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Why Children Enter Into Boarding Schools

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There were many reasons for children to enter into the boarding schools. In some cases children were rounded up and transported to the schools without permission from their parents, some parents chose to send their children because of the lack of resources they had to care for the children, and still others thought that the education would be beneficial in the ever changing society. The reasons for sending the children were diverse. Towards the end of what is now called “The Indian Boarding school era” it was estimated that by 1931, two-thirds of Native Americans have attended a boarding school (Warne, & Lajimodiere, 2015). According to the class text book Experiencing the Lifespan (Belsky, 2013 p. 113), the purpose of parents is to promote …show more content…

“You can ask almost anyone on any given reservation in Montana, and they will most likely be able to tell you about a relative who attended one of the schools” (Zimmerman, Personal Communication, 2015). Although boarding school policies ended in the early 1900s, many remained open into the early 1960s with the original ideology of “Kill the Indian, Save the Man” (Brave Heart, 1998). I shared with her that my siblings and I are the first generation in my family to never attend a boarding school. My mother, grandmother and both great parents attended a boarding school. My mother refuses to talk about her experience while she attend a boarding school out of state. Her withdrawal on the subject and her lack of participation in traditional Native American practices only further supports the destruction the schools had on the identity of Indian …show more content…

One such factor we talked about that promotes resiliency is culture. “When individuals are able to associate their identity with their culture they tend to have more positive outlooks on life than those who do not have this association.” People who are reconnecting with their culture and participating in cultural activities, such as attending powwows, tribal ceremonies, and learning from the elders has greatly improved their wellbeing” (Zimmerman, Personal Communication,

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