanders had to cross 900 metres (over half a mile) of exposed front alone, in broad daylight. No Allied artillery fire covered them.
• Few made it even as far as the Allied barbed wire, and those who did were expected to move in parade-ground formations through zig zag lanes that had been cut in the wire.
• The men who made it to No Man's Land could see across another 500 metres (547 yards) of exposed slopes to the German first line of defence.
• The Battle of Beaumont Hamel was over for the Newfoundlanders in less than half an hour.
Battle of Passchendaele:
Arguments over strategy, heavy rains, and mud marked the controversial three-month Battle of Passchendaele, also known as the Third Battle of Ypres.
Canadian Troops/ Casualties at Battle of Passchendaele:
20,000/ over 15,000 members of the Canadian Corps

Battle of Passchendaele Summary:
• This offensive in Flanders was launched by British commander Sir Douglas Haig to break through the front and destroy the German submarine bases on the coast of Belgium.
• The initial barrage of Allied artillery warned the Germans and created a mass of craters, potholes and dust in the battlefield. Heavy rains turned the field into a bog of thick mud that severely limited mobility.
• British, Australian and New Zealand forces fought for months with few advances and 100,000 casualties.
• When the Canadian Corps was ordered to relieve the Anzac forces in October, Canadian Lieutenant-General Arthur Currie objected but was overruled.
• The Canadians began a series of attacks on October 26.
• On October 30, with two British divisions, the Canadians began the attack on Passchendaele itself. By November 6 when reinforcements arrived, the village of Passchendaele was taken.
•
Battle of Vimy Ridge
The Battle of Vimy Ridge began at dawn on Easter Monday, April 9, 1917, when all four divisions of the Canadian Corps attacked Vimy Ridge above the Douai Plain in France. The Commander of the Canadian Corps was Lieutenant-General Sir Julian Byng, who later became Governor General of Canada. The Commander of the First Division was Major-General Arthur Currie.
The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Allies' effort to push the Germans out of France. Vimy Ridge was key to the German defence system, and previous attacks by the French and British had failed.
Vimy Ridge Battle Casualties
• 10,602 Canadians wounded
• 3,598 Canadians died
Vimy Ridge Battle Summary
• The Battle of Vimy Ridge was the biggest single Allied advance on the Western front up to that point in World War I.
• Months of preparation went into the battle, included building tunnels, trenches, tramways and roads.
Extensive reconnaissance used observation balloons for the first time, and the German defences were subjected to a three-week barrage of artillery in advance.
• All four divisions of the Canadian Corps went into battle.
• The attack began at dawn and Canadians took the crest of Vimy Ridge in the afternoon of April 9.
• On April 12, they took Hill 145, the highest feature on the ridge, and also the "Pimple," a large hill on the northern end of Vimy Ridge.

Autonomy and International Involvement

Autonomy=political independence or sovereignty. Canada moves from British colony to independent political nation (Basis: ability to make own constitutional amendments and deal with other nations at a foreign policy level); yet, close proximity to USA leaves Canadian state under strong American influence and demands for cooperation with challenges to Canada’s political independence.

Key events contributing to evolution of autonomy.

World War I: Participation in war shows Canadians able to fight well and make Canada proud; success in battle, e.g. Vimy Ridge becomes contributing factor in Canada participating in her own right at the Versailles Peace Conference and obtaining a seat at the newly formed League of Nations. Canadian soldiers also try to fight as a united Canadian force, not spread out amongst British commands. French Canadian soldiers resent having to join English-speaking command, maybe a contributing factor in the conscription crisis of 1917. Only French Canadian fighting force: Vandoos.

Chanak Affair (1922): Canada refused to go to war automatically if called by GB to come to the aid of the Empire.
Halibut Treaty (1923): Fishing Treaty between Canada and US sanctioned by GB and precedent for future international treaties signed by Canada without a British presence.

King-Byng Crisis: Allegations of wrong-doings force Mackenzie King’s government to request dissolution of Parliament but GG refuses to follow PM’s advice. Result: constitutional crisis which can only be resolve by King’s resignation and forcing GG to appoint Meighen as PM, thus causing the convention to kick in that an unelected PM must call an election to have the mandate from the people. Hence, GG’s powers even more limited and traditional political ties with the “mother country” severed.

US Branch Plants: Canada’s policy of high tariffs on US imports (remnant of Macdonald’s National Policy) and the arrival of American tourists by car (since invention of the automobile) led to influx of American investment and increased ownership of Canadian resources by Americans. Result: attempts by nationalists to create a strong Canadian identity through such terms as “Canadian mosaic” as opposed to “American melting pot” and Group of Seven (Artists).

King-Herzog Principle, Balfour Declaration & Statute of Westminster (1931): King and Herzog (PM of S. Africa). Discussions leading to greater independence of all colonies, formally captured by S. of Westminster, thus allowing all former colonies to amend their own constitutions. (Except: Canadian provinces unable to agree on an amending formula until P.E. Trudeau brings home the constitution in 1982).

WWII: Canada waits one week following GB’s declaration of war on Germany before declaring war on Germany herself. Canada also insists on clear identification of Canadian pilots as part of the BCATP. Canadian autonomy under threat with potential Japanese invasion of Alaska and US demand to build Alaska Highway through B.C. Joint military cooperation, e.g. DEW line test Canada’s military independence. Problem: Canada’s military budget always under funded resulting in outdated or obsolete equipment and reliance on US. One reason for not securing soldiers to defend Canada’s west coast after Pearl Harbor.

Cold War: US requests by John F. Kennedy to assist in the Cuban Missile Crisis are stalled by Diefenbaker as “parliament must debate” first. Result: Canada as NATO ally not reliant in American eyes, but autonomy symbolically preserved.

Global Warming: Climate changes leave Canada’s Arctic waters open for long stretches throughout the year allowing international shipping vessels to travel Canadian waters without Canada’s consent. Result: Need to have a Canadian presence by transplanting Inuit people from Labrador to Ellesmere Island. (Use it or lose it concept).

9/11: Terrorist attacks on NYC have led to demands for joint security between Canada and the US from Americans but have received reluctant commitments from Canada. Tensions between joint cooperation at the cost for political autonomy continue.

Canada’s transition from a participant in war to international peace keeper

WWI: Canadians are eager to help GB as most soldiers are relatives to those in Britain. War represents adventure and a way to show that Canada can be on her own.

WWII: Canada fights independently to show off her newly found independence but is still a strong supporter of British values and the mother country. In both WWI and WWII the world alignment does not pose a direct danger to Canada as a result of technology even though Canada is a target by German submarines.

Post- WWII: Canada is now squeezed between the two super powers, Russia and the USA and nuclear war has become a reality. Canada can’t closely ally with the USA for fear of becoming a target for the USSR; hence, Canada chooses the role of the peace broker and enhances this role by attempting to help nations in conflict to sort out their difficulties. Result: improved respect for Canada’s new role as a peace keeper.

Society and Identity:

Intolerance in Canada

Definition: Isolating others for their perceived differences, e.g. race, religion, origin, sexual orientation, appearance. Tension between what is considered mainstream society and abnormal.
Intolerance is often associated with racism in its most visible form and can lead to discrimination. For discrimination to be challenged, government action is required in the form of protective legislation of minorities. However, governments themselves are often to blame for systemic racism and discrimination simply based on the fact that elected officials are bowing to pressures from the electorate to act in a certain way. This creates tension and can only be overcome through an exploration of general values held by the majority of Canadians.

Examples of intolerance:

Anti-Asian sentiment: Vancouver race riots against Japanese (Little Tokyo) and Chinese (Chinatown) in 1907. Application of head tax against Chinese immigrants (first introduced in 1885 at $50, increased to $100 in 1902 and again in 1903 to $500). Passage of Chinese Immigration Act (Exclusion Act in 1923). Continuous Passage legislation against immigration from India to stop the “brown” invasion (Komagata Maru, 1914); pressure to force out Japanese Canadians culminating in the establishment of Japanese internment camps in B.C. interior and the prohibition for any Japanese Canadian to live within 100 miles of the coast as a war measure in WWII. Internment was coupled with confiscation of property of Japanese Canadians. Redress and monetary compensation finally given to Japanese survivors in 1988 (Mulroney government) but Chinese Canadian demands for redress still ongoing.

Ideology: While institutional intolerance in the above three examples is clearly race-based, intolerance against Ukrainian Canadians in WWI and their internment is based on ideology and the fear of Bolshevik takeover in WWI right after the Russian revolution. At a second level, those who had traditionally opposed war (Socialists for fear of weakening their cause through the depletion of manpower) or for religious reasons (Mennonites, Doukhobors) because they were not on our side in the war.
Enemy aliens (Germans, Italians, Japanese)

Racial Superiority and labor demands: Establishment of the reserve system as early as the late 19th century made Aboriginal peoples dependent on the Canadian government and freed up large tracts of land for farming, mining, and forestry owned and controlled by white Canadians. Young aboriginal children were often displaced and removed from their families as a result of the residential school system that stressed assimilation into Canadian mainstream culture, forcing aboriginal children to learn English, punishing them for using their own culture and language, thus causing a rift between them and their traditional values.

Eugenics: As a result of WWI, increased immigration, increased movement on eugenics and attempts to preserve the white race and maintain a white Canada. Strong movement particularly in BC with its British values and class system and a strong bar for ethnic minorities to take on professional careers. WWI was seen as a white man’s war and Blacks were either not allowed or only to clean out latrines; aboriginals were also excluded with such reasons that atrocities would happen to them if they had to face the German enemy. Only when casualties increased were minorities allowed in to fill the gaps.

Anti-Semitism: St. Louis, refugee ship from Germany with German and other European Jews tried to land in Cuba, the USA and Canada only to be refused entry and sent back to their death in 1939. “No country’s doors were wide enough to take in so many refugees.” Inherent fear of a refugee avalanche.
Great Depression: Limits on immigration and attempts to encourage immigrants to leave Canada.

Post-WWII: DPs and refugees from eastern Europe change makeup of Canada’s population. Formerly mostly western European (English, Irish, Welsh, Scottish, German, French, Swedes and Norwegian) increased immigration from war-torn nations (Eastern Europe). Consequent changes in population make-up, especially as a result of Holocaust, put pressure on governments to focus on human rights and multiculturalism. Immigrants of diverse cultural and language backgrounds French and English Canada gap has increased so that measures must be undertaken to create harmonious relations between the two founding European nations of Canada and this harmony must be extended to the immigrant factor through appropriate legislation.
Intolerance in Canada can then be divided into two main phases: intolerance towards minorities in the first half of the century and attempts to alleviate the effects of intolerance and isolation in the time period following WWII. Canada’s actions are influenced by the American Human Rights movement and the fact that Canada has isolated her aboriginal people through the reservation system in a way similar to the Holocaust in Germany. While the war period could be used to explain such aberrations as forced internment (Ukrainians, Japanese), the post-war period must seek reconciliation through improvements: Official Languages Act, Multicultural Policy, Multicultural Act, Immigration Act revisions, improved dealings with refugees (Vietnamese boat people). Yet, pressure on the social system and abuses of Canada’s welfare system by refugees (Fujian refugees smuggled into Canada by so-called snakeheads) as well as perceived threats of terrorism or immigrants taking their cause and struggle against their homeland to Canada and fighting battles from foreign soil (Sikhs for an independent Punjab) have shifted Canada’s humanitarian ideals somewhat, sometimes because of pressures by the USA for increased security.
In addition, increasing demand for housing often led to urban renewal projects that focused on areas inhabited by minority groups (Africville in Halifax, Chinatown in Vancouver).

Brainstorming Activity

Politics and Government Theme: Charter of Rights and Freedoms and how Canadians can influence public policy.

• Charter: written document, guarantees rights (entrenched) against government abuses and process
• Upper ceiling and floor; changes (amendments) difficult since amending formula onerous (unanimous consent in House of Commons, Senate, min. 7 provinces and 50% population);
• All Canadian legislation at all levels (federal, provincial, municipal) must conform to Charter or will be struck down by courts if challenged.
• Similar to Bill of Rights
• Notwithstanding Clause (5 year weasel clause, not applicable to democratic rights section) and reasonable limits clause (limits to individual rights if public interests are paramount) makes Charter not absolute protector of rights.
• Election time allows Canadians to change governments, minority governments must work with opposition parties to pass legislation or vote of non-confidence will result in new election
• Letter writing campaigns, peaceful protests, petitions, forming a new political party, writing letters to the editor of newspapers can all help influence public opinion between elections.

Autonomy and International Conflict

• Autonomy is sovereignty or independence
• Mostly political in terms of choosing one’s own government and making foreign policy decisions
• Economic or military autonomy is not guaranteed or desirable and alliance systems are preferable
• Within the Canadian state, tendencies towards independence (Quebec) have thus far been thwarted, but independence movements flare up (Quiet Revolution, FLQ crisis, Referendum towards separation (Renee Levesque, Jacques Parizeau, Bernard Landri, or, in general, Parti Quebecois and the Bloc Quebecois)
• Stepping stones towards autonomy: participation in WWI, seat at Versailles Peace conference, seat in the League of Nations, Halibut Treaty, King-Byng crisis, Statute of Westminster, Maple Leaf flag (1965), Patriation of the Constitution (1982); gaining international respect as a peace keeping nation
• Participation in international conflicts as allies (WWI, WWII, Korean War), member of international organizations (League of Nations, United Nations, NATO,
• Participation in peaceful international aid organizations (CIDA, Red Cross, WHO, CUSO, OXFAM, NGOs, World Monetary Fund (World Bank)

Society and Identity

• French vs. English Canadians
• Aboriginals on and off reservations
• Ethnic minorities
• Unity in diversity
• Multicultural society

Human Geography

• North-South dialogue
• PQLI
• Refugees, global migration, international aid
• Kyoto Accord
• Global Warming
• Climate Change

Notebook Entries: Social Studies 11

2007-03-29T13:13:00.000-07:00

Guidelines.

Your notebook should be organized in two parts. The left side of your notebook should contain factual reference notes taken from your text book. The right-hand side should show evidence of critical analysis in the form of questions, relevant comments, or connections that shows an attempt to link ideas from one time period to another. Make sure your notes also include time references, name references, and concept references

War (WWI, WWII, Korean War)
1. Canadian involvement in war
a. Battles (5Ws, Assessment)
b. Home Front (Mobilization Efforts, Levels of support)

2. Effect of war on Canada
a. Social (e.g. Role of women, racism)
b. Economic
c. Political

Interwar
1. Post-war economic struggles and prosperity
2. Unrest (war vets demands, Winnipeg Strike, western farmers’ demands)
3. Roaring Twenties
4. Stock Market Crash
5. Great Depression (Problems and Solutions)

Post WWII
1. World geo-political realignment
2. Cold War
3. Canada’s emerging role as a peace maker
4. Social changes within Canada
5. Canada and the United States

Quebec
1. Quebec’s role in Confederation
2. Sovereignty Association or Separation
3. FLQ Crisis

SS 11 Calendar

2007-03-14T13:24:00.000-07:00

March

D2: 26 The War at Home, Japanese Canadian Internment
D1: 27 The War at Home, Japanese Canadian Internment
D2: 28 The Holocaust
D1: 29 The Holocaust
D2: 30 Scrapbook Presentations

April

D1: 2 Scrapbook Presentations
D2: 3 WWI/II Compare and Contrast
D1: 4 WWI/II Compare and Contrast
D2: 5 Interwar Period Review

D1: 10 Test WWI/ Interwar/ WWII
D2: 11 Test WWI/ Interwar/ WWII
D1: 12 Post-WWII Canada Overview
D2: 13 Post-WWII Canada Overview

D1: 16 Suez Canal Crisis
D2: 17 Suez Canal Crisis
D1: 18 Diefenbaker
D2: 19 Diefenbaker

D2: 23 Development of Multiculturalism
D1: 24 Development of Multiculturalism
D2: 25 Human Rights
D1: 26 Human Rights
D2: 27 Canadian Identity

D1: 30 Canadian Identity

World War II Study: March 2007

2007-02-28T20:24:00.000-08:00

March: Week 1
World War II: Overview and Issues. The War Overseas. Battles and Timelines.

March: Week 2
The War at Home

March: Week 3 = Spring Break. Have a great Holiday!

March: Week 4
Scrap Book Presentations to the class.

April: Week 1
Comprehensive Review and Test on WWI, the Interwar Period, and WWII.

