Very thorough, very informative. I like the delivery and convenience of this course.

Excellent course. Very well prepared and informative.

Very interesting and will pass on to others.

very coool

The videos were very well done: not overboard with animations, but helpful with maps and pictures, etc. The course was logically organized, and created a good momentum to Indigenous contexts in Canada today. As many people have already mentioned on the discussion forums, some finessing of the quiz questions would help students truly demonstrate their understanding of the material as opposed to only being able to figure out tricks to the quiz. A self-pacing online course is one reason why many people will take this course: that flexibility is great. However, I will say that as the weeks went on (and I was following the 12-week schedule until only the second last week), I found the discussion boards a bit lonely. I would read and sometimes respond to a post, but it had been posted weeks before and that person was likely never going to return to that particular discussion. The TA Sara, though, was awesome had providing helpful and encouraging comments. As someone who has done a lot of work in this topic area already, I was hoping for perhaps an opportunity to write and get direct feedback. I realize that a MOOC isn't really designed for that. But perhaps just as there was a fee for those who wanted to take the quizzes and get credit, perhaps there could be another level for those who want to do assignments and get individual feedback. I'm glad I took this course: it filled in some gaps in my knowledge, especially in the older history. I hope that this course proves successful and that tons of people take it. Thanks!

This was well presented with several ways of getting the information. This made it possible for many different learning styles to be successful.

I completed this course about two weeks ago, and have waited a while to complete this review in order to process my thoughts in a more balanced way. This is an important course, and I am glad that I took the time to complete it. I believe every curious and open-minded Canadian should take it.

I have an undergraduate degree in history, and although I haven't pursued further formal studies in that area, I have read Canadian history my entire life and consider myself a life long learner. In reviewing this course, I have tried to take a historiographical perspective, viewing it as one of many accounts and perspectives on the history of Canada, and especially western Canada. In that regard, I don't consider it a definitive account, but one to be considered in the ongoing mix of interpretations of our complex and still evolving society.

The course is decidedly one-sided, but I did not expect otherwise. As part of the so-called "settler" community, there is a clear attempt to make me feel responsible for the transgressions and unintended consequences of our forefathers, without acknowledging many of us have forefathers who were also oppressed and dispossessed by the same colonial masters in the 19th century. They arrived in Canada at the same time with less than most treaty aboriginals were provided through their treaties. Our ancestors came here to claim a new life and move forward, not to retreat backwards into a mythical idyllic lifestyle. Sorry, but this is the message I get from the course... there is no way forward other than land claims and lawsuits... that is no way to build a society.

Thanks again for providing this course, but I came away feeling a little bit sad, and not very hopeful for the future of my indigenous neighbours.

The first half of this course was excellent! However, it began to lose steam further on. It needs some updating (some facts, like Neechi Commons, are outdated - this is now closed). The presenters read off of a teleprompter typically, and are often wooden in their speaking. I would have much preferred a more animated approach to such important subject matter. The lesson on Indigenous Art showed almost no actual art, and rather just listed a bunch of artist names, which did not increase my appreciation for Indigenous Art in the least. That said, I found this to have a lot of helpful survey content of Indigenous culture and history in Canada. I think this course would be most useful for newcomers to Canada and non-Canadians, or people who have otherwise never encountered Indigenous issues before.

While it was hugely educational and I learned so much. I believe the course would be better if it was able to be more interactive at times. Watching the videos was good but sometimes difficult to concentrate on. I did read and watch the video at the same time to enhance my learning.

The material was informative and opened my eyes up to how much I didn't know and how I can be a better ally to the Indigenous people of Canada and in my own community. Thank you for making this course free / low cost. I believe having it so accessible will encourage people to take it and learn more about Indigenous people.

Felt that very little use was made of visual aids and that the lessons seemed to be read off a teleprompter with little expression or spontaneity. Lots of great information but I would have preferred more depth and more experienced guest speakers. I was fortunate enough to take an indigenous course at Loyalist College in Belleville, and it was much more dynamic.

For what it's worth it is a decent project, but that being said both the presentation and course material were troubling:

The videos failed to utilize the potential of motion pictures and instead relied on teleprompter reading and helpful but sporadic maps (just look at crash course dammit). The reading "notes" were massive bodies of text and the lecture often follows a uniquely confusing structure.

The course material also begins to be progressively more biased tone which, while understandable given the context, disengages non-native audiences.

