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09_V1_WAT_Aug31 Th ursday, August 31, 2017 • WATERLOO CHRONICLE • 9Serving your community since 1856 What we are witnessing today is as revolutionary and eventful as the 15th century contribution of a German goldsmith, Johannes Gutenberg to printing tech- nology, which enabled the mass pro- duction of books and the rapid spread of knowledge throughout Europe. In modern times the computer invented in the 19th century by a Brit- ish mathematician Charles Babbage has enabled mass accessibility to all kinds of information. After periodic improvements to the computer, in 1981 IBM intro- duced the first personal computer which has become an inseparable part of our lives today. The numer- ous related devices and gadgetry have transformed our lives completely and seemingly irreversibly. One of the most affected areas of this transformation is school educa- tion. It is amazing to see how much young children know and yet how lit- tle. � is boundless exposure to infor- mation has left children bewildered, without a sense of reality or truth. The focus has moved from self development to instantly gathering meaningless and constantly changing facts and figures and has created an air of general impatience. Teachers and students alike have become completely mesmerized by the use of computers in the classroom. The computer has very conveniently dislodged the entire system of healthy and meaningful education. Over the course of human histo- ry education has appeared in many forms both formal and informal. In the opinion of the ancients, edu- cation is the process of developing or perfecting human beings by develop- ing their intellectual and moral excel- lences. Education re� ects the methods by which a society hands down from one generation to the next, its knowledge, culture and values. Information tech- nology cannot do this, because moral virtue and intellectual understanding are transmitted almost unconscious- ly through the personal exchange between teacher and student. Having been a teacher, teaching undergraduate students for nearly 30 years, I feel education needs to lay more emphasis on the formation of moral character, the cultivation of intellectual understanding as well as skill training. � ese goals cannot be achieved by computerization. The great end of education is to discipline rather than to furnish the mind. To train it to use its own pow- ers, rather than � ll it with the accumu- lations of others.   Rita JonejaKitchener COMMENT WATERLOO CHRONICLEWATERLOO CHRONICLE LETTERS TO THE CHRONICLE The protected green space behind my family's home is a haven for wildlife this summer, thanks to the recent channel widen-ing of South Clair Creek between St. Moritz Avenue and Keats Way in Waterloo. A prime birding destination, we're seeing more species of birds than ever at our feeder, including mourning doves, cardinals, blue jays, woodpeckers, yellow � nches, grackles, brown-headed cow- birds, red-winged blackbirds and black-capped chickadees. � at's why I reached out to Jessica Kellerman, a project manager in the engineering department at the City of Waterloo, who oversaw the South Clair Creek channel improvements from the conceptual phase through to construction. With barn swallows in serious decline, I was especially curious to ask Kellerman about the recently built barn swallow nesting structures, two of which I can see from my backyard. "� e roofed barn swallow boxes were put in place to encourage barn swal- lows to nest in the area," said Kellerman. "Typically -- and as can be discerned by the name -- barn swallows nest near barns. When we develop large areas where there used to be farming lands, there is potential to see a decrease in the barn swallow population, as they will move out of the area or have a lack of suitable habitat." I was also excited to see raptor poles installed along a new path where my family likes to walk, as we often see hawks and other birds of prey soaring high above. "We installed the raptor poles to encourage hawks, eagles and falcons to nest or visit the area," said Kellerman. "Some of the other features we placed in the corridor near the barn swallow boxes and raptor poles include turtle sunning logs, along with a pool and ri� e sequence within the creek to encourage spawning and in-stream habitat." In the early morning, I often see rabbits, groundhogs, ducks, toads, snakes, dragonflies and the odd heron along the flowing streams of South Clair Creek with the recent developments, I told Kellerman. "During the environmental analysis and design phase of the project, we identi� ed areas that would bene� t from some additional aquatic and terrestrial habitat features," she said. "� e corridor that this portion of the creek is located in has a wide area that provided us with an excellent opportunity to enhance habitat. And it's fantas- tic to see the concepts we place in our designs come to fruition and become a great success." Kellerman told me how the City of Waterloo has already received a lot of positive feedback from the Clair Hills community. "We received a letter from the kindergarten students at Edna Staebler Public School with kind messages about the project," she said. "� ey use the new pathway for outdoor learning now and the students are thrilled with the new features. "Another city staff member and I visited the school to speak about the importance of protecting our environment and the reason the city does this kind of work." It's important work that Kellerman and the City of Waterloo are doing, allowing native plants and animals to thrive while improving the quality of life for our community, now and in the future. ••• Marshall Ward is a freelance writer and artist. Email is welcome at marshall_ward@hotmail.com. We have our own hard truths to consider So, here's the deal: one can't get all � red up about racism in the United States and turn a blind eye to the racism that is entrenched in our own history. To be more speci� c, one can't be indignant about those heinous Confederate statues in the United States while shrugging o� concerns about our own public memorials of our own historical � g- ures. Of course, it is always convenient to cri- tique the history of other nations. But, if we are truly being honest, Canada has one of the worst histories of colonization and sys- temic oppression that can be found. And -- I apologize for the further incon- venience -- we have sat by, as a nation, while our Indigenous peoples continue to struggle due to oppression, neglect and an enormous amount of disrespect. I grew up in a divided province. As a child in Saskatoon, I was slightly aware of the line. As a teenager with broader bound- aries, it became clearer. The division was economic, social and geographic. We learned all the words for all the slurs. It was a full-on immersion in racism. One summer, the Caplettes moved into the house next door. � ey were a Métis family of at least a dozen -- "Where are they putting all of those kids?" -- and they had a very different sense of esthetics than we were accustomed to in suburbia -- "Will they ever mow that lawn?" My mom, a nurse, became part of their informal support system: tending to childhood injuries, driving to appointments, navigating teenager crises. But, the Caplettes were never really part of the neighbourhood. I do believe that my sense of social justice was sparked in those years. I didn't know what I was wit- nessing, but I experienced an enormous sense of dis- comfort knowing that something was wrong. Which brings me to Sir John A. Mac- donald. I doubt that there are any SJAM's in Saskatchewan. Our history classes taught us that he was a villain, responsible for the hanging of one of Saskatchewan's heroes -- Louis Riel. Do I think that the school should be renamed? Honestly, I don't know the answer to that question, as it scares me to think of our history being sterilized. But, I do think that we could do a much better job of learning our true his- tory -- be it good, bad or ugly. And we can certainly do a better job of choosing who to memorialize. No more silly naming contests -- do it with thoughtfulness and intent. That's a process that can be addressed by school boards and governments across the country. ••• Karen Scian is the co-founder of the Talent Business Solutions, an educator and a recovering city councillor. She is also chair of the Waterloo Public Library Board. You can email her at beinscian@gmail.com or follow her on Twitter @karenscian. BEIN' SCIAN KAREN SCIAN Clair Creek plan a natural success MARSHALL WARD MARSHALL ARTS Computerization doesn't override an education Letter policy Letters may be submitted by email to editorial@water- loochronicle.ca, and include the author's full name, place of resi- dence and contact information.