This will cover all of Units 2, 3, and 4 in your text book

Causes of the Great Depression

2007-02-27T09:43:00.000-08:00

1. False Prosperity
• overdependence on mass production, consumer spending, advertising, welfare capitalism, high tariff, "invisible hand"
• automobile was the leading industry
• chemicals, appliances, radio, aviation, chain stores
• overproduction in textiles, farming, autos
• real wages increased only 11%
• 60% population less than $2000 poverty minimum
• top 5% earned 33% income - spending by the rich essential
• Andrew Mellon cut taxes
2. Speculation
• Fed loaned at 3.5%, gold inflow 1927, Great Bull Market 1928
• broker loans on call rose from $3.5b in 1927 to $8.5b in 1929
• Goldman Sachs investment trusts, 50% margin trading at 5% interest
• only 1.5m of 120m population were investors
• pooling tactic of "anglers" - John J. Raskob
• Charles Mitchell of National City Bank: "I know of nothing fundamentally wrong with the stock market." (Oct. 21, 1929)
• Joe Kennedy: "Only a fool holds out for the top dollar" (sold after RKO merger in October 1928)
3. Stock Market Crash
• Sep. 3 Dow high of 381
• Sep. 6 Babson break - market became erratic
• Sep. 20 - collapse of Hatry in Britain
• Oct. 23 - J.P. Morgan buys to stop price decline
• Oct. 24 - panic selling began - 12.8m shares
• Oct. 29 - "Black Tuesday" - 16.4m shares
• prices decline to Dow low 41.22 on July 8, 1932
4. Banking Crisis
• deposits withdrawn, deflation
• 9000 banks fail in 1930, 1932 waves
• Austria's bank failed May 1931
5. Unemployment
• ripple effect as leading factories close
• rose to 25-35% of total labor force, 80% in Toledo
• farm income declined 60%; 1/3 lost land
6. Trade Collapse
• foreign countries retaliate with high tariffs
• Weimar Republic unable to pay reparations or U.S. banks loans
• U.S. had been creditor with $638m annual surplus
7. Republican Policy
• "The Ordeal of Herbert Hoover"
• laissez faire, balanced budget, trickle down, voluntarism
• no use of monetary or fiscal policies
• Agricultural Marketing Act, Hawley-Smoot tariff, RFC of Jesse Jones
• Three Little Pigs

Canada in the 1920s Weblinks

2007-02-11T22:50:00.000-08:00

Famous Five, Person Case: http://www.collectionscanada.ca/famous5/053002_e.html

Viola Desmond: http://www.cbc.ca/maritimemagazine/archives/2006_feb_w1.html

Africville: http://archives.cbc.ca/IDD-1-69-96/life_society/africville/

Chinatown, Vancouver: http://vancouverchinatown.ca/heritage.html

Glace Bay: http://www.minersmuseum.com/history_of_mining.htm, http://www.minersmuseum.com/multimedia_layout.htm

Japanese Canadians: http://www.najc.ca/thenandnow/enindex.php, http://www.csuohio.edu/art_photos/canada/canada.html

Salvation army: http://salvationarmy.ca/history

Great Depression: http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1929_39depression.html

Rowell-Sirois Commission: http://www2.marianopolis.edu/quebechistory/federal/rowell.htm

World War II: http://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/militaryhistory_e.html

2007-01-16T14:10:00.000-08:00

History
___________________________________________

1. Canada in World War I

2. Post-World War I prosperity and the Great Depression

3. Canada in World War II

4. Canada in the Cold War, Canada as an emerging Middle Power

5. Rise of the Welfare State.

6. Canada’s Multicultural Experiment

7. Canada and the U.S.A.

Canada in World War I

1. Why did World War I break out? Briefly write a short description of the concepts of imperialism, nationalism, and militarism and how these three ideologies brought about the First World War. Discuss also how Socialism would have acted as an antithesis to war.

2. How did Canada get involved? Canada was part of the British Empire and therefore not in charge of its own foreign affairs. Any international commitment made by Great Britain had to be honored by the colonies, among them Canada. Why would this automatic participation have been welcome by some groups but not by others? Explain your answer in detail.

3. What role did Canada fulfill in this war both abroad and at home? Canada participated in a number of important battles overseas. Which battles were they? Provide details in terms of timelines, geography, war statistics and final assessment as to the outcome for Canada. Please mention who the various commanders were and what their accomplishments would have been. What were important controversies about the decisions they made? What was the role of Canadians at home during the war? How did women participate, children? What was the purpose of propaganda during the war? Give examples.

4. How did World War I affect Canada during the war and after? Canada was unprepared to go into World War I. Why? How did this fact manifest itself? How did the government improve this situation over time? How did the role of workers and women change during the war? How did the relationship between the French Canadians and English Canadians change? How did the relationship between Canada and Great Britain change?

5. Research Essay: Research one aspect of World War I that interests you. You can examine a particular battle, the weapons used, a particular type of fighting such as naval, air, or infantry. You can research different countries’ war propaganda, literature recounting war, the home front, primary documents such as newspaper headlines. A topic of particular interest would be to examine how the First World War was portrayed in the newspapers, e.g. the Vancouver Sun. In order to do this, you would have to visit the Vancouver Public Library and research articles, cartons, editorials, and other war related topics that describe what it was like to live in Vancouver during this war. Bonus marks would apply.

Web Resources:
1. VAC Canada Remembers:
http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=history/firstwar/canada

2. World War I Research Site: http://www.fidnet.com/~weid/ww1.html

3. Canada and the First World War: http://www.collectionscanada.ca/firstworldwar/05180105/0518010503_e.html

4. The Memory Project: http://thememoryproject.com/digital-archive//main.cfm

5. The First World War: http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/womenww1_intro.htm

6. The Loyal Edmonton Regiment Museum: http://www.lermuseum.org/ler/mh/wwi/changingtactics.html

Background Reading on selected topics
The Battle of Vimy Ridge, 9-12 April 1917
Tim Cook

Many historians and writers consider the Canadian victory at Vimy a defining moment for Canada, when the country emerged from under the shadow of Britain and felt capable of greatness. Canadian troops also earned a reputation as formidable, effective troops because of the stunning success. But it was a victory at a terrible cost, with more than 10,000 killed and wounded.

The Canadian Corps was ordered to seize Vimy Ridge in April 1917. [Map] Situated in northern France, the heavily-fortified seven-kilometre ridge held a commanding view over the Allied lines. The Canadians would be assaulting over an open graveyard since previous French attacks had failed with over 100,000 casualties.

To capture this difficult position, the Canadians would carefully plan and rehearse their attack. To provide greater flexibility and firepower in battle, the infantry were given specialist roles as machine-gunners, rifle-men and grenade-throwers. These same soldiers underwent weeks of training behind the lines using models to represent the battlefield, and new maps crafted from aerial photographs to guide their way. To bring men forward safely for the assault, engineers dug deep tunnels from the rear to the front. Despite this training and preparation, the key to victory would be a devastating artillery barrage that would not only isolate enemy trenches, but provide a moving wall of high explosives and shrapnel to force the Germans to stay in their deep dugouts and away from their machine-guns. "Chaps, you shall go over exactly like a railroad train, on time, or you shall be annihilated," warned Canadian Corps commander Sir Julian Byng.

"In those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation."
BGen A.E. Ross

In the week leading up to the battle, Canadian and British artillery pounded the enemy positions on the ridge, killing and tormenting defenders. New artillery tactics allowed the gunners to first target, then destroy enemy positions. A nearly limitless supply of artillery shells and the new 106 fuse, which allowed shells to explode on contact, as opposed to burying themselves in ground, facilitated the destruction of hardened defences and barbed wire. The Canadian infantry would be well supported when it went into battle with over 1,000 artillery pieces laying down withering, supportive fire.

Attacking together for the first time, the four Canadian divisions stormed the ridge at 5:30am on 9 April 1917. More than 15,000 Canadian infantry overran the Germans all along the front. Incredible bravery and discipline allowed the infantry to continue moving forward under heavy fire, even when their officers were killed. There were countless acts of sacrifice, as Canadians single-handedly charged machine-gun nests or forced the surrender of Germans in protective dugouts. Hill 145, the highest and most important feature of the Ridge, and where the Vimy monument now stands, was captured in a frontal bayonet charge against machine-gun positions. Three more days of costly battle delivered final victory. The Canadian operation was an important success, even if the larger British and French offensive, of which it had been a part, had failed. But it was victory at a heavy cost: 3,598 Canadians were killed and another 7,000 wounded.

The capture of Vimy was more than just an important battlefield victory. For the first time all four Canadian divisions attacked together: men from all regions of Canada were present at the battle. Brigadier-General A.E. Ross declared after the war, "in those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation."

Vimy became a symbol for the sacrifice of the young Dominion. In 1922, the French government ceded to Canada in perpetuity Vimy Ridge, and the land surrounding it. The gleaming white marble and haunting sculptures of the Vimy Memorial, unveiled in 1936, stand as a terrible and poignant reminder of the more than sixty thousand Canadians who died serving their country during the First World War.

The birth of a nation, the Canadian Corps captures Vimy Ridge

The "Trench Line" of World War I was surely hell on Earth. Stagnant, many failed charges across "no man's land," artillery fire, sniper fire, smoke, gas, rain, sleet, snow, cold, wind, malnourishment, disease, no end in sight to the agony and death from November 1914 until April 1917. What had the Germans inflicted on mankind by splitting Europe in two and committing millions of fine young men to terror and death deserved by no man? On April 9, 1917, after many months of planning, training, and digging, a Canadian Corps, the Canadian Corps of four Canadian Infantry Divisions, supported by intensive British and Canadian artillery, lurched out of their holes and tunnels and captured the previously impregnable Vimy Ridge in France, in just one day. The Huns were defeated, the Canadians held the Ridge, the Allies saw they could win. Perpetual hellish stalemate was not inevitable. The Canadians? Well, they among many endured an enormous sacrifice, but they also saw the birth of their nation, a prize every Canadian and American should cherish forever.

May 30, 2004

Editor's note: Since publishing this article, we have received an input from Mr. Geoff Harestad, which amplifies this article. It has been placed in the right column. Once you finish with this article, we urge you to read his comments, entitled, "Vimy Ridge was all Canada!" His comments are a good read and, I might say, invigorating and uplifting. February 5, 2005

At 5:30 AM, April 9, 1917, the Canadian Corps, consisting of four Canadian infantry divisions, stormed up Vimy Ridge, France, and by the end of the day, had captured the Ridge, claiming the first major Allied victory over Germany of World War I (WWI).

This victory was important for many reasons. It was one of many battles that occurred during this time period that attempted to break through the German lines. The Canadian victory at Vimy Ridge was the only important gain made among all these battles. It provided a firm anchor for the British drive against the Germans that would occur in 1918.

Long term, as you will see, the victory marked the birth of Canada as an independent nation.

Understanding WWI is a huge and complex undertaking. The Battle of Vimy Ridge of 1917 was an important milestone in this war. To fully appreciate why that is true, we must first go through some history. Throughout this summation, we recommend you pay attention to dates.

First, let's recap the scope of WWI. This graphic is courtesy of World Book.

• Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on June 28, 1914, and invaded Serbia on July 29.

• During August 1914, Germany declared war on Russia and France, and invaded Luxembourg and Belgium.

• During that same month, Great Britain declared war on Germany, Austria declared war on Russia, and France and Great Britain declared war on Austria Hungary.
So, you get a sense for the complexity of this war.

The second point is that you can see from the map that there were multiple fronts extending from France and Belgium to Russia, the Balkans, and what was the Ottoman Empire, present-day Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Jordan and others.

When the fighting began, France, the United Kingdom, and Russia, who came to be known as the Allies, backed Serbia. They opposed the Central Powers, made up of Austria-Hungary and Germany. Other nations later joined the Allies or the Central Powers.

For purposes of Vimy Ridge, your attention will be directed to the Western Front and northeastern France.

Third, this war occurred at a time when the capacity for warfare to be extraordinarily lethal was enabled by the technologies and production facilities emerging from the Industrial Revolution.

Valcartier military mobilization camp, 1914, courtesy of Canada & World War One - the First Contingent.

Yet, at the same time, many countries, Canada and the US included, were not at all prepared to fight wars on this scale. They did not have the troops, they did not have the training, they did not have the weapons. To fight this war, they had to start virtually from scratch. The Germans, on the other hand, were prepared and had thought about this kind of war for some time.

Finally, to put Canada's contribution to WWI in context, we need to touch on just a bit of Canadian history, which we will do through a succession of maps.

In the 17th century, much of Canada was known as New France, while the English entrenched themselves in the American colonies. Between 1689 and 1763, French and English colonists fought each other in four wars for control of New France. Britain won. As shown in the next map, Britain took control along the Atlantic coastline and the St. Lawrence River.

Map courtesy of the Library and Archives of Canada
In March 1867, the British Parliament established the Dominion of Canada, elevating its stature from that of a colony. This essentially meant that Canada ruled itself, except that Britain ran its foreign affairs and the British monarch served as head of state. As you can see from the map below, the United States had already formed as its own country. The Dominion of Canada remained very small.

But between 1867 and WWI, the Dominion of Canada grew very rapidly. As seen in this next map, it now stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific and had nine provinces.

Map courtesy of the Library and Archives of Canada
In summary, on the eve of WWI, Canada had grown markedly, it was largely independent but was still closely tied to Britain, with Britain running its foreign affairs, and the British monarch served as its head of state. On the military side, any army the Canadians might have was commanded by British officers.

Britain declared war against Germany on August 4, 1914. On that same day, Canada issued this message to Britain:
“If unhappily war should ensue, the Canadian people will be united…to maintain the honor of the empire”

As a loyal member of the British Empire, Canada too was now at war with Germany. She quickly decided to create an Expeditionary Force and Canadians mobilized right away. By September, over 40,000 men had volunteered.

It is worth noting here that a proposal had already been floating through the Canadian government to form a mounted (cavalry) fighting unit for rapid response should Britain go to war. That proposal was accepted on August 10, 1914 and Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry Regiment was authorized.

The ranks for this regiment were filled in some eight days, consisting almost entirely of trained ex-regular soldiers who had served with the British Army. On December 21, 1914, this regiment arrived in France and was the first Canadian unit committed to battle. So, Canada was at war with Germany in early August, and four months later a Canadian regiment was in France on its way to battle.

Valcartier military mobilization camp, 1914, courtesy of Canada & World War One - the First Contingent.

The First Canadian Army, returning from drill at Valcartier Camp in Quebec, courtesy of Library and Archives of Canada

In the mean time, Canada had begun mobilizing on a much larger scale and by late September 1914, already had enough recruits to form a division and a reserve division. As a result, the First Canadian Infantry Division emerged in late September from the Valcartier Mobilization Camp in Quebec. This was the first Canadian infantry division ever assembled in the country, over 30,000 officers and enlisted men.

4th Battalion on board the SS Tyrollia leaving Gaspé, October 4, 1914, courtesy of Canada & World War One - the First Contingent.
On October 1, 1914, the First Infantry sailed to Britain to complete its training. It took some 33 Atlantic liners and additional British Royal Navy escort ships to move these forces from the Gaspé Basin off the coast of Quebec to England

In February 1915, the First Canadian Infantry Division began landing at the Bay of Biscay in France. What an incredible feat: start mobilization in August 1914, organize, train, equip and deploy a brand new infantry division in October, get a light infantry regiment to France in December, and follow that by getting this first-ever Canadian infantry division off to France to fight by February 1915, just six months after starting.

As a point of interest, it was not until April 6, 1917, that the United States declared war on Germany and not until June 26, 1917 that American forces landed in France.

There is a mind-boggling amount of history that occurred between 1914 and 1917. We want to focus your attention on the Battle of Vimy Ridge. Why this battle? Because it involved some very important “firsts,” and the Canadians led the way in such a manner that they changed history. Not many Americans know this.

At long last, we are ready to explore Vimy Ridge. As is always the case, we like to start with geography. You’ll be surprised at how much history you’re exposed to by simply trying to understand where Vimy Ridge is.

First, we need to get an overview of World War I. As shown earlier, there were multiple fronts. We are going to focus on the Western Front in northeastern France and Belgium. The Western Front is shown in this next graphic, also courtesy of World Book.
The Germans began their invasion of Belgium and France on August 4, 1914, and it was on that day that Britain declared war against Germany, and therefore it was on that day that Canada too was at war with Germany.

The Belgians and French were no match for the German invasion. Britain, which had about a decade earlier created a British Expeditionary Force (BEF), started to deploy to France when Germany launched its invasion. By October 1914, it had seven infantry and three cavalry divisions in France and Belgium.

The Germans almost made it to Paris and the English Channel but the British, French and Belgians managed to stop the advance and pushed the Germans back to the blue line shown on the map above. This Blue Line became known as the "Trench Line." Germany had hoped to capture France quickly. They were unable to do so and finally withdrew to the Trench Line. It extended some 450 miles from the North Sea near Ostend, Belgium, through northeastern and eastern France to the Swiss border. It has been described as "a meandering line of trenches that ran non-stop from the Swiss border to the North Sea," a line of trenches that split Europe.

It is now November 1914. That Trench Line remained relatively static for about 3.5 years and became the location of a killing field that is almost second to none. We have placed a green arrow on the map above to highlight the location of Vimy Ridge. You can see it is right on the Trench Line.

