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Kia ora

This is a message from the Co-presidents of OCIES. It is being sent to everyone on the OCIES APIA 2019 Conference database.

It is with much regret that we advise you of the OCIES Executive Committee decision to cancel the 47th Annual OCIES Conference scheduled for 26-28 November, 2019 in Samoa. This decision is made following urgent advice from the Administration of the National University of Samoa (hosts of the 2019 conference with Dr Tagataese Tupu Tuia as the conference convener) to this effect.

This regretful cancellation is made in the light of the closure of the National University of Samoa campus (the planned conference venue) and the Government of Samoa-declared state of national emergency following the measles outbreak.

The Executive Committee is looking into the administrative implications to conference registrants (re. fees refunds) as a consequence of this cancellation.

Kind regards

Our thoughts are with those suffering in Samoa

Martyn Reynolds

7th Conference of the International Research Association for History and Social Sciences Education (IRAHSSE)

in collaboration with the Société des professeurs d’histoire du Québec (SPHQ)

Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada, October, 15-17, 2020

Teaching and learning history and the social sciences in relation to minorities-majorities dynamics in a national context

We invite you to submit a proposal on the announced theme.

For this official call, your proposal, 200 words in length, must announce the theoretical framework, the methodology and some results. The bibliography must include at least 3 references.

Send us your proposal before November 15, 2019 to airdhss.uqtr.2020@gmail.com. Download the proposal form here: https://www.euroclio.eu/2019/10/25/call-for-papers-international-research-association-for-history-and-social-sciences-education-irahsse/

How does the teaching of humanities and social sciences reconcile with contrasting national contexts characterized by situations of great cultural diversity marked by the presence of minoritized groups? What is the contribution of history and the social sciences to this question? What pedagogies are put in place to implement school curricula and how do they advance teaching around such a sensitive question?

The coexistence of minorities and majorities within different national contexts is not new. As the historian Benedict Anderson (1991) asserts, whenever state boundaries do not coincide with cultural boundaries, nationalist movements with strong political claims may rise. Sometimes, these latent tensions between state power and various minority groups can turn into “frozen conflicts”, as is the case with the conflicts that arose on the territory of the former USSR (Jolicoeur and Campana, 2009). In such a context, no state or region seems homogeneous when viewed from the angle of cultural diversity.

These situations, which are innumerable around the world, may constitute a great asset for teaching in the humanities and the social sciences. One can think of, among others, Catalonia and the Basque Country in Spain and in France, Scotland and Wales in Great Britain, Flemish and Walloon Belgium, China and Taiwan, France and other countries in Western Europe with large postcolonial communities (after the decolonisation wave of the 1950s-70s), or minoritized indigenous populations in numerous countries in the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania.

Québec, with a multifaceted history of a Francophone minority within English Canada and an Anglophone minority within Québec itself, can, also in the light of many social sciences related questions, serve as an example of a case-study of such a theme. Moreover, Canada and Quebec themselves host numerous minorities, such as French Canadians outside Quebec and Anglo-Quebecers, or, again, the eleven First Nations of Quebec, each with their own historical and social contingencies (Delâge 1991, Bouvier et al., 2012).

This international conference, which will take place in Trois-Rivières (Quebec), will seek to shed light on the ways in which history and the social sciences as they are taught in schools, take into account geohistorical, political, cultural, social and identity-related factors that contribute to the emergence of the minority predicament in the world and the shaping of interactions and connections between social groups. The goal is to initiate a reflection on the relationship between nationalism, citizenship, political framework and cultural diversity.

This conference is organised around three axes. The first will focus on the emerging challenges characterising majority-minority situations as discussed above. The second will centre on educational aims, curricula, teaching practices and available teaching materials. Finally, the third will pertain to the actors involved in these different national contexts and their relation to the teaching materials, notably the digital ones.

Axis 1: Emerging Challenges

This axis opens and possibly continues an epistemological and critical discussion on the national contexts of the teaching of history, geography and the social sciences, in connection with the relations between national minorities and majorities. It is thus a question of better understanding the dynamics within which these entities evolve, as well as the processes that led to the configuration of these dynamics. The aim here is to better grasp their influence on the teaching and learning of history and the social sciences as well as their potential.

Axis 2: Aims, curricula, teaching practices and teaching materials

In teaching history and the social sciences, the difficulty of defining, promoting and appreciating the development of teaching materials and operations of thought (such as declarative knowledge or heuristics) constitutes one of the most important and thorny challenges. It arises, notably as a result of the political significance or the scientific value given to such knowledge. These challenges raise questions about teaching, learning and assessment, which are particularly important in terms of understanding the social constructs of “minority” and “majority” in a national context. How do official curricula and the multiple teaching resources offered to teachers take these questions into account? Which teaching materials and practices are likely to help students think of themselves as historical actors while helping them  develop a sense of agency in regards to their knowledge, skills and attitudes associated with the practice of history as a discipline, or the other social sciences?

