De-Indianizing the American Indian: An Essay on the Education of the American Indian.

Included in this essay is a historical review of Federal policy and practice in Indian education from 1500 to 1970. The earliest period, the missionary period, is representative of the religious zeal of the 16th and 17th centuries wherein the missionaries had as their responsibility the education of the Indian--including the dual effort of civilizing and Christianizing. The next period, from 1794 to 1871, is known as the treaty period wherein the fundamental policy was to dispossess the Indian from his land to allow for White expansion; there is agreement that, during this period, Federal educational policy was a function of the land policy since the goals of education were to convince the Indian to give up the land and move to a farm-based economy. The third period, from 1865 to 1870, found the solution to education in assimilation, and the educational efforts were directed to this end. In 1871, the treaty period was ended by Federal legislation, and the military-type boarding school was developed to provide training for the Indian's emergence into the White culture. The next period, from 1933 to 1945, brought changes in Indian education such as giving the Indians a larger role in the education of their children and providing day schools for two-thirds of the children. From 1945 to present, numerous bills passed by Congress have both hindered and helped Indian education; however, the termination policy has caused the Indians to remain static because of their suspicion of the Government's intent, thus making it difficult for legislation such as the Economic Opportunity Act to have the hoped-for impact. (LS)