Indigenous Cultures of British Columbia
Curriculum guideline
Lecture: 4 hours/week
or
Hybrid: 2 hours/week in class; 2 hours/week online
or
Fully online
The course will employ a variety of instructional methods to accomplish its objectives, including some of the following:
- Lectures
- Films, videos and slide presentations
- Small and Large Group Discussion
- Guest Speakers
1. Overview of First Nations Cultures
- First Nations’ Bands, Population, Languages, and Names
- Anthropological Approaches to Indigenous Societies
2. Origins of Peoples in B.C.
- Initial Occupation of the New World and B.C.
- Archaeological Overview of Over 12,000 years
- Oral Histories and Origin Stories
3. The Avenues of Cultural Knowledge - A History
- Early Cultural Encounters (Explorers, Early Traders, Missionaries)
- History of Anthropological Study
- Oral Traditions
4. Northern Northwest Coast Cultures (Haida, Tlingit, Tsimshian)
5. Central Coast Cultures (Kwakwaka’wakw, Nuxalk)
5. West Coast Cultures (Nuu-chah-nulth)
6. South Coast Cultures (Coast Salish)
7. Mid-Fraser Canyon Cultures (Nlaka’pamux, St'át'imc)
8. Interior Plateau Cultures (Secwempemc, Okanagan, Ktunaxa)
9. Northeast Interior Cultures (Tsil’qotin, Tahltan, Dene)
10. Cultural Themes Throughout the Course:
- Environmental and Ecological Context
- Economy and Subsistence Methods
- Complex Hunter-Gatherer-Fishers
- Annual Movements from Villages to Seasonal Camps
- Social Organization (Nobles, Commoners, Slaves)
- Division of Labour and Specializations (Chiefs, Shamans, Healers, Warriors, Artisans, Weavers, Dancers)
- Political Organization (Decision-Making, Punishment, Dispute Arbitration)
- The Potlatch (Status, Gifting, Redistribution, Public Accounting)
- Warfare and Conflict Resolution (Weaponry, Forts, Peace Ceremonies)
- Religious and Spiritual Beliefs and Practices (Spirit Powers, Totems, Shamanism, Rituals, Ceremonies)
- Oral Histories (Legends, Lineages, Ancestral Names, Differences with Written Histories)
- Architecture (Plankhouses, Pithouses, Refuges)
- Art (Totem Poles, House Panels, Symbols)
11. Changes and Challenges After Colonialism:
- History of Early Contact with Europeans and B.C. First Nations
- Early Alterations and Adaptations of Traditional Cultures
- Effects of Population Decline from Diseases
- Reserve Allotments and the Beginnings of Indian Administration and the Indian Act
12. Current Issues:
- Unceded Territories, Land Claims, and Contemporary Treaty Making
- Movements Towards Indigenous Self-Government
- History of Indigenous Resistance
- Indigenous Cultural Revitalization
At the conclusion of the course, a student should be conversant in:
1. The major indigenous groups of British Columbia, their general distribution and relationship to other groups by language or lifeway.
2. Traditional cultural practices (including economy, social organizations, architecture and other aspects) for each of the major cultural regions of British Columbia.
3. The traditional cultural beliefs about proper relationships among peoples, the environment, and the spirit world.
4. The challenges indigenous groups faced for their cultural beliefs and practices after European contact and settlement, and their responses and engagement with the development of British Columbia and Canada.
5. Historic federal policies of native administration and residential schools in Canada, and how these continue to have lasting effects in their restriction of First Nations culture.
Evaluation will be based on course objectives and will be carried out in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. The instructor will provide a written course outline with specific criteria during the first week of classes.
Instructors may use a student’s record of attendance and/or level of active participation in the course as part of the student’s graded performance. Where this occurs, expectations and grade calculations regarding class attendance and participation will be clearly defined in the Instructor Course Outline.
An example of a possible evaluation scheme would be:
| Mid-Term Exam | 25% |
| Reading Assessments | 15% |
| Final Exam | 25% |
| Research Essay | 30% |
| Attendance & Participation | 5% |
| Total | 100% |
Students may conduct research with human participants as part of their coursework in this class. Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving human subjects.
Texts will be updated periodically. Typical examples are:
- Muckle, Robert J. (2014). The First Nations of British Columbia. Third Edition. UBC Press, Vancouver.
Supplemental text examples:
- Elsey, Christine (2012) The Poetics of Land and Identity among British Columbia Indigenous Peoples. Fernwood Publishing, Black Point, Nova Scotia.
- Ignace, Marianne, and Ronald Ignace (2017) Secwépemc People, Land and Laws: Yerí7 re Stsq’e’s-kucw. McGill-Queens University Press, Montreal.
Other readings as assigned.