Indian Nations at Risk: An Educational Strategy for Action

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Following are selections from Indian Nations at Risk: An Educational Strategy for Action, the final Report of the Indian Nations at Risk Task Force, U.S. Department of Education, October 1991. The full report can be ordered online.

This valuable report initiated many of the educational innovations highlighted in Walking in Two Worlds.

Excerpts:
Purpose of the Report
4 Reasons Indian Nations are At-risk
History of the Task Force
Testimony Sources
Task Force Guiding Principles
Responsibilities for Community Participation
The Need for Native Tradition in Education
Early Childhood Education Programs
The Need for Cultural Education
Social Problems
Excerpts from the Report's Conclusions
Suggested Strategies for Improving Education of Native Americans

Purpose of the Report

The Indian Nations At Risk Task Force submits this report, Indian Nations At Risk: An Educational Strategy for Action, as part of a national effort to improve the quality of education for America's students.

The Task Force is convinced that this report, specifically addressing the educational needs of Native America (American Indians and Alaska Natives), will lead to significant improvement in the academic performance of Native students if fully implemented.

The Task Force identified four important reasons the Indian Nations are at risk as a people:
(1)Schools have failed to educate large numbers of Indian students and adults
(2)The language and cultural base of the American Native are rapidly eroding
(3)THe disminished lands and natural resources of the American Native are constantly under siege
(4)Indian self-determination and governance rights are challenged by the changing policies of the administration, Congress, and the justice system

The Task Force believes that a well-educated American Indian and Alaska Native citizenry and a renewal of the language and cultural base of the Native American community will strengthen self-determination and economic well being and will allow the Native community to contribute to building a stronger nation--an America that can compete with other nations and contribute to the world's economies and cultures.

This report includes the major educational findings reported in the Native testimony, recommends five major research-based strategies for addressing educational needs, and presents a comprehensive set of recommendations that are responsive to the complexities of improving schools and schooling.

History of the Indian Nations At Risk Task Force

The Indian Nations At Risk Task Force was chartered on March 8, 1990, by the U.S. Department of Education in the Historic Shawnee Methodist Mission in Kansas. The Task Force was charged with studying the status of Native education in the United States and with issuing a report and recommendations to set the stage for improving the quality of educational institutions that American Indian and Alaska Native children attend and for improving the academic performance of those students who are being poorly served by their schools. Named as co-chairmen of the Task Force were former U.S. Secretary of Education Terrel Bell and Alaska Commissioner of Education William G. Demmert, now a visiting professor at Standford University.

Testimony Sources

The Task Force received testimony from tribal leaders, parents, educators, and many others to gain an in-depth understanding of current conditions and to identify desired changes. The Task Force formulated its recommendations, based on research, testimony, and advice from many sources, including the following:

• Testimony from hundreds of citizens at regional hearings in Alaska, Arazona, Minnesota, Montana, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Washington and through more than 200 papers and statements of concern.
• Some 30 school site visits and interviews with more than 100 parents, school board members, superintendents, teachers, tribal and spiritual leaders, and others.
• Thirty-two special sessions with over 500 participants at teh National Indian Education Association's annual conference in cooperation with the National Advisory Council on Indian Education.
• Commissioned papers from national experts on native education. These papers are included in a supplemental volume, available from the U.S. Department of Education.

Task Force Guiding Principles

• Guiding Principles:
  (1)The United States has a responsibility to help Native governments and communities preserve and protect the Native culutures, which are found in no other part of the world.
  (2)The educational strategies and reforms that will be needed to achieve Native education goals must guide improvement in a schools that serve American Indian and Alaska Native students.
  (3)Schools msut provide enriching curricula and assistance that encourage students' personal best in academic, physical, social, cultural, pyschological, and spiritual development.
  (4)Parents, Elders, and community leaders must become involved in their children's education, in partnership with school officials and educators. They must participate in setting high expectations for students, influencing the cirriculum, monitoring students progress, and evaluating programs.
  (5)A genuine commitment to real change will be required not only on the part of school systems, but also by federal, state, local, and Native governments; Native corporations; educational organizations; and business, labor, and community organizations.

Responsibilities for Community Participation

The task challenging Native communities is to retain their distinct cultural identities while preparing members for successful participation in a world of rapidly changing technology and diverse cultures. Indian communities must choose their educational and cultural priorities for their children and future generations. American Indians and Alaskan Natives must determine the school's role in promoting Native languages and cultures and the school's educational priorities. Natives must make a clear statement about what they expect of their youth. If Natives and other Americans do not make these choices and follow through boldy, schools will continue to fail. The consequences will be severe for the economic achievement, social and cultural development, and intellectual growth of the American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

The Need for Native Tradition in Education

The nation's leaders, tribal governments, and Native communities are increasingly concerned about the significant increase in social problems among Native peoples and about the loss of their culture and language. Language and culture are inextricably linked, because one supports the other. The ability to speak and learn from their Elders, the music and art forms, the historical and practical knowledge, and the traditional social and cultural practices must not be lost to tribes and the nation as a whole. Schools must enable children and adults to adapt and flourish in the modern environment while maintaining bonds with traditional culture.

• Schools that respect and support a student's language and culture are significantly more successful in educating those students.
• The perspective from which a school's curriculum is presented can significantly influence Native students' attitudes toward the school, schooling in general, and academic performance.

Early Childhood Education Programs

The Task Force believes that it is critical to start with community-based early childhood education that involves parents and develops their parenting skills. Research indicates that early language acquisition is a key factor in developing the academic skills important to intellectual development, that development must begin early, and that parents have a critical role in that development. Early childhood education programs can provide the setting for significant improvemtn and prepare the parents for their critical role in their children's development.

The Need for Cultural Education

The Task Force learned that there is a direct relationship between students' understanding of their culture and role in society and their ability to function comfortably in society and to achieve academic success. When students' relationships with the larger socity are strained, their chances for academic success appear to diminish.

Social Problems

One of the most important priorities is to resolve the social problems that limit students' ability to concentrate on learning. Family violence, alcohol and drug abuse, suicide, and the breakdown of family structures all hinder students' performance in school. Health and social agencies must work with families and schools to help students achieve their potential.

Excerpts from the Report's Conclusions

American Indians and Alaskan Natives, with languages and cultures found in no other place in the world, are in danger of losing their distinctive identites. Many members of the younger generations know little or nothing about their Native languages, cultures, rich histories, fine arts, and other unique features of their cultural identities. The knowlegeable Elders, once important teacher in transmitting the historical, cultural, and practical knowledge to the young, are no longer a part of the educational system. In addtion, the intellectual leaders--the historians, the spiritualists, the medical experts, the philosophers --are no longer trained through a formal tribal process of education during the youngsters' upbringing.

If Native cultures remain important today, as many Native political and educational leaders believe they do, they must again become a part of the educational process. Tribal groups must develop educational structures built on their cultural priorities and foster continued comprehensive plans, approved by the Secretary, to improve the quality of educaiton for native students.

Suggested Strategies for Improving Education of Native Americans

Following a review of Native enrollments, funding for Native education, the changing context of Native education, barriers to success for Indian students, and progress in research and educational practices, the Task Force presents a strategic framework for improving schools. Major strategies are: (1) developing comprehensive education plans that uses federal, state, local and tribal resources; (2) developing local partnerships for schools; (3) emphasizing national priorities related to parent-based early childhood education, promotion of tribal language and culture, training of Native teachers, and strengthening of tribal community colleges; (4) creating mechanisms of accountability; and (5) fostering understanding of the relationships between tribes and government.