Why Indians Came Into Education Warrangement Analysis

One reason for the Colonial Americans’ growth in faith is the fact the era was abundant with religious figures who strove to lead people to God and created guidelines for them to live by. The people of Colonial America were blessed to abide in an “enchanted world of wonders.” These wonders were no doubt brought on by the hand of God, and the recognition of this fact caused new religious leaders to rise up and help people focus on living Godly lives despite the secular distractions that they were presented with. One Puritan leader, John Winthrop, stated, “That which the most in their Churches maintain as a truth in profession only, we must bring into familiar and constant practice, as in this duty of love we must love brotherly without dissimulation, we must love one another with a pure heart fervently we must bear one another’s burdens…” Winthrop not only wanted each individual person to maintain a stronger focus on faith in daily life, he also wanted them to use their faith to unite together, and his Model of Christian Charity showed the people how to accomplish that. Many people tried to abide by these teachings and pass them onto their children before they made their own way in the changing, confusing world because many parents feared their children would “Fall un’wares in Fowler’s snare.”

Sherman Alexie, in “Indian Education” tells his experiences in school on the reservation. Some of his teachers did not treat him very good and did not try to understand him. In his ninth grade year he collapsed. A teacher assumed that he had been drinking just because he was Native American. The teacher said, “What’s that boy been drinking? I know all about these Indian kids. They start drinking real young.” Sherman Alexie didn’t listen to the negatives in school. He persevered and became valedictorian of his school.

Documents A, D, and E stress the importance of religion in New England societies. Document A refers to working for God and follow what God has set for them to do. The New Englanders also have beliefs that hard work was necessary and high morals were needed. They also believed in literacy and education. Document D states, "We intend by God's grace, as soon as we can, with all convenient speed, to procure some Godly and faithful minister with whom we purpose to join in church covenant to walk in all ways of Christ." Document

much of the western frontier, there were no public schools so children either received a rudimentary private or received no education at all. Another factor was that there were only a handful of secular colleges in the country at the time so only the wealthiest received a higher education. During this time, many Indians listened to prophets like Handsome Lake and distanced themselves from the white settlers that continued into their lands. These actions made the settlers increasingly hostile towards the natives because of their unwillingness to assimilate in their culture.

In 1876, residential schools became an obligation to every Indian kid. They were forced to say their last goodbyes to their families. Over 150 000 students were forced to attend these poorly built and equipped

The Native American children were educated at Carlisle in order to make a “better” transition into society for post-bellum America. Carlisle was located in Pennsylvania and was a reform school for Native American children. “Carlisle fills young Indians with the spirit of loyalty to the stars and stripes, and moves them out into your communities to show by their conduct and ability that the Indian is no different from the white or colored, that he has the inalienable right to liberty and opportunity that the white and the negro have (Paul Prucha 68).” The Native Americans didn’t have the liberty to live on their land as they were before the whites arrived; “By 1979, my people were no longer free, but were confined on reservations under the rule of agents (Standing Bear 69-71).” The Native American children such as Luther Standing Bear were taken from their families, land, and tradition to be reformed into a civilized American. Luther Standing Bear recalls his time at Carlisle; “The task before us was not only that of accepting new ideas and adopting new manners, but physical changes and discomfort had to be borne un complainingly until the body adjusted itself to new tastes and habits (Standing Bear 69-71).” The Native American children’s names, attire, religion, and diet were changed to that of the white Americans. “…the change in clothing, housing, food, and confinement combined with lonesomeness was too much, and in three years nearly one half of the children from the Plains were dead… (Standing Bear

     The ordinary colonial child, boy or girl, from ages six to eight would attend what was called a “Dame School.” There the children learned the alphabet, the basics of reading, some prayers, and a few basic arithmetic skills. Although learning to read was considered important, learning to write was not. The only aid in learning at