Evacuating an early casualty. 1-Jul-1916, The Somme, courtesy of worldwar1.com, photo archive
To demonstrate the slaughter that occurred in this 450 miles of meandering trenches, the British alone suffered 60,000 men killed, wounded and missing at the Battle of Somme in 1916. Total Allied losses at this battle were 1.3 million. There were other horrendous battles, including the Battle of Verdun. This battle lasted from February through December 1916, some 700,000 casualties, dead, wounded and missing, were inflicted in this patch of land measuring about 10 square kilometers, and at its end, virtually nothing changed with regard to land holdings of each side.

This Trench Warfare impacted soldiers in many other ways, when there were no battles. Many men died of disease, poor diet, snipers, and occasional artillery rounds. These men were all lumped together in a group called "normal wastage." To many, it seemed that this stand-off would go on forever.

In 1917, French General Robert-Georges Nivelle, a hero of Verdun, thought he could rupture German lines. He launched a major offensive on April 16. The Germans had learned of the plan and had prepared their defenses well. At the end of the battle, more than 100,000 men were lost, there were no significant gains made, and the French Army deteriorated into a state of mutiny. .

It is against this backdrop that we can now approach the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

This is a photo of the Ridge.

First position for the battle of Vimy, Carency, April 1917 , Courtesy of the Government of Canada
The Ridge, seen in the background of this photo, was occupied by the Germans in September 1914. It is now April 1917.

On the surface, the Ridge does not look formidable, unless it was your task to get up that ridge and defeat the forces entrenched on it in the days of WWI. Located near the town of Arras, it proved to be a strategic location for the Germans. Occupying the top of the Ridge meant that they could control much of the region.

The Ridge itself might better be described as "heights," or an escarpment, which overlooked the plains of Artois, also called the Douai Plain. It stretched 14 kms from the town of Vimy northwest to Givenchy-en-Gohelle. Sections of it were 60 meters high. But as a whole, the Ridge was only 150 meters above sea level and dominated by the lowlands in front of it.

Trenches at Vimy Ridge, photo courtesy of School history, Vimy Ridge
German engineers constructed a network of artillery-proof trenches, caves, passages and bunkers that snaked along the crest down into the valley, connecting with another network of natural caves. It had three rows of trenches behind barbed wire and numerous machine gun nests.

With these defenses set, the Germans bombarded the town of Arras using heavy artillery with impunity. The French 10th Army was dug in around the town, some 12 kms away from the Ridge. They attempted several assaults on the Ridge during 1915 and suffered an estimated 150,000 casualties.

Trenches at Vimy Ridge, photo courtesy of School history, Vimy Ridge

In 1916, the British took over this sector and almost immediately had to fall back about 2 kms. Once settled in place, aggressive planning began to take the Ridge. The British plan was not approved.

During the winter of 1916, the Canadians took over the sector, commanded by British Lieutenant General Sir Julian Byng, who served as commander, Canadian Corps France. Byng was a veteran of previous operations in Sudan and South Africa. In WWI, Byng had commanded the 3rd Cavalry Division of the British Expeditionary Force, led his troops at Gallipoli (1915) and organized the successful withdrawal from Sulva Bay. He was known as "bungo" to his friends.

You will recall that the Canadian First Infantry Division arrived in France in February 1915. By 1917, Canada had four divisions in France, the First through the Fourth. Fortunately for them, the Canadians were deployed together, forming the Canadian Corps, instead of being split apart and assigned to British units. Australian General Sir John Monash wrote after the war:
"It is impossible to overrate the advantages which accrued to the Canadian Corps from the close and constant association of all four divisions with the others. This was the prime factor in achieving the brilliant conquest of Vimy Ridge."
All four divisions were located near Vimy Ridge, with the British on their north side and the French on the south. This map shows the Canadian and German deployments at Vimy Ridge.

The Canadian and German Front Line Positions, courtesy of the Canadian National Archives, presented by CBC News In-depth
There are three points we wish to make with this map:
• Geographically, note the towns marked with red dots, Givenchy to the northwest, and Vimy southeast of it. Also note the abundance of contour lines between the two. As a general statement, those red dots mark the heights at Vimy Ridge. About 12-14 kms to the south-southwest is the town of Arras, off this map.
• The Germans to the east had two corps, the VIII Corps to the north, opposed mainly by the 24th British Division. One of the VIII Corps' divisions, the 16th Bavarian Jager Division, however, faced both the 24th British Division and the 4th Canadian Division, the latter marked by the green box. Most of the Vimy Ridge, however, was occupied by the Bavarian Reserve Corps, with two divisions, the 79th Reserve Division and the 1st Bavarian Reserve Division. These stood opposed to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Canadian Divisions, marked by red, dark blue, light blue and green boxes respectively.

• The two dark lines you see in the middle, going roughly top to bottom through the center of the map, mark the area referred to as "no man's land." This is a term used by the soldiers to describe the ground between the two opposing forces. The average distance across might be about 250 yards. But there were locations where it was only 50 yards, some where it was 500 yards, and one place where it was only seven yards. These areas normally contained a great deal of barbed wire, perhaps 100 feet deep.
We cannot overemphasize the benefit to the Canadians to have their four divisions in tact, working together, as Canadians, entrusted with developing their own plan of attack. While commanded by a British officer, Lieutenant General Byng, Canadian Major General Arthur Currie was that commander's right hand man, and the brains behind the detailed planning and preparation. General Currie, shown in this photo courtesy of "For King and Empire," succeeded General Byng to take command of the Canadian Corps and its four divisions after the Battle of Vimy Ridge .

Reporting for CBC News On-line on April 9, 2003, Gary Graves, in an article entitled, In -depth Vimy Ridge Remember: Shock and Awe 1917, said that the Canadians assembled a very detailed plan of attack. They planned their assault for months, set up a mock replica of the Vimy terrain to rehearse and adjust, mapped out 80 percent of the German gun positions using Canadian spotters, and dug five kilometers of tunnels in order to move their troops and ammunition to the front without being observed. They also built a light railroad to bring in heavy artillery.

As a prelude to the attack, the British and Canadians joined to pound the German positions with 2,500 tons of ammunition per day for two weeks. The Canadians had an expert gunner in Major Andy McNaughton, a McGill University graduate in physics and engineering who brought science to bear on the art of war. He was so scientific and disciplined in his approach to targeting and maintenance that one British officer is reported to have said:
"You Canadians take all the fun out of war."
The Canadian plan was to wear down the Germans with this barrage, and use the barrage as a screen for Canadian troops to move forward. Graves reported:
"Hundreds of shells would land at once, spraying plumes of muddy earth upward like a polluted version of some giant decorative water fountain. Every three minutes the 850 Canadian cannons would aim a little higher, advancing the row of shellfire forward by 90 metres."
The Canadians planned to move forward as a single formation, all four divisions, by foot, but not too fast. They had to stay behind the forward moving barrage, and not get ahead of it, in what came to be known as a "creeping barrage," an invention of Canadian General Currie.

29th Infantry Battalion advancing over "No Man's Land" during the battle of Vimy Ridge. Dead comrades, or enemy, lay at left. Photo courtesy of the National Archive of Canada PA 1020, presented by Warchronicle.com
The attack commenced at 5:30 AM, April 9, 1917, the day after Easter Sunday. The weather has been described as cold, wet, sleet and windy, the mud below them wet and slippery. An estimated 30,000 Canadian troopers had already moved toward the front lines, and 20,000 of them moved out from their trenches and into "no man's land," from all four Canadian divisions, simultaneously. The Germans expected an attack, but they did not know when or how.

The Canadians had built 12 tunnels or subways (7 kms worth by one account) to and under the Ridge, on four different levels, so their troops could virtually jump out and onto the Ridge.

This photo shows the Grange Tunnel, a 250 meter stretch that has been preserved (photo courtesy of Veterans Affairs, Government of Canada, "Vimy Ridge Memorial Tour, a Virtual Reality Panoramic tour of the area, a "must see" web site). This tunnel was dug in 1916-1917 by the 172nd Tunnelling Company of the British Royal Engineers, with the help of the men of the 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade.

There are two maps below. They are both interesting to study. We like the first map because it shows the order of battle, it shows how various Canadian and a British infantry brigades crossed the "no man's land," and how they made it up to the Ridge, pushing back the German lines.

The Canadian Plan of Attack, courtesy of the Canadian National Archives, presented by CBC News In-depth

We like this second map because it's easy to read and is most descriptive.

The Canadians at Vimy Ridge, courtesy of "For King and Empire, Canada's soldiers in World War I," one terrific web site, must see.

Let's briefly identify the Canadian forces that attacked the Germans at Vimy Ridge: The front that you are looking at stretches for about four miles:

• We have talked about the 1st Canadian Infantry Division. The 1st was commanded by Major General A.W. Currie. This division's 1st, 2nd and 3rd Infantry Brigades crossed "no man's land" in their sector, referred to as the Zwolfer Graben Trench system, in 30 minutes, and after another hour, the 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade was in control of the land south of the town of Thelus. By the end of the day, the division had achieved its objectives. Painting of General Currie presented by worldwar1.com

• The 2nd Canadian Infantry Division was formed in October 1914 and was fighting in France by September 1915. For Vimy Ridge, the division was commanded by Major-General Harry E. Burstall. The division's 4th, 5th and 6th Canadian Infantry Brigades along with the British 13th Infantry Brigade moved across "no-man's land" and the 6th Canadian took the town of Thelus. Painting of General Burstall by Sir William Orpen, courtesy of Orpen Portraits in the Canadian War Memorials Collection by Robert F. Wodehouse, Curator of War Art, presented by the Government of Canada.

• The 3rd Canadian Infantry Division was formed in December 1915 and engaged in its first major battle at Mount Sorfrel in June 1916. It was commanded by Major-General L. J. Lipsett. This division, with its 7th and 8th Infantry Brigades, moved into what was called the "Schwaben Tunnel," which was heavily fortified with machine gun boxes. Its objective was to reach the eastern slope of Vimy Ridge. The division captured La Folie Farm, pushed through La Folie Wood and captured positions south of Hill 145, the highest point on the Ridge. Painting of General Lipsett by Sir William Orpen, courtesy of Orpen Portraits in the Canadian War Memorials Collection by Robert F. Wodehouse, Curator of War Art, presented by the Government of Canada.

• The 4th Infantry Division was formed in April 1916 and embarked for France just a few months later, in August 1916. For Vimy Ridge, it was commanded by Major-General David Watson. The 4th was to move into Givenchy, take Hill 145, and the eastern slopes of the Ridge. This was the most heavily defended part of the Ridge, the landscape was steep and filled with holes that filled with water, and Canadian forces were open to fire from some of the machine-gun posts that survived the 3rd Division's assault. The 4th Division took heavy casualties, but, by the end of the day, it had taken Hill 145, though the Germans remained active east of the hill. Painting of General Watson by Sir William Orpen, courtesy of Orpen Portraits in the Canadian War Memorials Collection by Robert F. Wodehouse, Curator of War Art, presented by the Government of Canada.

There was a great deal of activity to the south of the Vimy Ridge. The British 3rd and 5th Armies engaged in battles around Arras and areas further to the south in an effort to stretch German resources, but they met with enormous resistance.

The Canadian attack on Vimy Ridge started on April 9, early in the morning. Three of the Canadian divisions captured most of the Ridge by the afternoon, and the other division had taken its objectives south of the town of Thelus. By April 12, the Canadians took the two highest points, Hills 135 and 145, it was clear that the Canadians held Vimy Ridge, and achieved their overall objectives. The Germans tried a counter-attack, it failed, and they withdrew in the darkness of night.

The many days of heavy artillery barrages against the Germans took their toll on them. Many of them fell back to their secondary lines or simply surrendered when the Canadians arrived. The Canadians encountered heavy resistance at the secondary lines, however. They suffered 10,602 casualties, of which nearly 3,600 were killed in action. While high, it must be recalled that many, many tens of thousands Canadian, British, French and German men were killed in action as the result of previous attacks on the Ridge.

This battle was important for many reasons. It was one of many battles that occurred during the time period that attempted to break through the German lines. The Canadian victory at Vimy Ridge was the only important gain made among all these battles. As mentioned during our introduction to this battle, the Trench Line had remained static from 1914 until this time. The Canadian victory proved that this line could be moved, that there was an alternative to stalemate. The city of Arras was relieved. The defeat was demoralizing for the Germans who had viewed the Ridge as one of their most impregnable strong points. The Canadians held the Ridge following their victory, offering a strategic point at times behind German lines. It provided a firm anchor for the British drive against the Germans that would occur in 1918.

The Canadians, under British rule, under British command, had won the first major allied victory over the Germans in WWI. What strikes us as perhaps the most important, long-term, was expressed well by Brigadier-General Alexander Ross, DSO, who commanded the 28th (North West) Canadian Battalion at Vimy. He saw the victory this way:

"It was Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific on parade. I thought then that in those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation."

In the November 9, 1999 edition of Canoe, Quebcormedia, John Ward of the Canadian Press said this:

"It (WWI) was a war that changed Canada in this century from a meek colony to a nation insistent on its dignity and its own place in the peace. The official Canadian history says of the soldiers: 'They fought as Canadians and those who returned brought back with them a pride of nationhood that they had not known before.'"

In 1931, the British Parliament passed the Statute of Westminster, which officially recognized Canada and the other self-governing dominions as independent nations. Canada was then its own nation.

The last Canadian infantry soldier to survive the Battle of Vimy Ridge died on March 1, 2003 at the age of 103. He was Charles Reaper of Winnipeg, At Vimy, a private with the 39th Infantry Battalion. This photo was taken by Cheryl Hnatiuk, The Globe and Mail, in May 2002, and accompanies a nice article by Krista Foss.

Private Reaper was injured by shrapnel during the battle, and recovered to fight again in the Third Battle of Ypres in Flanders fields. He was an orphan from Scotland and came to Canada through the auspices of The Orphan Homes of Scotland at the age of 12. He enlisted in the Canadian Army at the age of 16. While recovering in hospital from his wounds at Vimy, he proudly boasted to all that he was a Canadian. He was Canada's last living link to the infantry soldiers who fought at Vimy Ridge. Private Reaper was granted one of France's highest awards, the Legion of Honour, in 1999.

Aerial view of the Vimy Memorial, courtesy of Veterans Affairs Canada.
Two hundred and fifty acres of Vimy Ridge, including Hill 145, its highest point, were made "the free gift in perpetuity of the French nation to the people of Canada" Canada has built a glorious memorial there to honor all those who Canadians who fought in this terrible war.

Canadian losses during WWI were staggering: 60,000 soldiers dead from a total enrollment of 625,000. On the western front, one Canadian in seven who served was killed. Of those, 16,000 have no known grave.

"Ghosts of Vimy Ridge" (1931), a painting by Will Longstaff, portrays the spirits of servicemen of the Canadian Corps. The memorial on Vimy Ridge stands dramatically on the summit beneath which the shimmering spirits of Canadian soldiers gather in the silvery moonlight. William Frederick Longstaff is a distinguished Australian artist. He was born in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia in 1879. This photo of the "Ghosts of Vimy Ridge" is courtesy of Bartletts Battlefield Journeys Ltd. By using this link, you can order a print..

Canada celebrated the 85th anniversary of Vimy Ridge in April 2002. A student from each province went to France and to the memorial.

"They are too near to be great. But our children shall understand, when and how our fate was changed, and by whose hand." Courtesy of Veterans Affairs Canada.
As a final note, the Victory at Vimy! We salute you, Oh Canada!

Victory at Vimy! The celebratory mood of these soldiers was echoed back home in Canada, and throughout the Alliance. (#PAC A-1322) Courtesy of Veterans Affairs Canada, visit the photo gallery for an impressive slide show.

Opening photo credit: Sentry duty in a front-line trench, September 1916. Source: National Archives of Canada/National Defence collection/PA-000568/Accession 1964-114, Credit: W.I. Castle. nlc-4325, presented by the Library and Archives of Canada

The Victoria Cross is the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Four Canadians would receive the Victoria Cross, the highest award for valour, on the Ridge. Only one survived the war. All illustrations by Sharif Tarabay, presented by Legion Magazine of Canada. The VC recipients were:

Private William Milne, Cambusnethan, Lanarkshire, Scotland, Canadian Infantry, Manitoba Regiment, 16th Battalion

Lance-Sergeant Ellis Sifton, Wallacetown, Ontario, 18th Battalion, Western Ontario Regiment

Captain Thaine MacDowell, Brockville, Ontario, 38th Ottawa Battalion (Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa), East Ontario Regiment. Survived, and later achieved the rank of colonel.

Private John George Pattison, Calgary, Alberta. Alberta Regiment, Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Vimy Ridge was all Canada

February 4, 2005

Excellent work! And very noble of you to provide the history service: a big thank you for doing it!

I've 'become' a history buff, with and only because now one doesn't need to fight traffic and carfiles at libraries, with the net so easily accessed.

