Volume IX Spring/Summer 1998 Number 4

Native-Controlled K-12 Education (after 1972):
A Literature Guide

by Mary Hermes

These articles provide a look at Indian Education as it has been defined by the policy of self-determination and legislated by the Indian Education Act of 1972 and the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975. I selected articles and books for the attention they focus on research and/or policy concerning Native American-controlled education. Two articles are comprehensive review articles (Swisher and Dehyle, 1997, and Lomawaima, 1996). Rehyner, 1993, and Hampton, 1993, write policy-oriented reviews that give specific suggestions for direction. One book tells the story of teachers of Native students across the United States (Peacock and Miller-Cleary, 1998), and one book (Barman, 1987) is an edited collection of essays from Canada. One very thick research article has been included that studies drop-outs and Navajo culture (Deyhle, 1995). And last, to provide depth, I have included two articles that describe best practices (Watahomigie, 1994, and Dick, 1994).

Adapted from a comprehensive literature review using the Education Resources Information Clearinghouse (ERIC) data base in the summer of 1997, this guide represents only a fraction of the research.
 

Barman, J., Herbert, Y., and McCaskill, D. (Eds.) (1987). Indian education in Canada. Volume Two: the challenge. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press.

Includes discussion, analysis, and evaluation of progress toward the goal of self-determination in Native education across Canada since 1972 (the year of the government's self-determination legislation for Native people). This volume includes case studies from Indian-controlled schools; documentation of the creation of two Indian-controlled school boards; and discussion of the role of elders, tradition, and the importance of indigenous language. Control over education is seen as "at the heart" of redefining political, economic, and social priorities for Native people and a key part of a larger revitalization movement of indigenous people around the world.
 

Deyhle, D. (1995). Navajo youth and Anglo racism: Cultural integrity and resistance. Harvard Educational Review, 65 (3), 403-444.

Drawing on theories of cultural discontinuity while keeping in mind the context of discrimination and assimilation, Deyhle demonstrates the complexity of culture and identity for Navajo youth. This study is valuable and brilliant for its depth as well as breadth. She interviewed over 268 Navajo youth over a period of 10 years, as well as spending summers living in the community, and conducted another 100 informal interview with Anglos from the border town. Deyhle looks closely at culture, schooling, and economic opportunity. She concludes that Navajo definitions for success are independent of Anglo values. Having a base in traditional Navajo culture is necessary for maintaining the personal integrity to withstand racism. In this case, resistance (to assimilation) is not futile; resistance to school assimilation leads to better chances of economic success.
 

Deyhle, D. and Swisher, K. (1997). Research in American Indian and Alaska Native education: From assimilation to self-determination. In M. W. Apple (Ed.), Review of research in education (pp. 113-194). Washington, D.C.: American Educational Research Association.

Reviewing 60 years of educational research, Swisher and Deyhle provide readers with an extremely rigorous review of literature as well as a valuable reference. In this 81-page article, a clear sense of progress towards self-determination in research is conveyed. Early research was based on the theory that Indian students suffered from deficits, as substantiated by intelligence testing and the theory of cultural deprivation. Prior to the 1960s, the norm or standard was often non-Native peoples. The broader social context of oppression was not considered a factor in the failure of Native students. In short, the idea of assimilation undergirded explanations of failure. Categories generated by such early research are prominent to this day. For example "during the years 1961-1991, the Journal of American Indian Education published 78 studies on achievement on intelligence tests and the Indian student," according to Deyhle and Swisher.

The second section of the article is devoted to research that challenges the assimilation assumption. This research includes cultural discontinuity, communication differences, and learning styles. Last, Swisher and Deyhle focus on work that is "community based." Local knowledge, best practices, research methods, and indigenous languages within the context of self-determination are discussed at length.
 

Dick, G., Estell, D., and MacCarty, T. Saad Naakih Bee'enootiilji Na'alkaa: Restructuring the teaching of language and literacy in a Navajo Community school. Journal of American Indian Education 33(3), 31-46.

