Education

In spite of the issues regarding Euro-Canadian education, First Nations leaders demanded a model of education that would put their children on an equal footing with children attending public schools. Since the government had deprived them of their land, it should at least fund a decent education for their children.

• Residential Schools
• Indian Day Schools
• Integration into Public School System
• Residential School Update Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm and Cheryl Sutherland, First Nations Health Secretariat, Ottawa, ON.
• "Out of the Depths" Isabelle Knockwood
• "No End of Grief" Agnes Grant

Many natives who were concerned with the economic future of the reserves, saw Residential Schools as a way to continue traditional hunting and trapping while knowing that the education and health needs of their children were being met. Contrary to this, resident children were alienated from their communities, punished for speaking their language and practicing their culture. In later years these students suffered from psychological and social traumas.

• Indian Day Schools
• "The Federal Indian Day Schools of the Maritimes" W.D. Hamilton
• "Micmac-Maliseet Past" Indians of North America, 1986
• "Indian Control of Indian Education",National Indian Brotherhood,1972. E96.2 N37

Indian Day schools were built in the 1950's and 1960's. Their purpose was to reintegrate children into their communities after their residential school experiences. The building of these schools may have been the first step towards restoring the social fabric of the community.