Personally would not recommend. I want to understand and appreciate indigenous people, their culture and their concerns, but this course just doesn't deliver. one star

This course downplayed the atrocities of colonialism and especially residential schools; I'd heard such good things from other people who'd taken it, but it really was nothing new that I hadn't already heard in high school. They made it sound like children just happened to die at these schools and colonialism itself was responsible for genocide, not actual people who intentionally tortured and murdered. I guess it's great to focus on the art and accomplishments of modern Indigenous people, but I'd really hoped they'd acknowledge that the European settlers were responsible for so much death and destruction, rather than it just unfortunately happening somehow.

Deeply disappointing - portrays Indigenous as victims of everything and everyone - If you are looking for a balanced historical and educational perspective on this complex issue, this is not the place to find it.

Totally politicized from start to finish

very biased

it was bad.

This keeps popping up so I will submit once again. ;)

Many thanks to Professor Bear, Professor Gareau, and narrators and faculty and producers and participating communities. This mega course was incredible. Leah's art, the highlighted sayings , historical excerpts, real life narratives with background drumming, along with the natural, carefully selected backgrounds chosen for the narrators were perfect. Your deliveries were just so effective. The content was comprehensive, historical and timely. Wow. I literally cried when the three of you stood there with the words, "It's time to say good-bye..." You were with me for 3 months, pulling me in with note-taking, emotional stress, revelation after revelation, and as I chased down those passing quiz grades. The email reminders were so classy and important - Thanks to the person who thought to include those motivators.

You have honored your ancestors and those who come next.

I wonder if similar comprehensively documented efforts have been addressed in the USA?? The story is likely even harsher but this is what the colonizers and those in power need to hear at this time. I think if the U.S. women here had had the vote and a voice, if we would have had a more compassionate approach to the indigenous peoples, the wildlife, the land and water...

Again, thank-you.

Carol Graham-Banes

Speech/Language Pathologist (Retired but still help when needed in the schools)

Board Member:

Sierra Club- Michigan Chapter

Bay City Rowing Club/Great Lakes Bay Crew (Youth)

Frankenmuth Lions Club- LCI

Just a note: It took a while for me to realize my grandparents assisted in colonizing the native lands there. They met in the Coutts-area, Alberta, married and had a child in Sweetgrass, MT, across the border. My great-uncle had accompanied a shipment of horses on the train from Kingston, ON in 1910. Gordon Waddell was visited by his mother and sisters in 1913. My grandmother was not happy that Gordon did not have a place for them to stay so she worked on a sod-roofed hut, herself. She told that "an Indian came by and stopped and helped me get that roof on" - a very, very kind gesture.

My grandfather, Ernie Graham, had come out from Michigan to see how things were with his older brother, Tom Graham. He met, married my grandmother, Alma Waddell, and they returned to Michigan. So my grandparents met there in Alberta. Right there. The place I just learned about.

Again, wow. Again, thank-you, all.

I am so grateful to have had this priceless opportunity. This course was in a word, FABULOUS! Well designed, excellent curriculum, especially considering the enormity of materials to cover. It was easy to navigate, easily understood and help was always available if needed.

LOVED the paintings by Leah Dorion; such an important aspect of our learning. Her paintings really highlighted what we were learning and reinforced the importance of story telling through the generations. For me, It was an introduction to another Indigenous artist I had not yet discovered. (Maxine Noel and Alex Janvier are my favourites)

The forums were helpful to connect to other learners. I especially appreciate that we could download and print materials to refer back to and to share with others. As an ally, my desire is to share what I have learned with those who may be ignorant of the issues, history and genocide of inhabitants of Turtle Island. Education really is the new Buffalo! Now if we can just get more settlers watching APTN, they may start to understand the harm of colonialism too!

This curriculum was obviously a labour of love and I am so thankful that we have been given access to this resource of information and understanding. As one friend told me, when sharing about a racist encounter, "we have been forgiving since the beginning of time." To me, the offering of this course to anyone and everyone, plus offering it for free, that forgiveness continues to this day.

Learning about the worldviews of Indigenous people and their way of life, broke my heart, knowing the beauty that was destroyed since first cantact. This course has reinforced my deep desire to see true reconcilliation become a reality in our lifetime. Clean water, proper and safe housing for our climate, equal access to any and all services, (the list goes on and on) is the right of every inhabitant of this good earth. I am hopeful for the future.

Meegwetch! Thank you!

