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Cross-Cultural Issues in
Alaskan Education
Vol. I
PART II
EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ISSUES
It is self-evident to anyone capable of seeing beyond the confines
of the little spheres within which we spin out our lives, that the day
is
rapidly
approaching when it will no longer be viable for the minority of the
world’s
population who don’t live in villages to make every major decision
affecting the lives of the majority who do. So any program of village
education which intends to be forerunner of a revised world order must,
as its first
priority, design a delivery system premised on local decision-making.
- Bill Vaudrin
Educational concerns are not the exclusive domain of the teacher
or the “educator,” but are the province of anyone who has responsibility
for any facet of the human experience. It should come as no surprise then,
when people desire to exercise some influence over the educational processes
that affect their lives. But it should also be recognized that local participation
in decision-making does not automatically lead to improved programs or services,
unless such participation can introduce new ideas and options and can lead
to a sense of commitment and concern for the outcomes.
Educational development is an activity that extends beyond the school to
nearly all agencies and organizations providing services to people in the
State, including the Native corporations established under the Alaska Native
Claims Settlement Act, as indicated by Gaffney’s article. Opportunities
for local participation in, and responsibility for the development of educational
services in Alaska has increased dramatically over the past few years, and
the following articles are intended to enhance that movement.
Economic and Educational Development in Rural Alaska: A Human Resources
Approach-Mike Gaffney
Communicating and Integrating Locally Acceptable Change in Alaskan Villages-Steve
Grubis
Administrative Influences in Alaskan Native Education-Ray Barnhardt
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