In the late 1800s, Captain Richard Henry Pratt set out to “Kill the Indian in him, and save the man.”(A Plea to “Citizenize” Indians). The goal to erase Indian cultures and replace it with white American culture was sought to be achieved through boarding schools. Pratt was the creator of the first Indian boarding school: Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania. These government-funded boarding schools would take children from their homes on reservation, often for them to not see their family again until they are grown(lecture). Pratt’s goal was to eliminate the Indian culture and incorporate the Indian people into the more “civilized”(Marr) American culture. This meant forcing the Indian students to speak only English and to give up all cultural traditions, religions, names and take up Christianity and American sounding names. Students were put into these boarding schools with little or no contact with their families for “eight to nine months of the year” (Marr). These schools operated with minimal funds, so the education was very insufficient. It was clear from the beginning; the actual goal was not to give quality education for the Native American children but to get rid of the Indian culture.

The ethnocentrism of the colonists meant that due to their belief in their own superior culture, half of all children at the time were taken to boarding schools and half of those children did not come out

2. The brief conclusions all serve to indicate cold, harsh, and impactful conclusions to his yearly cycle which further emphasize the schism between school years. Some of the conclusions serve different functions, though. For example, when he ends his third grade segment with “I’m still waiting.” it is short and impactful; but, when he ends the fifth grade segment with a rhetorical question “Oh, do you remember those sweet, almost innocent choices that the Indian boys were forced to make?” the segment seems to linger on for a moment longer, portraying that the event had a stronger impression than the previous, shorter conclusion.

Education played a role in Of Plymouth Plantation because they had to learn something new which is basically educating themselves to survive in a new environment. As the author states "No houses or much less towns to repair to, to seek for succor." (Paragraph 3) this quote supports my topic sentence because the pilgrims are thinking about building houses and making repairs which require an education to do that type of work. In addition, the native Americans had to educate themselves in order to communicate to the pilgrims and come up with an agreement that both sides can agree upon "A

Children were taken away from their homes and told everything they knew was wrong. They were sent to boarding schools to change their culture. These boarding schools were run by the United States government. The government's goal was to civilize Native Americans. They sent children to these schools against their will. Native American children were educated like Americans and they had to change their native ways to be more like whites (Cayton 266). Teachers abused their students and beat their native ways out of them. They were not allowed to see their families so they would try to escape, but their attempts were unsuccessful. The United States government’s Boarding Schools of the mid-late 1800s irreparably changed Native American culture.

Efforts to 'civilize' the Native Americans through the use of schooling began in 1819 and continued until the late 1920's. The first schools were the result of Christian missionaries' efforts to gain converts. English was the only language spoken in these schools, and the Native American culture was looked upon poorly. Some earlier efforts were made to adapt to Native American culture, including the development of a written Cherokee language. This knowledge, however, was used to impart Anglo-Protestant values and religion (Spring 18-21).

In the short story “Indian Education” by Sherman Alexie the theme that is represented in each grade is racism. Throughout Alexie’s life he experiences more and more accounts of racism in school. Also, Alexie experiences levels of hardship as he gets older. Thus, the story’s theme statement could be summarized that racism enables hardship in one's life.

Education —an institution for success, opportunity, and progress — is itself steeped in racism. In Sherman Alexie’s short story “Indian Education” from his book The Longer Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven is set in two places, the Spokane Indian Reservation and a farm town nearby the reservation. The story is written in a list of formative events chronologize Victor’s youth by depicting the most potent moment from each year he is in school. Alexie addresses the issue of racism in education by examining examples of injustice and discrimination over twelve years in a boy’s life. Victor faces his initial injustice in first grade when he is bullied by bigger kids, but his understanding of injustice becomes much more complex in grades two through twelve as he experiences discrimination against his American Indian identity. Familial experiences of a Native woman, Alexie’s style and humor, and Victor’s awareness of discrimination from grade one to twelve all reveal the grim reality of growing up and being schooled on an American Indian reservation.