<P> Davin's findings were supported by Vital - Justin Grandin, who felt that while the likelihood of civilizing adults was low, there was hope when it came to Indigenous children . He explained in a letter to Public Works Minister Hector - Louis Langevin that the best course of action would be make children "lead a life different from their parents and cause them to forget the customs, habits & language of their ancestors". In 1883 Parliament approved $43,000 for three industrial schools and the first, Battleford Industrial School, opened on December 1 of that year . By 1900 there were 61 schools in operation . </P> <P> The government began purchasing church run boarding schools in the 1920s . During this period capital costs associated with the schools were assumed by the government, leaving administrative and instructional duties to church officials . The hope was that minimizing facility expenditures would allow church administrators to provide higher quality instruction and support to the students in their care . Although the government was willing to, and did, purchase schools from the churches, many were acquired for free given that the rampant disrepair present in the buildings resulted in their having no economic value . Schools continued to be maintained by churches in instances where they failed to reach an agreement with government officials with the understanding that the government would provide support for capital costs . The understanding ultimately proved complicated due to the lack of written agreements outlining the extent and nature of that support or the approvals required to undertake expensive renovations and repairs . </P> <P> By the 1930s it was recognized by government officials that the residential school system was financially unsustainable and failing to meet the intended goal of training and assimilating Indigenous children into European - Canadian society . Robert Hoey, superintendent of welfare and training at Indian Affairs, opposed the expansion of new schools, noting in 1936 that "to build educational institutions, particularly residential schools, while the money at our disposal is insufficient to keep the schools already erected in a proper state of repair, is, to me, very unsound and a practice difficult to justify". He proposed the expansion of day schools, an approach to educating Indigenous children that he would continue to pursue after being promoted to director of the welfare and training branch in 1945 . The proposal was resisted by the United Church, the Anglican Church, and the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, who believed that the solution to the system's failure was not restructuring but intensification . </P> <P> Between 1945 and 1955, the number of day schools run by Indian Affairs expanded from 9,532 to 17,947 . The growth in day schools was accompanied by an amendment to the Indian Act in 1951 that allowed federal officials to establish agreements with provincial and territorial governments and school boards regarding the education of Indigenous students in the public school system . These changes were indicative of the government's shift in policy from assimilation - driven education at residential schools to the integration of Indigenous students into public schools . It was believed that Indigenous children would receive a better education as a result of their transition into the public school system . </P>

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