B.C. school district apologizes for exam asking how First Nations 'benefitted' from relationships with colonizers
A B.C. school district is apologizing for a question that appeared on an exam asking students to give examples of how First Nations people may have benefitted from their relationships with colonizers.
In a statement Friday, the Burnaby School District said it was "moving swiftly" after learning about the question that appeared on a Grade 9 social studies test.
The district's statement says students were asked to "explain how First Nations people benefitted from their relationships with European colonizers," adding that the question said "'many took advantage' of those relationships."
The statement says the district superintendent learned about the question on Thursday after a student told media about it.
"It is inappropriate and worse than that, this kind of question is harmful and could be trauma-inducing for Indigenous youth and damaging to meaningful relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people," Supt. Gina Niccoli-Moen said in the statement.
"This is not the way we integrate Indigenous perspectives and worldviews into curriculum in the Burnaby School District."
The superintendent apologized for the question and said a review of materials is underway.
"While I want people to know how deeply saddened and sorry I am that this question was put on a student exam, it is equally important to take it beyond words and take steps to prevent this from happening again," Niccoli-Moen said.
The district says it's reaching out to students in the class to find out what support and care they need. It's unclear who came up with the question, but the district says it's talking to the group "that developed the online course from which the question was taken."
"While the question on the exam was not the latest version, the district has concerns about the current material, which is a provincial resource for online learning," the district's statement says.
In November, another B.C. school district launched an investigation after an Indigenous parent shared a video on social media about one of her 11-year-old daughter's school assignments.
The assignment from a middle school in Abbotsford asked students to list five positive outcomes of Canada's residential school system that forcibly separated Indigenous children from their communities.
At the time, Dr. Kevin Godden, superintendent of the Abbotsford School District, told CTV News Vancouver in a statement that the district "immediately launched an investigation" after learning about the assignment.
"Assignments like this are not acceptable," Godden said in November. "This incident is a disservice to the district’s commitment to truth and reconciliation."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Feds hope to table foreign interference legislation next week: LeBlanc
Democratic Institutions Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to table legislation this week to help the federal government address foreign interference, but he wouldn't say whether the proposal will include a foreign agent registry.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Centre Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs hasn't been ruled out of tonight's Game 7 against the Boston Bruins.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.