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Since New France was a French colony, education was organized on the French model. To start with,
they were French teaching congregations which disembarked in Canada, Louisiana
and Acadia, bringing with them the people, ideologies and teaching methods which
seemed appropriate to them. In addition, as there was not one printing press or
bookseller anywhere in New France during the French regime, all books and
educational materials had to be imported from France. Finally, the funds which
maintained these religious communities were largely provided by French clergy,
and parent organizations back in Paris regularly sent money, supplies and
equipment in support of their colonial missions.
Teaching methods remained French as well, and educators enjoyed a fair degree of success among the sons and daughters of colonists. On the other hand, despite the efforts of missionaries, a lack of knowledge and understanding of Native cultures almost completely prevented the Frenchification and “civilization” of Native youth. |
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Culture ShockAt the outset, missionaries of both sexes believed they would easily Frenchify the Native poeples, but the opposite happened instead. The conversion of Native peoples required considerable effort on the part of French missionaries, who had to explain God and the mysteries of the Christian faith in Native languages which they had to learn by ear, without dictionaries or reference works.Other blunders, due to a lack of understanding of Native culture, were also committed, even by educators as experienced as the Jesuits and the Ursulines. The boarding-school method — which consisted in locking children away and applying rigorous discipline — had proven successful in Europe, but had the opposite effect on Native children. Marguerite Bourgeoys was the only one to enjoy a modicum of success at her facility in Montreal, because she allowed her young charges to come and go, and she was unstinting in her teaching of practical skills such as sewing and knitting. Disappointing ResultsAlthough not a complete failure, results among Native peoples were disappointing. First of all, in their own communities Native children generally enjoyed completely liberty until puberty. This made being shut away and subjected to strict discipline both difficult and disheartening for them. To make matters worse, the content of French teaching (reading, writing, learning a trade) bore no relation to the actual needs of Native peoples. All of their learning traditionally came from community elders and included mythology and spirituality, as well as the teaching of practical skills in agriculture, hunting, fishing, trapping, food preservation, survival in the forest, pharmacopeia, crafts, etc.As for the failure of “civilization” — despite the repeated orders of the King, and his wish that all “savages” be Frenchified, in order to assimilate with the French — it is easily explained. For one thing, Native peoples had a traditional lifestyle that was nothing like that of Europeans. More to the point, the French language had no use to Native peoples, even in commerce, since the fur trade was conducted solely in Native languages. |
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Culture Shock
