NOTE: Issues range from 1996–2006. Contact information in earlier issues could be outdated. For current information, please contact the Alaska Native Knowledge Network, 907-474-1902.
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VOLUME 5, ISSUE 2 |
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Village Science Review:The Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative has sponsored the complete revision of the book, Village Science, which is now available from the Alaska Native Knowledge Network. It amalgamates the practical issues of village life with basic concepts of modern science. The book's primary intent is to create a love affair between rural junior high students and science so they will aspire to careers of influence in Alaska. The examples, questions, stories and explanations help those with an urban view look over the mountains into our world. The ultimate goal is to convince educators everywhere of the urgent need to produce and use culturally- and locally-relevant materials in all aspects of education. | |
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Yup'ik Region: After Culture Camp by Mike Hull:We have not learned all that we might from the culture camp setting. We can't even say that we have accomplished all we thought we should during any session. In Alakanuk, we already find ourselves looking for the next step. Perhaps it is the pace of the internet world that is telling us to move on. After all, we have been starting the school year with camping trips for four years-in cyber-time that represents an established tradition. We have integrated a science curriculum into the camp activities for two years-that's practically an institution. The culture camp setting presents us with a very clear image of the real needs of the students. They need to learn the basic subsistence skills to provide for themselves and their families in this setting. They need to acquire the academic skills to comprehend and deal effectively with the changing world around them. They need to develop the spiritual awareness and strength of character necessary to assure healthy relationships with all who share their world. At fall camp students catch, cut, cook and dry fish. They pick berries and they learn the use of different plants. They hunt seal. They also learn hunting and boating safety. What don't they know about keeping themselves alive during freeze up? And what are the tools and the knowledge they need to find food during the winter? How do they use their time in one season to get ready for the next? The camp is really a great academic setting because we (parents and teachers) can make sure that the students go to bed and get up at a certain time, eat well, get plenty of fresh air and exercise-and they don't watch TV. We don't have that kind of influence back in the village. What kind of learning environment can overcome lack of sleep, sugar highs and lows and the brain numbing overdose of TV? The interdependence of all is very apparent at camp. All must help set up tents or we won't have shelter. All must help with catching and cleaning fish or we don't eat. All must strive to get along because we live close, very close and any conflict affects everyone. Those from strong families grow up with these values. But what of those who do not have that guidance? And how do we bring young people to respect all that makes up their world when their virtual world challenges them to "blow away" anything that crosses their path? We need to move on. Fall camp is not enough. Subsistence skills are for all year long; they must be a part of our year-long curriculum. Each session presents particular challenges to staying alive. Each session presents the means for doing so. Using funds from the GEAR-UP program, Alakanuk has assembled a team to create a middle school curriculum that will have its focus on traditional and subsistence activities. An Elder along with two village residents who just completed their student teaching are working with the staff to design units and lessons that align the academic program to the knowledge and skills required for each season. The program depends upon community members to provide key elements for the core of our instruction. It returns the responsibility of education to those who traditionally held it. Elders will interact with students daily. Students preparing to cook fish for dinner. As with the camp, the activities of the season become the science and social studies. The practices passed on by the Elders and community members become the focus of research and analysis using the tools and methods of modern science. And, as with camp, the traditional wisdom will find verification under the microscope or be supported by data gathered from the internet. At winter camp stories of past adventures will be shared in tents late at night. When the students return to the village, stories of their new adventures will be written down to share with e-mail buddies far away. Such is the world our students belong to-a world that spans many millennia. We can meet the goal of students becoming proficient in subsistence skills. We can because they are interested and they have good teachers. We can do a better job of providing reading and writing skills because they will be reading and writing about things of interest to them-and they have good teachers. But perhaps the most exciting thing about this approach is that we can teach traditional values in the context that generated them. Skills may sustain the individual but it is the understanding of and the respect for the relationship of people to each other and to the world around them that sustain a people. Can we teach understanding and respect? Do we dare not to? As exciting and beneficial as the culture camp has been, it is just a beginning-the opening of a door to pathways we need to pursue. Students cutting fish. Editor's note: In the previous issue of Sharing Our Pathways, the Yup'ik Region was mistakenly labeled "Iñupiaq." For this we offer our apologies. | |
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VOLUME 5, ISSUE 3 |
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Alaska RSI Regional Contacts:Elmer Jackson Iñupiaq Regional Coordinator (907) 475-2257 e-mail: fnej@uaf.edu Barbara Liu Yup'ik Regional Coordinator (907) 543-3467 e-mail: fnbl@uaf.edu Amy Van Hatten Athabascan Regional Coordinator (907) 474-0275 e-mail: fyav@uaf.edu Andy Hope Southeast Regional Coordinator (907) 790-4406 e-mail: fnah@uaf.edu Teri Schneider Aleutians Regional Coordinator (907) 486-9276 e-mail: tschneider@kodiak.k12.ak.us | |
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Aleut/Alutiiq Region: Kodiak Alutiiq Cultural Values:We are the descendants of the Sugpiak, the Real People. Understanding our environment and events that have shaped our lives and created the culture of our ancestors is vital for our children's cultural survival. The history of our People and our place in the world is a part of who we are today. Kodiak Alutiit must learn and pass on to younger generations our understanding of our natural world: the sky, land, water and the animals. As we meet the challenge of living in the 21st century, we must continue to live in honor of those things we value: Our Elders Our heritage language Family and the kinship of our ancestors and living relatives Ties to our homeland A subsistence lifestyle, respectful of and sustained by the natural world Traditional arts, skills and ingenuity Faith and a spiritual life, from ancestral beliefs to the diverse faiths of today Sharing: we welcome everyone Sense of humor Learning by doing, observing and listening Stewardship of the animals, land, sky and waters Trust Our people: we are responsible for each other and ourselves Respect for self, others and our environment is inherent in all of these values. NATIVE EDUCATORS OF THE ALUTIIQ REGION o ALUTIIQ ELDER'S COUNCIL THE ALUTIIQ ACADEMY OF ELDERS | |
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ANKN Cultural Atlases by Sean Asiqluq Topkok:Occasionally people do not wish to share cultural knowledge outside the community. It is up to the community to decide what information to share. Since ANKN respects cultural and intellectual property rights, some of cultural atlases on the ANKN website are password-protected. Communities are encouraged to share how they are developing cultural atlases so that other indigenous people can adapt and apply them to their locale. | |
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Athabascan Region by Amy Negalt Denlebedze Van Hatten:Where before the white man came the Native was extremely self-sufficient and had to rely wholly on the land and the resources that the land gave him, for a period the Native came to rely on the ways of the white man and unfortunately took on many of his bad characteristics. The past decade however has seen a fantastic change in the attitudes of the Native people throughout Alaska. At the same time that the Native people are learning more about the Western culture, they are taking an ever rising interest in the heritage and culture of their own people. Native people are demanding a voice in the education of their children, health of their families and the laws that govern their lives. As a strong part of this there is the desire to retain and learn their own language. It has been said that a people die when their language dies. The meaning of life and the world around us can be communicated truly only through our own language. From the knowledge of our own language we can continue to retain our pride in our culture and continue to grow as unique individuals. The observations expressed by Senator Sackett in 1973 are consistent with those reflected in the Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools: "A culturally-responsive curriculum uses the local language and cultural knowledge as a foundation for the rest of the curriculum." That standard is also at the heart of the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative. The current initiative in the Athabascan region is to support the development of cultural atlases in the schools. It is a technological tool for students and community members to bring together information related to the indigenous knowledge systems using multimedia applications such as CDs and the Internet. Communities and Elders decide how much of the information should be shared and what should stay within the community due to cultural and intellectual property rights considerations. Cultural atlases can help preserve cultural knowledge such as putting Native place names onto a map and incorporating information associated with each place. Themes such as weather prediction, edible and medicinal plants, geographic place names, flora and fauna, old villages, camps and burial sites can be incorporated with video and sound of language, oral stories and more from Elders. There are examples of what other regions have done with the cultural atlas initiative on the ANKN website. Watch for some exciting reports from the Athabascan region. | |
