With the vast majority of Concordia’s courses being delivered online this fall, departments across the university are working hard to prepare for the new reality. The Loyola College for Diversity and Sustainability (LCDS) recently announced it will offer two special topic courses virtually in September.
Black Montreal (LOYC 298-02) and Diversity and Sustainability in the Era of the COVID-19 Pandemic (LOYC 398-02) will be available online to all students, without any prerequisites.
Both courses represent the breadth of the content available to students at the college, which had a new high of 44 graduates this spring, up from a previous 24 in 2019.
“This was a record year for our college, and we couldn’t be prouder. These students graduated under unprecedented and unexpected circumstances, and yet they still managed to persist — and shine,” say Rebecca Tittler, coordinator of the LCDS.
“These two new courses are just another example of how our college has been able to adapt to these new times, and offer students a first-class learning experience, while moving online.”
‘If people have the background, they will be better informed’
The college first introduced the Black Montreal course in the fall 2019 term. It acknowledges the lack of discussion around Black history in the city and aims to explore the role, presence, and influence of Black people throughout the Montreal's history.
Tittler, who is also a part-time faculty member at the college and in the departments of Biology and Geography, Planning and Environment, reports that that the demand for this course has been particularly high this year. “It’s really nice to see that students are interested and paying attention.”
She notes that Black history and perspectives are not commonly discussed in elementary or high schools across the city, which is just one reason she believes it is crucial to offer this specific course at Concordia.
“I went to school here in Montreal, and we never learned this side of our history. Now, my kids aren’t learning much about it either.”
Renowned local historian Dorothy Williams is the instructor of the course. She echoes Tittler’s point, stating that many Canadians are unfamiliar with their own history.
“Black people have been a part of the history of Canada since the beginning of the country and their history is not told,” she says. “It’s kind of hard to explain the development of the Western world without explaining how Black people played a role in that.”
She adds that this history helps explain a lot of what’s going on today in society. “If people have that background, they will be better informed.”
Williams has also spent many years developing and providing educational material through her ABCs of Canadian Black History project in the hopes of improving the situation at the elementary and high school levels.