The term “Sixties Scoop” was coined by writer Patrick Johnson to describe “the taking of thousands of Native children from their families, communities and peoples during the period from the 1960s to the early 1980s” (Steckley and Cummins, 2008, 274). In the 1960s, the government was generally convinced that an extension of child welfare services to reserves would be a practical approach to solving some of the problems relating to reserves. Despite the good intentions of social services, “little attention was paid to the effects that the extension of provincial services would have on Indian families and communities [and there appeared to be] no concern that provincial services might not be compatible with the needs of the Indian communities” (Lloyd 2009). Most of the children placed for adoption were moved to distant communities, different provinces, and some were even placed in the United States in the homes of middle-class Caucasian families. Across North America, the dispersal of Aboriginal children has contributed to damaging identifications with traditional First Nations culture (Alston-O'Connor 2010). As a result, the 1960s scoop caused irreversible psychological, emotional, and spiritual damage not only to the individual, but also to families and communities. In the 1950s and 1960s, the government began abolishing compulsory residential school education among Aboriginal people. The government believed that Aboriginal children could receive a better education if they were integrated into the public school system (Hanson). However, residential schools were later deemed inappropriate because not only were children being removed from their culture, their families and their people, but most students were being abused...... middle of paper ..... .m http ://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/home/government-policy/sixties-scoop.htmlSinclair, R. (2007). Identity lost and rediscovered: lessons from the scoop of the 1960s. First People's Child & Family Review, 3(1), 65-82. Retrieved December 6, 2013, from http://www.fncfcs.com/sites/default/files/online-journal/vol3num1/Sinclair_pp65.pdfSmith, C. (2013, September 1). A legacy of Canadian child care: Surviving the scoop of the 1960s. Briarpatch Magazine, 1. Retrieved December 6, 2013, from http://briarpatchmagazine.com/articles/view/a-legacy-of-canadian-child-careSteckley, J., & Cummins, B. D. (2008). Full Circle: Canada's First Nations (2nd ed.). Toronto: Pearson Prentice Hall. The justice system and Aboriginal people: child welfare. (n.d.). The Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission. Retrieved December 12, 2013, from http://www.ajic.mb.ca/volumel/chapter14.html