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Developing Culturally-Responsive Curriculum by Esther Arnaq Ilutsik:Greetings to the first Bilingual/Multicultural Education/Equity Conference of the 21st century. I am honored and humbled to be standing before you-honored that I have been asked to speak and bring forth issues that need to be addressed by all of us as we enter the 21st century, and humbled by the great expertise that is assembled in this room. I will begin with an oral story, as is the tradition of the Y up'ik people, told and shared by my late mother Lena P. Ilutsik. She begins: And then there was this blackfish swimming up the river, maybe he was heading down the river. As he was going along he came to this fish trap. Well, he got inside and he probably had others with him. While they were trapped inside of the fish trap, they heard a person coming up on top. Well, when he got to them he pulled them up. Well, he poured those blackfish into his pack. Then that person said, "Oh my, one of these blackfish is so big! What a big blackfish." Well, he brought them home. He packed them and brought them home. When he got home he told his wife to cook the blackflsh. He wanted to eat that big blackfish. Well, she cooked and she cooked them. When they were cooked that man apparently ate that blackfish, the one he was praising. Well, he (the blackfish) got inside of that man, he was still conscious even if he was cooked. Well, he was inside the man, and when he got tired of being in there he went out of the man. Well, that man passed him. It was during the time when outhouses had not been introduced to the people yet. And people just used to go on the ground. Well, that man passed him and the blackfish who was still conscious just stayed in the man's feces. Then as he was staying there this dog started coming toward him. Well, that dog ate him. Well, he stayed inside of that dog. Then by and by when he wanted to go out that blackfish went out. Well, when he went out he stayed there in the dog's feces. As he was laying there he saw a person walking toward him. Well, when that person got to him and when he stepped on him he lost consciousness, Well, this is as far as the story I heard went. (translated by Virginia Andrew, 4/16/97) Why do I begin with a story? As a Yup'ik, as an educator, as a parent and as a lifelong learner, I find myself a part of a cultural group and a world in transition. Some of us have found ways to retain some of our oral stories and we do this by providing a theme story for the curriculum units that are developed and integrated into the school system. We, as educators, need to demonstrate by example. If we believe in something we need to demonstrate that we can also utilize the model and method of approach in our own teaching method. Addressing a group of people and sharing our knowledge and ideas is a method of teaching. Too often we hear potentially unique and aspiring methods but they are not utilized by the messenger. We need to share the approach that we are using within the classrooms. This is the theme of my presentation to you. I will be referring to it during the remainder of my talk. In the meantime, think about why would a mother share the blackfish story with her children? Remember, within the Yup'k culture, as with many other indigenous cultures, stories were told without being analyzed. They were told so that the listener would have his or her own interpretations, so that at some point in his or her life the story would surface and meaning would become clear-that is why the story was shared with me. One of the blessings of parenthood is that it makes us reflect back on our own educational experiences, both at home and in the school setting. We, as parents, are concerned about the education that our children will receive. We want the best for our children. We want to make sure that they have a good foundation-a good understanding of who they are and where they fit into this world that is being presented to them. Far too many of us remember ourselves as the "invisible" people with an aspiration to adopt the dominant culture's model. Remember the reading series, Dick and Jane and their dog Spot? What did it show us? It provided an ideal American, caucasian family living in suburban America-a mind set laid down subtly showing us that our little humble dwellings did not fit the ideal that American education was after. It brings to mind the man who desired the largest blackfish in the fish trap. The desire was so great that all the other blackfish were invisible. We too have looked at the ideals that were portrayed in the schools, in the textbooks, and other materials as the big blackfish and all other aspects of our life became invisible-our traditional foods, our stories, our dances, etc. Our desire was to consume and become like the big blackfish. Fortunately at some point in our life, we expelled the big blackfish. We became disillusioned, confused and disoriented with what we had desired. Like the man in the story, we expelled this blackfish from our body and mind, but unfortunately the blackfish still did not lose consciousness. We still find ourselves being drawn everyday to adopt another life form. Parenthood makes us bold and inquiring of what is being taught and emphasized in the school setting. We begin some innocent investigating. On the surface, the curriculum looks promising, but investigating further we find that certain textbooks, including the ones for the "core" curriculum adopted by the district and used by the teachers, haven't really changed that much since the Dick and Jane series. Now, instead of a dog named Spot, we have a dog named Bingo. Although animals from our environment may be portrayed, they are often presented with misleading information. One can wonder how our Elders would have presented this information. What would be their focus and would the information be presented in a culturally-local relevant way? Actually, I was shocked to find that none of the stories contained in one of the current reading series portrayed any of the North American indigenous peoples. There were tales from Japan, China and even Africa, but nothing from the indigenous peoples of North America. Again, we have become the invisible people. Our children can be portrayed as the dog desiring the feces of the man (the fantasy culture), with their own cultural identity again being invisible. Sure, the bilingual education and other federal programs that are offered are supposed to address this need for identity and equity, but they do so at a cost. Our children often go to these classes with reluctance, and the teachers that are hired for these positions are often paraprofessionals who are allowed only 30 minutes or less for instruction. Many of these teachers have very little training, if any, and most have to create their own materials that are often looked upon as second-rate in comparison to the flashy, colorful textbooks and materials that are being used by the primarily non-Native certified teachers. We, as the parents, want these types of attitudes expelled, much like the blackfish expelled by the dog, so that we can stamp out the undesirable and give our children the opportunity to start afresh with a new consciousness and a positive attitude about themselves. Alex Lopez practices his storyknife skills. Photo by Esther Arnaq Ilutsik. Some of us parents have taken it upon ourselves to make those changes. After attempting to go through the administration to make changes, we realized that this would require many, many years of re-education and redirection, while our children are in school now and need that foundation to set the stage for their future education. How do I as a parent make sure that my child receives the strong foundation that I so desire? As an educator, I always welcomed parent involvement, so that would be the key to getting into the classroom and influencing the teacher. I was in a fortunate stage in my life when I was between jobs and had time to enter the classroom. I was also fortunate to have been able to select the teacher that I wanted for my child. This teacher, Ina Bouker, happened to be a colleague, a member of the Ciulistet Research Group, a friend and most importantly, a relative who shared my vision of taking the Yup'ik knowledge of our Elders and bringing it into the regular classroom. We wanted to achieve integration in the true sense, not integration with 30 minutes of Yup'ik instruction three times a week, but on a daily basis through the regular certified teacher. In this way, it could truly elevate the status of the local culture. One of the first units we tackled was the "Heartbeat Unit." This stemmed from a Ciulistet Research Group meeting that was hosted up in Aleknagik where the discussion focused on Yup'ik dancing. How do we take this information and bring it into the regular classroom? Ina Bouker had this brilliant idea of integrating this information into the health strand of the school district curriculum. The heart would be the focal point. The heartbeat would connect well with the beat of the Yup'ik drum-the beat of life. The three main Yup'ik colors (red, black & white) naturally became a part of the study with basic patterns introduced and emphasized while the Yup'ik dancing and the stories they tell provided the natural flow. Legends of the Yup'ik people were shared and told through the Sonor games (a board game adapted from the Yakutsk-Sakha, the indigenous people of the Russian Far East). What a wonderful and truly memorable experience for my daughter and her classmates. In fact she still talks about the experience she received in second grade (she is now in the seventh grade) and it was not too long ago when I was at the local grocery store during "the rush" when I heard a voice, "Esther, where have you been?" I followed my eyes to the voice and saw one of my daughters former classmates. He continued, "Why are you not coming to our classes anymore? I really miss you." I was fortunate to get a job with the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative through the University of Alaska Fairbanks/Bristol Bay Campus where I have been able to continue with the curriculum process we started with the heartbeat unit. I followed my child and made sure that at least one of the units taught in her classroom focused on the local culture. In the third grade we focused on the Yup'ik fancy squirrel parka with an emphasis on patterns and the history of the Yup'ik people. At the fourth-grade level we completed the patterns on the parka integrating it into the math strand and at the fifth-grade level we looked into Yup'ik basketry. But the most important thing is that I continued to work with Ina Bouker and her students. Here we integrated many different units of study into her classroom. All the knowledge that we shared within the classroom was information that our Elders shared with us in our Ciulislet Research meetings. It was like we were finally learning things about our culture that we had missed when we went to school and now were learning them and were