Excellent!!

When I see indigenous people comment online, they trash-talk both government and first nations community leaders alike. They distrust both the government who never came through on promises and the leaders who have underfunded their communities for their own enjoyment.

I didn't see many solutions suggested or a means to an end to some of these issues in this course so in spite of my new found knowledge it would seem this will remain a vicious circle of poverty, distrust, and fear and this saddens me that that there is still little hope for a resolution.

However, this course did bring to light many aspects of my heritage that I was not aware of. My birth father is Métis however my birth mother is not. I was given up for adoption to a Caucasian family when I was 8 months old, so was unaware of being Métis for almost all of my life, let alone did I ever feel remotely a part of it once I found out. So this course also suggested that when you are no longer a part of the Indigenous culture and do not look Indigenous in any way, and because you will never experience the hardships or really know anyone who has, you will never be part of that culture. It's like you get to sit in the front row but will never be in the show.

The rest of the course was okay, the history I knew, the issues I knew, although the elaboration of them was nice. The introduction of key individuals in forming some semblance of a united indigenous culture were good to know. But this course also reminded me that indigeneity in Canada is also about a fractured and injured culture of people, who are separated by language, distance and who will never have the funding that other communities enjoy, and it will never be a whole. After all had there been more formal territories when NA was colonized, maybe it wouldn't be indigenous Canada, it would be Enoch Territory or Papaschase Territory or State and many others where Alberta currently sits and it would now be the United Territories of North America, but alas that will never be.

It was such a pleasure to learn, watch, understand, and share this history and experience with the presenters, guests, artists, leaders, elders, scholars, and faculty.

An exemplary, respectful, detailed, thoughtful, inclusive, dynamic, and thorough introductory to Indigenous Canada, Canadian history, colonization, cultural genocide, governance, resistance, Indigenous contributions in every field and area of life, both Indigenous and mainstream, and the important social, historical, cutlural, political, environmental, gender, identity, and colonial patriarchy and control that have shaped Indigenous history and Canadian history.

Some modules could have given more in-depth examples or a critical analysis of certain topics (example, Module 11, Social Media), and many of the figures, artists, movements, etc. presented could have had more representation for greater effect (example, showing the specifc artwork pieces by Odjig, Nicolson, Belcourt, Belmore, etc.). As well, a module on some of the major issues contemporary Indigenous youth, families, and adults face could have been dealt with (example: poverty, discrimination, addictions, displacement). Perhaps the point was not to introduce that topic, and of course, there were references to it, but a discourse on how to work toward healing and reconciliation, from both indidenous and non-indigenous perspectives, action, and responsibility, could have been interesting.

Thank you for the incredible effort, research, representation, artwork, guests, information, course texts, and videos. It was an honour to learn and I am more dedicated and determined than ever to continue my journey of understanding, solidarity, support, and change, for all indigenous peoples and for the better of Canadian society.

Anna Acito Ashton

I wish I could give this course 5 stars but...

First let me start off by saying I've really enjoyed Indigenous Canada. History as we know it has been so manipulated by our Governments and world leaders. There are so many things that I never knew because it was never taught in school or an incorrect version was taught. This course was very eye opening. I am a spiritual person and I've always felt disconnected from society as we know it. The values and community structures the indigenous people had before colonization were incredibly functional, spiritual and smart. I felt connected again.

That being said, one major complaint I have is that the tests in this course are ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE. Each week I would think I fully understood what I was learning, until I got to the quiz. The wording on some of the questions almost sounds backwards. There were a few times that my brain couldn't comprehend what was being asked. The test questions need to be reworded and SIMPLIFIED. I feel like whoever wrote some of the test questions were trying very hard to use "big" words to sound more educated. However, it did the opposite. Also some of the questions are referred to differently in the videos/course notes than they are in the quiz, I actually doubted myself many times thinking that I didn't study enough or I didn't understand as much as I thought I did. This was extremely frustrating and had me DREADING having to do the quiz every week and because of this my willingness to learn started to diminish. Thank god for CTRL-F. I had to search many key words from the quiz questions to actually get the right answers but even doing this, the answers weren't always clear.

This course was interesting, delving into details high school history books left out - thank you for filling the blanks and connecting the dots that no one was able to say publicly when I grew up. Sorry to hear things really went sour in the 19th century, generational trauma still reverberates, foreign legal and political establishments still seem adverse.

However, I am still seeking a way forward. As a second generation immigrant and an empath myself, I have always felt the darkness in Canada and sought to bring light to what really happened here. Sorry is but a word that implies I come from a privileged position immune from the collective, unspoken truth in this country, but the historical reality has brought me down as well. Being an immigrant to Canada still isn't easy, but when newcomers finally raise their noses from the grindstones, how can we (regardless of European, Arabic, East Indian, Asian, or African origins) approach Indigenous persons safely, without triggering anyone's historical pain?