A few corrections re your Vimy article (and thank you for it; it was great):

General Arthur Currie, straight Canadian, 'totally' planned Vimy's Canadian victory and invented the 'creeping barrage' that purely stomped flat the Germans - 'no' input of significance by the British (Byng; great fellow, Byng, and loved by Canadians; but Currie, not Byng, was the root of this ingenious and super-successful assault).

Monash, an Australian, says the victory was 'only' as the Canadians were allowed to fight together, and not apart and attached to British armies. This is a half-wit statement on this Aussie's part. Anyone with average intelligence and beyond realizes it was Currie's brains and his speaking abilities. His speeches to troops made the Canadians yearn to impress, to serve Canada, serve mankind and serve Currie himself - they were as proud of 'Guts and Gaiters' Currie, a foul-mouthed genious general, telling other generals of WW1 'the straight goods', whether they wanted to hear it or not. He could care less, if it meant the better welfare of his "Storm Troops of WW1" men and the intelligent execution of the war.

Sound familiar?: Currie in WW1 was very much like Patton in WW2 - same sort of metal, these two men. Patton said "get with it or get out of the way" (be it smart planning, or action itself). Hague was a dumbbell butcher, in this war apparently, so as Currie was caring and intelligent, the two were opposites that hated each other. As well, the Canadians were kept together as an army by Currie and no other authority.

Historical records show that Canadians were, as the war transpired, quickly known as the 'shock troops' or 'storm troops' of the allied effort.

Bluntly? They were the best of the war. Period. And 'no contest'.

Why?: Currie was like Patton, very smart and very "no bull-crap allowed", so his troops loved him, and that made 'very' proud soldiers which in turn makes kick-ass soldiers.

Faced with Vimy, a slaughterhouse for allies before he got there, he said 'I'll outsmart these war-starting Huns (creeping barrage, his invention) then my boys will mop-up on some 'shocked and awed' Huns).

Vimy was 'all Canada', like Passchendael, etc. etc. ; the only 'Brit' influence was Hague, and Currie told the dummy in no uncertain terms (read foul mouth) what was up and what was about to happen.

At least for WW1, the 'interesting' army was Canada. None of the others rated, period, and the newspaper archives are there for verification.

I can't help but think that George Patton, another outspoken genius general and avid reader, author and student, would have studied Currie's efforts, in the way Patton also studied the great generals throughout history.

Here's to Currie and Patton whom seemed to decide "Fight to WIN, not 'just to fight' ... ".

Here's to North America ... frozen north, or palm-treed south ... a true band of brothers.

Geoff Harestad

World War I Propaganda

Germany

Canada

Women in WWI

Source: http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/womenww1_intro.htm

Feature Articles: Women and WWI: An Overview
Updated - Saturday, 25 February, 2006
Still today, when women are employed as professional soldiers by a number of state armed forces, we tend to believe that war is man's exclusive business. This is plainly untrue, and has always been so, since war can't be reduced just to combat and, anyway, combat is no longer the sole province of man.

The First World War is of capital importance to understand the connection between women and war in the wide sense of the word – not just war as combat – because it intersects with crucial developments in the history of feminism. Since women (and I'll refer here mainly to British women) got the vote in 1918, though limited to those over 30, apparently as a way to thank them for their immense contribution to the war effort, WWI is understood to have been a positive event for feminism, with all the contradictions this entails.

We only have to think of, on the one hand, the grief women endured throughout the war on account of the slaughter at the front of men they loved and, on the other, of the feminist defence of pacifism, to understand how bitter this victory over anti-suffragist currents must have been.

Sara Martin, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain

Feature Articles: Women and WWI: Women at the Front: Been There, Done That
Updated - Saturday, 25 February, 2006

During the war women were to be found mostly at the home front while a minority went close to the actual fronts where the war was being fought, some even into combat.
The only woman soldier enlisted in the British Army managed the feat by passing herself off as a man. Dorothy Lawrence, a 20-year-old ambitious journalist, joined in 1915 the B.E.F. Tunnelling Company using the alias Denis Smith, aided by some sympathetic men. She gave herself in after only 10 days worried about the safety of these men and had to endure an absurd interrogatory, as the authorities assumed she was a 'camp follower', that is to say, a prostitute, a term she misunderstood.
While she was forced to keep her adventure silent, as the British Army very much feared the ridicule it would plunge them into, another Englishwoman, Flora Sandes, published a book on her experiences as a soldier in the Serbian Army in 1916, with a view to raising funds for her brothers in arms. Sandes was initially an ambulance driver on the Eastern Front but managed to enlist with the Serbs, who by 1916 had already promoted her to sergeant-major. She stayed on after the war with the Serbian army eventually becoming a major.

Supposedly, Sandes was accepted by the Serbs as the personification of British war aid, a symbolic value also attached though in another sense to no doubt the most famous female combatant of the Great War: the Russian Maria Bochkareva. A soldier in the Army since 1914, wounded and decorated several times, Bochkareva convinced the revolutionary leader Alexander Kerensky in 1917 that a battalion made exclusively of women would shame men grown diffident about the war into fighting.
She recruited 2,000 women out of which about 250 saw actual combat on the Austrian Front fighting together with units of male soldiers. In contrast, the Cossack Maria Yurlova, active in Armenia against the Turkish Army, saw her participation in the war rather as an adventure, though it cost her in the end a severe breakdown.
Despite these exceptions the Governments involved in the war did as much as possible to prevent women's enlisting and participation in combat out of patriarchal principles.

These identified man with the warrior knight and woman with the damsel in distress to be protected from the bestial foe, a plainly anachronistic stance in a situation in which technological warfare was already taking the first steps into civilian mass slaughter at the home front, as could be seen with the first zeppelin raids, which caused 1414 deaths.

Women were assumed to be far more helpless than they were and were also forced to assume a helplessness they didn't feel. Besides, in plain military terms, there's more sense in sending to the front the citizens physically most fit of any sex rather than only men. There are abundant comments about the physical unfitness of the last batches of conscripts, many of them working-class men with bodies badly affected by the horrors of industrial work or youths with very little capacity to endure the hardships of the front. Meanwhile, thousands of women as capable as Sandes and Bochkareva were kept away from the front out of sheer sexist prejudice.
In a great show of hypocrisy, the British Army did not welcome the women who ventured near the front to fight or to cover the war as journalists but was quite willing to exploit the labour offered by those who volunteered to write government-sponsored war propaganda, to collaborate with auxiliary medical organisations, or to take up 'soft jobs' in the armed forces.

Mrs. Humphrey Ward, for instance, asked by Lord Curzon to preside the newly-founded Anti-Suffrage League in 1908, was years later taken on a tour of the trenches out of which she published diverse propaganda books intended to stir American sympathy for the Allied war effort. Self-exiled in France, American writer Edith Wharton toured a number of military hospitals on the Western Front sponsored by the French Red Cross, and also battlefields like Verdun with General Joffre's blessings.

Wharton's subsequent energetic fund-raising for refugees earned her in 1916 a decoration as Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. Another American, Mary Borden, a wealthy woman living in England when the war broke out, was awarded a Croix de Guerre for setting up a mobile hospital unit on the Western Front that nursed men wounded in Ypres and the Somme. Interestingly, she did so out of frustration with the incompetence of the French Red Cross, for which she had originally volunteered.
She published in 1929 an impressive novel, The Forbidden Zone, that reflects her raw experiences. One of the professional nurses she employed, Ellen La Motte, would also publish in 1916 an appalling account of her front-line nursing in Belgium, The Backwash of War: The Human Wreckage of the Battlefield as Witnessed by an American Hospital Nurse.

Nurses had been part of the military set up since the establishment of the Voluntary Aid Detachment (V.A.D.) in 1909 by Lord Kitchener, which formalised the trend initiated by Florence Nightingale during the Crimean War (1853-4) and overlapped with work by the International Red Cross in some cases.

Nightingale's crusade to have soldiers receive proper nursing as close as possible to the battlefield was first rejected as an improper female interference in army life but by the time WWI began this view was changed for good. The International Red Cross, founded in 1863 by the Swiss businessman Henry Dunnant, worried like Nightingale about the low standards of army nursing, was responsible for the signing of the Geneva Convention (or Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field) in 1864, the first international agreement to accept the idea that soldiers needn't die needlessly in the battlefields if wounded or sick.
The ICR acted during WWI as an umbrella organisation to which volunteers and organisations similar to today's NGOs attached themselves: it was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1917, the only occasion it was given during the war. No doubt among those who worked at one time or other for the Red Cross, British nurse Edith Cavell stands our as one true war heroine. She was executed in 1915 by the Germans for having helped literally hundreds of soldiers of the Allied forces to escape from the Belgian hospital she ran to the Netherlands.

While nurses and ambulance drivers (another novelty of the war) were fully accepted, female doctors were quite another matter. Elizabeth Blackwell (awarded a degree by the Geneva Medical School in 1849 and the first female MD to qualify in the USA) and Sophia Jex-Blake (qualified in 1877 as a doctor by the Irish College of Physicians) differed from Nightingale in that they believed women's jobs in the field of medicine needn't be limited to nursing.

Although almost 40 years had passed since Jex-Blake's graduation, Dr. Elsie Inglis, a graduate from the Edinburgh School of Medicine for Women she had founded and who eventually founded her own medical college, faced a hard time when she offered to take women's medical units to the Front. The Scottish Women's Hospital Unit was set up by Inglis with the help of politician Violet Douglass-Pennant and playwright Cicely Hamilton among other feminists, and counted among its collaborators with Ishbel Ross and Evelina Haverfield, founder of the Women's Emergency Corps (1914) and collaborator with Flora Sandes in the setting up in 1918 of canteens that served thousands of Serbian soldiers.

Knowing that Inglis's main sponsor was the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS), an organisation with a marked pacifist bent, it comes as no surprise that the War Office didn't sympathise with Inglis's offer to work near the front lines, and so told her that the least wanted persons there were 'hysterical women'.

The efforts of the Women's Hospital Corps founded by Dr. Louisa Garrett and Dr. Flora Murray were greeted with the same coldness, though the men of the French Red Cross were fortunately more receptive and these two women were able to open military hospitals in Paris and near Bolougne before one in London was finally authorised. The Belgians were also sympathetic towards the Women's National Service League founded by Lady Muir McKenzie and suffragist Mabel Stobart, who already had experience in the Balkan War of 1912 with the Women's Sick and Wounded Convoy Troops.
Stobart founded a hospital in Belgium staffed exclusively by women and moved later back to the Balkans to resume hospital work there. As for Inglis, she took nonetheless her hospital units first to France in 1915 and subsequently to Serbia – where she was briefly held captive by the Austrians - Corsica, Salonika, Romania, Russia and Malta. Ironically, as happened in the case of Flora Sandes, the women under Inglis's command and other nurses like Florence Farmborough – who escaped from Siberia to the USA with Maria Bochkareva, the famous head of the Women's Death Battalion - were seen as symbols of Britain's deep involvement in helping her allies.
The same can be said of Americans such as Helen Fairchild, one in a group of Pennsylvania volunteers who staffed a unit at Passchendaele as soon as the USA became involved in the war, and who lost her life there possibly due to the effect of mustard gas.

VADs needn't be women but most were. Between 1914 and 1918 about 38,000 worked as auxiliary nurses, ambulance drivers and cooks both in the hospitals of the home front and the units of the Western front under the stern rule of Commander-in-Chief Katharine Furse, the woman who took the first VAD units to France.

This was not immediate as, ridiculous as this may seem, VADs were only allowed near the front lines in 1915 provided they were over 23. They worked, besides France, in the Eastern Front, Mesopotamia, Gallipoli and Malta. Proof of the Victorian absurdities operating against VADs can be found in Vera Britain's brilliant book of memoirs Testament of Youth (1933), a volume in which she describes in singular detail the gruelling working conditions that naive middle-class girls like her were subjected to.

Young women who had been raised with all the restrictions of a Victorian education for ladies suddenly found themselves in strange intimacy with each other - putting up with cold rooms, nasty food and low hygiene standards - and also in shocking familiarity with shattered male bodies. Britain complains how, far from being welcome, VADs were constantly under the suspicion by professional nurses of being intruders after their jobs, which they certainly were not.

Britain writes that the reason why she joined in was sympathy for the ordeal of her fiancé at the front; in her diary she wrote: "He has to face far worse things than any sight or act I could come across; he can bear it - and so can I" (154). She adds, though, that "Truly the War had made masochists of us all" (154).

Other VADs who left a critical testimonial are Enid Bagnold in Diary without Dates (1917) and Helena Zenna Smith (the penname of Evadne Price) in her remarkable novel Not So Quiet: Stepdaughters of War (1930), written in quick response to Erich Maria Remarque's best-seller All Quiet on the Western Front (1929).

The VADs were actually created after the FANYs (First Aid Nursing Yeomanry), another brainchild of Lord Kitchener, set up in 1907. FANYs were used during the Great War in dangerous ambulance driving between the front line and field hospitals that they also ran – a feat for which they received quite a high number of decorations - but also for cooking and keeping canteens.

Both FANYs and VADs were the seed for other auxiliary corps also created by men that, to put it crudely, recruited women into serving the basic needs of the army, navy and air men. The main idea behind this strategy was freeing the men from the need to be employed in service jobs behind the front lines while giving women the illusion they were part of the armed forces. According to Prof. Joanna Burke (Women and the Military during World War One link), "in World War One, approximately 80,000 women served in the three British women's forces as non-combatants."

The Navy set up in 1916 the Women's Royal Navy Service (WRNS) staffed by women running kitchens, postal and phone communications, and the administration. The link with the VADs becomes obvious if we think that Katherine Furse was appointed director in 1917, when she resigned as VAD Commander in Chief. The Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) followed in 1917 at the instigation of Lieut. Gen. Sir Henry Lawson, and was filled with volunteers without full military status even though they were subjected to German enemy fire all through their activities in France.

WAACs, commanded by the efficient Helen Gwynne-Vaughan, were victims of a sexist campaign claiming that a significant number of them had been made pregnant at the front though an official investigation proved this was false, the exceptions being very few for such a large group of women. The Women's Royal Airforce (WRA) came last in 1918 first under the command of Lady Crawford, who soon resigned annoyed by the lack of actual power the military had granted her, a situation her successor Violet Douglass-Pennant also complained of at the time of her own dismissal; she was replaced by Gwynne-Vaughan, the best administrator these organisations ever had.
Gwynne-Vaughan, a reputed mycologist, and Douglass-Pennant, a practised politician, and Katherine Furse were women of exceptional skills as administrators and it's a sign of the narrow-mindedness of the the British Government that they were given just a little corner to work on when their abilities could have been made the best of in positions of higher responsibility, including the Cabinet itself.

The USA, the country in which women have the longest record of presence in combat with the armed forces in the 20th century, were less active as official promoters of women's work on the front lines since they entered the war only in April 1917. American women, however, had been in the European theatre of war since 1914 out of their own initiative as nurses – like Borden or La Motte - journalists (more successful ones than Dorothy Lawrence, as can be seen in the case of Elizabeth S. Sergeant), doing relief work (Edith Wharton, Mildred Aldrich) and, finally, in army-related bodies.

According to Joshua S. Goldstein in War and Gender (2001) more than 25,000 American women intervened in the Great War though Captain Barbara A. Wilson, USAF (Ret.), raises the figure to 30,000. In the impressive website she's devoted to the often unacknowledged presence of American women in the armed forces, she writes that in relation to the Great War that only then did "some parts of the government get serious about using woman power." (link).

The USA already had Army (1901) and Navy (1908) Nurse Corps and Wilson puts at 13,000 the number of women who "enlisted in the Navy and the Marine Corps on the same status as men and wore a uniform blouse with insignia" during WWI. "With the war's end", she adds, "the Coast Guard Yeomanettes, along with their Navy and Marine Corps counterparts, were mustered out of the service. The War Department continued to thwart the Army's repeated requests for women to serve as clerks and consequently women other than nurses did not serve in the Army during World War I."

This is not quite correct, as the Signal Corps Women, 300 volunteers attracted by General Pershing's request for French-English bilingual long-distance telephone operators, did serve with the military, some 220 in France. The so-called 'Hello Girls' were subjected like military nurses to Army regulations, wore uniform and were sworn into the Army. However, as the daughter of one of them – Oleda Christides - explains, this was later denied for it would have given the women the rank of veterans. (link) Their service was acknowledged as late as 1978 to the only 70 survivors although without retroactive effects.

There were other women at the front, too: the French and Belgian women who saw their homes invaded by friendly and unfriendly troops – women of whom we know relatively very little - the professional entertainers and the also professional (or occasional) prostitutes. Joshua S. Goldstein comments that "women entertained troops not only with song and dance but with lectures, dramatic readings, and poetry." They "were treated chivalrously by troops, not as sex objects."

