Federal Language Policy and American Indian Education. Revised.

Overview & Synopsis

In the past 25 years, American Indian education has undergone tremendous changes in both content (curriculum and pedagogy) and context (institutional framework). Centered on the issue of control, changes at both levels have resulted from a dynamic interplay between federal language policy and local initiatives. The federal Bilingual Education Act (BEA) of 1968 (Title VII) supported nearly 70 Native American projects by 1978. The Rough Rock Demonstration School on the Navajo Reservation was the first Indian-controlled school to teach through and about the Native language and culture. Title VII grants supported Rough Rock and other Navajo schools in forming a center to produce Navajo instructional materials. The program brought university courses directly to Rough Rock, facilitating the certification of large numbers of Navajo teachers. For smaller indigenous groups, bilingual programs such as the Hualapai project at Peach Springs (Arizona) public school not only improved the education of Indian children, but also halted the process of language extinction and generated major structural transformations in Indian education. BEA funds also fostered the evolution of 16 multifunctional resource centers, which have grown into a national university-based network providing training and technical assistance to Indian bilingual programs. There is now a political power base in this cadre of Indian education professionals. It is influencing local-level curricular change, tribal language policies, and federal policies. Contains 38 references. (SV)