I am more interested in training on Indigenous protocol, manners, and modern cultural achievements. As mentioned in the last module of this course, an overview of current literature, art, social media, movies, and perhaps natural medicine to highlight the strengths would be beneficial to everyone. For example, I understand storytelling is important, but do Indigenous cultures prefer the politically correct approach Canada advocates as a way to avoid painful truths and glairing differences between immigrant cultures, or is honesty valued in interpersonal relationships and how should that unfold and enrich an inclusive community?

Overal this course was very interesting. There was alot of information and I learned alot. With this said, I would like to make some suggestions as it relates to the content. I found some of the terminalogy used in this course to be confusing. Often I found myself looking up words to determine their meaning. Including during the quizes. I noted in some of the forums, others spoke of this as well. I would suggest reviewing and changing some of this language to use simple terms/language that is easier to understand. Compicated language causes confusion and stress and is demotivating to students. It is not necessary in my view. My moto has always been, "Let's keep this simple and not compicate things if we can". The second concern was when I read pops up that said things like, "42 percent of people did not pass this quiz on the first attempt, don't get discougaed you can try again". I found this disturbing. If the failure rate is this high, there is a problem with the quiz itself and something needs to change. This can be demotiviating as well to say the least. Another pop up was simliar and had a percentage of around 53% . I just don't recall the exact number but when these percentages are near or over half the entire group in the program that fail a quiz, that's a problem with the quiz/material and not the students abilities. Thank you for this opportunity. As mentoned, overal this was a great program and I learned alot. All the best to you all...

An enormous amount of information to absorb, but every Canadian needs to learn what this course offers. May be difficult for some - which probably means those are the ones who need it most. As a white settler who thought I knew how shameful our treatment of Indigenous people had been and still is, I learned it was even worse than I though.

I would have rated it as 5 star except the final module, on the arts, was not up to the standard of the rest. It was good on Indigenous visual art, but not one mention of all the fabulous books or plays by Indigenous creators. Minimal mention of music when there are so many wonderful Indigenous musicians. A long performance art video of when a short clip would have been plenty and that would have left time to showcase other performers.

I found the course and hearing the Indigenous perspective on Canadian history very valuable. I have recommended the course to many others, e.g., colleagues, family and friends and will continue to sing it's praises.

One comment, if I may, some of the quiz questions are worded in a way that makes it difficult to determine what is being asked and thus difficult to answer.

Thank you for providing this opportunity to learn.

Sandy Judge

I learned a lot from this course and found that some of the current events of today were more meaningful and relatable with the better understanding of Indigenous people, cultures and history (although I struggle to call much of what has happened history) that were taught.

My only wish would be that the course could be more interactive as I found it harder to stay engaged through all the videos that were largely lecture based.

while the videos were well done, would suggest other methods of engaging the learner in other interactive ways to learn the material. To maintain full focus within each of the modules I prefered to complete in one sitting but there was a ton of video and I found it hard to retain as much information without a bit more interactive exercises. Overall, thank you for this course and for the learnings.

I enjoyed this course a lot. I do hope that the last module on art gets updated with information on how to find more artists and their work. I couldn't find the resources mentioned and using the discussion groups was a little tedious.

Strong start, however, difficult to follow the last half of sessions as there was a lot of talking but not enough visuals to drive home learning.

Very informative and thought invoking. Thank you filling in my missing knowledge and better perspective of our world = Turtle Island

Very informative and elicited some good conversations. Touched on so many issues that require further learning. Thank you

The course was well prepared and technically well presented. It was easy to navigate through as an "on-line" course. So, for that aspect I would give it 5/5. The quizzes were mostly well balanced and covered the range of material in the lesson. A few of the questions explored fine differences in wording, rather than the key points of learning, so for this area I would give it 4/5. Regarding content, I was rather surprised that there was no mention of the historical developmental reasons for how the treaties were established and developed. Canada were developed as a nation of many different peoples, including the Indigenous Peoples. I am still wanting to learn about the historical background of how all the treaties and Indian Act was developed and evolved. This course presented the one side, but I had expected to learn more of the broader picture. I am very aware from the media today of the concerns of the Indigenous People. I believe that a presentation of both sides of a story is the only way to make progress on an item of concern. I had thought that a course of this caliber from the U of A would give me a better view of the whole historical perspective. I did not find this. I recently read the book "Indian In The Cabinet" by Jody Wilson-Raybould. A very good book. While it dealt mostly with her time in the Cabinet, and forced removal, she did hint at broader issues for the Indigenous People that still needed to be addressed. That is what inspired me to take this course, as I wanted to get more historical background. I did not get it here, so I guess I need to continue my search for that broader historical background. As a Canadian, I am very interested in finding ways to make this great country of ours an even better place for all of our people. The strength of our country is in our people, all of our people. My overall rating of the course is 3/5 because I did not find the balanced content that I had imagined might exist in it. I would appreciate being pointed to other reading material that might provide a balanced historical perspective related to the Indigenous People of Canada. Contact me at dennis2651@telus.net Thanks.