able to share this information with the next generation. It reminded me of what Moses went through in the Bible. Most of you know the story about Moses, how he was found floating in a basket on the Nile River by the pharaoh's daughter and was educated in the finest institutions in the then-known world. Eventually, when he was called to take his people into the wilderness, he spent another 40 years literally uneducating himself from his previous training. So it is with many indigenous peoples around the world and in North America. We have been sent to schools and literally educated out of our culture. The results have been truly devastating to many of our people, but some have miraculously succeeded and are now realizing that the knowledge of our Elders and our people is important and that this knowledge base must be taught to the future generations. Michael Filipek listens to his heart as part of the Heartbeat unit. Photo by Esther Arnaq Ilutsik. The documentation of this knowledge base must be authored by our own people. We cannot continue to rely on outside experts-professional people with prestigious degrees-to come in and study our culture and write about how we should integrate this information into the school system (even if it is reviewed and acknowledged by indigenous educators.) We need to do it ourselves-we need to demonstrate to the world that we have come to a point where the information provided is authentic and is based on interpretations by local indigenous people. We cannot continue to accept information written by a person "looking in." We cannot continue to read information that was obviously written by a person from another cultural perspective. We cannot continue to serve in the role of providing corrections and apologies. We are entering an era where we, as indigenous educators, have to author our own materials with confidence in our own abilities. We can strengthen our role by getting the Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools to be addressed by the local schools as well as through the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development. With commitment and determination, we are able to gather the knowledge of our Elders and bring it into the classrooms. We are able to author our own materials, test them in the classrooms and develop them into resources that will be available for other educators. In conclusion, we, like the man who stepped on the dog's feces and destroyed the consciousness of the blackfish, have arrived at a point where we are slowly beginning to "crush" out all the misinformation that has plagued and stereotyped us in the past. We are, by demonstration, showing the world that our cultural knowledge can be portrayed in a positive light by our own people. With this foundation we will be able to enter the 21st century with confidence-confidence that our cultural identity will play an important role in laying a solid foundation down for our descendants. Our descendants will fill those leadership roles that require an understanding and respect of themselves and other cultural groups. We will once again become whole-a complete person-that is the ultimate goal of the Yup'ik people. | |
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Elder Highlight by Amy Negalt Denlebedze Van Hatten:As soon as we arrived in the area that used to be low-income housing called Birch Park, she started reminiscing about the people who used to live there. Besides the Olins, there were other families including the Mayos, Carrolls, Solomons, Silas', Alfords, Nollners, McQuestions, Ahnupkanas and others. It was common to share whatever Alaska Native food they brought in from their home villages. In a substitute way, Birch Park was similar to a rural village. They spoke their Alaska Native languages and participated in cultural activities around town. They even initiated some of their own since they got to rent the recreational center on site. In addition, when a villager came to visit they invited their neighbors over to snack on dry fish and drink tea while they listened for news or stories about home. With a dignified tone, Mom Olin said that the Salvation Army, located in a barn near Wendell Bridge, allowed her to exchange labor for her family needs. According to her, this enabled her to get her Alaska Native foods for her table. A steady exchange of Native foods, second-hand clothing, seasonal gear and accessories had the value of being freshly harvested to meet consumers' preference. Reciprocity was and still is a vital key for survival, no matter where one chooses to live. Accordingly, it was one of the most important cultural values carried on from early upbringing in bush Alaska surrounded by extended family members. In 1970 Mom Olin moved to Galena so her younger children could benefit from village life. Besides, the pipeline boom was raising her rent and her modest income was not enough to stay in Fairbanks. After her move, her late Aunt Madeline Solomon became one of her most memorable mentors and Elder /teacher for a traditional way of life. Eventually she became Auntie Madeline's successor as the bilingual/cultural educator for the Galena City School District. Currently she is retired from the working world but remains a teacher to many friends and relatives and is doing it with immense joy. It tickles her when her great-grandchildren and adopted local teachers (who are far away from their real families in the lower 48) try so hard to learn and then succeed. Mom Olin is thankful for those humble days when they were all happy to make do with what little they had. It has always been her wish for the younger generations to learn and appreciate the basics that are most important to survival and a sense of well being. In closing she thanked her ancestors of long, long ago who have not been forgotten. Interviewer's comment: I thank Mom Olin with immeasurable gratefulness for all she has shared with me. | |
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Iñupiaq Region: Traditional Methods of Healing & Medicines for Science Fair Projects by Elmer Misrak Jackson:In the springtime, willow leaves (sura) are harvested and preserved in seal oil for food. Sura's high Vitamin * content hastens the healing process. Sura, mixed with seal or whale oil and a small amount of sugar, complements many Native foods. Crushed sura leaves are applied to wasp or hornet stings. This stops the swelling and removes the poison. Bear fat and other animal tallow help heal sores, boils and other infections. Eating a well-balanced diet of Native foods aids healing. These foods are meat, fish, berries, sour dock, wild rhubarb, sura seal and fish oil. The intestinal tract is saved from porcupine (iluqutaq). This long intestinal tract is stretched and hung to completely dry. Once dried it is ready to be used as a medicine. It is a cure for stomach ailments and diarrhea. The dried, digested food is crushed and water is added, then taken internally. This herbivore feeds on grasses, willow leaves in summer and tree bark during the winter. The iluqutaq is a subsistence food of the Iñupiat. Qaluum uqsrau is fish oil. Fishing for whitefish on calm days seems to make work easier. The fish are scaled, washed, cut and hung on poles to dry. The edible stomach organ and eggs are washed and boiled. The fish oil rises to the surface. The cooked contents are removed, leaving the oil on the surface. The oil is saved, cooled and then used to dip the fish, eggs and stomach before eating. Qaluum uqsrau can be used as medicine. When young children have a common cold with coughing, sore throat or the flu, they are given fish oil. The soothing oil moisturizes dry sore throats and hastens the healing process. The oils, rich in iron and protein, are essential for healthy living. You can also massage heated fish oil onto a child's chest when they have a chest cold and congestion. The cottonwood tree (ninrjuq) produces buds that can be used as cough syrup in early summer. These sticky buds are used for making cough syrup not only for sore throats, but also for colds and congestion. Like fish oil, cranberries have healing properties for the human body. Cranberries are rich in Vitamin * and can be used as medicine for sore throats, the common cold, congestion, chest colds and sores. They help the body's organs get rid of the body wastes. Cranberries cooked the traditional way are delicious. Another home remedy for sore throats is to mix pure honey, lemon juice and stinkweed leaves (sargiq). Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 10 to 20 minutes. Cool and store for preservation. Taking this internally will help heal sore throat and common cold ailments. The stinkweed plant (sargiq) is a common medicinal plant that grows in the Arctic. The 24-hour sunlight nourishes sargiq, along with other plants in the ecosystem. In midsummer, when the buds begin to appear, is the time to harvest sargiq. Harvest the entire plant: the stems, leaves and bulbs. This is when the plant is most potent. Bundles of sargiq are gathered and preserved. Fresh sargiq is prepared into medicinal salves or taken internally. Prepare salve for applying on the chest for chest colds, head cold and congestion. Another salve is made by frying cut onions or wild chives (paatitaat) and garlic using shortening or lard. Fry until the onion becomes transparent. Cool and preserve. Apply to the chest for congestion from chest and head colds. Add salve to hot water for steaming. Place the steaming hot salve on the floor. While holding a child on your padded legs, cover with a bed sheet and let the child breathe the medicinal steam. It will help the lungs and nasal passages get rid of the mucus and congestion. Cut and mince sargiq stems, leaves and bulbs. Pan fry with lard, shortening or bear fat. Reduce heat and cook until stems and leaves release their medicinal contents. The stems and leaves will resemble cooked spinach. Cool entire contents and preserve. When needed for colds or congestion apply on the chest and neck. For steaming, apply salve to boiling hot water and cover with a bed sheet-breathe the soothing moisturizing cure. Sargiq can be taken internally for most body ailments. Sargiq can also be made into a hot drink prepared like tea. A warm or hot bath with sargiq is healing to the skin and body. It helps heal sores and is used for a treatment for arthritis. Students should research other medicinal uses of sargiq and discover new medicines and remedies for healthful living. Crowberry (tullukam asrait) has medicine in the berry that benefits the urinary tract, intestines, liver and stomach. The berry is especially effective on urinary tract problems. Natural clay can soothe arthritis and bone ache. The heated clay relieves aches and helps the healing process. This natural resource also has other uses. For example, this material is put between the logs of the log cabin. The clay hardens, making the log cabin draft proof. Clay can be found at or just below the shoreline where there are large boulders of rocks and sand. Medicinal greens grow all year long