A) In Ben Levin’s chapter Curriculum Policy and the Politics of What Should Be Learned in School I learned that Policies dictate How our education system is set up including what schooling is provided, how, to whom, in what form, by whom, with what resources, etc. (pg. 8).  Policy is connected to politics and “education policy decision can be seen as being, in some sense, a political decision” (pg. 8), though many educators believe that politics shouldn’t be involved in education, however, even taking the antipolitical stand is a political move.  Political influence is normally highly unequal, and those who have the least status usually have the least influence on political decision making as well (pg. 8), which is cause for concern because an individual in a dominant position could add or take away parts of the curriculum based on their own ideologies.  Without a political vetting process, however, the curriculum would probably never be done, let alone be efficient, because every individual included in the process will have a different view on what is and isn’t important.  What goes into the curriculum is shaped by ideology, personal values, issues in the public domain, and interests (pg. 22), and it concerns me that the students have very little say in what they would like to learn, or what they think is important. 

https://www.corwin.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/16905_Chapter_1.pdf

B) I found that the Treaty Education document contained parallels to the Ben Levin chapter, for example how much control the government has over what is going on in the curriculum, even though you bring diverse people together to create it.  The people with the least status have the least influence.  I found It interesting that it says, “Ministry of Education respects the federal government’s legal, constitutional, and fiscal obligations to First Nations peoples” (Treaty Education, 2013, p. 3), but Treaty Education wasn’t mandatory until 2007.  I am sure that many tensions arose when creating Treaty Education, because it has been almost a taboo topic in Canada.  Not only does part of the population not want to admit to the wrong doings of Canada, or isn’t fully aware of them, but it is a sensitive topic for the Indigenous.  It needs to be handled with care and respect.  Placing high importance on it will have future generations more understanding of their peers and their history, and the more people that are educated on the topic the better Reconciliation will happen.