Dr. Wheelock's Little Red School

“For the education & instruction of Youth of the Indian Tribes in this Land in reading, writing & all parts of Learning which shall appear necessary and expedient for the civilizing & christianizing Children of Pagans as well as in all liberal Arts and Sciences” (174)

Emerged out of the Great Awakening
Emotional attachment to religion
Focus on proselytization
Propagation through missionary work
In early attempts, Wheelock found Indians ungrateful for his work on them
Some whites thought natives could not be converted without force
Others argued that conversion would still not make them equal with whites, only blacks

Wheelock's impressions

Indian boys were:
Lazy
Did not use furniture
Wore shabby clothes
Were unruly
Think only about the present
Ate a lot, but had no table manners
Goal was “to save the Indians from themselves and to save the English from the Indians”
While capable of teaching his students, their “character” did not change

Native Impressions
At first, a change to learn foreign language and cultures, as well as trades
Children were beaten and yelled at for minor infractions
Emphasis on farming was less like education and more like hard labor
Indians were treated as inferiors, even by English boys their age

The End
Funds came from Europeans in Europe
Europeans in America doubted the school's success
Natives grew increasing upset at student treatment, pulling children out of school
Only 11 Indian students ever graduated