I am blown away by this course! It was fantastic and fairly comprehensive (though I know I still have so much to learn). I rarely learned Indigenous histories, knowledges, and contemporary influences in any classes in school and if I did, it was usually from a racist perspective. I always should have done more to learn and I know my awareness and understanding is still a work-in-progress. I am so thankful for this course and I am going to continue my learning journey. As a white settler, I am remaining aware and alert of the ways I benefit from racism and the privilege I have. This means I have a responsibility to learn about the land I'm on and this history connected with it. I have a responsibility to contribute to decolonizing. This course did more than teach history from an Indigenous perspective; it communicated the underlying theme that we all have a responsibility to the land and to others. We should have reciprocity and so far, the government and White people have had a primarily take (and not give) relationship with Indigenous peoples. This course motivated me to do more to learn and contribute to the ongoing struggle for Indigenous rights and recognition.

I would love to see an update on some of the course content. For instance, in the video about conceptions of gender and sex, sex is referred to as biological (by social scientists) and gender is cultural. However, that is becoming an outdated conception and I believe many social sciences now are considering that both sex and gender are very much products of the society. Also, Neechi Commons as shut down which is so sad and I hope they're able to re-open.

Thank you to the instructors and anyone else involved in making this course!! I was captivated by every second and I can't wait to have discussions with others, pass on what I've learned, and continue my own learning.

Every Canadian should have to take this course; it should be mandatory. It certainly does give a different perspective from the one that we were taught growing up (I'm a young 73) or the one portrayed in the 20th century media. It is amazing to learn about Indigenous resilience and determination - which should never have been necessary if they had been treated properly. After all, we took their land and treated them as our inferiors.

It is sad that Indigenous have had to fight so hard for something that was theirs and their ancestors in the first place. They were here long before we were and they were doing a much better job of living on the land (rather than off of it). If we could go back and live as they did, there could be peace but that is not possible. But, we can learn from them. They worried then and still do about leaving something for future generations!

This course also makes one want to delve further into the subject and find a way to stop and reverse what is happening. Indigenous peoples are entitled to their land claims and more! How do we ever compensate them for the loss of their children and the damage done by residential schools? It was Genocide and we as Canadians (although we were for the most part ignorant of what was happening) are responsible. Ignorance is not an excuse! My ancestors (I’m of Irish decent) came here for a better life BUT we took THEIR LAND and tried to ASSIMILATE them. God forgive us!

I, for one, will be doing more research and hopefully will find some small way to add my voice with theirs for the justice they deserve. I don’t think the Truth & Reconciliation Commission did much to rectify the situation – especially in regards to dead and missing women and two spirit people - I think it is just a band-aid. More needs to be done and quickly!

Thanks for the eye-opener.

Ninanaskomon

Horrified, Humbled and Honoured to have been able to take this course.

This should be taught in high school history classes. Every Canadian should know these facts.

Pre-Colonial Aboriginals were HIGHLY ENLIGHTENED. ✨🌞✨

No wonder colonialists did everything they could to suppress this information and their people.

Never would have suited their agenda - seeing as how their agenda was never the betterment of humanity as a whole.

In Pre colonial times the women were exalted and revered hunters, caregivers, gatherers etc, often even responsible for choosing their chiefs.

In Pre colonial times 'Two- Spirit' was a name termed for those under the bi-sexual umbrella. Or those with a feminine and masculine spirit.

Before colonist patriarchal ways took over. Twisting their minds to believe women were inferior and christianity promoting homosexual/lesbian relations as evils.

How progressive to not need to change and dominate everything. Accepting nature as is.

Everything is interconnected, the land is sacred and we are not the most important in this world.

So many new things I've learned from this course.

My two favourite are the Mohawk story of creation (Sky Woman) &

the Nehiyawa (Cree) people considered the word 'Daytime' to be almost vulgar as this was seen as a spiritual 'EVENT' that the great spirit gave us eyes to witness.

The horrors are many - the amount of residential school children in Canada not returning to their families was 42%. Let that sink in.

Please if you ever have the time to devote -

"The short-term pain of accepting a truth is much better than the long-term pain of believing an illusion."- quote hmmm unknown I believe

This course was so well presented with its diversity of presenters and the interesting way the material is presented. To be able to read along as the speaker was talking helped to keep my attention. The course notes at the end were most helpful, especially being able to refer to them during the tricky quizzes! The interactive painting is beautiful and has inspired me to do some painting myself.