near natural hot springs. Natural hot springs have been visited by the Iñupiat and the Athabascan people for generations. They knew about the medicinal greens and the soothing spring waters. Before submerging into the hot springs, one must drink spring water and consume medicinal plants. These two steps help people get their bodies ready for the hot spring water. The medicinal greens that grow near the springs are medicine for ulcers, stomach problems and sores. Water and greens are taken from the springs for home use. Every so often a tree swallow (tulugagÿnauraq) is taken for medicinal purposes. The feathered bird is split in half and dried completely. When it dries, it is preserved for future use. Tulugagÿnauraq is one of the most effective medicine for sores, cold sores and mouth sores. Part of the dried bird is soaked in pure water and applied to the sores. This application is repeated until the sores heal. The sores heal quickly with this method. Proper diet helps the body's immune system heal sores or body infections. Proper diet includes berries, sura, sour dock, wild rhubarb, fish oil and meat that are rich in Vitamin C, iron and protein. Teachers and students should plan to visit Elders and interview them about traditional healing and medicines. Before the interview it is important that the Elders understand what they are going to be asked to talk about. Get permission to record and to document the interview. They have much knowledge about the Iñupiat illitqusrait (way of life). Students can incorporate this information in their science fair projects through video, charts and samples of plants and animal products used in traditional medicine and healing. Tribal doctors are gifted people who have knowledge of human anatomy. They know about plants and other natural products that promote healing. Students can send samples of medicine plants to be analyzed. There are cures yet to be discovered. Find where medicinal plants and natural products can be analyzed through scientific research for possible new medicines. Make sure you follow the Guidelines for Respecting Cultural Knowledge when you do so (the guidelines are available on the ANKN website.) Finally, when you visit an Elder, bring them a fruit basket or gift to show your appreciation for sharing their indigenous knowledge. References Aana (Grandma) Clara Jackson. These traditional remedies are common knowledge and shared with each generation of Iñupiat since time immemorial. The stinkweed plant (sargiq), pictured above, is a common medicinal plant that grows in the Arctic. The 24-hour sunlight nourishes sargiq, along with other plants in the ecosystem. (Photo by Dixie Masak Dayo who is studying traditional healing and herbology.) | |
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Report On Native Education Summit:Dennis Demmert and Jim Walton at the recent Native Education Summit held in Juneau. They are standing next to a statue Jim brought back with him from New Mexico. The statue, "Rainbow Warrior" by Cloud Eagle, symbolizes the unity of all creation. On March 1-3, 2000, over 50 leaders in Native education from across the state gathered in Juneau for a Native Education Summit sponsored by the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative in cooperation with the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development and the Alaska Federation of Natives. A dedicated group of Elders, Native educators and others actively involved in Native education initiatives associated with the Alaska RSI spent three days reviewing current issues impacting schools in Alaska. Given the many new state mandates, school reform initiatives and on-going challenges that school districts are grappling with as we enter a new millennium, it seemed an opportune time to step back and reflect on where we are and where we want to go with Native education. The focus of the summit was to take a look at how education programs and services can best be positioned to address the long-term needs of Native communities in this time of limited resources. We were particularly interested in examining ways in which the Alaska Department of Education, the University of Alaska and rural communities and school districts can work more closely together in the provision of basic education services, as well as in staff development, curriculum enhancement, collaborative research and technical assistance. Reports and discussions focused on the following current statewide programs and initiatives:. * Alaska Quality Schools Initiative/Legislative Mandates-Rick Cross. * Alaska Native Student Learning Action Plan-Bernice Tetpon. * Alaska Federation of Natives Education Initiatives-Frank Hill. * Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools - Ray Barnhardt. * Alaska Onward to Excellence Case Studies-Ray Barnhardt and Oscar Kawagley. * Rural Educator Preparation Partnership (REPP)-John Weise. * Native Administrators for Rural Alaska-Frank Hill and NARA graduates. * Consortium for Alaska Native Higher Education-Merritt Helfferich. * APU/RANA Native Teacher Education Program-Christina Reagle. * Citizens for the Educational Advancement of Alaska's Children-Willie Kasayulie In addition to the above presentations, there were reports on many exciting regional curriculum development and language revitalization initiatives from around the state. Following status reports on the various initiatives, the participants turned their attention to developing draft "action plans" around three focal areas. Following is a summary of the recommendations put forward for follow-up actions in each of the focal areas. Group 1: Develop an Alaska Native Education Action Plan for 2000 This group reviewed the issues that were raised in the summit (as well as the 1999 Leadership Retreat recommendations) and developed a preliminary outline of where we would like to be with Native education in Alaska by the year 2010 and the steps that will be taken to get us there. Recommendations of this group included:. * Local cultural values shall be the preamble to all curriculum documents and instructional programs. * Community members and culture bearers must greet and welcome new teaching staff and share local values and traditions. * School districts must support Native educators to participate in the Bilingual and Multicultural Education Equity Conference (BMEEC) and the Native Educators' Conference (NEC). * Native educators should join their regional Native educators' association. * Native corporations should support actions/activities and development of their regional Native educators' associations. * Encourage local school boards and administrators to anticipate worse-case scenarios with regards to the state exam. A local plan must be established. * All secondary subject areas must focus on mastery of academic English. * Develop alternatives (beyond remedial) to enhance academic learning. * Develop peer tutors to work with students who do not pass the test. * Develop local consortia to address FAS/FAE student services. * Develop alternate assessment techniques that address the same skills but in culturally appropriate ways. * Align all formal schooling from early childhood: preschool through high school. * Connect advocacy groups of language immersion with Native educators' associations. * Provide information to local parent advisory groups regarding ways to teach and fund indigenous languages and academic English. * Set up a network for immersion schools for everyone. * Incorporate local culture and heritage throughout the curriculum, interwoven with existing subjects. * Incorporate Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools into all district curriculum review processes. Hold districts accountable for this integration. * Incorporate the social and spiritual meaning of arts as well as the practical applications. * Support the corrected version of the teacher certification process being proposed to legislators. * Recognize aides with certification, increased pay and professional development opportunities. * Incorporate environmental studies as they relate to the use of technology. * Utilize AKRSI's Preparing Culturally-Responsive Teachers for Alaska's Schools as a part of the state-mandated standards for educators (incorporate it into the evaluation process.) * Take steps to increase the hire of certified Native teachers. * Educate the community at large: What is meant by local control?. * Provide local advisory school boards control over the hire of new teachers in their community. * Revise local teacher hiring practices to include local interviews. * Promote cadet teaching programs. Group 2: Develop an Action Plan for Native Teacher Preparation This group was convened to address issues associated with the preparation of Native teachers for schools in Alaska and to develop a statewide action plan for a coordinated effort to double the number of Native educators by 2005. Recommendations of this group included:. * Teacher preparation "internships" should be completed through a performance assessment process based on the cultural standards for teachers and the Guidelines for Preparing Culturally-Responsive Teachers for Alaska's Schools so that a candidate can demonstrate their proficiency at any time that they have acquired the necessary knowledge and skills to do so (including during, or even before, their undergraduate studies.) * The director of the Rural Educator Preparation Partnership should convene representatives of the Native educator associations by audioconference on a monthly basis to provide guidance on all Native teacher education issues. * Provide incentives for school districts to implement cultural orientation programs for new teachers as part of their annual inservice plan submitted to EED. The orientation program should include an extended camp experience and an "Adopt-a-Teacher" program. * Make available a "cross-cultural specialist" endorsement for teachers built around the criteria outlined in the Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools and the Guidelines for Preparing Culturally-Responsive Teachers. * The UA system should develop a unified approach for the delivery of performance-based elementary and secondary teacher preparation programs and degrees to rural Alaska, with a particular focus on the professional development of the 700-plus teacher aides in rural schools. * All teacher preparation programs should fully incorporate the Guidelines for Preparing Culturally-Responsive Teachers for Alaska's Schools and prepare teachers who are equipped to implement the Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools. * The Guidelines for Preparing Culturally-Responsive Teachers for Alaska's Schools and the cultural standards for educators should serve as the basis for the review and approval of courses to be used to meet the state multicultural education and Alaska studies requirements. * The state school designator criteria should include an assessment of the extent to which the ethnic composition of a schools' professional staff is proportional to the ethnic composition