Negative effects on Aboriginal children who attended Canadian Residential Schools

Negative Effects on Aboriginal Children Who Attended Canadian Residential Schools
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Negative Effects on Aboriginal Children Who Attended Canadian Residential Schools
Residential schools in Canada focus on changing the indigenous youth to fit in modern Canadian society. For instance, these institutions prohibit the use of Aboriginal languages while encouraging the use of the English language. The education and conversion in Aboriginal children in residential schools negatively impact their lives. Aboriginal children in Canada have experienced physical, psychological, and spiritual suffering by attending the Canadian residential schools. The native youths in Canada experience hard times after leaving the residential schools. The essay examines the negative effects of Canadian residential schools on Aboriginal children by demonstrating that the children attending these institutions often experience health, education, and financial issues after leaving the Canadian residential schools.
First, Canadian residential schools harm the general health of aboriginal children who attended these institutions. A 2002-2003 survey by the First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey shows that 47% of the respondents experienced negative health impacts after attending residential schools (Kaspar, 2014). The physical health and wellbeing of an individual are negatively affected by attending residential schools. For instance, attending Canadian residential schools has an impact on the next generation by encouraging pathological gambling as an escape vehicle from prior miseries to a fulfilling life (Dion et al., 2010). The residential schools have contributed to increased unhealthy practices such as gambling behaviors in the community due to low monitoring and controlling of children’s behaviors.
Secondly, residential school system has an impact on education and learning, making it hard for the students to get sufficient knowledge about the English language. Aboriginal children find it hard to become English proficient due to the conditions of the residential school such as discouraging the use of native languages (Barnes, Josefowitz & Cole 2006). Students un...