Describes the successes, failures and struggles of the Navajo Community school at Rough Rock. One of the first tribal-community schools, Rough Rock is one of the schools most frequently researched and written about. Instituting a Navajo language teacher training program early on has provided this school with a stable base of elementary teachers who are Navajo speaking and community members. This article describes in detail one year of change and evolution in the teaching of language, literacy, and bi-literacy at Rough Rock.

Volunteer study groups of teachers led the effort to develop curriculum and text in both English and Navajo. Teachers recognized the need to develop their own assessments and moved away from standardized testing to portfolio assessment in evaluating students' progress. The article ends with a summary of four necessary conditions for successful change: stability of school staff; funding; collaboration with outsiders who have expertise; teachers who both develop and implement the program.
 

Hampton, Eber (1993). Towards a redefinition of American Indian education. Canadian Journal of Native Education, 20(2), 261-309.

Philosophical questions lead Hampton to ask: What is Indian education? The need for theory generated from research (grounded research) is explained and applied. After interviewing Native American students enrolled at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Hampton suggests the following: spiritual issues are important; Indian education is service oriented; Indian education cannot be understood apart from history; and there is a belief in distinct communication and learning styles for Native peoples. 
 

Lomawaima, K. Tsianina (1995). Educating Native Americans. In Banks and Banks (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Multicultural Education (pp. 331-42). New York: Macmillan.

Embedded in a reference book entitled Handbook of Multicultural Educational Research, this succinct and poignant review article gives the reader an overview of the literature on Indian education within the context of United States policy. In bringing together the divergent perspectives of policy and research, Lomawaima reviews articles on boarding schools, demographics, and educational research. The focus of educational research can at times be narrow and overlook what Lomawaima successfully emphasizes: the importance of sovereignty and education. She asks: Has the Self-Determination Act of 1972 and the subsequent tribal school movement really restored self-control and sovereignty to tribes in the arena of education or only its illusion? She points out another interesting trend-- the extremes in our research. Recent research on Native education has either been generalized to the point of Pan-Indian non-sense or made too specific to one particular band and reservation. 
 

Peacock, T. and Miller Cleary, L. (1998). Collected Wisdom. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

More than three years of interviews with Native and non-Native teachers of Native American students were compiled to create this very down-to-earth book. Building on themes as they emerged from the teachers, not from prior research, Peacock's and Miller Cleary's writing is grounded in teacher voices and experiences. Interesting and at times provocative, the tensions of racism, oppression, poverty, and cultural renewal are never segregated from issues of teaching. Reflective of the complexity of life and learning, each chapter ends with a fictional story meant to incite discussion rather than provide definitive answers.
 

Rehyner, Jon (1993). New directions in United States Native education. Canadian Journal of Native Education, 20, (1), 63-75.

Rehyner focuses on three specific events during the 1990s which he believes reinforce the trend of self-determination in Native American educational policy: Native American Languages Act, 1990; Indian Nations at Risk Task Force, 1991; and the White House Conference on Indian Education, 1992. He provides a useful summary of each of these events, highlighting the involvement of Native people in both schooling and research, progress in our organizing ability, sophistication in educational theory, and the persistent effort to see education as a part of re-building strong, healthy communities.
 

Watahomigie, L. and McCarthy, T. (1994). Bilingual/bicultural education at Peach Springs: A Hualapai way of schooling. Negotiating the culture of indigenous schools, Peabody Journal of Education [Special issue], 69,. 26-42. 

Funded by the Office of Bilingual and Bicultural Affairs, the work of building a bicultural and bilingual Hualapai school at Peach Springs has been a slow but successful process over the past ten years. In 1975 Hualapai was not a written language; today, largely due to the initiatives of local people, the community has built a school in which the language thrives at the center of the curriculum. Watahomigie and McCarthy attribute their success to the continual engagement with the community and the community's involvement and dedication. They point to four factors: stable funding, a core of local educators, administrative commitment to bilingual education, and community leadership. These factors all contributed to a Peach Springs curriculum that inspires cultural competence and academic excellence.

Mary "Fong" Hermes teaches at Carleton Collage in Northfield Minn. She has a doctorate in curriculum and instruction.