of the students being served and if they are disproportional, the school improvement plan should indicate how such a balance will be achieved. * The Alaska Native Knowledge Network will prepare an online database listing all qualified Native teacher and administrator candidates as identified by the respective Native educator association. * School district career ladder programs should be established to provide incentives and support for aides and associate teachers who are aspiring to be licensed teachers. The AFN Goals 2000 funding should be used to provide additional incentives to the districts. * Provide an option for school districts to employ teacher interns to serve as classroom teachers during their internship year under the supervision of a mentor teacher. * All Native organizations, including tribal councils and Native educator associations, should provide assistance and a supportive environment for qualified Native educators seeking employment. * School boards and districts should take a proactive posture toward local hire of teachers, including financial incentives and providing an induction program for those new to teaching. * The University of Alaska should reinstate experienced rural faculty at all of the rural campuses to provide student support, instruction and supervision for REPP and all other rural teacher education candidates. * Native corporations should take a proactive role in recruitment and financial support for Native teacher education students. * Insure strong Native representation on all professional faculty associated with teacher and administrator preparation programs in Alaska. * Assist schools designated as low-performing in the development of school improvement plans consistent with the Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools. * Establish a regular extended PRAXIS Institute to help prepare students for the PRAXIS I exam. * Foster close collaboration between all public and private institutions involved in preparing teachers and administrators for Alaska schools. * Secure financial support and recognition for the regional Native Educator Associations. * Enlist the support of school counselors, NEA-Alaska and Native educator associations to implement "Future Teacher Clubs" in all schools in Alaska. Group 3: Develop an Action Plan for Strengthening the Role of Tribal Colleges/CANHE This group reviewed the current status of the regional tribal college initiatives and outlined ways to strengthen the role of the Consortium for Alaska Native Higher Education (CANHE) in bringing Alaska Native educational expertise to bear on the issues identified at the summit. Recommendations of this group included:. * Make a presentation on tribal colleges to the University of Alaska Board of Regents advocating the benefits of the Ilisagvik/University of Alaska Fairbanks memorandum of agreement. Utilize the material in the Native educator's presentation showing the lack of duplication of effort between UA and tribal colleges and demonstrating benefits by use of data showing the success of Natives in tribal colleges. * Call on the University of Alaska, Alaska Pacific University and Sheldon Jackson College to adopt a policy supporting the development of tribal colleges in Alaska and offering provisions of assistance to the new colleges. * Call on the Alaska Intertribal Council (AITC), Alaska Federation of Natives, Alaska Native Health Board, the tribes, Alaska Native Brotherhood/Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANB/ANS) and other Native organizations to support the development of tribal colleges and urge them to express that support to the Alaska congressional delegation. * Seek passage of amendments to the Tribally-Controlled Community College and University Assistance Act which designate Alaska as a special case. * Tribal college trustees and staff should meet with tribal councils and call on clan leaders to participate in such presentations to enlist the councils in college planning. * CANHE should, with the help of the Alaska Native Knowledge Network, publish a brochure on tribal colleges outlining CANHE goals and tasks. * CANHE should consider a tribally-established college accreditation process. * Call on Native educators associations, REPP and CANHE member institutions to develop a collaborative teacher training program that incorporates the cultural standards and Guidelines for Preparing Culturally-Responsive Teachers for Alaska's Schools and the Guidelines for Respecting Cultural Knowledge. * Develop transition programs to minimize the barriers between high school and college. * Develop a logo for CANHE (perhaps featuring an iceberg or sealskin.) * Create and implement an inter-regional Elders exchange program. * Identify and tap the human resources and funding to facilitate tribal college development. * Develop and maintain a body of data on Alaska Native higher education enrollment, dropout and graduation. * Organize regional Native education meetings to implement the Alaska Native Education Summit recommendations. The above recommendations can serve as the basis for developing more detailed action plans in each of the three focal areas listed. We wish to express appreciation to all the participants in the Native Education Summit for contributing their valuable time and insights to this effort. We invite everyone with an interest in these issues to offer ideas and suggestions for how the action plans can be further strengthened so that we can move into the millennium with a bright future for education in rural Alaska. | |
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Southeast Region: I am Salmon Action Plans by Xaastanch Andy Hope:Participants were Angie Lunda and Dianna Saiz with Floyd Dryden Middle School; Phil Miscovich, Sally Kookesh and Colby Root with Angoon School; Lianna Young, Nancy Douglas, Peggy Cowan and Henry Hopkins with the Juneau School District; Arnold Booth and Marie Olson from the Southeast Alaska Native Rural Education Consortium (SEANREC) Elders Council; Nora Dauenhauer and Richard Dauenhauer with Tlingit Readers; Michael Travis, an independent contractor and Andy Hope, Southeast regional coordinator, AKRSI. Angoon Action Plan The Angoon team will: * Arrange a three-day technology staff development workshop in Angoon, with Henry Hopkins of the Juneau School District as facilitator. Chatham School District will fund Henry's travel from AKRSI MOA funds. This workshop should take place before early May. The workshop should include presentations on the Native plant multimedia project and website development training. The Angoon team will invite Lydia George (SEANREC Elders Council), Jimmy George, Mary Jean Duncan and Shgen George to participate, as well as any other interested teachers and the Chatham District technology coordinator. * Participate in a staff development academy on the cultural standards. This academy is tentatively scheduled for August 21-22 in Juneau and will be sponsored by the Juneau School District. Credit for this academy should be jointly provided by the Southeast Alaska Tribal College and Alaska Pacific University. * Participate in the Rural Education Academy in Fairbanks, June 2-3, 2000. Andy Hope and Henry Hopkins will coordinate a presentation on the I am Salmon project. * Participate in I am Salmon presentations in Seattle in July in conjunction with the World Music and Dance Festival. * Coordinate with the Angoon Culture Camp in planning summer educational opportunities. * Coordinate with the Juneau School District to ensure that teachers from Angoon participate in the Tlingit Language Adult Immersion Camp scheduled for Klukwan in July. * The Angoon School has a Japanese intern this spring. The Angoon team will request the intern's assistance in establishing communications with the I am Salmon teams in Japan. Juneau Action Plan Angie Lunda will: * Coordinate production of 3-D topographic maps of the Juneau area. * Utilize resources such as the Haa Áanee book to document Native place names and traditional land uses in the Juneau area. * Organize field trips to streams in the vicinity of Floyd Dryden School in the Mendenhall Valley as part of her stream ecology unit this spring. Students will participate in water quality testing, fish camp lessons and write comparison/contrast essays. * Work with the Juneau School District Tlingit Language Seminar group to integrate Tlingit words and phrases into the stream ecology unit. Dianna Saiz will: * Develop a language arts production, a shadow theater performance that will utilize Tlingit language. She will consult with playwright-producer David Hunsaker on shadow theatre production techniques. * Utilize the partnership salmon story to produce a salmon poetry anthology. Nancy Douglas and Lianna Young will assist Angie in integrating fish camp curriculum into Angie's classroom. Angie Lunda/Dianna Saiz/Lianna Young will develop a quilt project in which students produce and exchange salmon quilt squares. Group Recommendations Michael Travis and Henry Hopkins will develop an I am Salmon Southeast Alaska website. How about using the term Raven Creator Bioregion instead of Southeast Alaska? Or will that be perceived as an act of secession? The website will be housed in the UAS server at the Auke Lake Campus in Juneau. Nora Dauenhauer will draft a proposal to transcribe and translate Tlingit language tape recordings of the late Forrest DeWitt, Sr., a member of the Aak'w Kwáan, (traditional tribe of the Juneau area) L'éeneidi (Raven moiety) clan. Micheal Travis will develop an electronic version of the Tlingit Math Book. Andy Hope will arrange for a short-term contract with Jimmy George, Jr. for technical support for the I am Salmon teams for developing Tlingit language software. It is recommended that each team purchase a high quality digital camera for use in producing multimedia presentations. It is recommended that Elders be compensated $150 per day, with a minimum honorarium of $75 for partial days. Some Good Books * Igniting the Sparkle: An Indigenous Science Education Model by Gregory A. Cajete * Earth Education: A New Beginning by Steve Van Matre * Village Science and Village Science Teacher's Edition by Alan Dick * Understanding By Design and the Understanding by Design Handbook by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe Those interested in obtaining copies of the Village Science books should contact Dixie Dayo at fndmd1@uaf.edu The One Reel Wild Salmon website is now online in draft form. The URL is www.onereel.org/salmon. I have been in contact with representatives of Carcross School in Carcross, Yukon and Yupiit School District. I anticipate that teachers from those districts will be forming I am Salmon teams in the near future. | |
