Misunderstood: Canadian Multiculturalism
I teach many social science courses and a concept that students often struggle with is pluralism in Canada. This is the idea that Canadian identity is not one thing but rather a collection of identities (race, ethnicity, gender, class etc.)
To help explain this topic, I use the analogy of a mosaic.
In their past experiences students are often influenced by American media and the idea of a melting pot. I use this as a contrast to Canada’s vision of pluralism.
The melting pot is the idea that various cultures and people come to America and ‘melt’ into one homogenous culture. Canada’s mosaic shows a beautiful image from afar, but when you look closer, it’s made clear that all pieces (people) have their differences and these difference contribute to a greater identity. Canada’s cultural identity is simplified as having many different pieces that contribute rather than having all the pieces melt together.
This analogy helps students to understand where their previous notions of the melting pot may have come from.
To break this into even smaller chunks, I ask my students to write and draw words or pictures that are meaningful to them, and define them. When everyone is complete the white board is full, but no two students wrote the exact same thing. It becomes a visual for pluralism in our classroom that is echoed in the fabric of our country.
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