Residential Schools

Residential Schools
Name	Residential Schools
Motto	"Assimilation through education"
Established	19th–20th centuries
Country	Canada; United States
Type	Boarding schools for Indigenous children

Residential Schools

Residential Schools were state- and church-run boarding institutions established in the 19th and 20th centuries in North America and elsewhere to educate and assimilate Indigenous children. Institutions such as those run by the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church of Canada, the United Church of Canada, and the Presbyterian Church in Canada operated alongside state agencies like the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the Bureau of Indian Affairs in the United States. Key sites and networks included the Kuper Island Indian Residential School, the Kamloops Indian Residential School, the Mohawk Institute, the Mount Elgin Indian Residential School, and the St. Anne's Indian Residential School.

History

The history intersects with colonial policies exemplified in the Gradual Civilization Act, the Indian Act (1876), the Sixties Scoop, the Civilization and Christianization policy and treaties such as the Numbered Treaties. Early antecedents include the Residential school system in New Zealand and the Boarding schools in the United States influenced by figures like Richard H. Pratt and institutions such as the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. Legal and political milestones include the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada 2008–2015. Prominent locations with documented archives include the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, the Library and Archives Canada, the United States National Archives, and the Royal BC Museum. Public revelations involved investigations by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, reporting by the Globe and Mail, and testimony before parliamentary bodies like the House of Commons of Canada.

Purpose and Curriculum

Administrators cited goals aligned with policies from the Canadian Indian Act, the Dawes Act, and directives from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development or the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Curriculum emphasized industrial training modeled on programs at Carlisle Indian Industrial School and vocational components similar to those at the Haskell Indian Nations University and Flandreau Indian School. Textbooks and moral instruction were influenced by materials from the Roman Catholic Church, Methodist Church, and the Anglican Communion, and pedagogy echoed training manuals used by the Church Missionary Society and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. Languages and cultural practices tied to groups such as the Cree, Ojibwe, Mi'kmaq, Haida, Inuit, Métis and Anishinaabe were often suppressed despite links to ethnographic work by institutions like the Smithsonian Institution and researchers from the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia.

Living Conditions and Daily Life

Daily regimens were structured around rules and schedules modeled on military and monastic routines found in institutions like the Industrial School movement and influenced by administration from orders such as the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the Sisters of Providence, the Grey Nuns of Montreal, and the Missionary Oblates. Reports documented overcrowding, poor sanitation, and nutrition problems paralleling findings at other institutional settings investigated by the Canadian Human Rights Commission and the United States Commission on Civil Rights. Healthcare links involve the Indian hospitals in Canada and the Indian Health Service in the United States, with documented outbreaks referenced by researchers at the Royal Society of Canada and public health records in the Province of Ontario and the Province of British Columbia.

Impact on Indigenous Communities

The effects link to demographic, social, and cultural consequences documented by studies at the Assembly of First Nations, the National Congress of American Indians, the Métis National Council, and academic units like the Department of Indigenous Studies at University of Saskatchewan. Outcomes included language loss among Inuktitut speakers, intergenerational trauma studied by the Canadian Psychological Association, family separations akin to cases examined under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and socioeconomic impacts reported by the Conference Board of Canada and the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs. Survivors testified in forums including the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, court cases in the Federal Court of Canada, and hearings before the United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

Legal Actions and Redress

Legal and reparative processes involved litigants represented in cases lodged with the Supreme Court of Canada, the Federal Court of Canada, and provincial courts such as the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. Settlements and apologies include the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, formal apologies by the Prime Minister of Canada (2008 apology), statements from the President of the United States and the United States Congress in various hearings, and reconciliation mechanisms modeled on international instruments such as UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Compensation programs administered via institutions like the Indian Residential Schools Resolution Health Support Program addressed claims alongside public inquiries such as the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Legacy and Commemoration

Commemoration includes memorials at sites like the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc, the Glenbow Museum, the Canadian Museum of History, and initiatives led by the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. Educational reforms in curricula have been undertaken by school boards such as the Toronto District School Board and provincial ministries like the Ministry of Education (Ontario). Cultural revival efforts involve language programs run by organizations such as the First Nations Language Centre, cultural centers like the Haida Heritage Centre, and media projects by the National Film Board of Canada and the CBC News Aboriginal. Ongoing debates feature stakeholders including the Assembly of First Nations, scholars at the University of Manitoba, activists with Idle No More, and international bodies like the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Category:Education controversies Category:Indigenous peoples in Canada