Date of Award
2006
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Program
Anthropology
Supervisor
Dr. A. Kim. Clark
Second Advisor
Dr. Regna Darnell
Abstract
In state societies, formal education takes on a key role in the process of national incorporation and state formation. This thesis examines the Mexican and Canadian states’ relationships with their indigenous populations through an analysis of educational systems. In exploring Indian-state relations and education in these two cases, the thesis analyzes such issues as the differing demographic weight of the native population in each context, the importance of Mexican Indians’ history of participation in large-scale political movements, and the presence or absence of the ideological element of indigenismo. The use of education as a means of national incorporation or isolation and state formation accelerated during the first half of the twentieth century, as governments used state institutions to mould the identity of their indigenous peoples to match their objectives. However, the process was not a uni-directional one, as indigenous peoples could sometimes manipulate state institutions to pursue their own objectives.
Recommended Citation
Crowley, Kelly T., "NATIONAL INCORPORATION VS. NATIONAL ISOLATION: AN HISTORICAL COMPARISON OF INDIGENOUS EDUCATION POLICIES IN MEXICO AND CANADA" (2006). Digitized Theses. 4982.
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/digitizedtheses/4982