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Indian Education/Boarding Schools
Indian boarding schools were designed to assimilate Native American children into the greater American (white) culture. Students at the schools suffered from poor diet, illness and harsh discipline. As a result of these deficiencies, and the high cost of running the boarding schools, they began to disappear from the American landscape in the 1930s.
Indian education from the 1880s to the 1920s was designed to assimilate the American Indian population into the greater American society. This was accomplished by placing Native American Indian children into institutions where the traditional ways of Indian society were replaced by government-sanctioned behaviors and beliefs. Native American children were removed from their families, and enrolled in government-run boarding schools.
Boarding schools first became vogue prior to the American Civil War. During this time, idealistic reformers put forth the idea that Indians could become "civilized" with the proper education and treatment. Prior to this time, most white Americans had seen the American Indian population with great fear. Captain Richard Henry Pratt was one of the leading proponents of this...
Pratt established one of the first Indian boarding schools, the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania.
Indian education came to encompass boarding schools that existed both on and off the reservations, and day schools. Chemawa Indian school, located in Salem, was the largest off-reservation school, with an enrolment of 903 students, from 90 tribes in 1920.
Federal boarding schools all followed several rules. They were governed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which oversaw the activities of superintendents throughout America. This ensured a great homogeneity between the boarding schools, extending from architecture to a strict adherence to an English-only policy. The schools were run in a military style, emphasized farming, and focused equally on academics and vocational training.
As can be expected, the desire for freedom and homesickness for their family caused many students to run away. In 1922 in Chemawa alone, 70 students deserted the school. Often, punishment was extremely harsh. Helma Ward, Mekah, in an interview with Carolyn Marr, stated, "Two of our girls ran away...but they got…
Works Cited
Marr, Carolyn J. Assimilation Through Education: Indian Boarding Schools in the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Libraries. Digital Collections. 19 October 2002. http://content.lib.washington.edu/aipnw/marr/biblio.html
Kelley, Matt. The Associated Press. American Indian boarding schools: 'That hurt never goes away'. Wednesday, April 28, 1999. 19 October 2002. http://www.canoe.ca/CNEWSFeatures9904/28_indians.html
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