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Summer Institute for Educators:"Observing Locally, Connecting Globally" Summer Institute for Educators July 31-Aug 11, 2000 Observing Locally, Connecting Globally is a longterm NSF-funded science education project based at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. We invite you to participate in our first institute to be held at UAF July 31 to August 11. Participants will receive training in GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment), current best practices in science education and the integration of local and traditional knowledge into environmental studies. The goal of this program is to support and enhance global change research generated by grades 5-12 doing local investigations in classrooms across Alaska. It will be supported by the integration of Native and locally-relevant knowledge and community and university scientists. Anyone working with grades 5-12 is welcome. We are encouraging teams of educators from rural Alaska and those working with a large number of Native students. Cost: $75 (subsidized by the National Science Foundation) Travel assistance and per diem available on an application basis Credit: 3 credits, NRM 595 or ED 595 Instructors: Dr. Elena Sparrow, Dr. Leslie Gordon, Sidney Stephens. Fill out the application and return by May 1, 2000 (It can be found at http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/olcg.) Please return application to: Elena Sparrow University of Alaska Fairbanks 303 O'Neill Building PO Box 757200 Fairbanks, AK 99775-7200 (907) 474-7699 FAX (907) 474-6461 email: ffebs@uaf.edu | |
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Village Science: Risk by Alan Dick:It is easy to point to the mistakes made by people who have been at the point of impact of technological change in Alaska. I remember one homesteader who tried to clear 80 acres of timber. He managed to knock down all the trees. It was a mangled mass of trunks and branches. He got real tired drilling stumps to dynamite them, so he ordered a power auger like we use today for drilling a hole in the ice. He was thrilled when it arrived. He started it and hopped up on a stump to drill his first hole. He revved the engine and spun himself around like an airplane prop. It's a wonder he didn't break both arms. Another homesteader built a nice place but was afraid it would burn in a summer fire. He got some phosphorous fusees to do a controlled backfire in case a blaze endangered his home. Somehow, his fusees ignited and burned his homestead to charred rubble. To this day, there is an indentation in the ground etched by the fuses intense heat. On the other hand, I know a woman raised in the woods whose husband bought her a plastic timer for cooking. She thought it was a thermometer, put it in the oven, and melted it into a gooey blob long before the cookies were done. And most regions of Alaska have a story of some lonely old man who ordered a woman from a Sears catalog and was highly disappointed when only her clothes arrived. For people who are bombarded with new technologies everyday, these examples may sound foolish, but they are stories of folks who were on the edge of technological upheaval and tried to apply past experience to current situations. They are anecdotes of folks who dared to try something new. As schools cope with the demands placed upon them by state standards and the reality of their villages, some will withdraw to the safe territory of textbooks and pre-fab educational kits developed by "experts." Others will boldly innovate. I just returned from a Yup'ik village where the middle school curriculum is being developed around the subsistence calendar. Science, math and social studies are the content areas. Reading and writing are seen as a means of accomplishing them. Bold? Yes. Successful? Not yet. Alaska has been made by people who have applied new twists to old solutions and old solutions to new situations. Will we be paralyzed by the fear of failure? Will we blindly conform to a Lower 48 standard piped to us via cable TV and textbooks from Texas? Or will we remain faithful to the adaptive character of Alaskans of the past? As we struggle through these risky transitions, failures like the above stories will occur, but heroes and lasting educational change will also emerge. | |
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What Is This Thing Called "Love"? by Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley:Universe, God) is the giver of love, the light of intelligence and understanding. Love allows one to do almost anything for something held dear in the heart. It is a powerful emotion which is unconditional. Based on this, I can say that love is a sense of belonging and being in touch with something that is good and beautiful, thus deserving care and harmony. It then behooves Alaska Native people to instill this sense of love in education, in cultural camps and in everyday life. We want our students to be connected to order, to the patterns and symmetries of this universe. We want them to be able to see the good and the beautiful in their own place. This bonding with place will allow the Native people to do things that will not harm that place, to do things to rebuild, reclaim, regenerate and rehabilitate that place where necessary. They, in essence, will be thinking in terms of the happiness and satisfaction of the Seventh Generation. When some of these Native people become scientists and technologists, they will do things that make them happy as they are immersed in the beauty of the place in which they live. This love of place is sometimes lacking in modern scientists and technologists who are often trained to operate without a heart, such as the Tinman in the The Wizard of Oz. Too often scientists and technologists are expected to use only the brain without giving due consideration to the heart. We, as Alaska Native people, must learn to love oneself, love one another (kenkuraulluta), and above all relearn to love place. | |
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Yup'ik Region: Calista Region Culture Camps by Mark Miisaq John:The camps will incorporate two groups: village Elders, teachers and teacher aides who will serve as the camps' teachers and mentors to the second group of participants, seventh- and eighth-grade youth who will be attending the camps to learn Yup'ik/Cup'ik cultural skills, history and values. Subsistence hunting, fishing and harvesting activities appropriate to each camp location will be the focus of the camps, providing the Elders an opportunity to pass down traditional skills and values. In keeping with the language and spirit of CEC's mission, two primary groups will share our culture camp experience. The first group is comprised of village Elders (one per five campers, an equal number of men and women) who will serve as the teachers and counselors of our traditional values and life skills. The second group is village youth (two per village, an equal number of boys and girls) who will be their students and partners in this culture-based learning experience. Tribal governments from the three Calista regions (Coastal, Kuskokwim and Yukon) where the camps are to be conducted will recommend the camp Elders. In this way, the Elders of each camp will possess knowledge that is sensitive and relevant to each region's geography and the unique traditions and necessary life skills that evolved from it. The process by which youth participants will be selected follows: first, seventh- and eighth-grade students will be targeted primarily because of their youthful enthusiasm, openness and conceptual maturity. Equally important is that this age group, after returning home from camp, can serve as ambassadors for their experience, excited and committed to sharing what they have learned with others as their roles and responsibilities grow within the village communities. The timing and location of CEC's three camps will be based on each region's subsistence season and knowledge of the area's fruitful hunting, fishing and harvesting sites. The activities of the camps will take on a daily rhythm similar to a traditional subsistence camp setting. To facilitate the Elders' active participation and the young campers' individualized learning experience, one Elder will be assigned to every five campers. The Elders' responsibilities will be to act as their groups' supervisors, teachers and mentors. Each morning two of these groups will rise before the others and assist the camp cook in setting up, preparing, serving and cleaning up after the morning meal. They will continue to perform these responsibilities for the rest of the meals that day, their Elders reminding and modeling for them the importance their domestic chores play in fortifying the larger group for the day's subsistence work. Following breakfast, the camp director, teachers, teacher aides and Elders will introduce the day's subsistence activities, the values associated with those tasks and what effect the groups' labors will have on those who will receive the benefits (i.e, their families, Elders, those who have lost their providers, etc.) Each day the groups and their Elders will be assigned to different subsistence tasks with the understanding that every group will be able to participate in and learn each of the subsistence skills. During these activities, the Elders will supply the youth with the cultural knowledge necessary to perform each skill or task and teach the traditional values which infuse those tasks with meaning and spirit. After lunch each day the students will spend two hours on science activities. The teachers and teacher aides will work with the students in developing science projects using subsistence activities that are taking place in the camps. The teachers should help prepare the students for science projects they can develop in the camps. At the end of the day, after the evening chores and meal have been completed, the camp director will review the day's activities as a transition into a discussion of how subsistence tasks and values relate to those found in the western world. The goal will be to instruct our young people about how they can draw upon and apply their own traditional values to those of another culture so that they may survive in it-economically, spiritually and culturally. The evening will conclude with recreational activities (hiking, lap games, Native Olympics) and an opportunity for each of the camp groups to meet with their Elders, ask questions, share experiences and hear stories celebrating their ancestors' rich history and mythology. These three exciting camps will invite two students from each listed village. The pool of applicants will be incoming seventh- and eighth-grade girls and boys. The application deadline is April 21, 2000 and the names are to be submitted to Mark John at Calista Elders Council by May 4. The Bering Sea Coastal Camp at Umkumiute will host 28 students from LKSD sites, 4 from LYSD, and 2 from Kashunmiut. The Camp dates are June 4-14, 2000. Coastal camp villages are Scammon Bay, Hooper Bay, Chevak, Newtok, Tununak, Toksook Bay, Nightmute, Chefornak, Mekoryak, Kipnuk, Kwigillingok, Kongiganak, Tuntutuliak, Eek, Quinhagak, Goodnews Bay and Platinum. The Yukon River camp in Cuilnguq will host 16 LYSD students and two from St. Mary's School District. The camp dates are August 6-16, 2000. Yukon camp villages are Russian Mission, Marshall, Pilot Station, Saint Mary's, Pitkas Point, Kotlik, Emmonak, Alakanuk and Sheldons Point. The Kuskokwim River camp will have a base at a camp site inside Kuiggluk and a second camp set-up at Kialiq. This camp will host 16 LKSD students, 18 students from Kuspuk and 6 students from Yupiit. The camp dates are July 23-August 2, 2000. Kuskokwim Camp villages are Lime Village, Stony River, Sleetmute, Red Devil, Crooked Creek, Chuathbaluk, Aniak, Upper Kalskag, Lower Kalskag, Tuluksak, Akiak, Akiachak, Kwethluk, Bethel, Oscarville, Napaskiak, Napakiak, Atmautluak, Nunapitchuk and Kasigluk. As school districts that serve these village sites plan with Calista on this wonderful summer opportunity, we are anticipating strong support staff to assist the Elders. Culture camp applications are online at http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/culturecampapplications.html and need to be turned into Calista Elders' office by May 4. Students and parents will be notified before school closure. | |
