McIntyre says “it was an amazing, incredible honour” to meet Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, when she accepted the 2024 Governor General’s History Award for Excellence in Teaching.
“It was never in my heart to be recognized for the work I do in my classroom,” explains McIntyre. “You go into teaching because you love students — to be honoured for something I feel called to do is absolutely humbling.”
Excellence in history education
“At the awards ceremony, I found myself surrounded by excellence, among like-minded educators united by a shared passion for teaching history,” she recalls. “I was in a room full of people like me who believe Canada has stories worth telling, and that the common narratives need to be more diverse and inclusive.”
McIntyre was recognized for her work on the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board’s Project True North initiative, an innovative concept through which students aren’t just learning about the past, they are doing history by learning how to conduct primary document research. “They become historians by uncovering the stories of ordinary people who were largely absent from the larger stories of Canadian history,” says MacIntyre.
For example, in researching the experiences of Black Canadian soldiers in the First World War, students examined military service records, photographs, letters and war medals, and spoke to a living relative of one soldier. Their work was even featured in a CBC news report.
“My English-as-a-Second-Language history students were witnessing the Black Lives Matter movement in the present day while delving into its historical roots as part of Project True North,” explains McIntyre.
“In doing so, these new Canadians found that their own experiences of discrimination were echoed in the lives of Black Canadians who had lived a century ago, forging a powerful connection between the past and the present.”
“I firmly believe that if we want to change the way that history education is taught in Canada, one of the things we need to do is to be more open to integrating the use of primary sources as a basis for all instruction in Canadian history,” McIntyre adds.
“It was never in my heart to be recognized for the work I do in my classroom. You go into teaching because you love students — to be honoured for something I feel called to do is absolutely humbling.”
Jessica McIntyre
— 2024 recipient of the Governor General’s History Award for Excellence in Teaching
On the importance of mentorship
McIntyre always wanted to be a history teacher. She recalls being mentored by incredible educators, many of whom she has remained in contact with to this day. “I’m still in touch with my kindergarten teacher,” she says.
“I remember Professor Sharon Cook [from the Faculty of Education], who taught me a fourth-year history seminar. I think back to the way she made her students feel,” she recalls.
“The learning relationships I had at uOttawa were particularly formative. I’m sure Professor Cook wouldn’t remember me, but she planted a seed of wanting to do this job well because she did.”
“It’s a full circle moment,” McIntyre says about her professional career path of completing a bachelor’s degree in education, becoming a teacher, and then adding her role as part-time, seconded professor in the Faculty to her list of accomplishments. McIntyre says she feels privileged to be a mentor to others. “Now I’m the one teaching future teachers how to teach, and it’s a tremendous responsibility,” she adds.
Learn more about Jessica McIntyre
Jessica McIntyre leads the Canadian and World Studies, and Social Sciences departments at Glebe Collegiate Institute, where she teaches history and French immersion. She is also a part-time professor in the uOttawa Faculty of Education.
About the award
The Governor General’s History Awards “honour excellence in educational and public programming about our history and heritage. They celebrate the very best in Canadian achievements to ensure our national past has a vibrant presence in our society today.”