Courses

Quebec · Secondary 5

Contemporary World, Secondary 5

  • 595-502 / 595-504

Quebec’s Secondary 5 social studies course, from Population to Wealth.

Learn thisPractice test
Units
3
Lessons
8
Skills
30
Provincial exam
None
Official curriculum
education.gouv.qc.ca

Unit by unit

Every skill in the course, numbered by unit.

Unit 1 · 9 skills

Population

World Population: Distribution and Change

  • Where the world's people live

    I can describe how the world population is distributed and locate the major population centres.

    1.1

    Learn itPractice testActivities

  • Demographic change: two different worlds

    I can compare the demographics of developed and less-developed countries and explain what drives growth or decline.

    1.2

    Learn itPractice testActivities

Migration Across the World

Migration, Work, and Cities

  • Immigrant workers and employment policies

    I can explain why countries attract immigrant workers and the policies that help them find work.

    1.7

    Learn itPractice testActivities

  • The shadow economy of undocumented work

    I can explain the shadow economy of undocumented immigrant work and its consequences.

    1.8

    Learn itPractice testActivities

  • Migration and the world's cities

    I can explain how migration is reshaping the world's cities.

    1.9

    Learn itPractice testActivities
The official wording · 9 outcomes
1.1
Population distribution
1.2
Demographic change
1.3
Migration flows
1.4
Reasons for migration
1.5
International networks of illegal immigration
1.6
Immigration policies
1.7
Immigrant workers
1.8
Parallel economies
1.9
Organization of urban territories

Key ideas

  1. The world population is primarily urban and heavily concentrated in the less-developed countries.

  2. A migration is a movement of population within a country or from one country to another, with permanent settlement.

  3. Countries attract immigrant workers to fill labour shortages and to offset population aging.

  4. Most people live in the intertropical zone.

  5. Migrants are often young, of working age, and mainly from less-developed countries.

Watch out for

  • Thinking population is spread evenly across continents - it is highly concentrated.
  • Thinking migration only means crossing borders - it includes movement within a country.
  • Thinking recruited workers integrate easily - language and credential barriers are real.

Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit

Unit 2 · 13 skills

Tensions and conflicts

Where Tensions and Conflicts Come From

  • Tension zones, sovereignty, and intervention

    I can explain what defines a tension zone and when external intervention is invoked.

    2.1

    Learn itPractice testActivities

  • Control of resources

    I can explain how control of natural resources becomes a source of tension and conflict.

    2.2

    Learn itPractice testActivities

  • Denied rights as a source of conflict

    I can explain how denied rights become a source of tension and conflict.

    2.3

    Learn itPractice testActivities

  • Identity demands and political autonomy

    I can explain how demands for identity and autonomy fuel tension and conflict.

    2.4

    Learn itPractice testActivities

The United Nations and International Law

Responding to Conflict

The official wording · 13 outcomes
2.1
External intervention in areas of tensions and conflicts
2.2
Control of resources
2.3
Exercise of rights and freedoms
2.4
Identity-based demands and political autonomy
2.5
Charter of the United Nations
2.6
General Assembly of the UN
2.7
UN Security Council
2.8
International Criminal Tribunals (ICT)
2.9
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
2.10
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
2.11
Peacekeeping missions and the peace process
2.12
International alliances
2.13
Conventions, treaties and agreements

Key ideas

  1. Areas of tension have players with divergent economic, political, and social interests, but no armed conflict yet.

  2. The Charter establishes the rights and obligations of the member states.

  3. NGOs pursue objectives such as defending press freedom, fighting poverty and injustice, and protecting human rights.

  4. A sovereign state's government is not subject to any superior authority.

  5. The UN's main goals: maintain peace and international security, promote cooperation, fight poverty, and ensure respect for human rights.

Watch out for

  • Thinking any tension means war - tension can exist without armed conflict.
  • Thinking the UN is a world government - it cannot override member sovereignty.
  • Thinking NGOs take sides - many are bound by neutrality and impartiality.

Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit

Unit 3 · 8 skills

Wealth

Creating and Sharing Wealth

Development and Globalization

The official wording · 8 outcomes
3.1
Creation of wealth
3.2
Disparity in the distribution of wealth
3.3
International organizations
3.4
Colonization, decolonization and neocolonization
3.5
North-South relations
3.6
Globalization of the economy
3.7
Power of multinational firms
3.8
Indebtedness of states

Key ideas

  1. Wealth-creation factors include exploiting natural resources, business productivity, public investment, and a skilled labour force.

  2. Colonizing states sought natural resources and new markets.

  3. States promote wealth by investing in education, funding research and development, and joining economic groups.

  4. African and Asian colonies gained independence through assertion of identity, an educated elite, and the desire to control resources.

  5. States regulate resource exploitation through use, preservation, and restoration policies, and by imposing sanctions.

Watch out for

  • Thinking wealth comes only from natural resources - skills, investment, and productivity matter too.
  • Thinking independence ended all foreign control - neocolonization can continue it economically.
  • Thinking wealth creation is automatic - infrastructure and training can limit it.

Every skill’s key ideas, worked examples and checks are in MapleMind.Practise this unit

The official curriculum

This page follows Quebec’s own curriculum for Contemporary World, Secondary 5.

Gouvernement du Quebec - Contemporary World, Secondary Cycle Two: Learning to Be Acquirededucation.gouv.qc.ca · Read August 7, 2026

Study it in MapleMind

MapleMind teaches Contemporary World, Secondary 5 one skill at a time. Each skill gets a short lesson, practice as you go and a check worth up to three stars. It remembers where you stopped.

Mathematics, Secondary 3 in the MapleMind app on a tablet: its units, Unit 1 open, and the skills done so far with their starsMathematics, Secondary 3 in the MapleMind app on a phone: its units, Unit 1 open, and the skills done so far with their stars
Pictured: Mathematics, Secondary 3, another Quebec course, partway through Unit 1.

Practise it

Course Companion

Your year in one workbook

A fun way to keep Contemporary World, Secondary 5 organized, get to know your child better and see early when they need a hand. Fill it in on a screen, or print it.

Pages
26
Fillable fields
1,362
Price
$4.99
See the Course Companion

Questions about Contemporary World, Secondary 5

What is Contemporary World, Secondary 5?

Quebec’s Secondary 5 social studies course: 3 units and 30 skills, from Population to Wealth.

What units are in Contemporary World, Secondary 5?

1. Population, 2. Tensions and conflicts and 3. Wealth.

Is there a provincial exam for Contemporary World, Secondary 5?

No. Quebec gives no provincial exam for Contemporary World, Secondary 5.

Can MapleMind help with Contemporary World, Secondary 5?

Yes. MapleMind teaches every skill of Contemporary World, Secondary 5, step by step, with practice and checks, and its tutor answers questions about any of them. It’s free with daily limits, on iPhone, Android and the web.

Before this course

Get ready for Contemporary World, Secondary 5

Practise every skill of Contemporary World, Secondary 5 in MapleMind, free with daily limits.