APPENDIX C

Aniak

What do you see as the barriers to the educational success of Alaska Native children who live in villages?

• Lack of adequate funding for rural schools;could be better; shouldn't be us versus them attitude when it comes to education; urban lawmakers need to start thinking of the good of Alaska as a whole.
  
• Peoples belief that Native students from the village not being able to leave or getting out and into the world; the tendency to believe that we're not as good or we only think in terms of living in the same place; I think it would be the people not believing enough that their children will make it out of Aniak or some other village.
  
• The children should try to stay in school so they could get a job easily; with no high school diploma you can't get jobs.
  
• Alcohol, drugs; listen to parents; work harder in their home work.
  
• We' re remote; less technology; everything's expensive; not many people here with education;teachers come and go, other students.
  
• Drugs and alcohol, no will to succeed and move on afterward; the development in the technical area of the village also is a key factor;also, the type of economy is another; also, stressing education and more advertising a potential lifestyle.
  
• No response.

Anchorage

What do you see as the barriers to the educational success of Alaska Native children who live in this area?

• A lack of awareness in parents and students of options that are available on both ends; home structure - people don't have social, political skills to work through the structures that are in place for the kids to partake of (?) if they are aware of them.
  
• The urban students do not have an idea how a rural Alaskan Native student grows up or any ideas of sharing positively;very rarely does an Anchorage Native student have the attention needed to give them confidence to succeed; a rural student coming in to Anchorage School District does not have a competitive edge because the schools they come from are too small; the few rural students that have the chance to succeed would have succeeded anyway whether they lived in the bush or urban area; however the percentage is low.
  
• From small village to town; move around a lot; cultural differences; not understood by teachers because of cultural differences; because they may be quiet or may be they are not smart; written off by the teacher; too many changes too quick; extended family not available to assist.
  
• Language barriers; shyness; Native children are taught not to speak unless spoken to and the same parents are not totally involved with the school that their child is in; we need to teach and let parents and kids know that to get everything they need to survive we have to talk together as a team; transportation; low self-esteem; fear of living in the city instead of where considered safe back in the village; too many new cultures and people;drug and alcohol use by nervousness.
  
• None that I can think of right now; not enough counselors for future education; resources; discrimination.

Business

What do you see as the barriers to the educational success of Alaska Native children?

• "Economic Elders," communities' attempts to "hold on" to historic culture; it creates a reverse attitude; lack of mentors - high quality mentors with values; lack of knowledge of parents.
  
• *Teacher availability - local and long term; social disorganization - substance abuse; lack of class availability - especially math and science; family emphasis on importance of education.
  
• *Sometimes basic education; financial resources; family support; networking when challenged with problems; follow through; scheduling time and resources.
  
• School funding; adequate teachers; teachers that care; teachers willing to become part of a community.
  
• *DOE/teachers lack of creativeness and insight to think out of the box; lack of resources; lack of consistence; role models; career counseling; assessment services; school to work focus in schools; outside teachers imported to villages; stronger education curriculum in university system.
  
• Isolation; teaching expectations; inactive counselors; expectations of rural teachers (large, multi-grade classes) ; lack of support in college.
  
• *Parent involvement; revolving door of professional; expectations to succeed; lack of role models;sensitivity to village pace; western versus traditional philosophy;economic development.
  
• Poverty in many cases; substance abuse in the home; no schools or training centers geared as directed towards Native cultures; no motivators, role models; too many single (women) parent homes.
  
• Teacher turnover rate in villages; lack of emphasis on Alaska history and Native culture; lack of job opportunities in villages to show importance of education.

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