Among these respected entertainers the most outstanding is possibly Cicely Hamilton, actress and feminist playwright, founding mother of the Actresses' Franchise League and the Women Writers' Suffrage League, and active member of the Scottish Women's Hospitals Committee that backed Elsie Inglis's work.

Hamilton worked as a volunteer nurse in the Somme and as a postal overseer with the WAAC but spent the last years of the war touring the trenches with the repertory company she had been asked to form.

Hamilton would later write that she'd been appalled by the inhumanity of war while doing her best to entertain the troops. Possibly that was the attitude too of the many prostitutes employed near the front lines. Gary Mead writes in The Doughboy Centre (link) that "The French believed that the legalisation and control of prostitution were important and highly desirable, and they acted on that belief.

The Americans believed that such measures were pernicious and most undesirable, and they acted on their belief."

The British just used what was available. Thus, Robert Graves recalls in Goodbye to All That (1929) the queues of British soldiers outside the licensed brothels run by the pragmatic French – those adorned with a blue light for officers, those with a red one for the troops - wondering whether the women were also of different types. Apparently, General Pershing was greatly concerned that his boys would fall prey to the VD killing thousands of French and British soldiers every day but not so much about the fate of the prostitutes. Ironically, the very people soldiers were supposed to be fighting for – women - were also, at least in this sense, the enemy.

Feature Articles: Women and WWI: The Home Front: Suffrage and Work
Updated - Saturday, 25 February, 2006

Women were not the dumb creatures waiting at home blind to the horrors of war portrayed in the bitter poems of Siegfried Sassoon like Glory of Women. They weren't either the gleeful, liberated working girls and professional women that American feminist scholar Sandra Gilbert described in her seminal article Soldier's Heart: Literary Men, Literary Women, and the Great War (1988), callously happy to see their menfolk fall for a patriarchal system that made cannon fodder of them.
There may have been women of both types but there is not a single image that corresponds to all women, in the same way the sensitive men who wrote most testimonials about the war – mainly upper and middle-class educated officers - do not represent the troops at large. If it is high time to acknowledge that women were an important part of World War I it is also high time to acknowledge the diversity of their responses to it and the variety of stances they undertook.

The same principle that applied at the front applied back home when it came to making the most of upper and middle-class women's willingness to work for no money contributing to the war effort. The same pragmatism, by no means any wish to alter gender roles, made the Government lure working-class women into munitions factories and all the other jobs so far done by men that were absolutely necessary to ensure the success of Britain as a nation at war.

In any case, the culminating point for women's lives in relation to the Great War was the passage of the Qualification of Women Act of 1917 and the Representation of the People Act of 1918, by which in the general election of 1918 women over 30 could for the first time vote and be elected MPs.

Constance Markievicz, a Sinn Fein candidate, was the first to be elected although, since she renounced her seat out of nationalist convictions, the honour of being the first woman MP went to Nancy Astor in 1919. Ten years later, Margaret Bonfield became the first woman minister ever (of Labour) in Ramsay McDonald's cabinet.

Post-World War I Prosperity and the Great Depression

1. Post-World War I Depression
2. Social Issues
3. Economic Prosperity
4. Stock Market Crash
5. Great Depression
6. Rowell-Sirois Commission
7. Causes of World War II

Data Sheet: The Winnipeg Strike, 1919

Source: http://timelinks.merlin.mb.ca/image1/img0076.jpg

Task Description

After reviewing the data sheet, develop a thesis statement and write an essay on the Winnipeg Strike, 1919. Make sure that you include reference to the data sheet and use quotes where appropriate.

Your essay should be approximately 300 words long. Your time limit is one hour. Normal marking criteria shown in the writing scoring guide apply.

Seeds of the 1929 Crash
Source: http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/archive/02nov/ECON3.htm

Buying on Credit Helped
To Fuel an Economic Boom--
Until It Got Out of Control
By KAREN BLUMENTHAL
Staff Reporters of The Wall Street Journal
Americans’ taste for consumer products is sustaining the economy through recession and weakness, and will be crucial to a recovery. But what would happen if consumers suddenly found themselves neck-deep in debt?
From the book “Six Days in October: The Stock Market Crash of 1929,” by Karen Blumenthal. © Copyright 2002 Karen Blumenthal. Click here to order.

For some idea of the answer, turn back the clock to the early 20th century, when consumers got their first sense of the benefit of borrowing a little now for gain in the future—and saw firsthand how devastating too much debt could be.
Patriotic Duty
The seeds of America’s love affair with loans were planted during World War I, when the nation needed money to finance its missions overseas. Politicians and top businessmen encouraged ordinary people to buy Liberty Bonds to help their country. The bonds were essentially a loan to the U.S. government, which paid 4% a year in interest until the debt was paid back.
Respected leaders urged patriotic citizens to stretch a little and borrow money so they could buy a larger bond. All they had to do was go to the bank and take out a loan, then pay it back from their paychecks over six months. “You mustn’t be timid,” financier Thomas W. Lamont would tell potential investors at rallies to stir up interest in Liberty Bonds. “Think of the courage that our soldiers must show in the trenches, and then stop for a moment and consider whether you are showing anything like equal courage in the way you are proposing to handle this loan.”
People listened, and over two years, the Liberty Loan program raised $18.5 billion from bond sales. Americans got one of their first lessons in investing and borrowing. In fact, some say they learned the lesson too well.
By the 1920s, the war was over, but Americans’ comfort with loans endured. And there were many new things to buy. One of Henry Ford’s cars could be purchased on the “partial-payment plan,” to be paid off a little at a time. As people moved to the cities, they bought new homes, taking out loans to pay for them. Stores offered credit for all kinds of things, from the newest household appliances, like refrigerators and washing machines, to jewelry and clothes. An estimated 15% of retail sales were made on the “easy payment” or installment plan.
Investors had long borrowed money to buy stocks, but the amount they borrowed and the enthusiasm for borrowing grew rapidly in the late 1920s, as credit became plentiful and the stock market started to boom. Borrowing to buy a stock—an investment representing a share of a corporation—meant putting up “margin.” Margin was like a down payment on the stock purchase, sometimes as little as 10% of the purchase price. Investors didn’t have to pay anything more upfront, unless the stock price fell. The loan would be paid off by the rising value of the stock.
As stock prices climbed to record heights in 1927 and 1928, investors saw great riches within their reach, especially when they could borrow so easily. In 1927, brokers borrowed $4 billion, up 33% from the previous year, and they in turn would lend the money to stock buyers. By the end of 1928, brokers’ loans had exploded to $6.4 billion, a 56% increase in one year.
The stock market seemed to have no limit. Hot stocks like RCA—the biggest radio maker and the dot-com of its time—doubled, tripled, and then quadrupled in value. Eager to get in on the gains, investors sought to borrow more for stock purchases, and banks were happy to make more loans. In fact, in 1929, nearly $4 of every $10 banks lent was for stock purchases. Even corporations jumped in on the lending business. John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil of New Jersey, Chrysler and General Motors all made millions of dollars in stock loans.
Buying stocks on margin, and making margin loans, made plenty of sense when stocks were rising. But when stock prices started to fall in October 1929, many of the loans started to look risky. Brokers had to make “margin calls”—asking investors for more upfront cash to cover the loans. If customers couldn’t provide the cash, their stocks would have to be sold.
Comedian Groucho Marx of the famous Marx Brothers got his first margin call after prices tumbled on Oct. 24, 1929, a date known in history as “Black Thursday.” Groucho, who had invested all of his savings in the stock market, had to give his broker all the cash he had left to keep him from selling his stocks.
But stocks continued to fall, dropping 12.8% on the following Monday, Oct. 28, and nearly another 12% on Oct. 29, Black Tuesday, one of the worst days ever in the stock market. Over six days, the stock market lost nearly one-third of its value—$25 billion in savings disappeared.
As lenders called in loan after loan, more and more shares had to be sold, and the stock market fell further. Like many other investors, Groucho had to come up with still more cash for his broker, and turned to even more borrowing. He borrowed money from a bank. He borrowed against his life-insurance policy. He took a mortgage loan on his home.
‘All the Money I Had’
But even that wouldn’t be enough. His broker sold all his stock, depleting all of Groucho’s savings. “Some of the people I know lost millions,” Groucho Marx wrote in his autobiography. “I was luckier. All I lost was two hundred and forty thousand dollars. I would have lost more, but that was all the money I had.”
The stock market crash was painful, wiping out the life savings of millions of people and leaving some deep in debt. After watching the devastation of such a borrowing binge, federal officials were determined to keep people from overindulging again. They took steps to keep interest rates high and discourage borrowing. So people didn’t borrow—and companies didn’t either. Consumers couldn’t buy houses. Companies didn’t have money to expand. Workers lost their jobs as the businesses shriveled. The result was a downward economic spiral.
The stock market crash of 1929 was the first clear sign of an economic downturn. But it was the policy aimed at preventing a repeat that sent the nation sliding into the horrific slump that that became the Great Depression.
From the book “Six Days in October: The Stock Market Crash of 1929,” by Karen Blumenthal. © Copyright 2002 Karen Blumenthal. Click here to order.

The Great Depression (Source: http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0003425

Few countries were affected as severely as Canada by the worldwide Depression of the 1930s. It is estimated that between 1929 and 1933 Gross National Expenditure declined by 42%, by the latter year 30% of the LABOUR FORCE was unemployed, and 1 in 5 Canadians became dependent upon government relief for survival. Until WWII the UNEMPLOYMENT rate never declined below 12%. The Depression's severity was aggravated by its uneven impact, a rudimentary social-welfare structure and misguided government policy.

Destitute Family, Great Depression
Destitute family returning to Saskatoon from the north during Great Depression (courtesy Glenbow Archives).

Because 33% of its Gross National Income derived from exports, Canada was particularly affected by the collapse in world trade. The 4 western provinces, which depended almost exclusively on primary-product exports, were the most affected. In Saskatchewan, plagued by crop failures and the lowest price for wheat in recorded history, total provincial income plummeted by 90% within 2 years, forcing 66% of the rural population onto relief. The other western provinces were technically bankrupt from 1932 onwards. Although Ontario and Québec experienced heavy unemployment, they were less severely afflicted because of their more diversified industrial economies, which produced for the protected domestic market. The Maritimes had entered into severe economic decline in the 1920s and had less distance to fall.

Depression Soup Kitchen
Unemployment victims during the Depression resorted to the soup kitchens like this one in Montreal in 1931, operated by voluntary and church organizations. After a meal, most people returned to the alleyways, parks, or flop-houses for the night (National Archives of Canada/PA-168131).

The burden of the Depression was also unequally distributed between classes. Although wages dropped throughout the 1930s, prices declined even faster. As a result, the standard of living of property owners and those with jobs increased. Farmers, young people, small businessmen and the unemployed bore the brunt of economic hardship.

Dust Bowl
The prairie dry belt was unwisely opened for homesteading and was struck by successive droughts in the 1920s that contributed to hardships during the Depression (courtesy PAA).

Demographic changes were a revealing index of hardship. POPULATION growth throughout the 1930s reached the lowest point since the 1880s through a combination of plummeting IMMIGRATION and birthrates. The number of immigrants accepted into Canada dropped from 169 000 in 1929 to fewer than 12 000 by 1935 and never rose above 17 000 for the remainder of the decade. During that time European JEWS fleeing Nazi Germany were denied a sanctuary in Canada (see REFUGEES). The number of Canada's deportations, however, rose from fewer than 2000 in 1929 to more than 7600 just 3 years later. Almost 30 000 immigrants were forcibly returned to their countries of origin over the course of the decade, primarily because of illness or unemployment.
Canada's birthrate dropped from 13.1 live births per 1000 in 1930 to only 9.7 by 1937, the lowest ratio until the 1960s. During the 1930s, 50 years of urbanizing momentum were reversed as Canada's rural population (outside of Saskatchewan) grew more rapidly than its urban population. For many of the unemployed "going back to the land" was preferable to a miserable existence on urban relief.
With almost 33% of its gainfully employed still engaged in agriculture in 1931, Canada did not have an adequate system of dispensing welfare to the jobless. Although unemployment was a national problem, federal administrations led by the Conservative R.B. BENNETT (1930-35) and the Liberal W.L. Mackenzie KING (from 1935 onwards) refused, for the most part, to provide work for the jobless and insisted that their care was primarily a local and provincial responsibility. The result was fiscal collapse for the 4 western provinces and hundreds of municipalities and haphazard, degrading standards of care for the jobless. Monthly relief rates for a family of 5 varied from $60 in Calgary to $19 in Halifax. Although there were no official accounts of starvation, reports by medical authorities of scurvy and other diet deficiency diseases were common throughout the decade.
Because local governments refused to aid single, homeless men, between 1932 and 1936 the federal government established UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF CAMPS. Run by the Dept of Defence, the camps paid the men 20 cents a day for construction work in the bush. In 1935 a protest against conditions in the camps culminated in the Regina Riot - the most violent episode of the 1930s, in which one policeman was killed, dozens of men were injured and 130 arrested (see ON TO OTTAWA TREK).
The Depression altered established perceptions of the economy and the role of the state. The faith shared by both the Bennett and King governments and most economists that a balanced budget, a sound dollar and changes in the tariff would allow the private marketplace to bring about recovery was misplaced. The Depression spawned a variety of political reform movements, particularly at the provincial level, which advocated the use of the state to initiate recovery. The reforms included the inflationary SOCIAL CREDIT theories of Alberta Premier William ABERHART, the "Work and Wages" program of BC Premier T. Dufferin PATTULLO, and the democratic socialism of J.S. WOODSWORTH and the CO-OPERATIVE COMMONWEALTH FEDERATION. The UNION NATIONALE in Québec, led by Maurice DUPLESSIS, H.H. STEVENS's Reconstruction Party and the New Democracy movement of W.D. HERRIDGE were also spawned by the Depression.
The COMMUNIST PARTY OF CANADA was virtually outlawed from 1931 (when 9 of its leaders were arrested and convicted under s98 of the Criminal Code for being members of an "unlawful association") until 1936, and banned when war was declared in 1939, although affiliated groups such as the Workers' Unity League, the Relief Camp Workers Union and the National Unemployed Workers Association played a significant role in organizing the unskilled and the unemployed in protest marches and demonstrations.
Although the national impact of these organizations was minimal, the Depression did ultimately result in an expansion of state responsibility for the economy and for social welfare. In 1934 Bennett's government created legislation to establish the BANK OF CANADA to regulate MONETARY POLICY; in 1935 the CANADIAN WHEAT BOARD was created to market and establish a minimum floor price for wheat; and in 1940 the federal government assumed responsibility for the unemployed by introducing a national unemployment insurance scheme (see EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE) and employment service.
The Depression also legitimized the economic theories of British economist John Maynard Keynes, who argued that, if private investment failed to produce full employment, the state must initiate public investment through deficit spending to create jobs. Keynes's ideas influenced the National Employment Commission report (1938) and the report of the Royal Commission on DOMINION-PROVINCIAL RELATIONS (1940). The latter was important in generating the idea of EQUALIZATION PAYMENTS.
Not until war broke out in 1939, however, did KEYNESIAN ECONOMICS become a deliberate part of government policy, and it was the massive state expenditures necessitated by the war that finally reduced unemployment to minimal levels by 1942. See also HISTORY SINCE CONFEDERATION; BUSINESS CYCLES; BENNETT'S NEW DEAL.
Read the blurb and visit the site to view the clip

FEATURED THEMATIC TOUR
Silver and Gold: Bennett and the Great Depression
New Brunswick Museum
The public sweeps Bennett and the Conservative Party to power in 1930, fully expecting him to deal with Canada's growing economic crisis. While in office, Bennett receives numerous gold and silver presentation pieces from a succession of admirers and officials in different world capitals. These shiny treasures contrast sharply with the hard times of the Great Depression and symbolize the disparity that angers many Canadians in their hours of need. Bennett's personal wealth serves as a ready target for the majority of Canadians, who exist in less fortunate circumstances.
Source: http://www.mccord-museum.qc.ca/en/keys/webtours/tourID/GE_P4_2_EN

THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF
SOCIAL PROGRAMS BY THE GOVERNMENT OF MACKENZIE KING

http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/on/laurier/edu/edu3_e.asp

R. B. Bennett’s New Deal (1935)
Claude Bélanger,
Department of History,
Marianopolis College
Taken together the eight pieces of legislation enacted by R.B. Bennett's government (1935) were the Canadian version of F. D. Roosevelt's New Deal and constituted the principal attempt made by the Dominion Parliament to cope with the economic and
social problems disclosed by the Great Depression. Six of the eight statutes were invalidated by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (1937): The Weekly Rest in Industrial Undertakings Act, The Limitations of Hours of Work Act and the Minimum Wages Act because they were not treaties falling within the Dominion Power under section 132 of the Constitutional Act, 1867 or within the residuary clause. The National Products Marketing Act because it was not regulation of "Trade and Commerce". The Employment and Social Insurance Act because it invaded the field of property and civil rights; section 14 of the Dominion Trade and Industry Commission Act was also struck by the Court. Only the Farmers Creditor's Arrangement Act and section 498A of the Criminal Code (dealing with unfair trade practices) were allowed to stand. The decision of the J.C.P.C. sparked widespread discontent in English Canadian centralist circles and led to their demanding that appeals to London be abolished. In the short run the decision of the Court prompted the Mackenzie King government to form a Royal Commission (the Rowell-Sirois Commission) on Dominion-Provincial Relations.
© 2001 Claude Bélanger, Marianopolis College