Axis 3: Actors, Teachers, students and other members of the educational community, through the prism of multiple identities in different national contexts

The different actors involved in the teaching and learning of history and other social sciences are often familiar in their practice with the sensitive relationship between minority and majority. The relationship between teachers and students thus requires to negotiate the potential multiple affiliations in the light of the knowledge taught. This situation opens up different questions to explore: How do multiple affiliations manifest themselves in the teaching of history and other social sciences? How do actors negotiate their connection to a type of knowledge that invokes a sensitive relationship between minority and majority?

References

Anderson, B. (1991). Imagined Communities. Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. Londres, Angleterre : Verso.

Bouvier, F., Allard, M., Aubin, P. et Larouche, M.-C. (dir.) (2012). L’histoire nationale à l’école québécoise, regards sur deux siècles d’enseignement, Québec : Septentrion.

Delâge, D. (1991). Le pays renversé : Amérindiens et Européens en Amérique du Nord-Est, 1600-1664. Montréal : Boréal.

Helly, D. (2002). Minorités ethniques et nationales : les débats sur le pluralisme culturel. L’Année sociologique, 2002/1 (Vol. 52), p. 147-181.

Jolicoeur, P. et Campana, A. (2009). Introduction : « Conflits gelés » de l’ex-URSS : Débats théoriques et politiques. Études internationales, 40(4), 501–521.

McAndrew, M. (2010). Les majorités fragiles et l’éducation. Québec : Presses de l’Université de Montréal.

Do you know that the deadline for submission of abstracts and the deadline for conference registration has been extended? Abstracts now close on 8 November, while registration closes on 15 November. If you have yet to register for the conference, let our OCIES co-President, Associate Professor Kabini Sanga, tell you why you should join!

1. Discover something new: From the keynote addresses, symposia, papers, panels, tok stori/talanoa, round table discussions and poster displays, you will learn something surprising and new. From the conference, you are likely to take home, tips, helpful take-away thoughts and new ideas for work and collaborations.
2. Energize yourself: OCIES conferences buzz with energy, friendliness and excitement. You are likely to be encouraged, gain new insights and return home, refreshed and hopefilled. You will find the emerging scholars of OCIES delightful and promising.
3. Appreciate Oceania as Oceania: OCIES conference hosts are authentic representations of Oceania. By engaging fully with conference participants, including the hosts in their settings, you will renew your appreciation of the diverse yet friendly and hospitable peoples of Oceania. 
4. Grow and or deepen your networks: From the first programme event until the final one, you will meet participants who share your professional interest and passion; allowing you to expand and deepen your relationships and networks. Networking opportunities include special social and cultural events and meal outings.
5. Enjoy quality time with respected leaders and influencers: You will meet and have unrushed conversations with educators whose work has inspired you—including Oceania senior researchers, seasoned comparative educators and thought-leaders.    

Join us now!

Talofa! Good news!

The deadline for abstract submission has been extended to 8 November and registration for the conference will be opened until 15 November. If you have friends who are interested to join the conference, please pass on the news to them.

We look forward to seeing you in Apia, Samoa next month!

For further inquiries about the conference, please email 47thociessamoaconfese@nus.edu.ws

We are excited to share the focus of our second OCIES New and Emerging Researchers Fono (NERF) with you. We will be hosting a full-day workshop on Monday November 25^th,  the day before the OCIES conference begins in Samoa.

Our aim for the day is to build connections amongst OCIES New and Emerging Researchers (NERs), to inform OCIES NERs about the Rethinking Education Across the Pacific Initiative and the history of working in the Pacific, to support OCIES NERs with publishing and common ECR concerns. We have invited a range of OCIES elders to share with us so we can learn, reflect and ask questions about our positionality, and potential issues and challenges for our work. It will be a fantastic day for you to make new friends and connect with other NERs, we look forward to sharing and learning with you.

	Event
8.30	Registration and Faafeiloaiga
8.40	Prayer
8.50	Opening speech (FOE Dean or DVC)
9.00	History and context of research in the Pacific: introducing REAP to New and Emerging Researchers
11.00	Morning tea
11.30	NERF sessions a) Early NERF – just starting as NER b) Late NERF – been a NER for a bit
12.30	Lunch
1.00	Reflection & positionality, issues and challenges
2.30	Close

If you’re interested to join the Fono but have yet to register for it, please drop us an email at ocies.org@gmail.com to register. We look forward to seeing you at the Fono (and the Conference!).

Do you know that ‘Exhibition’ has been added as a new category for the upcoming OCIES Conference in Samoa?

Do you know that the distinguished Le Afioga a le Tama-a-aiga, His Highness Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Ta’isi Tupuola Tufuga Efi is going to be one of our Keynote Speakers for the conference?

Do you know that we have exciting changes related to membership and our journal (IEJ:CP) that are coming up?

Do you know we have had changes to our Executive Committee?

Check out the latest OCIES newsletter to find out more!