1775 - 1926 The era of assimilation

The education of Indians in the late 1800's and early 1900's was dominated by the idea of assimilation. Simply put, assimilation is the process in which one group takes on the cultural and other traits of a larger group. Many people at the time bought into this idea, and that using education was the way in which to do so. American Indian children were taken from their homes to boarding schools on the East and West(See Photographs). Col. Richard Henry Pratt was a leader in the movement of educating Indians in the ways of the "White man". He went so far as to require the following(see American Indian Education Foundation)

All students must wear uniforms
Boys had to keep hair short
All students received new names
Traditional foods were not allowed
Students were required to speak the English language only, giving up their native tongues.

Schools were set up on both the East and West(see photos) coasts to accomplish these goals. Although not all schools adopted Col. Pratts ideal, most did require that students convert to Christianity. As the students began to accept(or not accept) these beliefs, they also celebrated Christian holidays in these boarding schools to better familiarize the students with the traditions of the U.S.. It was also felt that his would remove the savagery from the Indians, allowing them to gain self-respect and the respect of white men.

The Hampton Institute was founded in 1868 by General Samuel Chapman Armstrong for the education of African Americans. Armstrong who generally accepted the views of Col. Pratt, also support the education of the American Indian, and in 1878 the Hampton Institute accepted its first Indian children. The children were educated in the ways of the "white man", the girls learning sewing, dressmaking, cooking, laundering, and housekeeping skills. The boys were required to study the trade of carpentry, blacksmithing, shoemaking, and farming as it was thought that in order to fully assimilate the Indians into American culture they should farm. The students were often required to farm on the school land in order to raise food for its inhabitants or build new buildings as the financial support for the schools was generally a small amount.

While it can be said that there were successes from the boarding schools during this era such as Booker T. Washington, in the end they were thought of as failures by even the men whom supported them. The American Indian children that graduated were often not accepted by white people nor by the families they had left. They were left in a more difficult situation than they had been in before.

The 1920s and 1930s

Executive Secretary for the American Indian Defense Association, John Collier begins publishing American Indian Life. This journal began to contrast the successes that were occurring for American Indians before the era of assimilation truly began. He showed to the public, the problems with the current ways of thinking as he lead this reform. "The most significant reform work of the early 1900s came from the Meriam Report in 1926. Its recommendations include:(Taken from the American Indian Education Foundation).

Do away with "The Uniform course of Study," which stressed only the cultural values of whites.
Only older children should attend the non-reservation boarding schools.
Younger children should attend a community school near home.
The Indian Service must provide youth and parents with tools to adapt to both the white and Indian world."

The failures in the boarding schools of the early 1900s and late 1800s were apparent. What good were the schools if its students were not accepted by both sides of the problem? The solution did not stop here as more and more changes were brought out by the administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Americans began to realize that to some extent, children could learn through their own culture the ideals of white civilization. Indian schools were no longer trying to rid the American Indians of all their past and cultural values. This helped to increase the enrollment in many schools when people saw the improvements. Perhaps the biggest change in this era was the ending of forced religion upon the American Indian students. Students were now allowed to practice their own religions rather than Christianity, something that the tribes were more supportive of.

The 1940s

In the 1940s the World was ravaged by World War II. During this time, buildings, education and people were forgotten, the American Indian suffered this fate and they lost many of the advantages they had gained. Assimilation was back as once again America leaned towards trying to remove the "Indian" from the American Indians. Fortunately this did help to unite American Indians in the U.S. for the cause of fighting this repression.

The 1960s

REFORM. The one word that might be used to describe this time period is reform. The National Advisory Council on Indian Education (NACIE)was formed under Title IX of the elementary and secondary Education Act of 1965. This was just the beginning as the following also happened along with the creation of the NACIE. (Taken from the American Indian Education Foundation).

1965 - NACIE created
1966 - President Lyndon B. Johnson appoints an American Indian to become the commissioner of Indian Affairs.
1968 - National Council on Indian Opportunity (NCIO) was established by Executive Order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The NCIO was established to facilitate American Indian participation in U.S. government decision making concerning Indian Policy.
1969 - Senate Report 91-501 was published by the Special Subcommittee on Indian Education. Titled "Indian education: A national tragedy, a national challenge," it said: "the dominant policy of the federal government toward the American Indian has been one of coercive assimilation" and the policy " has had disastrous effects on the education of Indian Children."

With the American Indians and other ethnic minority groups on the rise in America, these organizations were being formed in the U.S. to keep people from being left behind. Education was being forced to change, to meet the need of all students.

1980 to Present

This timeline serves to provide a brief outline for the changes in America that have occurred since the 1960s. Today through adversity and struggles, the American Indian people have gained the respect and support of America. (See American Indian Education Foundation).

1994 - Title IX amendments that allow for the "direct financial support for the education of all American Indians"
1995 - President rescues the Office of Indian Education fro the budget chopping block.
1997 - Lobbying for the support of the American Indians is now done by the first American Indian political action committee, the National Unity Task Force.
1998 - Executive Order on American Indian and Alaskan Native Education signed by President Clinton. Its goal included improving reading and mathematics, increase high school completion, create safe and drug-free schools, improve science education and expand the use of educational technology.
2002 - Not all of the goals of President Clinton are met, President George W. Bush signs into law "No Child left Behind," called "the most dramatic reform of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

It is a wonderful thing when the President of the United States helps to support the education of the American Indian. However it cannot stop there. As educators we must not simply wait for this to pass. There is a need for change in America and there is no better time than the present!

The above timeline has been adapted from the "History and Facts about Indian Education" found on the website for the American Indian Education Foundation.