Hypothesis: We expected the focus of the Social Studies curriculum to be heavily based on Western centred history and geography and taught with the understanding that most students in the rural setting would need practical knowledge. After careful research we found this to be the case but with even greater emphasis on the field of geography than we first thought. Geography existed as a much broader field than it is in the classroom today, and incorporated much history. We also found that the idea progress was prevalent in all social studies topics. Therefore our thesis is that social studies education in the first decade of the twentieth century was geared toward the tracing of the progress of man—as exemplified by westerners: the British Empire and the British people being the epitome of this progress. This Whig approach to history traces man’s progress from the ancient Mediterranean to the exploits of the colonial war in South Africa at the time, known today as the Boer War. Such a history is traced heavily through the subjects of geography and history as is seen in an examination of the textbooks used during the period. Other resources will show the prominence of social studies topics in the New Brunswick Education system as well as the importance of Education to the government of New Brunswick during this period.
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