The Rowell-Sirois Report and Canadian Federalism during the Great Depression (1929-1939)
Claude Bélanger,
Department of History,
Marianopolis College
Source: http://www2.marianopolis.edu/quebechistory/federal/rowell.htm

The transformation of Canada from a predominantly agricultural to a mainly industrialized and urbanized country created many problems and strains within Canadian federalism.
The first source of difficulties was that the financial arrangements of Confederation had been based on the idea that the heavy burdens would fall on the shoulders of the federal government that was given consequently unlimited taxing powers while the provinces would have limited sources of revenues to match their seemingly modest fields of jurisdiction. The heavy burden envisioned for the federal government had been mainly the creation of a national economy through subsidized immigration, the building of railways (the CPR and the Intercolonial), the buying and managing of the Western territories. On the whole, the federal government had discharged these responsibilities successfully by 1920 and could look forward to substantial surpluses in its budget in the future although the war debt would have to be taken care of first.
Correspondingly, the provinces had been given small revenues that turned out to be inadequate to meet their obligations in a modern, industrialized world. A good many of the fields of jurisdiction given to the provinces in 1867 acquired an importance that the Fathers of Confederation could not have foreseen. What came to matter most to Canadians in the 20th century, was not immigration or railways, but rather their quality of life and their standard of living whose maintenance depended on provincial governments through their control of education, health, welfare, social assistance, labour, etc. Canadians demanded more and more services of their governments and these services had to be provided by the provincial governments that did not have the financial capacity to fully meet these increased responsibilities.
The second source of difficulty, closely related to the first one, was the realisation by Canadians that they lived in a country with considerable regional disparities. New techniques of communication (railways, planes, radio and mass circulation newspaper) put more Canadians in contact with one another and a sense of common identity developed. It became increasingly difficult for Canadians in the poorer regions of the country to accept the fact that they should receive lesser social services, and perhaps of an inferior quality, that those received in the more affluent provinces. The provincial governments of the have-not provinces could only provide services equal to those of the rest of the country by imposing a heavier than average fiscal burden on their taxpayers. The disparities of services and of taxation were not only more recognized but had become unacceptable to many Canadians by the 1930’s.
The advent of the Great Depression of 1929-1939 magnified these two structural problems. The Depression hit very hard all of the provinces of Canada but was particularly devastating for the poorer ones for it was in these less fortunate areas that unemployment was at its highest. Yet, these provinces were the least capable to shoulder that extra burden. The Depression did not create the problems of the Western and Maritime provinces but it blew them right out of proportion to their capacity to handle them. The original solution of the provinces was to turn to new sources of taxation. In 1930, only Canada, PEI and British Columbia levied taxes on the profits of corporations. By 1940 all the governments in Canada did. Four provinces introduced income taxes (Que., Ont. Sask., Alta.,). Provincial taxes on gasoline were increased by about 50%. Succession duties were raised substantially and by 1940 two provinces were levying sales tax (Sask., and Que.).
While the steps described above were taken, they did not resolve the financial difficulties. Most Canadians looked to the federal government for relief. This was a natural impulse as Canadians, especially in the English-speaking provinces, had increasingly come to regard Ottawa as their focus of loyalty. Furthermore, the federal government was the only government to have the financial capacity to deal with the problems. Initially the reaction of the federal government was cautious: help came in the form of unconditional subsidies to some provinces (the four western provinces received, between 1932 and 1935, the sum of $177 721 445 in aid from the central government; this was 83% more than the all the sums received by Quebec from the same source between 1867 and 1935) and in grants-in-aid (Public Works programmes) paid 40% by the federal government. These programmes taxed the financial capacity of the federal government to its limit. In the course of the Great Depression, the federal government doubled its income tax, raised its sales tax from 1 to 8% and imposed several new excise taxes.
Eventually, in 1935, the federal government introduced a series of comprehensive measures patterned on the New Deal initiated by Roosevelt in the United States. Bennett's New Deal aimed at coping with the social and economic effects of the Depression. But the measures, adopted late in any case, were nearly all struck by the courts as ultra vires, as intruding on provincial spheres of jurisdiction.
It was in this context that the Liberal government of Mackenzie King created [P.C. 1908], in August of 1937, the Royal Commission on Dominion-Provincial Relations, better known as the Rowell-Sirois Commission. The Commission was instructed "to consider and report upon the facts disclosed by their investigations; and to express what in their opinion, subject to the retention of the distribution of legislative powers essential to a proper carrying out of the federal system in harmony with national needs and the promotion of national unity, will best effect a balanced relationship between the financial powers and the obligations and functions of each governing body, and conduce to a more efficient, independent and economical discharge of governmental responsibilities in Canada" [s.4 of P.C. 1908].
The Commission took three years to assemble the evidence and reach its conclusions. It visited every province, talked to provincial administrations (Alta. and Quebec refused to cooperate arguing that the purpose of the Commission was to support an invasion of provincial rights), invited and received briefs, commissioned many specialized studies and generally accumulated such massive evidence that it remains, to this day, the most comprehensive investigation into the financial basis of a federal system.
Its conclusions stunned even the most hardened centralists in Canada. Several methods could be used to solve the problems disclosed by the Depression: 1) a reallocation of powers between the two levels of government could be made so that responsibilities would match fiscal capacity. This would imply massive centralization and probably could not be achieved given the autonomous stand of many of the provinces. 2) A reallocation of fiscal powers in favour of provincial governments could be made but the Commission argued that this could not be achieved because of the great economic disparities between provinces and regions. These problems could have been overcome but this method was probably rejected far more because it was not conducive to promoting "national unity" rather than for economic reasons. 3) There would remain only one solution and that was to centralize taxes and to establish a guaranteed income for the provinces.
The major recommendations of the Commission were:
1) Transfer to the federal government of responsibility for the relief of employable unemployed.
2) The federal government would assume full responsibility for the debt of the provinces. In the case of Quebec where the provincial debt was small, the federal government would also take over part of the municipal debt.
3) The existing subsidies paid by the federal government to the provinces [s. 118-119 of the Constitution Act, 1867] would be done away with.
4) In return, the provinces would vacate certain tax fields that would be entirely taken over by the federal government; these were to be the personal and corporation income taxes and succession duties (in 1938-39 these represented 60% of the provincial revenue of Quebec).
5) The federal government would pay to the provinces a sum equivalent to 10% of the revenue derived from mining and petroleum operations in the province.
6) The old subsidy system and the direct taxes given up by the provinces would be replaced by a National Adjustment Grant. The Dominion would pay annually to certain provinces subsidies based on a national norm. These subsidies could be revised every five years. The "norm" would be derived from the spending necessary for a province to assure its citizens governmental services considered as standard for the whole country and from the revenue raised by the province according to norms of taxation considered average for Canada. If there was a discrepancy between the average spending and the average revenues on the one end and the actual spending and revenues of a province on the other hand, the federal government would pay the difference. A province would only receive help if there was excess spending. This was the beginning of the equalization formula.
7) Exceptional unconditional grants might be given by the federal government to help a province through a difficult period. Such exceptional grants were promised to Saskatchewan.
8) Money borrowed by the provinces could be guaranteed on their own credit or by the federal government if a Finance Commission established by the federal government approved the loan. This system was reminiscent of the provincially guaranteed loans of the municipal governments.
9) Each province would be left free to better its services by increasing considerably its taxes, or to reduce the tax burden of its citizens by reducing services or to expand certain services above the Canadian average at the expense of maintaining other services below the Canadian average. The Commission did not discuss how provinces could increase their taxes considering that they would turn over to the federal government their more productive sources of revenues. Consequently, a lowering of services in certain sectors was more likely to occur if a province wanted to establish a priority in a certain sector. That proposition seemed to defeat the purpose of the main recommendation of the Commission which had been to assure that a high standard of services would be available all across Canada.
The proposals of the Commission were studied at a Federal-Provincial conference held in January of 1941. The Commission had claimed that its propositions aimed at assuring the autonomy of the provinces. This was also the position taken by King at the conference: the provinces could not fulfill their responsibilities if they did not have the financial means to exercise their jurisdiction. The argument was hollow considering that the federal government now proposed that the provinces - by transferring their main fiscal powers to the federal government - depend almost entirely, and forever, on the federal government to be supported financially. Maurice Duplessis, Premier of Quebec in the late 1930’s, was to say later about such proposals:
"A government with no control over its sources of revenue has only phantom powers, restricted by the interests of those who control, collect and distribute the public's funds. It is the government of an occupied country, of an enslaved people."
At the conference, the provinces of Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta rejected the report and refused to even consider it as the basis for constitutional changes. Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Maritime provinces were the most favorable. The province of Quebec, represented by Adélard Godbout who had been elected in 1939 with the help of the federal Liberals, vacillated. He was the first premier of Quebec, since the days of Mercier, not to stand firm on the issue of provincial autonomy. He was never to be reelected again…
Seemingly, the conference, for lack of a general agreement, was a complete failure; the Rowell-Sirois Report was officially shelved but many of its propositions were to reappear, in one form or another, in the post World War era. In the short run, the Report led to a constitutional amendment, enacted in 1940, which transferred jurisdiction over unemployment insurance from the provincial to the federal level [s.91(2A)].
© 2001 Claude Bélanger, Marianopolis College

Essay Practice

2007-01-09T11:12:00.000-08:00

Canada is a divided house. Discuss this statement in terms of how Canada’s main European founding nations have viewed participation in both the Boer War and World War I.

Points that need to be addressed:

1. Canada was a British colony until 1931, and Britain was in charge of foreign policy for the empire.
2. Canada would benefit from increased British investment as a result of British control over gold and diamond resources in South Africa.
3. French Canadians had an agricultural society that required manpower at home.
4. French Canadians contributed to World War I by providing foodstuffs.

Ask yourself what the focus of your essay discussion should be. Points to consider:

With the above information, your focus would be a comparison and contrast that examines the position of the French Canadians and the English Canadians. Where will you take this comparison/contrast approach as a conclusion?

You could focus on either the conscription crisis or the beginnings of autonomy. The Conscription crisis is an internal Canadian problem while autonomy is a discussion of how Canada sees herself in relation to Great Britain, and, ultimately, the world.

If you choose Conscription Crisis, then points to consider are:

1. What is conscription in general?
2. What types of conscription are there?
3. What would the effect of conscription be on the economy after the war would have ended? [Look at the economic importance of Canada’s economic regions to one another].

If you choose Autonomy, then points to consider are:

1. What was Laurier’s position when Great Britain asked Canada to help out in the Boer War?
2. Which battle boosted Canada’s confidence and coincided with the introduction of the Military Services Bill?
3. How would participation in the war allow Canada to work towards autonomy?

Causes of WW I

2006-12-19T13:45:00.001-08:00

Causes of World War I
I. WWI, 1914-1918 was the great disaster of the 20th century

1. Before 1914, the world appeared to be getting better and better; modern science and industry would provide a good life for all, war and injustice would disappear.

2. Darwin and Marx both promised continual progress: History and Natural Selection would lead on to the earthly paradise.

3. All economic, social and political problems seemed solveable.

4. The war, which happened almost by accident, slaughtered a generation of European men, undermined hopes in human perfectability, and set the stage for World War II.

II. Who started the war?

1. Germany? The peace treaty (at Versailles) placed the blame on Germany, and the Allies firmly believed that German aggression was at the root of the conflict.

2. Someone else? Austria - whose Archduke had been assassinated? Serbia - who backed the terrorists who killed the Archduke, and refused to cooperate with Austria? Russia, whose mobilization made the war inevitable? All the western powers, who had been pursuing a dangerous course for decades?

3. Answer: hard to say. Germany did not plan the war, but pursued policies that they knew risked war. In fact, it seems likely that no one planned the war, with the possible exception of Serbia. Let's look at some of the root causes.

III. Underlying causes of the war

1. NATIONALISM plus SOCIAL DARWINISM: Nationalism had created Germany and Italy, and was tearing Austria-Hungary apart. Add that to Social Darwinism, the idea that only the strong survive: nations could only survive by dominating others in war.

2. IMPERIAL RIVALRIES : Competition for colonies brought the Great Powers into conflict and fueled ideas of war.

3. NEWSPAPER PRESS: Newspapers had a huge readership, and there were hundreds of them. They inflamed war fever to sell papers, interfered with government attempts to solve problems by diplomacy..

4. MILITARISM:

1. After the French Revolution and Napoleon, huge citizen armies were the norm. The Prussian system of draft and reserve armies (see abstract) impressed everyone, and everyone copied it.
2. An arms race after 1900 spent huge amounts of arms to keep up with the other guy: 1900-1910, German naval spending went up 300% as Germany tried to catch up to Britain.

5. ALLIANCES: All European powers were terrified of finding themselves isolated and without allies in case of attack - as had happened to France, and to Austria, during the wars of German unification.

1. Between 1879 and 1914, two great systems of alliances grew up
2. CENTRAL POWERS and their allies: the German Empire plus Austria-Hungary, along with a smaller state, Rumania, and joined by the Ottoman Empire.
3. TRIPLE ENTENTE of Britain, France, and Russia, joined by Serbia and Japan.
4. Italy dithered: Conservatives wanted to join Germany, Liberals wanted to join Britain and France.

F. ETHNIC TENSIONS: The Collapse of the Ottoman Empire, OR The Sick Man of Europe

1. The crumbling Ottoman Empire (centered in Turkey) had been a problem for many years.
2. Britain did not want it to collapse, for fear it would "destabilize the region"
3. The Crimean War was an attempt to shore it up
4. A series of Balkan Wars ensued, as ethnic minorities fought to get out from under the Turks
5. These wars stirred up nationalist passions among ethnic groups inside the Austro-Hungarian Empire. (Note the current Turkish worry about the Kurds.)

IV. Other causes

1. The European wars of the 19th century had been short and successful - such as the wars of German and Italian unification. So everyone expected this war to be short and successful.
2. Colonial wars had been easy to win (see Imperialism, military technology, etc)
3. Technology produced weapons that people were not prepared to use or understand.
4. Finally, there was a general attitude of boredom and decadence about the end of the century. Many people thought a "good, short war" would clear the air.

Calendar January tru May

2006-12-19T13:23:00.000-08:00

January 2007 World War I
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February 2007 Interwar Period
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March 2007 World War II
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April 2007 Post-War Period
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May 2007 Current Issues
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JuneReview and Practice
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Sahel Link

2006-11-10T13:09:00.000-08:00

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/africa/explore/sahel/sahel_series.html

Click on the above link and research one country of your choice.
Develop a list of problems and solutions that you can identify and share these with the class.

Population Websites and Questions

2006-11-03T16:47:00.000-08:00

http://www.prb.org/template.cfm?Section=World_Population_Data_Sheet&Template=/Template.cfm?Section=PRB&template=/Content/ContentGroups/Datasheets/2005_World_Population_Data_Sheet.htm

Find the 2005 World Population Data Sheet as PPT presentation and download it to your computer.

Answer the following questions:

1. How does population growth differ between developed and developin countries?
2. Which continent will double its population by 2050?
3. What is the characteristic shape of a population pyramid in developed countries?
4. How has India's and Thaland's fertility rate changed?
5. Which country has one of the highest levels of fertility?
6. What is the difference in life expectancy in the USA for different groups?
7. How does acess to safe drinking water differ around the world?
8.

2006-11-01T20:30:00.000-08:00

Population Geography: Glossary

Abortion Rate The number of abortions per 1,000 women ages 15-44 or 15-49 in a given year.

Abortion Ratio The number of abortions per 1,000 live births in a given year.

Age-Dependency Ratio The ratio of persons in the ages defined as dependent (under 15 years and over 64 years) to persons in the ages defined as economically productive (15-64 years) in a population.

Age-Sex Structure The composition of a population as determined by the number or proportion of males and females in each age category. The age-sex structure of a population is the cumulative result of past trends in fertility, mortality, and migration. Information on age-sex composition is essential for the description and analysis of many other types of demographic data. See also population pyramid.

Age-Specific Rate Rate obtained for specific age groups (for example, age-specific fertility rate, death rate, marriage rate, illiteracy rate, or school enrollment rate).

Aging of Population A process in which the proportions of adults and elderly increase in a population, while the proportions of children and adolescents decrease. This process results in a rise in the median age of the population. Aging occurs when fertility rates decline while life expectancy remains constant or improves at the older ages.

