Curricular Response
Explain how you chose one image and one quotation to create or support the meaning represented in your map assignment.
My overall map assignment represents the complex relationship of who “owns” North America, between the colonial settlers and the Indigenous peoples of the land. To depict this idea, I chose the third quote, “forget what you heard in your school book,” paired with the binary opposite “knowledge/ignorance” that emphasizes the importance of truth in the reconciliation process. The drawings of the person in glasses reading book and the confused face symbolize the difference between knowledge and ignorance, but also between recorded history and truth. This map serves as a reminder that the real history of the land on which we live is much deeper than we often consider and should be treated with respect.
Core Competency Self-Assessment
How did your cultural background or values inform your decisions when completing this assignment?
I chose the first two quotations, “replaced all the greenery with concrete buildings” and “beautiful country with green trees” because they relate to my own personal values. Caring for the environment is important to me, so these quotes stood out as personally significant. My drawings of these quotes, the green trees and the grey concrete buildings, depict a fear that our modern technology may be destroying more of the Earth than necessary or beneficial. This idea is further represented by the shadows from the buildings approaching where the trees grow; if they become too tall, they will block the trees from sunlight and suppress the natural world.
