What is a Residential School?
The Indian Residential Schools of Canada were a network of "residential" (boarding) schools
for Aboriginal peoples of Canada funded by the Canadian government's department of Indian Affairs. Residential Schools were considered part of the assimilative policies that the Canadian government directed at the Aboriginal peoples. Their main objective was to "educate" then and the way the government did this was indoctrinating them into the Euro-Canadian and Christian ways of living. The system forcibly separated children from their families for extended periods of time and forbade them to aknowledge their heritage and original language.
for Aboriginal peoples of Canada funded by the Canadian government's department of Indian Affairs. Residential Schools were considered part of the assimilative policies that the Canadian government directed at the Aboriginal peoples. Their main objective was to "educate" then and the way the government did this was indoctrinating them into the Euro-Canadian and Christian ways of living. The system forcibly separated children from their families for extended periods of time and forbade them to aknowledge their heritage and original language.
How were Residential Schools created?
When European settlers came to Canada, they brought with them the assumption that their own civilization was the pinnacle of human achievement. They interpreted the social and cultural differences between themselves and the Aboriginal peoples as proof that Canada’s first inhabitants were ignorant, savage, and in need of guidance. They felt the need to “civilize” the Aboriginal peoples. Education became the primary means to this end.
Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald commissioned journalist and politician Nicholas Flood Davin to study industrial schools for Aboriginal children in the United States. Davin’s recommendation to follow the U.S. example of “aggressive civilization” led to public funding for the residential school system. In the 1880s, in conjunction with other federal assimilation policies, the government began to establish residential schools across Canada
Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald commissioned journalist and politician Nicholas Flood Davin to study industrial schools for Aboriginal children in the United States. Davin’s recommendation to follow the U.S. example of “aggressive civilization” led to public funding for the residential school system. In the 1880s, in conjunction with other federal assimilation policies, the government began to establish residential schools across Canada