ABSTRACT
At the point of European contact, the nearly half-a-million Indigenous peoples living across what is now Canada belonged to almost a dozen linguistic families consisting of scores of languages and dialects. One of the most important tools for forging national unity amid diversity was the institution of schooling. Introduced at a time when government intervention into citizens' daily lives was relatively unknown, universal schooling was one of Canada's first examples of public policy. This chapter discusses the socio-political context within which teacher education has unfolded. It focuses on the links between liberal thought and broad developments in teacher education. The chapter discusses four manifestations of liberalism that, according to political historian Ronald Manzer, have shaped education over time: political, economic, ethical, and technological. Despite slight differences, education systems across Canada have experienced significant similarities in development due to political, social, and economic influences both within and outside of Canada.
