Reading Log Seven
Wartime measures brought a challenge to Canadian society. Youth were granted more freedom and child delinquency rates were rising. The absent fathers and working mothers were deemed unable to deal with this issue so the school boards took control of the situation. This issue was prevalent throughout Canada but was extremely pertinent to the city of Montreal. In the article “Cadets, Curfews, and Compulsory Schooling: Mobilizing Anglophone Children in WWII Montreal” by Tamara Myers and Mary Anne Poutanen the role of school boards in controlling youth where parents could not is thoroughly discussed. School boards began implementing laws such as curfews and compulsory schooling in order to deal with “…women’s [incapability] to be ‘appropriate disciplinarians”[1]. The rates of delinquency rose during this time of war and the school boards felt they needed to take “…protective measures…”[2] to deal with how the “…demands of war crippled proper parenting”[3]. The fear of youth growing up into criminals motivated educational professionals to place a higher importance of the education of youth.
The importance of education in the lives of young people is also seen in other areas of Canada at this time of war. The article “The Education of Japanese Children in the British Columbia Interior Housing Settlements During World War Two” by Patricia E. Roy sets as a good example of a different racial experience during this time. When Japanese residents were moved off the coast and into the central interior of British Columbia the parents showed extreme interest in educating their children, but “the province rejected any responsibility for educating the children”[4]. Roy articulates the many struggles the Japanese population faced such as the racism within the curriculum and the unwillingness to hire a Japanese teacher. Nonetheless, these settlements managed to “…get ‘the utmost’ out of the elementary schools..”[5] which allowed for most of the students to be at the equivalent level of other public schools in the province as well as Alberta[6].
Wartime in Canada brought a major focus onto youth and their education. This focus did not dissipate in the post war years but inspired business and educational boards to conduct research and create a more inclusive and applicable curriculum. In the article “Classrooms for Consume Society: Practical Education and Secondary School Reform in Post-Second World War Canada” by Katharine Rollwagen the effectiveness of how industries “…played a growing and integral role in curriculum reform”[7] is heavily discussed. During this time industry leaders claimed that education should prepare children to be an active part of society by being “…both workers and consumers”[8]. With the growing industrialist economy, and the experiences of youth during war, the need for well-taught education is not ignored.
There is no denying that through this period of World War Two that there becomes a higher importance placed on the education of youth. School boards mandate school and put in place other legislation to attempt to stray youth from delinquent activities. While the experience of wartime differed immensely for the Japanese population of BC, there was still this immense importance placed on education of youth in these settlements. Their capability to make the best out of the worst situation truly demonstrates the emerging importance Canadians held for education. This focus on education continues after the war by professionals focusing on how youth can become active members of society by changing the curriculum. Businesses and educational committees attempt to do so by conducting research to better suit a larger variety of students. In this time of crisis children become viewed as youth and an importance is placed on their future rather then simply focusing on how children should just be children.
Bibliography
Poutanen, Marry Anne and Myers, Tamara. “Cadets, Curfews, and Compulsory Schooling: Mobilizing Anglophone Children in WWII Montreal.” Histoire Sociale 18. no.1 (2006): 367-398.
Rollwagen, Katharine. “Classrooms for Consume Society: Practical Education and Secondary School Reform in Post-Second World War Canada.” Historical Studies in Education 28. no.1 (2016): 32-52.
Roy, E. Patricia. “The Education of Japanese Children in the British Columbia Interior Housing Settlements During World War Two.” Historical Studies in Education 4. no.2 (1992): 211-231.
[1] Tamara Myers, and Mary Anne Poutanen, “Cadets, Curfews, and Compulsory Schooling: Mobilizing Anglophone Children in WWII Montreal,” Histoire Sociale 18, no.1 (2006): 368.
[2] Tamara Myers, and Mary Anne Poutanen, “Cadets, Curfews, and Compulsory Schooling: Mobilizing Anglophone Children in WWII Montreal,” Histoire Sociale 18, no.1 (2006): 369.
[3] Tamara Myers, and Mary Anne Poutanen, “Cadets, Curfews, and Compulsory Schooling: Mobilizing Anglophone Children in WWII Montreal,” Histoire Sociale 18, no.1 (2006): 374.
[4] Patricia E. Roy, “The Education of Japanese Children in the British Columbia Interior Housing Settlements During World War Two,” Historical Studies in Education 4, no.2 (1992): 211.
[5] Patricia E. Roy, “The Education of Japanese Children in the British Columbia Interior Housing Settlements During World War Two,” Historical Studies in Education 4, no.2 (1992): 211.
[6] Patricia E. Roy, “The Education of Japanese Children in the British Columbia Interior Housing Settlements During World War Two,” Historical Studies in Education 4, no.2 (1992).
[7] Katharine Rollwagen, “Classrooms for Consume Society: Practical Education and Secondary School Reform in Post-Second World War Canada,” Historical Studies in Education 28, no.1 (2016): 33.
[8] Katharine Rollwagen, “Classrooms for Consume Society: Practical Education and Secondary School Reform in Post-Second World War Canada,” Historical Studies in Education 28, no.1 (2016): 33.