Before taking this class, I never really considered where the education system came from or why it was developed. Nor did I think about the different ways children were educated throughout history. The biggest shock to me was that education was created, essentially, to produce proper Canadian citizens. Although it makes sense that this would be the case, it was never something that I thought about.
I also reflect quite a bit now about the different curricula and the differences between teachers. What one teacher values and focuses on in class could be vastly different from another. This variance could also depend on geographic location, how the teacher was raised and educated, and what type of school the student is attending. This class broadened my perspectives on this topic especially.
I had also never stopped to think of my definition of childhood and education. It was so interesting to see how that definition has evolved over time and to see how everyone in class defined it a little differently.
The introduction of mental maps in class proved to be very helpful for me as well. They were a way to see how all of my thoughts stemmed from one another and interconnected. It is a great way to visually lay out your thoughts and see your thought process in front of you.
The class discussions were always thought provoking and inquisitive. They really helped to show give a broad perspective on the topics we covered in class. As a class, we are all products of the education system we were studying, but we all had different experiences and formed our own notions of what childhood and education should look like from those experiences. This class allowed for comparison and challenging of those opinions and, I believe, allowed for the creation of more well rounded perceptions.