This course was so informative and also very disturbing in learning of colonialism and it’s impact. Taking this now came at a perfect time in my life. At Woodcliff United Church in Calgary, our Outreach Committee is embracing what we can do in an ongoing way support Truth and Reconciliation. A sub committee called Journey for Common Ground has formed with its initial goal being to educate ourselves. There are so many resources that it has been overwhelming, but working through this course has been ideal.

On September 27th at the church, we recognized Orange Shirt Day with Elder Shirley Hill speaking, dancing and leading us on a walk through the neighborhood. I just happened to be doing the unit on that very topic that week! The following Sunday the MMIWG were remembered, recognized and honoured in a vigil shared with three other churches.

On a personal level, our son, who is an artist in Calgary is in a relationship with a beautiful woman whose father was Cree. They have a three month old son (our grandson) who is such a gift!

Understanding the past from an indigenous perspective has only just begun, but I can’t thank U of A and the faculty involved, enough, for offering this free online course.

Every Canadian needs to take this course.

I have deeply appreciated this course: the content, the strong values, the attention to many dimensions (history, geography, spiritual, cultural, contemporary issues, etc.) The three instructors did an outstanding job of organizing and presenting the material, to make it accessible and relevant to a wide audience. Strong points of the course, for me, were the interviews - each valuable and presenting a clear and mature perspective, Leah Dorion's artwork and explanations, and the use of the maps and other visuals. Specific examples from specific nations, court cases, artists, etc. were very helpful.

The only weak point, for me, was the quiz questions - too many were over-simplified, repetitious, or focused on relatively minor points while omitting key priority concepts and events in each unit. To bring those questions up to the educational and professional level of the content of the course would be a good project for someone at the University of Alberta to take on.

I am a citizen of the United States, my ties to the indigenous community are through my husband, an "off-rez" member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation who has come late in life to awakenings of the importance of his heritage. I gained a lot of appreciation for the situation of First Nations, Metis and Inuit in Canada, as well as for the quite different ways that relations between indigenous and settler-colonist people played out in Canada compared to in the US. All the info. on treaties, Indian status, advocacy and organizing has been inspiring and I will take it with me into the future. I am also recommending this course to others. Miigwetch (thank you).

I am really glad I enrolled in this course offered by the faculty! I learned so much more clarity over indigenous perspective in relation to world views, historical significance past and present and future more than I thought I knew. I enjoyed each lessons and I really loved the interviews and the art work discussions that were in each module. The teachers spoke at a great speed and with great tone that felt personal like I was sitting with my family and having a family member explain and teaching me cultural life lessons,even the very hard parts with the missing and murdered women,to enfranchisement, assimilation and residential schools,there is just so much more understanding and open learning that I only wish was a standard in schools because although some horrifying history and on going struggles,I think would really open the door for trying to see how our daily living without a thought about what it means to be living in the modern world on the lands of those who already occupied and have had an integral connection to their lands,has been impacted and how we can return to a way of mutual respect and equalitarian ways and having a good platform that opens up discussions about what this means. None of the lessons felt like one sided view point or heavily political,or like an ulterior agenda,even while discussing those very things from the indigenous perspective. It was well put together for each module and just let's you learn as best as can be explained and shared so much history,insight and understanding and respect into indigenous Canada.

I found the course very valuable especially in defining the current growth of "indigeneity" in Canada. I was fortunate to have grown up under the tutelage of very inclusive parents. My mother was the owner of the Handloom store in Victoria. As such she became a major outlet for many of the artists of the west coast including the argillite carvers of Haida Gwaii with visits to their homes and families. I have long been a student of world history and have read a few of the stories of first nations. Two of the more influential were Hanta Yo (twice) and Song of the Meadowlark (thrice). Indian Horse, Sweetgrass and Motorcycles and currently God is Red.

I am greatly interested in the evolution of First Nations power noting how it has been greatly facilitated by both the English language and modern invention.

The course employed the classic technique of comparing "our best with their worst" (Ken Wilbur A Brief History of Everything) but I recognized that as a lead-in to invite all to rise to a better standard.

I have also long been a critic of "western civilization" in spite of the fact that I'm intensely grateful that I'm not a slave, wet, cold or hungry. I believe that the final result of the rise of Red Power will be a new, more integrated, respectful, sustainable way of being. The challenge being that it will have to be so powerful as to make current forms of resource use and money power obsolete.

There is much to be learned from" your best".

I say "your best" because my own ancestry is 100% European