There are several reasons why I rated this course as being poor. First, the presentation style does not make use of the capabilities of the medium, namely a significant (perhaps 70 to 80%) portion of the course is just lecturing. There are flashes of material on the screen behind the presenter but, most of the time, there is no specific discussion of the picture, diagram or map. The course would be enhanced significantly by using videos, real interviews (rather than just having the interviewee speak about the topic just like a lecturer), and by really incorporating graphics into the presentation. My second reason is that the material is presented in a very superficial manner. I realize that this is an introductory course but the course organizers/presenters need to go in depth into a few of the examples rather than just quickly going over them. Thirdly, there is very limited resource material given and the access to that material is not very user friendly. For example, if one wanted to get more information on a particular treaty, it would be helpful to have the reference to that directly incorporated into the course notes so that one could click on the reference and bring up an article with more details.

This was my first experience with a MOOC and perhaps will be my last. I suspect courses like this are a large part of the reason that universities are losing both credibility and relevance in the eyes of the public and employers. The complete lack of objectivity presented in a so-called academic course was appalling. By week four the narrative had become so one sided and superficial that it became difficult to maintain any belief in the content of the following lessons. The lectures were so steeped in SJW tropes and what passes for left-leaning politics that the quiz questions could typically be answered based on the simple premise of what make Aboriginal people look the best and the Western worldview the worst. The quiz questions themselves were some of the most poorly conceived and written that I've seen across almost a decade of post-secondary education and the presenters were completely devoid of charisma and style making for dull viewing of topics that were presented in a manner that could almost be considered dishonest.

The forums appeared to be the most valuable component of the course however those quickly degraded into what looked like chorus of consent, likely because the overall narrative of the course provided little room for divergent views. My own forum comments were not responded to by the course professors despite asking for clarification and other posters were clearly here to have their own views confirmed, not challenged, and made that evident through their own posts and unwillingness to consider challenging ideas.

Overall I felt the course lacked any real academic integrity. Sitting through the lectures felt more like an indoctrination attempt that education. The content was so shallow that the course was more akin to propaganda than coursework. The only factor that would allow me to give even one star was the somewhat improved quality of the guest presenters, some who gave a more even handed approach to the material. This was perhaps the least critical course I have ever taken part in. Even critical theory and methodology needs to be critiqued to have any intellectual value and that did not occur here. Fortunately my employer has covered the small cost of the certification.

As someone who works directly with Aboriginal people, and has for a decade, and educates others on Aboriginal topics, worldview, and culture, I am disappointed to say that this course actually lowered my interest in Aboriginal issues and being a so-called ally. This course seemed determined to undermine Canadian values and instil a sense of unwarranted guilt in the participants, likely justified as "unsettling" the settler. The process was so heavy handed and obvious however that any possible positive outcome from the message was distorted. I could not in good conscience recommend this course to anyone, and by extension, could not recommend Coursera itself.

I'm Metis and I'm really disappointed in this course. Indian history is amazing, from the slave trading Haida navy to the cannibalistic tendencies of the Iroquois and Kwakiutl, Indians were dynamic and efficient stone age warriors, hunters, and killers. But you would never know it from this course. The politically correct presenters portray the Indians as peace loving beatniks who had their love-in trampled by land robbing immigrants.

I really enjoyed the majority of the course content and I am glad this course is out there offering a different perspective on Canadian history. However, Indigenous was just a mediocre course for me overall. I lost interest about halfway through because of the style of presentation and language and had to make myself complete the course. It seemed like the presenters were reading someone else's academic article rather than teaching content they knew well and this created, in my opinion, a disconnect between the words and their meaning. This made it harder for me to listen to and learn - it seemed unengaging and a more informal conversation style of delivery would have been more effective, delivered by people who really know the content. I also found that many of the questions on the exam were not thoroughly covered in the content. Lastly more could have been done with the video and multi-modal nature of an online platform. I think this course is a good starting point and hopefully it will be revised and upgraded soon. Thank you!

Very informative. They teach history and mention the aboriginal journey, but this tells another story. Thank you for allowing me an opportunity to glimpse into to the world of an aboriginal of Canada.

This is a great survey course about Indigenous Canada. As a participant, I have learned and unlearned so much about Indigenous Canadians, and more important, this course has inspired me to learn more.

Excellent course that provides a great foundation for learning about Indigenous cultures and worldviews. Provides thoughtful topics to explore and insightful knowledge. I highly recommend this course!

I appreciate the importance of the course -- however the delivery of it obfuscates. Reading to learners is not compelling. It is boring. The interviews were great. The one I appreciated the most was in Module 9 with the young undergrad. His story was interesting and didn't feel scripted. For me as a learner, Module 9 and 12 were the most compelling because it seemed there was less reading. As well, I found the evaluations problematic. When I was reviewing the course notes -- I didn't know what to highlight because it seemed that the evals were not always testing the important concepts. The artist bits at the end sometimes seemed redundant and the knowledge checks, mid-module, seemed out of sync sometimes and would pop up mid sentence before the pivotal info had been delivered. If there were more modules as engaging as 9 and 12 -- this could be a much better course,

The content was engaging, relevant and informative. The only thing I would consider is reviewing the wording of multiple choice questions/answers. Some of them were difficult to decipher at times.

I found this course to be very informative. Thank you for the opportunity to see our shared history from another perspective. I hope this is as groundbreaking for my fellow Canadians as it was for me.

A course that every Canadian needs to take to promote the healing of our nation.

This was propaganda with a major political agenda. Production values were good, but the one-sided slant of the material is inexcusable.

Perspective for all to begin understanding how the colonial systems uprooted native peoples of North America. And how the natives contend with a new reality while striving to maintain their culture, language, art and other practices.

I wish there is a part two to this course. I want to learn more,

This course was eye-opening and an essential learning experience for my work with First Nations children and their families. I have and will continue to recommend this course to my colleagues.

learning about The Indigenous people from their own perspective shone a whole new light on their history. what i knew before was just censored bit and pieces. knowing the truth about them is helpful

Very educational. I really wish I have learned of this when I was back in high school as a newcomer in Canada. I LOVE the way this course was set up! I definitely recommend this course to all.

I'm a doctoral student of theology and I research ethnic religions. This course is amazing for basic overview of indigenous peoples of Canada. I strongly recommend it.

I really enjoyed the course! It was a big learning curve and helpful in expanding my worldview. I gained a new understanding of the history, culture, beliefs, worldviews, and lifestyles of the diverse Indigenous populations in Canada.

This course was a plethora of information and a great way to acquire foundational knowledge of the First Nations and Metis.