Write It! Understanding Multiple Perspectives

Based on what you’ve learned, let’s explore how understanding different perspectives challenges our ideas about historical events. Select one of the assignments prompts below to demonstrate how Zitkála-Šá and Susan La Flesche Picotte differed and agreed in their opinions about assimilation policies, and specifically the use of Indian Boarding Schools, focusing on the historical thinking skill “Understanding Different Perspectives.”

After reviewing your notes, compare and contrast the experience and opinions of Zitkála-Šá and Susan La Flesche Picotte to assimilation policies like boarding schools. Your response can take the form of an essay or you can create a video or visual presentation like an infographic or collage. Be sure to cite evidence from the videos and from both texts. Some questions to consider:

1. Based on what you’ve learned about the American Indian boarding school experience, how does this compare and contrast with your understanding of education? What is the goal of this kind of “education?”
2. Why do you think the U.S. government worked so hard to assimilate Native Americans? What do you think were their intentions? How do you think they felt about their actions?
3. Do you think assimilation is necessary to unite people within a society? Why or why not?
4. Do you think it’s possible to be “educated” and not “assimilated?”