Boarding And Residential Schools: Healing, Survivance And Indigenous Persistence

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "Boarding And Residential Schools: Healing, Survivance And Indigenous Persistence," at the 2023 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Current archaeological research about boarding and residential schools in North America is contributing to better understandings of the complicated and dynamic experiences within Indigenous educational contexts. Collaborative research underpinned by intergenerational storytelling, least impact methodologies and overarching respect highlights Indigenous social agency and experiences in boarding and residential school contexts. This session aims to foreground various questions including: How do we continue to challenge colonial narratives that speak to Indigenous absence more than presence? What does intergenerational knowledge tell us about reckonings of trauma, Indigenous futurities and survivance? Are there certain types of Indigenous methodologies or traditions of resistance that can be utilized in contemporary times to address issues of large scale pandemics, climate change and issues of social justice? As archaeologists it is necessary to challenge dominant narratives and help mobilize knowledge and practice in ways that are responsive to Indigenous and descendant communities we are working with.