Education Supplement

Bamboo Shoots: Chinese Canadian Legacies in BC

As British Columbians, we pride ourselves on the multiculturalism and ethnic diversity of our province. However, the early history of B.C. is marred with numerous injustices towards many minority groups, including Chinese Canadians.

That’s why, in 2014, a formal apology on behalf of all members of the legislative assembly was made to Chinese Canadians for historical wrongs committed by past governments. It’s why we committed to a number of legacy projects to commemorate the apology and celebrate the contributions of Chinese Canadians to the history, culture and economic prosperity of our province.

This includes supporting the Ministry of Education with their efforts to update B.C.'s education curriculum by making the historical experiences of all immigrants an explicit part of the K-12 curriculum.

In partnership with Open School BC, the Royal British Columbia Museum, several B.C. teachers and a working group comprised of Legacy Initiative Advisory Council members, the Ministry of International Trade Responsible for Asia Pacific Strategy and Multiculturalism developed a comprehensive, online curriculum supplement.  Bamboo Shoots: Chinese Canadian Legacies in BC is for teachers of Grades 5 and 10 to acknowledge the contributions of Chinese Canadians and the historical injustices they faced.

Bamboo Shoots and the complementary outreach kit available through the Royal BC Museum after October 23, 2015, bring the topic of Chinese Canadian history in B.C. to life through archival photos, a hands-on card game, historic documents and tangible copies of relics that students can interact.