As the only member of my family without children, and the one that actually enjoys research, I started to look into our family history several months ago. Digging up our past as my contribution to our future, you might say.
It has been a fascinating, if occasionally frustrating, experience. I found out family secrets no one left alive even knew about (such as Great-Grandmother’s parents never bothering to get married!), and learned what events brought my various relatives to where they could meet one another.
This has required a great deal of looking through old records, of course, most of which were hand-written. I frequently admired the beautiful writing that most people had at a time when it was vital that it be legible. My grandfather, born in 1900, was the last person I knew of with that glorious script. Once official records were typed, much less time was spent on teaching children to write well, and it showed.
And now I discover that I may be part of the last generation that is able to do the research I have been working on, because, with everything moving to computers, they are no longer teaching cursive writing at all in many schools. Printing and keyboarding, the school boards say, is sufficient. This means that young people not only will not be able to write, but they will be unable to read hand-writing – unable to decipher the generations of records compiled before the 20th century.
I recently saw a news program in which they asked several young teens to read some simple written words. The teens, who no doubt have no trouble with the shorthand that makes up text messages, were unable to do it.
I find this sad and unnecessary. Not so long ago much of the population was illiterate, signing official documents with an “x”. Just as we have reached a time when education is freely available (at least in the west), it appears that the next generation, too, will be unable to sign their names.
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When doing your genealogy did you note just how much your family benefited from the treaties Canada signed with First Nations? I bet your great great grandfather bought prime farm land dirt cheap. If you know your history, you should know your sadistic ancestors used alcohol and the Bible, Indians didn't know what their "X" meant and definitely didn't "sell" their land. Canadians became wealthy from this land while First Nations starved. You know your precious John A Macdonald, he designed the Residential school system as a way to legally kidnap Indigenous children. Why? Because their parents would likely "behave" since their children would be under government control.
For generations Indigenous children were taught that they were inferior. For generations the rest of Canada was also taught Indigenous were inferior
Don't worry Karen the next generation is much more intelligent than you.
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