What were the Goals of Native Residential Schools? : Aggressive Assimilation
What were the Goals of Native Residential Schools? : Aggressive Assimilation
March 18th 2013
Erin Killeen
1000236988
HIS261
Beginning in the late 17th century and continuing into the 1990's was an ongoing struggle between the Natives of Canada and the Euro-Canadian population.1 As Canada began to colonize and create formal provinces the government had to decide how to confront the Natives of the area. The solution the Canadian government decided on was the implementation of Native Residential schools. The ultimate goal of the Native Residential schools was to fully assimilate the Natives into the modern Euro-Canadian society of Canada.2 To achieve complete assimilation the government would use the schools to segregate Native children away from their Indian way of life and then proceed to attack and replace their cultural ties, such as religion and language.3 After overcoming the cultural barriers the Native residential schools would then create circumstances discouraging graduate students from returning to their reserves, and instead assimilate into Euro-Canadian society.4 Although the ultimate goal was assimilation the schools had to first achieve the goals listed above in order to completely assimilate the Natives. The government essentially used Residential schools as a means to achieve the end, which they saw as assimilation.5
The first and most essential step towards the goal of assimilation was the segregation placed between Native children and their families while attending Residential schooling.6 Before fully developed Residential schools had been established in Canada the government had attempted to approach the education of Natives much less aggressively and implement day schools on the reserves. However, these day schools did not produce the results the government aspired to because the children's culture and lifestyle was still primarily being formed at home.7 Due to the lack of reinforcement of day
March 18th 2013
Erin Killeen
1000236988
HIS261
Beginning in the late 17th century and continuing into the 1990's was an ongoing struggle between the Natives of Canada and the Euro-Canadian population.1 As Canada began to colonize and create formal provinces the government had to decide how to confront the Natives of the area. The solution the Canadian government decided on was the implementation of Native Residential schools. The ultimate goal of the Native Residential schools was to fully assimilate the Natives into the modern Euro-Canadian society of Canada.2 To achieve complete assimilation the government would use the schools to segregate Native children away from their Indian way of life and then proceed to attack and replace their cultural ties, such as religion and language.3 After overcoming the cultural barriers the Native residential schools would then create circumstances discouraging graduate students from returning to their reserves, and instead assimilate into Euro-Canadian society.4 Although the ultimate goal was assimilation the schools had to first achieve the goals listed above in order to completely assimilate the Natives. The government essentially used Residential schools as a means to achieve the end, which they saw as assimilation.5
The first and most essential step towards the goal of assimilation was the segregation placed between Native children and their families while attending Residential schooling.6 Before fully developed Residential schools had been established in Canada the government had attempted to approach the education of Natives much less aggressively and implement day schools on the reserves. However, these day schools did not produce the results the government aspired to because the children's culture and lifestyle was still primarily being formed at home.7 Due to the lack of reinforcement of day