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VOLUME 5, ISSUE 4 |
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AISES Corner by Claudette Bradley:by Claudette Bradley The AISES Initiative concluded its fifth year with eight summer science-culture camps held on Afognak Island, Haines (vicinity of), St. Paul, Kwethluk, Kisaralik river, St. Mary's, Chevak and Fairbanks. Each camp had Elders teaching activities specific to the culture of the region and engaged students in science projects. The Fairbanks, Alaska Native Science and Engineering Society (ANSES) Science Camp 2000 ran on a slim budget, which we hope to rectify next summer. Twelve middle-school students attended the camp held at the Gaaleeya Spirit Camp from July 11 to July 25. They were Britta Kallman of Anchorage; Roberta Allen, Amanda Tritt and Donald Tritt of Arctic Village; Qaqsu Bodfish, Alicia Kanayurak, Eunice Kippi, Ronald Kippi and Harriet Nungasak of Atqasuk; Mathew Shewfelt of Fort Yukon; and Kimberly Rychnovsky of Newhalen. These students arose at 7:00 a.m. each morning to work with Elders and teachers. They cleaned and tanned caribou skins and made porcupine quill and beaded necklaces under the guidance of Margaret Tritt-an Elder from Arctic Village. They beaded pouches with Elizabeth Nictune Fleagle from Alatna. They learned Indian games and stories from Kenneth Frank of Arctic Village. Kenneth also helped students carve and polish caribou bone and wood to make an Athabascan "toss and catch the hole" game piece. Students picked medicinal plants and berries with Rita O'Brien, a certified teacher from Beaver. In Rita's class the students made cranberry leather, that was like candy to eat. With Todd Kelsey, an IBM consultant, the students constructed a weather station with a rain gauge, wind socket, barometer and thermometer. Students checked the weather each day and kept data on spreadsheets. They were able to compare the Elders' way of predicting the weather with the information from the weather station. One evening we met with the Elders to discuss the traditional ways of knowing the weather. In the afternoon class students developed a research project and did their experiments in the camp. Rita O'Brien, Todd Kelsey, George Olanna of Shismaref and Claudette Bradley of UAF assisted students. The computer lab had four ThinkPads and a color printer that were donated by IBM and powered by two solar panels and batteries. This enabled students to type up their information, make data sheets and construct graphs for their display boards. Students attended field trips to the Fort Knox Gold Mine and to the World Eskimo Indian Olympics (WEIO). Bradley Weyiounna is a WEIO high kick champion; he can jump eight feet to kick the ball. Bradley and Josh Rutman visited our camp one evening with the high-kick stand and demonstrated the high kick for the students. The students enjoyed the experience and attempted to kick the ball. The ball was lowered to four, five and six feet. The students enjoyed trying the high kick. Bradley showed the students how to wrestle with just arms or legs. This entertained the students and they loved trying to wrestle with each other. The camp ended with a potlatch for parents and Fairbanks' education community members. After dinner, awards and gifts were given to students, staff and other support people. It was followed by a poster session of the student display boards on their science projects. Students explained their research to the guests. Following the poster session everyone participated in Athabascan fiddle dancing. Staff and students want to extend a heart felt thank you to Howard Luke for allowing us to be at his camp which is also his home. We deeply appreciate his facilities and the care he has given to the land that was left to him by his mother. We cherish his advice and knowledge of Alaska Native ways that he generously shares with camp participants. We look forward to future camps at Howard Luke's. Youth Science Festival Claudette Bradley, the director of the Fairbanks ANSES Science Camp 2000, was one of six chaperones in the USA delegation of 20 teenage students attending the Singapore Youth Science Festival 2000, July 27 to August 2, 2000. The festival was attended by delegates from 21 countries of the Asian Pacific Economies Cooperation (APEC). The events included an international science fair and student summit science seminars on globalization, global warming, diseases, new endeavors, genetic engineering and clean environments. These are key issues for international science and technology research. The festival had 600 students and 200 educators/chaperones. Educators and chaperones were asked to present papers on science education in their economy. Dr. Bradley reported on the ANSES Initiative of the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative which included science camps and fairs for rural students in Alaska. Participating educators/chaperones showed great interest in our culture-based science camps and fairs. They expressed interest in developing a student exchange program with the culture-based camps in Alaska and summer programs in their countries. | |
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Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative Moves Into Phase II by Frank Hill, Angayukuk Oscar Kawagley and Ray Barnhardt:We will be getting in touch with each of the partner organizations during the fall to work through the details as we develop a new round of MOAs for the spring, summer and fall terms of 2001. We wish to express our sincere appreciation for the high level of interest and commitment that everyone has shown over the past five years. This has truly been a cooperative undertaking in which the whole has become more than the sum of its parts. We look forward to continuing the close working relationships we have had with the Elders, educators and schools from throughout the state. We also wish to express our appreciation to the hard-working staff that has brought new possibilities to the forefront of rural education in Alaska. Quyana! Qagaasakung! Ana Baasee'! Gunalcheesh! Quyanaq! Mahsi! Thank you to everyone! | |
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Aleut/Alutiiq Region: Camp Qungaayux 2000 by Moses L. Dirks:This will be the third year that we have had this type of activity for school-aged children. This year Camp Qungaayux 2000 had over 50 students registered for the camp. Thirty-eight mentor Elders were hired to teach the topics. A lot of the credit goes to the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative and the Alaska Rural Challenge for making this possible. Partial funding from these organizations have reawakened or revitalized the cultural practices the Unangan People had in the past. The local entities have been very generous in contributing not only labor force, but help sponsor the culture camp. Without their support, the event would not have been a success. Special thanks to the Qawalangin Tribe for all the extra hours that they put into the camp planning. The topics that are presented by the Elders and mentors include the following: 1. Sea mammal butchering (Algax) 2. Unangan dance (Axax) 3. Unangan baskets (Aygagasix) 4. Asxux 5. Bentwood hats (Chagudax) 6. Boat safety and Iqyax 7. Ulax 8. Qalimagix fish preparation 9. Food preparation (Qaqax) 10. Intertidal studies (Agux) 11. Beach Seining (Kudmachix) 12. Plantlore I & II (Tanachngangin) 13. Storytelling The Elders spearheaded the classes, which taught exclusively in traditional Unangan ways of doing things. Unangan language was used by the Elders and mentors to perpetuate the relearning of the Unangan cultural activities. Camp Qungaayux commenced August 14, 2000 and continued through August 19, 2000. The last day was celebrated with a potluck. Unangan food and dances were performed to cap off the festivities. Each Elder/mentor and student received a sweatshirt with a Camp Qungaayux logo on it and a certificate of participation. This year we invited Unangan students from Adak, Atka, Nikolski and Akutan. Students from other villages have a lot to share with the larger communities. We had a great time learning and meeting new people. For more information about Camp Qungaayux call Harriet Berikoff, Qawalangin Tribe (907) 581-2920 or Moses L. Dirks at (907) 581-5837 Song and dance were enjoyed by all during the beautiful evenings on the beach at the science/culture camp at Katenai on Afognak Island. Julie Knagin, Heidi Christiansen, Ole Mahle and Marsha Parker worked together to bend the steamed spruce rim around a form at the science-culture camp at Katenai on Afognak Island. This rim was later used in a drum that was made for Sally Ash, a visitor from the village of Nanwalek. The drum was made by the students who attended the camp with help from Jim and Bonnie Dillard. Nasquluk (kelp) was laid on top of the prepared spruce rims which were laid on top of layer of nasquluk, rocks and fire. This combination created the steam necessary to bend the wood for drum rims. Jim Dillard worked with students and adults to make this a highlighted event during both camps. | |
