After researching my family’s background and history, I learned a lot about where I come from. Although my family has several different countries it originates from, the most notable is England. My grandmother originally emigrated from England from a passenger ship when she was eleven. Several years after the war had ended, she left from Liverpool on a ship, which crossed the Atlantic ocean over a few weeks. It brought her to Halifax, where she lived with her aunt. Although she could not provide me with photos from her experience, I was still able to learn about how she ended up where she is today.
Empress of Britain Passenger Ship, 1956 Liverpool, 1950
Up until now I had never thought about why she has left her home country to live in Canada, but after a conversation, I learned that she had left England because she had family in Canada. Her mother also believed it would bring more opportunity for her, and they believed was a better place to grow up and make a life. In Halifax, my grandmother lived with her aunt and attended public school. My grandmother says that that publischool in Canada wouldn’t differ much from England, perhaps school in the U.K. may have been more strict but the overall public school system is similar.
I began looking into what it would be like had I grown up in the United Kingdom in 2017, and found many similarities and some differences to Canada. In Canada, we are very lucky to live in one of the most privileged and accessible countries in the world. We often take for granted things like our peace, freedom, and access to healthcare. We have access to millions of acres of large provincial and national parks, and have virtually unlimited access to 20% of the entire world's fresh water supply. England, still has lots to offer. Like Canada, it is a free country, and has a somewhat similar healthcare system. Still, it doesn’t have even a fraction of the overall parkland or natural, undeveloped space that Canada has. Clean drinking water is also very accessible in England, but still not to the extent as in Canada.
Another difference I found was between Canada and England is in transportation. Unlike Canada, most citizens of the U.K. live in large cities, meaning that many people heavily rely on public transportation. It is less common to see teens owning cars and driving at an early age, unlike here in Canada, where many teens begin driving at sixteen. Another important difference is the cost of education. The average cost of post-secondary education in Canada is $5,700 per year for tuition. In England the cost of post secondary can be as high as £9,000 a year ($14,000). Although this is a price cap, the average cost of an education in England is still considerably higher than the same level of schooling in Canada. This could have a large effect on me because it would most likely require me to get a job to start saving early for school. Housing, is also generally more expensive in England. Because most people live in large cities, a small apartment could cost as much as a five bedroom house in Canada. This could definitely affect me throughout my childhood, as well as when I grow up and if I were to have a family.
Overall if I had grown up in England, my life would be considerably different, and this could affect many aspects of my life, including who I am today. I am glad that my grandmother emigrated and to have the privilege of living in Canada, and I would rather live here than anywhere else.
Works Cited:
Anderson, Lorraine. Interview. January 1. 2017
Statistics Canada, Centre for Education Statistics: “Undergraduate tuition fees for full time Canadian students, by discipline, by province.” Web. 26 August 2014 <http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum-som/l01/cst01/educ50a-eng.htm
Government of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada: “Frequently Asked Questions”. Web. 16 February 2012.
The Guardian: Hillary Osbourne: UK housing market: what to expect in 2017. Web. 26 December 2016 <https://www.theguardian.com/money/2016/dec/26/housing-market-property-outlook-uk-2017
It seems England is a very high class and an expensive place to live. Finances is a continuous and ever growing issue that will most likely continue to excel in unreasonable amounts of money for things like housing and education. My grandparents, like yours, also chose to immigrate from their country for more opportunities and cheaper education of the same level. Canada has almost always been one of the best countries to live in and that is why so many people choose to immigrate to this beautiful country that Canada is. You now have many opportunities and a lot of potential to do great things with the life you were given in Canada. The person you are because of the choices that were made in the past has created someone great, and without these decisions, you would not be that person.
ReplyDeleteRowan,Its seems as though you have found some pretty signifigint differences between Canada and England. Your grandmother seemed as though she went through a very trying time when she moved to Canada at such a young age. My Grandparents also moved to this amazing country. Overall them getting the chance to move to Canada is a true blessing for us!
ReplyDeleteRowan, it seems like England would have been a very high maintenance place for you to live compared to living in our small town. I find it interesting that most teens do not own cars where as it is almost essential for kids our age to have cars once they are able to drive. Overall I think your grandparents made the right choice coming to Canada.
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