Antinatalist Policy The policy of a government, society, or social group to slow population growth by attempting to limit the number of births
.
Baby Boom A dramatic increase in fertility rates and in the absolute number of births in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand during the period following World War II (1947-1961).

Baby Bust A rapid decline in U.S. fertility rates to record-low levels during the period immediately after the baby boom.

Birth Control Practices employed by couples that permit sexual intercourse with reduced likelihood of conception and birth. The term birth control is often used synonymously with such terms as contraception, fertility control, and family planning. But birth control includes abortion to prevent a birth, whereas family planning methods explicitly do not include abortion.

Birth Rate (or crude birth rate) The number of live births per 1,000 population in a given year. Not to be confused with the growth rate.

Birth Rate for Unmarried Women The number of live births per 1,000 unmarried women (never married, widowed, or divorced) ages 15-49 in a given year.

Brain Drain The emigration of a significant proportion of a country's highly skilled, highly educated professional population, usually to other countries offering better economic and social opportunity (for example, physicians leaving a developing country to practice medicine in a developed country).

Carrying Capacity The maximum sustainable size of a resident population in a given ecosystem.

Cause-Specific Death Rate The number of deaths attributable to a specific cause per 100,000 population in a given year.

Census A canvass of a given area, resulting in an enumeration of the entire population and often the compilation of other demographic, social, and economic information pertaining to that population at a specific time. See also survey.

Childbearing Years The reproductive age span of women, assumed for statistical purposes to be 15-44 or 15-49 years of age.

Child-Woman Ratio The number of children under age 5 per 1,000 women ages 15-44 or 15-49 in a population in a given year. This crude fertility measure, based on basic census data, is sometimes used when more specific fertility information is not available.

Closed Population A population with no migratory flow either in or out, so that changes in population size occur only through births and deaths.

Cohort A group of people sharing a common temporal demographic experience who are observed through time. For example, the birth cohort of 1900 is the people born in that year. There are also marriage cohorts, school class cohorts, and so forth.

Cohort Analysis Observation of a cohort's demographic behavior through life or through many periods; for example, examining the fertility behavior of the cohort of people born between 1940 and 1945 through their entire childbearing years. Rates derived from such cohort analyses are cohort measures. Compare with period analysis.
Crude Rate Rate of any demographic event computed for an entire population.
Death Rate (or crude death rate) The number of deaths per 1,000 population in a given year.

Demographic Transition The historical shift of birth and death rates from high to low levels in a population. The decline of mortality usually precedes the decline in fertility, thus resulting in rapid population growth during the transition period.

Demography The scientific study of human populations, including their sizes, compositions, distributions, densities, growth, and other characteristics, as well as the causes and consequences of changes in these factors.

Dependency Ratio The ratio of the economically dependent part of the population to the productive part; arbitrarily defined as the ratio of the elderly (ages 65 and older) plus the young (under age 15) to the population in the working ages (ages 15-64).

Depopulation The state of population decline.

Divorce Rate (or crude divorce rate) The number of divorces per 1,000 population in a given year.

Doubling Time The number of years required for the population of an area to double its present size, given the current rate of population growth.

Emigration The process of leaving one country to take up permanent or semipermanent residence in another.

Emigration Rate The number of emigrants departing an area of origin per 1,000 population in that area of origin in a given year.

Ethnicity The cultural practices, language, cuisine, and traditions — not biological or physical differences — used to distinguish groups of people.

Family Usually two or more persons living together and related by birth, marriage, or adoption. Families may consist of siblings or other relatives as well as married couples and any children they have.

Family Planning The conscious effort of couples to regulate the number and spacing of births through artificial and natural methods of contraception. Family planning connotes conception control to avoid pregnancy and abortion, but it also includes efforts of couples to induce pregnancy.

Fecundity The physiological capacity of a woman to produce a child.

Fertility The actual reproductive performance of an individual, a couple, a group, or a population. See general fertility rate.

General Fertility Rate The number of live births per 1,000 women ages 15-44 or 15-49 years in a given year.

Gross National Income in Purchasing Power Parity (GNI PPP) Per Capita GNI PPP per capita is gross national income in purchasing power parity divided by midyear population. GNI PPP refers to gross national income converted to “international” dollars using a purchasing power parity conversion factor. International dollars indicate the amount of goods and services one could buy in the United States with a given amount of money.

Gross Reproduction Rate (GRR) The average number of daughters that would be born alive to a woman (or group of women) during her lifetime if she passed through her childbearing years conforming to the age-specific fertility rates of a given year. See also net reproduction rate and total fertility rate.

Growth Rate The number of people added to (or subtracted from) a population in a year due to natural increase and net migration expressed as a percentage of the population at the beginning of the time period.

Immigration The process of entering one country from another to take up permanent or semipermanent residence.

Immigration Rate The number of immigrants arriving at a destination per 1,000 population at that destination in a given year.

Infant Mortality Rate The number of deaths of infants under age 1 per 1,000 live births in a given year.

In-migration The process of entering one administrative subdivision of a country (such as a province or state) from another subdivision to take up residence.

Less Developed Countries Following United Nations' definitions, the term "less developed countries" (or regions) refers to countries in Africa, Asia (except Japan), Latin America and the Caribbean, and Oceania (except Australia and New Zealand).

Life Expectancy The average number of additional years a person could expect to live if current mortality trends were to continue for the rest of that person's life. Most commonly cited as life expectancy at birth.

Malthus, Thomas R. (1766-1834) English clergyman and economist famous for his theory (expounded in the 'Essay on the Principle of Population') that the world's population tends to increase faster than the food supply and that unless fertility is controlled (by late marriage or celibacy), famine, disease, and war must serve as natural population restrictions. See neo-Malthusian.

Marital Fertility Rate Number of live births to married women per 1,000 married women ages 15-44 or 15-49 in a given year.

Mean Age The mathematical average age of all the members of a population.

Median Age The age that divides a population into two numerically equal groups; that is, half the people are younger than this age and half are older.

Megalopolis A term denoting an interconnected group of cities and connecting urbanized bands.

Migration The movement of people across a specified boundary for the purpose of establishing a new or semipermanent residence. Divided into international migration (migration between countries) and internal migration (migration within a country).

Mobility The geographic movement of people.

Morbidity The frequency of disease, illness, injuries, and disabilities in a population.

More Developed Countries Following United Nations' definitions, "more developed countries," or industrialized countries (or regions), include Europe (including all of Russia), the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan.

Mortality Deaths as a component of population change.

Natality Births as a component of population change.

Natural Increase (or Decrease) The surplus (or deficit) of births over deaths in a population in a given time period.

Neo-Malthusian An advocate of restricting population growth through the use of birth control. (Thomas Malthus himself did not advocate birth control as a remedy for rapid population growth.)

Net Migration The net effect of immigration and emigration on an area's population in a given time period, expressed as an increase or decrease.
Net Migration Rate The net effect of immigration and emigration on an area's population, expressed as an increase or decrease per 1,000 population of the area in a given year.

Nuptiality The frequency, characteristics, and dissolution of marriages in a population.

"Old" Population A population with a relatively high proportion of middle-age and elderly persons, a high median age, and thus a lower growth potential.

Out-migration The process of leaving one subdivision of a country to take up residence in another.

Perinatal Mortality Rate The number of fetal deaths after 28 weeks of pregnancy (late fetal deaths) plus the number of deaths to infants under 7 days of age per 1,000 live births.

Population A group of objects or organisms of the same kind.

Population Control A broad concept that addresses the relationship between fertility, mortality, and migration, but is most commonly used to refer to efforts to slow population growth through action to lower fertility. It should not be confused with family planning. See also family planning.

Population Density Population per unit of land area; for example, people per square mile or people per square kilometer of arable land.

Population Distribution The patterns of settlement and dispersal of a population.

"Population Explosion" (or "Population Bomb") Expressions used to describe the 20th century worldwide trend of rapid population growth, resulting from a world birth rate much higher than the world death rate.

Population Increase The total population increase resulting from the interaction of births, deaths, and migration in a population in a given period of time.

Population Momentum The tendency for population growth to continue beyond the time that replacement-level fertility has been achieved because of the relatively high concentration of people in the childbearing years.

Population Policy Explicit or implicit measures instituted by a government to influence population size, growth, distribution, or composition.

Population Projection Computation of future changes in population numbers, given certain assumptions about future trends in the rates of fertility, mortality, and migration. Demographers often issue low, medium, and high projections of the same population, based on different assumptions of how these rates will change in the future.

Population Pyramid A bar chart, arranged vertically, that shows the distribution of a population by age and sex. By convention, the younger ages are at the bottom, with males on the left and females on the right.

Post-Neonatal Mortality Rate The annual number of deaths of infants ages 28 days to 1 year per 1,000 live births in a given year.

Pronatalist Policy The policy of a government, society, or social group to increase population growth by attempting to raise the number of births.

"Push-Pull" Hypothesis A migration theory that suggests that circumstances at the place of origin (such as poverty and unemployment) repel or push people out of that place to other places that exert a positive attraction or pull (such as a high standard of living or job opportunities).

Race Race is defined primarily by society, not by genetics, and there are no universally accepted categories.

Rate of Natural Increase (or Decrease) The rate at which a population is increasing (or decreasing) in a given year due to a surplus (or deficit) of births over deaths, expressed as a percentage of the base population.

Remarriage Rate The number of remarriages per 1,000 formerly married (that is, widowed or divorced) men or women in a given year.

Replacement–Level Fertility The level of fertility at which a couple has only enough children to replace themselves, or about two children per couple.

Reproductive Age See childbearing years.

Sex Ratio The number of males per 100 females in a population.

Social Mobility A change in status (for example, an occupational change).

Stable Population A population with an unchanging rate of growth and an unchanging age composition as a result of age-specific birth and death rates that have remained constant over a sufficient period of time.

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) The average number of children that would be born alive to a woman (or group of women) during her lifetime if she were to pass through her childbearing years conforming to the age-specific fertility rates of a given year. This rate is sometimes stated as the number of children women are having today. See also gross reproduction rate and net reproduction rate.
Urban Countries differ in the way they classify population as 'urban' or 'rural.' Typically, a community or settlement with a population of 2,000 or more is considered urban. A listing of country definitions is published annually in the United Nations Demographic Yearbook.

Urbanization Growth in the proportion of a population living in urban areas.

Vital statistics Demographic data on births, deaths, fetal deaths, marriages and divorces.

Zero population growth A population in equilibrium, with a growth rate of zero, achieved when births plus immigration equal deaths plus emigration.

Terminology Discussion

2006-10-31T19:36:00.000-08:00

Examine the following terms:

Arithmetic density – The total number of people / area of land measured in km² or mi².

Physiological density – The total population divided by the amount of arable land.

Agricultural density – The total rural population to the amount of agricultural land.

Residential density – The number of people living in an urban area divided by the amount of residential land.

Ecological optimum – The density of population which can be supported by the area's natural resources.

1. Which term would be useful to compare different countries in order to determine their relative population size?

2. What does the population size of a country tell us about the economic importance or the level of development of such a country?

3. Which of the terms would allow us to draw conclusions as to the level of urbanization a country has?

4. What would a high level of urbanization likely indicate?

5. Which definition would likely tell us something about the well-being of a country in terms of a stable food supply?

6. Would a high agricultural density indicate a high level of economic development?

7. Which term approaches the idea of self-sufficiency?

November - December Schedule Re-post

2006-10-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

1. Create a poster in which you depict important global environmental issues of the present and show their correlation to human activity. Ensure your poster does not simply describe a doom and gloom scenario but proposes local, regional, or even global approaches to solutions. Present your poster to the class.

Global environmental issues can relate to climate change, increase in the burning of fossil fuels, melting of the polar ice packs, climate phenomena such as El Nino, Acid Rain, or the widening of the Ozone Hole.
Alternatively, you are also welcome to research a local issue or controversy such as wild vs farmed salmon, industrialization of agriculture, fair-trade coffee, subsidies, environmental considerations resulting from toxic waste disposal such as cell phones or computer equipment, the dismantling of oil tankers around Bangladesh, or you choose a topic of your own interest.

Your poster should clearly identify the problem, how the problem has become a problem, what effect its continuation will likely have, and what measures can be undertaken to slow environmental degradation down or reverse it. Make your poster into a persuasive message for others to respond to.

This poster should be finished and presented to the class the last week in November.

2. Using methods of the population geographer, compare two countries in terms of their population dynamics. Explore how the country developed, what its present population problems are, and what measures are being undertaken to resolve some of these issues.

Your comparison should utilize the internet to its fullest. You are welcome to create a webpage, a power point presentation, or even a composite slideshow or video if you feel technically capable of doing so.

One way of doing this would be to contrast the good, the bad, and the ugly. For example, how are countries portrayed in terms of tourism? What would a tourist really find if he or she decided to walk off the beaten track and mingle with the locals? What stories would he hear and what things would he see that would show serious problems in terms of population, social, economic issues?

Remember, this assignment is not out to condemn, but to show some of the facts and propose solutions within the framework and capabilities of the countries under examination.

This assignment is due in the second week of December.

3. Choose an urban issue relevant to our city, Vancouver, and describe its occurrence and resolution using maps, statistics and other, easily understandable information techniques to bring across your theme.

There are many relevant topics that can help you bring your city to life for you.

For one, many people talk about the opportunities the 2010 Olympics will bring to Vancouver. A mapping activity that shows all the various construction sites not only of venues but apartment buildings yet to come could be correlated to changes in traffic patterns and how this affects people as they are trying to move around the city.

Then, there are increasingly loud voices from homeless people who are slowly forced out of their existing homes as these are bought up so that they can be converted to luxury apartment towers.

Changes in the city landscape over time are also of interest and predictions of how changes in the future will affect living in Vancouver and its suburbs.

This project could be undertaken as an interview type project that relies on strong data collection and data interpretation. Choose how you wish to present this project the first week in January when we return to school.

Geography Links

2006-10-25T21:30:00.000-07:00

http://youthink.worldbank.org/issues/

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:20041245~menuPK:42450~pagePK:36694~piPK:36693~theSitePK:4607,00.html http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/WBI/0,,contentMDK:20106337~menuPK:213942~pagePK:209023~piPK:207535~theSitePK:213799,00.html

2006-10-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

Social Studies 11 Overview and assignments)

Term I (September – November): Government

1. Textbook, pp. 13, Fig. 5.2. Read and be ready to discuss by September 20 (B/C), September 21 (F)
Discussion of handouts on statements of ideology.

2. Read and review pp. 12-15 in your text. Be ready to comment on differences between major political parties in terms of ideology. Use www.cbc.ca/canadavotes as a guide.

3. Choose one of Canada's major political parties and provide a brief overview over its history, ideology, and current position with respect to at least two issues or themes. Do this in form of a written composition by September 28/29, depending on your block.

4. At election time, political parties compete and attempt to gain the votes by making persuading speeches. Choose two parties an try to find out how these parties look at an issue in different ways. Find a partner and discuss how the parties might differ with respect to that issue and then put yourself in the shoes of one of the party leaders and write a speech to fit the platform perspective of that party. Share this speech with the class, your constituents, and let them determine who makes the better promise. Due October 12/13

5. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, made up of different parts. Each part is supposed to keep other parts in check through a system of checks and balances. How is this accomplished? Use the following to guide you (Unit 1: 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11). Due October 20.

6. Senate Reform has been an on-again off-again topic in Canadian politics. Research some issues in relation to Senate reform and discuss their pros and cons in essay format. Or, alternatively, choose one aspect of Canada’s political system you feel needs reform. Explain what part of Canada’s institutions requires reform, why, and explain how you would reform it. Predict the outcome of your changes.

Term II (November – January): Geography

1. Create a poster in which you depict important global environmental issues of the present and show their correlation to human activity. Ensure your poster does not simply describe a doom and gloom scenario but proposes local, regional, or even global approaches to solutions. Present your poster to the class.
2. Using methods of the population geographer, compare two countries in terms of their population dynamics. Explore how the country developed, what its present population problems are, and what measures are being undertaken to resolve some of these issues.
3. Choose an urban issue relevant to our city, Vancouver, and describe its occurrence and resolution using maps, statistics and other, easily understandable information techniques to bring across your theme.

Term III (February – June): History

1. Create a series of timelines of key events around the world that impacted on Canada. Ensure you categorize these events so that cross-referencing to important Canadian themes can occur.
2. Important themes run through Canada’s history, which have resulted in greater inclusion of marginalized groups. These themes include the changing role of women, ethnicity, gender equality and same-sex relationships. Other themes focus on Canada’s evolution as a nation state and her relationship with other countries, especially its close neighbour and ally, the United States. You will choose one such theme and explore its many different facets and create a portfolio-type presentation ready for class presentation.
3. Choose two eras in Canadian history and create a photo and sound montage that provides a glimpse into the time period from an insiders point of view.

