Grade 8 Curriculum Analysis Ed 3601

By: Tyler DeMartini, Leighton Barron, Colin Delaney and

Sydney Vickers
Through analysis of the grade eight Alberta social studies curriculum, it is evident to see
the major themes and central ideas relating to developing an understanding of multiple
worldviews. By understanding multiple worldviews, students will begin to establish their
worldview ideas and be able to assess the influence of the past on the present. In order to help
students obtain this, the grade eight social studies curriculum focuses on three places and times.
These places and times include Edo era Japan, the Renaissance and the Spanish and Aztecs. By
elaborating on the rich history of these three worldviews, the social studies curriculum is
designed to get students to understand how intercultural contact between societies can lead to a
drastic shift of a society's worldview.

By establishing an understanding of intercultural impact between societies, this can lead

to unique opportunities for teaching and learning. A big aspect of this would be getting students
to understand multiple perspectives and respecting other people’s ways of life. An understanding
of multiple perspectives can help a student develop critical thinking skills (SLO 8.S.1); students
can begin to start critically thinking on why this happened, the impact of the events on the
society, and how the society adapted to the changes. Grade eight also provides a unique
opportunity for teachers to get their student’s involved in the research process (SLO 8.S.7) . The
research process could be done in many ways; specifically through electronic devices (SLO
8.S.7). The students could then begin to organize their research and formulate new questions as
they begin to dive into multiple perspectives. Therefore, by teaching intercultural impact, you
have an unique opportunity to get students to develop critical thinking and research skills.

The front matter of the social studies curriculum states that part of the role of social
studies is to help students develop their ability to be effective citizens. By doing this, social
studies helps students realize their own individual and collective identity, with an emphasis on
personal and societal growth. As the focus of grade 8 social studies is to study historical
worldviews, getting students to consider and create their own worldview by analyzing their own
culture in comparison to others will help them develop their own senses of identity. When
studying Japan, students will study how worldview affects whether a society isolates itself or
adapts to the world around it. Showing students how the collective identity of a society is
constantly growing and changing can help them accept that their own identity will change and
grow throughout their life; this is reflected by SLO 8.1.4 (appreciate how a society’s worldview
shapes individual citizenship and identity). As students study Renaissance Europe, they will
recognize how the events of the Renaissance helped shape the current Western worldview while
also valuing different worldviews (SLO 8.2.1, 8.2.2). The Western definitions of citizenship and
identity were shaped by the events of the Renaissance and this unit helps students identify where
the basis for both their worldview as well as the one being taught them comes from. While
studying the Spanish and Aztecs, students will be able to see how when worldviews collide, the
consequences (both positive and negative) will shape the identities of each (SLO 8.3.2). The
sharing that occurs between people of different worldviews will define their relationships, and
students studying this will further be able to see how their own worldviews can change based on
the level of interaction that two societies have. To further help students develop their sense of
citizenship, the curriculum also states that both local and current affairs should be discussed in
class. Students can see how what is happening in the world around them is affected by the events
of the past that they are studying, and can also see how they can change the world around them
by becoming active citizens (SLO 8.S.6).

As stated above, grade eight curriculum is focused on three different places and time;
Japan during the Edo period, Aztecs after contact by the Spanish and Europe during the
Renaissance. A large part of the focus is placed on how isolationism affected Japanese culture
and worldview (SLO 8.1.5). It also has a focus on how Japanese society and worldview changed
when Japan was no longer isolated (SLO 8.1.6). This does not have a direct link to aboriginal
perspectives, but a link can be made. The North American aboriginal people were isolated from
Western perspectives for millennia previous to European transAtlantic voyages. Connections can
be made between the isolation of aboriginal groups, isolation in Japan and the impacts on their
worldview when they were no longer isolated. By understanding some of the key aspects of how
isolation and the subsequent introduction of European worldview impacted worldviews in Japan,
students will be able to better assess how these factors impacted aboriginal groups. Thinking
through a lense of isolation in Edo Japan context could aid students in thinking through a
perspective of isolation in an aboriginal context.

A more direct link to Aboriginal perspectives can be made to the grade eight curriculum
focus on the impacts that Spanish contact had on the worldview of the Aztecs (SLO 8.3.2 and
8.3.4). Much like North America aboriginal groups, the Aztecs were also isolated and then
rapidly introduced to European worldview. This sudden introduction to a European worldview
made many changes to the way that the Aztecs saw the world. They were forced to adapt their
understanding of the world rapidly as their society came into conflict with Spanish worldviews.
By understanding how the clash of Spanish worldview with the previously isolated Aztec society
students will gain a greater appreciation of how European influences affected North American
aboriginal groups as well. Looking through the perspective of an indigenous population and the
impacts that European contact had on them can aid students in understanding the impacts that
European contact had on North American aboriginal groups.
 When learning about the renaissance in Europe students will be exposed to perspectives
of many European countries (SLO 8.2.1, 8.2.2 and 8.2.4). One of these countries is France.
During this period of time France began to colonize many parts of the world including Canada.
By understanding how the worldview of people living in France was shaped by the Renaissance
and European expansionism students will gain insight into how these aspects of worldview have
impacted Canadian francophone worldview. Understanding the dynamics within Europe and
how they were shaped by the Renaissance, imperialism and expansionism will help students to
appreciate how Canadian francophones have a perspective that is unique due to their history not
only in Canada but previous to and during colonisation of North America. By understanding
these unique perspectives students will also gain a greater understanding of the pluralistic nature
of francophone communities and Quebec within Canada in the modern day.

One of the primary challenges of this grade level is relating course content to the skills
and values that are supposed to be developed. Students may question whether or not the content
is actually relevant to their lives, so it is vital that the connections between history and the way
the world exists now are explicitly explained throughout the course. Many students initially
struggle with figuring out how they are affected by history and geography; SLOs 8.S.2 and 8.S.3
specifically state how students are to learn about cause-and-effect relationships, both between
historical events and the present, and between physical and political geography and worldview.
By recognizing that their environment has an effect on the way they think, students can begin to
understand why the historical examples chosen to showcase worldview are relevant to their lives.
The emphasis on how different worldviews interact is especially important in the modern age
when different cultures intermingle every day through the internet as well as when people from
all over the world immigrate to Canada. The most worthwhile challenge to take on is to help
students overcome the biases of the past as the world becomes more and more interconnected.