I learned a lot from working through this material and am looking froward to the updated edition. There is much information to work through and I think I will sign up again once it is out.

I did find some disconnect between the quizzes and text, ambiguity of language, for example, that sometimes made it frustrating to complete the quizzes correctly which is the basis of my three stars. Two examples are: Module 12 question about improvement policy gaps for urban Indigenous residents, the text notes "permanent Indigenous affairs committees" while the correct answer referenced subcommittees. Committees and subcommittees are obviously related but also different. The other is Module 10, PINAI, the text indicates that Alex Javier thinks of Bill Reid as a member of the group but it is not explicitly stated that he is (is he?). The answer included both Bill Reid and one other artist so the user doesn't have the info needed to actually answer the question and has to guess a bit (I suppose I could have Googled it). A solid review of text and tests (pilot with someone who isn't very knowledgeable with the content) will work out these relatively easy to address, but frustrating, challenges.

Overall, I thought the visuals, content and presentation/instructors were great (5 stars for these). My favorite module was Module 12, maybe because of the agency/power/strength/optimism/resilience expressed, although there were nuggets of the same throughout. I also really appreciated the final comments by the instructors.

I really enjoyed the paintings and hearing about each. They were beautiful, informative and exciting and I appreciate that they were commissioned for the course (5 stars here too).

Thanks for this course, for providing it freely, and for the work it took to put it together!

I learned so much. Sometimes it was difficult to listen to the narrators for long periods of time. It would have been nice to have visuals of what was being narrated instead of just looking at a person speaking. I really enjoyed the artist explaining her work, and the interviews with scholars. This course has sparked the desire to learn more about Indigenous issues and to connect with communities. I recently attended my first pow wow and have been trying to listen to more indigenous music and read books by indigenous authors, and research environmental issues spearheaded by indigenous communities. Thank you for this valuable learning experience.

I really enjoyed this course but to get a totally generic certificate stating that I'm a basic 'coursea learner' totally sucks. Its not hard to automate my name on to the certificate. I have to sign my name at the end of every test so its not like you don't know it.

Great course, but a real lacklustre ending. Not cool, guys.

Not what I expected. It is difficult to watch the talking heads reading a script that we actually had available. There could have been more pictures, to emphasize the point. It appeared that this course was someone's thesis. The material is a bit outdated with nothing past 2015. There are many subsequent cases such as Ipperwash , Caledonia and the current Lobster Industry in the Eastern provinces that should be discussed. The quizzes did not reflect salient points of the weekly modules and many times poorly constructed. I do commend you though for trying to enlighten those who have no understanding of the historical horrors that occurred .

An interesting topic presented in a rather dry and boring way. The lecturers are mainly reading the script without much enthusiasm

This course is beyond stupid. Most of the information was taught in grade school. I understand it may be to teach those who don't know this stuff, but this should not be a application requirement to a school for any reason.

Additionally, this course pushes the bullshit liberal left-wing political agenda rather than actually teaching about the history of the First Nations. The UofA, being an educational institution, should be ashamed of prioritizing the political agenda rather than prioritizing the education of their students.

Apart from being a colossal waste of my time, the last major reason this course is stupid is that it is required to apply for a program that doesn't even relate to the subject. I am going into the stem field and I will NEVER need this information in my future job or education.

If 0 stars is possible you would get -5 stars.

How do you write the history of a movement when you are still a part of that movement? Whom do you believe when leading participants in those historical events disagree strongly not only on why things happened, but also on what happened? What imparts the ring of truth to a people’s history? Let the records speak for themselves!

The contributors to this initiative have failed drastically in this endeavour. This presentation is rife with inaccurate information that is consistently presented as fact. The biases of the contributors are glaring. Often these opinions are spoken in the most acrimonious of terms. This project certainly fails in providing a platform for truth and reconciliation.

The two students were excellent communicators. Tracy Bear needs to learn how to speak without moving her hands in such a distracting and off-putting manner.

The course does an excellent job of providing an overview of the negative impact of colonization, but completely fails to mention any indigenous issues from before colonization, instead characterizing everything as perfect prior to colonization. Some mention of Iroquois slavery or other historical issues would paint a much more balanced picture. Note that I do not condone the horrible treatment from colonization.

This waa awkwardly terrible and contained racist phrases like "enthusiasm for war" re: indigenous people. It often tried to justify colonialism and used passive language, for example that children were hurt or lost their lives at residential schools, rather than priests and nuns murdered them. It often felt as though the presenters had never read the scripts before, and they were clearly written for indigenous people to recite by someone with a vested interest in sugarcoating the past. This was not at all acceptable in 2021.

Although the first 5 or 6 modules were interesting, the content has become increasingly biased and is very politically oriented. I would have liked 3 or 4 more sociological and synthetic introductory modules on indigenous communities today, summary of the problems and demands, solutions provided by the Canadian state, the money spent today and since the first treaties and the efforts made , the vision of Canadians other than the natives