Government Exam Questions

2006-10-05T20:31:00.000-07:00

Government Exam Questions

What is ideology? What is the difference between major political parties? Where on the political spectrum should major Canadian political parties be placed? Is the name always a good indication of the political or ideological bend of a political party? Explain.

What kind of government do Canadians have? What are the different political institutions called? What is their role and function? How are they chosen? How do Canadians make sure that certain parts of government do not get too strong and powerful?

Why is it important to vote? What do political parties stand for? How are the views of people represented in Parliament? How can people pressure governments into action? How do governments pass laws? What is the role of the opposition in the legislative process? Are there any parts in government that are in need of “repair” or reform? If so, which parts are these and how could changes be effected? What would a possible outcome be if reforms were indeed undertaken?

What is the role of the judiciary? Why do we have laws? Is there a hierarchy in law and why? What is the purpose of the Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms? What are its limits, if any?

How are local governments in Canada structured? Why are they structured in this way? What is the relationship between provincial and federal governments?

Sample of a Public Speech

2006-09-22T11:16:00.000-07:00

Announcement of Federal Funding for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

Premier Gordon Campbell
August 30, 2006

Check against delivery

It is great to have the Prime Minister here today to really carry forward a celebration, and I want to say how pleased we are to have you here today in the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people.

I'm very pleased to be joined today by Chief Ernie Campbell from the Musqueam First Nation. But you know, Prime Minister, the Tsleil-Waututh, the Squamish and the Lil'wat are also very important parts of this Olympic partnership which you have reinforced yet again today.

I'm very pleased to be here with Minister Emerson, who has been a strong advocate for the Olympics, for British Columbia, for our Pacific region and for the future of Canada here on the Pacific, which is so important to our national future across this country.

I also want to say thanks to Colin Hansen for the work that you have done, Colin, as the minister responsible for the Olympics.

And, Prime Minister, it is a very exciting time for communities across the province, as I know your Members of Parliament have told you, Colin has been our point man on this and has been supported by all of our MLAs in British Columbia. It's important, I think, today that we have the MLA from West Vancouver-Garibaldi, Joan McIntyre, with us today. Lorne Mayencourt from Vancouver-Burrard joins us today from this particular constituency, and Iain Black joins us, as well, today. I want to say thanks to all of our MLAs for coming and being part of this.

The Olympics is an incredibly important opportunity for Canada. I want to underline that. It's an important opportunity for Canada. It's an important way for Canada to show the world this incredibly diverse, this incredibly exciting, area of our country and all that it has to offer the world. Someone once said that Canada is a reflection of all that the world would like to be, a place where people of different nationalities and cultures come together and really strive to make a better place for their families to live and for the future of their chosen nation.

I'm also particularly pleased, Prime Minister, to be joined today by two Olympic medalists. Danielle Goyette joins us today. Danielle was a member of our gold medal women's hockey team. Danielle was also the person who carried Canada's flag into the Torino Olympics. And what a proud flag-bearer she was, and how proud you made us all to be Canadians, Danielle. Thank you very much for coming and being part of this today.

And we're also joined by Melissa Hollingsworth-Richards, a bronze medalist from Torino in the skeleton. I don't know how many of have you seen the skeleton. I think it's frightening just to get into those uniforms, let alone to go down the hills. So, Melissa, thank you very much for coming and joining us today as well.

The Olympics is first about athletes. It's about striving to be the best you can be. It's about dedication and commitment and really pursuing a goal, an objective and a dream. It's an incredible accomplishment to achieve an Olympic medal and to actually be on Canada's Olympic team.

And, Prime Minister, I don't know if you were aware of this bit of trivia, but Canada's hosted two Olympic games. We are the only host country never to win a gold medal while we were hosting the games. Now, Prime Minister, that's got to stop. We are going to actually win a number of gold medals: women's hockey, men's hockey, sledge hockey.

We are joined today by the mayor of Richmond, Mayor Brodie, whose community is creating a speed-skating oval that will, I'm sure, be the centre of many gold medals for Canada. Malcolm, thank you for that excellent facility you're providing.

Prime Minister, that facility will be provided for athletes well before the Olympics. It will give our athletes a chance to really get used to the site, get used to the venues, train and be the best they can possibly be.

To reach higher, to be better, to go faster, to be stronger: that's what all the Olympics is about. But it's more than that. It's about our country coming together. It's a unifying force that pulls everyone together. And I was very fortunate to be in Prague in July of 2003 and to watch as our team, not just of government, but the bid team, the four host first nations – the Tsleil-Waututh, the Squamish, the Lil'wat, and the Musequem – were there with Steve Podborski, Wayne Gretzky, Charmaine Crooks. And those folks that were there to say this is about showing the world what Canada can be. And so today your announcement is a huge boost, I think, to the games and to all of us.

You're right. British Columbia will be matching your $55 million commitment to these venues. It was part of our contingency plan when we started these games, and we are still within the budget that we've set for these games.

But these games are going to reach well beyond the 16-day sporting event. These games are going to reach across the country. We're going to encourage other provinces to come and be part of the cultural activities or to encourage cities like Mayor Sullivan's Vancouver to have a true celebration for that full 16 days, where we show off our cultural diversity, the incredible expanse and excellence that Canada has to offer the world.

We're going to make sure up in Whistler that that is a place that the world comes back to and wants to come back to. To do that, we have to recognize, we have to imagine what we can be, and then, just like our athletes, we have to pursue it.

This $55 million additional commitment — I want to underline that "additional" commitment — allows us to truly lead, to truly set an example to the world, to truly show Canadians what we can be here in British Columbia on the Pacific, in Vancouver and Whistler. Across this province now there are 90 separate projects called Olympic Live Sites, which are trying to touch the hearts of young athletes all over British Columbia — amateur athletes who want to strive to be like the medalists that we have with us today, and who want to be their best. FirstNnations kids, kids from the Kootenays, kids from Prince George are all part of our Olympic dream in British Columbia, and we're reaching out to the rest of the country to say join us.

I should tell you, Prime Minister, in 2003, when I came back home having won the games, I immediately had to go to Prince Edward Island for a meeting. I got in the cab at the airport, and the cabbie said to me on Prince Edward Island: "Isn't it great that we won the Olympics?" This is going to be Canada's Olympics. This is going to be Canada's chance to show the world what we are as a nation, what we can be as a nation, and this partnership that you've reinforced today allows us to say to the people of Canada: "We will not let you down. British Columbia won't let you down. Vancouver won't let you down. Whistler won't let you down."

We will show the world what we can be, and most importantly, we will create a field of play for our athletes where they can be the best they can possibly be and they have gold medal performances which are matched by a gold medal Olympics for all of us.

Thank you very much for your commitment

Debating Topics Socials Studies 11

2006-09-21T09:13:00.000-07:00

1. Afghanistan. Recently, increased criticism has surfaced in the news among some circles regarding Canada’s role in Afghanistan. What started out as a peace mission, and thus was consistent with Canada’s role as a peacemaker in troubled parts of the world, has taken on a more serious military tone. As a result, Canadians have died in Afghanistan, leading critics to question Canada’s role in this area. Research various position on this question and take a position with respect to the following resolution: Let it be resolved that Canadian soldiers should be withdrawn from Afghanistan as their mission has lost its peacemaking character.
2. Recent events in Montreal, leading to the death of one innocent student in the shooting at Dawson College, have re-ignited the discussion of gun violence in our society and various circles questioning the value of the gun registry introduced by the previous Liberal government. Take a position on the following resolution. Let it be resolved that the gun registry be scrapped and be replaced by a more secure and efficient system.
3. The Canadian government under the Tories has vowed to change the ways we run things in Canada. There are many initiatives under way that were promised as part of the Conservative election platform. The headlines in the newspaper tell the story about some of these initiatives. Choose one of these two news articles, create a thesis statement, and write an essay in which you express your point of view. Make sure your examples support your arguments solidly.

Conservatives to revisit dual citizenship, senior Tory says
Allan Woods, CanWest News Service
Published: Thursday, September 21, 2006
OTTAWA - The Conservative government plans to revisit issues surrounding 30-year-old rules allowing people who live abroad to hold dual Canadian citizenship, a senior Conservative has told CanWest News Service.
The review of the laws allowing people to carry a Canadian passport along with the citizenship of another country appears to be on a fast-track, particularly after the government began tallying the costs and results of the mass evacuation of civilians in Lebanon who held Canadian citizenship during the recent conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.
''I think it's going to be something that our minister of immigration (Monte Solberg)... will be addressing in the future because I think there is some interest as these details become known,'' said Conservative caucus chair Rahim Jaffer, a member of the House of Commons citizenship and immigration committee.
Solberg refused requests for an interview and Jaffer did not disclose what other issues relating to dual citizenship could come under review. But Prime Minister Stephen Harper has already expressed his desire to look at changes to the protocol the government follows when evacuating Canadians from foreign hotspots.
Lesley Harmer, a spokeswoman for Solberg, said ''there aren't any plans'' to change laws governing dual citizenship.
But Jaffer said a closer look at the issue was already on the government's fall agenda, and could now happen ''within weeks'' after the burden of moving Canadian citizens out of the Middle East war zone have come to light.
Some 40,000 Canadians were registered with the embassy in Lebanon when the war broke out in July, and Ottawa estimates it spent more than $85 million to evacuate about 15,000 of them to Canada, according to an official in Foreign Affairs who gave what was described as a preliminary estimate. Reports suggest 7,000 evacuees have since returned to Lebanon.
The movement to revisit dual citizenship is drawing support on both sides of the Commons.
''I've always questioned dual citizenship, and I'm the former minister,'' said Ontario Liberal MP Judy Sgro, a Liberal immigration minister between 2003 and 2005.
''We've paid all that money to evacuate all those people and now 7,000 of them have gone back,'' Sgro said.
She added the benefits that come with Canadian citizenship for those living abroad including pension benefits and assistance from the federal government in times of emergency are ''ripe for exploitation.''
Statistics Canada says there are more than four million immigrants who hold dual citizenship with Canada and at least one other country. There are no records for Canadian-born citizens who hold other citizenships.
''We need to be loyal to one country as far as your citizenship. Your heart can be where you were born but I think the commitment to Canada has to be strong, and I think dual citizenship weakens that,'' Sgro said.
Canada changed its immigration laws to allow Canadians to hold passports from two countries in 1977 and they have not received a major update or revision since then. Advice from two parliamentary committees from the mid-1990s that it was time to revamp citizenship laws were ignored by the Liberal government of the day One of those committees from 1993 suggested permitting dual citizenship reduced the value that goes along with being a Canadian and recommended those who take citizenship with another country should forfeit their Canadian passport.
''When someone lives here for a few winters and becomes a Canadian citizen for the rest of their lives do they have rights and privileges that Canadian taxpayers need to fulfil ... or should you have to live in Canada three years out of every 10 to maintain your citizenship?'' asked Ontario Conservative MP Garth Turner.
''It's in the government's court right now. I'm hoping that in the next couple of days we're going to see the issue brought up. I'd love to see it referred to a House of Commons committee, call some witnesses, hear from Canadians and come up with a better definition of who a Canadian is.''
PM's Senate reform proposals dangerous, Gibson warns

Peter O'Neil, Vancouver Sun
Published: Thursday, September 21, 2006
OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Senate reform proposals could lead to a "dangerous" increase in conflict between rich and poor provinces that could eventually result in Canada's breakup, former B.C. Liberal leader Gordon Gibson warned Wednesday.
Harper, responding to public anger over the unelected, patronage-filled upper chamber, is pressing the Senate to pass legislation creating an eight-year term limit for new senators, who now serve until age 75.
He has also promised legislation for later this fall to set up a national election system to fill vacancies, although he has been vague on when or if the Tory government would push to re-distribute seats so Alberta and B.C. are no longer grossly under-represented.
Gibson, now with the Vancouver-based Fraser Institute think-tank, warned of dangerous unintended consequences if the Harper plan for elections and term limits bcomes law.
The Senate, dominated by Quebec and the six other have-not provinces, would start flexing its muscles to reflect its greater democratic legitimacy -- to the detriment of Ontario, Alberta and B.C.
"One would have a constitutional monstrosity, with the capacity to provide extremely bad government and put strains on the federation which would possibly lead to its breakup," Gibson said, according to a transcript of his testimony before a Senate committee studying the term-limit bill.
He said the U.S. Senate, where all 50 states each elect two members to the powerful upper chamber, has frequently acted against the majority's interests.
"That body is wildly unrepresentative of America," he said, noting that the U.S. House of Representatives, which allocates representatives to states based on population, voted six times before the Civil War to end slavery -- but was thwarted each time by the Senate.
"In our times, the major social problems of the United States are in the big cities and the big states, but the Senate is controlled by the small states which don't need to worry about such things."
B.C. and Alberta, with just under a quarter of the national population, currently have a total of just 12 seats in 105-seat chamber. Atlantic Canada, with less than a third of the B.C.-Alberta population, has 30 seats.
Gibson, who was appointed by B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell to head the former Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform, said it would be "dangerous" to give the "wildly unrepresentative" Senate more power.
"The 'tyranny of small jurisdictions' would assert itself and every measure coming up from the House would be subject to tweakings and bendings, large or small, and a conveyor belt of money in favour of the less productive provinces over the more productive, populous ones," Gibson argued.

Social Studies 11 Assignment Schedule

2006-09-19T20:10:00.000-07:00

1. Textbook, pp. 13, Fig. 5.2. Read and be ready to discuss by September 20 (B/C), September 21 (F)
Discussion of handouts on statements of ideology.

2. Read and review pp. 12-15 in your text. Be ready to comment on differences between major political parties in terms of ideology. Use www.cbc.ca/canadavotes as a guide.

3. Choose one of Canada's major political parties and provide a brief overview over its history, ideology, and current position with respect to at least two issues or themes. Do this in form of a written composition by September 28/29, depending on your block.

4. At election time, political parties compete and attempt to gain the votes by making persuading speeches. Choose two parties an try to find out how these parties look at an issue in different ways. Find a partner and discuss how the parties might differ with respect to that issue and then put yourself in the shoes of one of the party leaders and write a speech to fit the platform perspective of that party. Share this speech with the class, your constituents, and let them determine who makes the better promise. Due October 12/13

5. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, made up of different parts. Each part is supposed to keep other parts in check through a system of checks and balances. How is this accomplished? Use the following to guide you (Unit 1: 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11). Due October 20.

Social Studies 11 Assignments September 2006

2006-08-02T11:28:00.000-07:00

Social Studies 11 Assignments

Government

Examine a speech by a political leader and analyze the speech according to (a) its structure, (b) its content, (c) its political message, and (d) its ideology.

Compare the party platforms of major political parties by clearly identifying issues and ideological positions.

Choose a current issue based on your readings from the newspaper or your television news. Summarize the event and highlight the issues. Develop multiple perspectives this issue can be viewed from. Take a position on how you would deal with the issue and prepare a speech in which you address the issue, present your views on how this issue should be addressed, and appeal to your audience for support. Research on this issue must be evident.

Analyze the structure of Canada’s government by identifying the parts, their function, how these are chosen, and how they interact in a way to guarantee balance of power. If flaws are evident, highlight these and propose improvements. Explain why your suggestions would be an improvement.

Create your own, fictitious representative democracy.

Choose one political party in Canada and show how the party developed historically.

Examine how a bill passes through the legislative process and becomes law.

Compare and contrast the constitutions of Canada with that of Great Britain and the United States.

Ideology

2006-08-02T11:20:00.000-07:00

Ideology

Ideology is at the core of political decision making. Personal beliefs about the organization of the world and the relationship between people can become powerful forces when like-minded individuals join to influence others in order to deal with a particular issue in a certain way.
The normal course of events is to identify an issue of relevance to a particular group of people and all its related facets. Following this, the group would formulate a position of how to deal with the issue and attempt to persuade opponents to buy into the propositions and thus win over converts.

The cell phone or the ipod are two current examples of technology that have the potential to become an issue for discussion.

The class will form two groups, Group I is the cell phone group and Group II the ipod group. As a group you will identify areas that could present issues surrounding these two devices. Following this short brainstorming session, each group will split into two sub-groups, Group I B in favour of one of the issues and Group II B opposed to the issue. Prepare a debate in which you bring your ideas forward and your counterpart opposes you and adds his own points in order to counter.

Homework
Scan a newspaper for current issues at the local, regional, national and international level. If you do not have a newspaper, watch the news on TV or online,

Make sure you identify at least one issue for each geographical category and be prepared to explain what the issue is next class.

Topics for Debate

The Maple Leaf flag is a well-known symbol around the world. However, dating back to 1965, the flag does not represent Canada’s multicultural reality. Therefore, be it be resolved that the Maple leaf flag be replaced by something more appropriate.

Vancouver Technical School is undergoing seismic upgrading to improve the safety of students and staff. This reconstruction project, however, is short-sighted as the new school will be smaller in order to meet population projections in the years to come. In order to meet the needs of the community better, be it resolved that Vancouver Technical School become a community school with a community center.