A History of Education in Saskatchewan: Selected Readings

Ashley Thomson is a full librarian at Laurentian University and co-editor or co-author of nine books, most recently Margaret Atwood: A Reference Guide, 1988-2005.

This book arose because there was a perception among its editors that
few scholars have focused on Saskatchewan’s education history.
Inspired by that perception, the editors have gathered 14 contributions
and organized them into three district categories: Building the State,
Education and Culture, and Teachers and Teaching.

The editors acknowledge that the book’s focus is on schooling. There
are some serious gaps in their coverage of trustees and teacher training
institutes, and nothing about the contribution of universities,
community colleges, and technical institutes. It might therefore have
been more accurate to replace the word “education” in the title with
the word “schooling” but for the fact that the book includes
chapters on the early years of the Saskatchewan Arts Board and on Annie
Hollis’s work with Saskatchewan farm women.

Some of the chapters have “appeared earlier,” usually as a
conference paper (the one on separate schools dates back to 1979), and
some are better written than others. One of the most intellectually
engaging contributions is W.B. Denis’s “Francophone Education in
Saskatchewan: Resisting Anglo-Hegemony.”

As one reads the book, one could get depressed by the horribly
primitive conditions endured by teachers—mostly women—for more than
half of the province’s history, and by the longstanding inattention to
the needs of Aboriginals, francophones, and special-needs students. And
yet ultimately, these are tales of triumph. Good administration, a
spirit of generosity, a genuine commitment to cooperation, and a passion
for excellence have led to huge improvements in Saskatchewan education.
In the end, this book is a happy celebration of that fact.