UPEI leads ‘Guardians of Confederation’ project in celebration of PEI 2014
The Guardians of Confederation-Leaders of Tomorrow project, a UPEI-led initiative, offers a unique opportunity to link PEI high school students with their peers from across Canada in the context of Confederation.
The project's organizing committee is launching a contest in March to select student participants from across the country. 'We're holding the contest to select the students, and asking them, ‘How would Canada look if you were creating it today?'' said Guardians project coordinator Lee Ellen Pottie. 'These students are the people who will become the politicians, business people, activists, and strategists of tomorrow.'
The contest will twin contest-winning students from each of the twelve provinces and territories across Canada with students from the Island's thirteen high schools. UPEI students will mentor the project participants and guide them through the task of addressing a series of questions relating to the state of Confederation today, its relationship to the past, and prospects for the future of the Canadian nation. Over the course of the project, the students will communicate and collaborate online with each other in preparation of attending a conference in Charlottetown in November. The three-day event will run concurrently with the Association of Canadian Studies-Teaching Canadian History conference, also taking place in Charlottetown.
Sharon Myers, UPEI coordinator of Canadian Studies and chair of the organizing committee agrees with Pottie. 'We want to engage young people, and help them understand that 1864 is relevant, as is Confederation.'
Open to grade 10 and 11 Canadian and Island students who have an interest in the past, present, and/or future of Canada, the contest consists of a (maximum) five-minute video submission that can be entered online. The committee will be looking for creativity and imagination in the student videos.
'Perhaps the Mothers and Fathers of Confederation are visiting Canada in 2014; what would they think? Or, someone submits a video-rant, à la Rick Mercer. We want students to think outside the box and have fun,' added Pottie.
Interested students should visit guardiansofconfederation.ca, or the Facebook page 'Guardians of Confederation' for full contest details. The contest closes May 30, 2014. The winning entrants will be announced on Canada Day through national media and on the project's social media sites.
The University of Prince Edward Island received a PEI 2014 grant to lead the Guardians of Confederation-Leaders of Tomorrow project.