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Aspects of Traditional Iñupiat Education by Paul Ongtooguk:Traditional Alaska Natives are often thought of as a common, nomadic culture that moved almost randomly with little more than hope to guide decisions about where to seek the next meal and where to set up the next shelter. The Hollywood image of Alaska and Alaska Natives reinforces this stereotype, as the film image is one of fur-clad people living in blinding blizzards of constant snow. Imagine the camera, as it pans up to a thin line of specks on the horizon. The camera slowly closes in and the specks become visible as people walking into the blizzard. (I don't know why we always walk into the blizzards, but in films we always seem to.) Then, the narrator, in a low, serious tone announces "In a ceaseless quest for survival, the hearty Eskimo are in search of the caribou." The image is an important one, as it represents most people's only visual encounter with the traditional life of the Eskimo. It is also false, as it portrays the Eskimo as playing survival roulette, wandering about hoping to chance upon some caribou. Iñupiat Society: Some Realities It is true that most Alaska Native groups often moved, but it is also true that the locations and times of these moves were not in any way random. A culture would not long survive in the Arctic, much less develop over several thousand years, if it were dependent on such random luck. Rather the Iñupiat cycle of life developed through a careful consideration of the environment. Among traditional foods were caribou, marmot, seal, walrus, several variety of whale, many kinds of fish, bear, rabbit, ptarmigan and a variety of roots, eggs, seeds and berries. The Iñupiat also gathered resources, such as ivory, jade in some regions, copper in others, slate, driftwood, baleen and bones. Sometimes the materials sought included grasses for insulation and baskets or animals and birds for clothing and shelter. Hunting and fishing were planned based on the knowledge of where animals and fish had been found in the past, knowledge about weather conditions and the changing patterns of climate. Camps were carefully chosen locations. The camp, or living area, was selected, because it was perceived as the most likely location of a concentration of food. Adequate fresh water and relative safety were, and are today, carefully considered. There were also settled communities. Over a thousand people lived in the traditional communities now commonly called Pt. Hope and Wales. These communities were established long before the Roman era of Western Europe. Iñupiat societies developed unique equipment and tools that were relevant for the area in which that society lived. The invention and refinement over thousands of years of how to design and construct the right equipment was a crucial aspect of traditional life. As William Oquilluk, an Iñupiat author, pointed out in People of Kauwerak, the invention of tools and shelter for living in the Arctic was inspired through careful observation of the world: the spider web for the net, not only the fish net, but also nets for birds and seals; the leaf floating on the water for the first boats that were gradually refined into the qayaq-one of the more graceful and efficient boat designs. There are many others: the ulu, the harpoon, the reinforced bow, the throwing dart and the gutskin parka. The development of tools and equipment is one example that Iñupiat society was not static in traditional times and that change was not a consequence of contact with outsiders. Thus it was not mere hope and persistence that allowed Iñupiat society to develop in the North. Traditional Iñupiat society was, and is, about knowing the right time to be in the right place, with the right tools to take advantage of a temporary abundance of resources. Such a cycle of life was, and is, based on a foundation of knowledge about and insight into the natural world. Such a cycle of life was, and is, dependent upon a people's careful observations of the environment and their dynamic response to changes and circumstances. Developing this cycle of life was critical to the continuance of traditional Iñupiat society. Also critical was a system to share this knowledge and insight with the next generation. Traditional Education: a Myth Many educators today stereotype the traditional educational system of Alaska Natives in a manner that is reminiscent of the Hollywood blizzard portrayal of traditional Iñupiat society. A prevalent belief, for example, of many educators is that American indigenous people "learn by doing." In schools the application of this belief often results in activities where students are provided a minimum amount of information and a maximum amount of activities that allow for random experimentation and hands-on discovery. Such a simplified view of teaching and learning imposed on a diversified group of people is as foolish as the image of the northern Iñupiat randomly searching for food in the Arctic. Two common sense observations should immediately lead educators to question this belief. First, the traditional life of the Iñupiat demanded knowledge and perceptiveness about the world. Consider hunting. The successful hunter had to have knowledge about the particular area, the species being hunted and the appropriate technology. Further, he had to be skilled in the application of that knowledge. The Iñupiat were not successful hunters because they threw themselves into "learning by doing" situations. To learn about sea ice conditions and safe travel "by doing" alone would be suicidal. In fact "doing" is the back end of the educational experience in traditional life. Second, it is naive to think that any group of people can be categorized as preferring one learning style. Learning style inventories are popularly administered in schools today in order to determine student preferences and student patterns of insight. Teachers believe that the information revealed about individual students from learning style inventories is important. Teachers often intend to apply that information as they plan, deliver and evaluate lessons. Caucasian students are expected to exhibit a range of learning behavior. (By the way I often think this whole issue is confused in how much it ignores the demands of the subject being learned. Hands-on learning alone of chess? Ignoring the conceptual issues of small engines is partly to blame for all those so-called mechanics trading old parts for new ones without repairing vehicles.) Why would Alaska Natives be expected to perform any differently? Traditional Education: Some Realities Then how were people prepared to live in traditional times? Probably no one alive today can answer that question completely. Decades of changes in society coupled with the demands of compulsory education mean that traditional learning and ways of learning have been obscured and many pieces have been lost. While there are some obvious elements still in place, they tend to be fragmented and are seldom recognized as portions of an entire way of learning. While these fragments can be gathered from a variety of sources, one of the most credible is the personal story. The examples that follow are personal and illustrate how the role of the male hunter was learned by some of the boys in a contemporary Iñupiat community. Observation Observation is a critical element of the traditional educational system. The first knowledge about hunting comes from boys watching how hunters prepare their equipment, their clothing and themselves. Observation begins at a very early age and continues for years. At first the boy observes how relatively easy it seems to load a boat. Then, another year, the boy sees more than the work and starts to notice the balance of the load. He sees what will be readily needed, what must not be allowed to sit under the load, what knots should be used to properly tie things down in the various parts. What had appeared simple at the first observation gradually becomes extremely complicated as the issues are understood. The sophisticated observer finally extracts the principles that become the threads by which what has been "seen and done" is understood. The young boy, through observation, also learns about the value system associated with hunting. As hunters return from a successful trip, goods are shared. In Iñupiat society, it is through participation that a person becomes a part of the community. In contrast to the Robinson Crusoe drama, in the Arctic, if a person is alone, the odds of survival are undermined. In fact, in Iñupiat society higher status is acquired through sharing. Boys learn to prove themselves through helping others. Immersion in the Stories and Customs As the child is immersed in the stories and customs of the communities, he learns more about the traditions, values and beliefs associated with hunting in an Iñupiat community. Before his first hunt, he has listened to hunting stories for years. These were both entertaining and informative. As a result of these stories told by Elders and veteran hunters, the young child constructs a mental image of all that is required and some sense of the important aspects of preparing and engaging in the hunt. Many of the stories he listens to as a child were stories that emphasized the disposition-the attitude-of the hunter. In these stories bragging and pride in personal accomplishment would be condemned. In the stories, animals can read the mind of the hunter and either give themselves or not, in part based on an appreciation of the giving of the physical body. Even after the animal gives up the body, respect should be shown in definite ways according to the stories and traditions. This is why some hunters who are deacons and respected members of churches still pour fresh water in the mouth of a seal after it has been shot. The belief is that the seal likes fresh water and that the undying nature of the seal will remember the gesture and bring another body for the hunters later. The stories about animals giving themselves to hunters might not seem to make sense to outsiders, but it is difficult to imagine anything else if a person has hunted very long. There are times, when in spite of careful planning and preparation, cautious stalking and quiet approaches, no animal will allow a hunter to even remotely approach. At other times a person will be setting up camp and a caribou or moose will walk within a stone's throw and then patiently wait for the hunter to take advantage of their good fortune. How else to account for these turns of events that have so little to do with skill and more to do with the disposition of the animal? Today some Westerners might deride such practices and beliefs. But perhaps the stories are actually about protecting and helping the hunter. Respect for the animal being hunted may prevent the hunter from becoming overly confident or prideful. Pride often produces carelessness and may prevent learning and observation from occurring. In fact, pride and arrogance can be fatal in the Arctic where the best lesson to keep in mind is how little we actually know and how easily we can be swept from the world. Showing respect for the animals also ensures that better care will be taken of the physical remains of the animal. The importance of such a disposition for the Iñupiat hunter is obvious. Often the stories children hear will emphasize how clever, thoughtful and ingenious a person has been in becoming successful as a hunter and a provider to the community. Apprenticeship Apprenticeship is another aspect of traditional education. Often a young hunter is guided in the apprenticeship by an uncle. The uncle's role may be familiar to some parents in urban life who face the task of teaching their children to drive. For while the young person may be capable of learning to drive, the parents are often so deeply attached and concerned that it is difficult to keep the teaching role in mind. Parents can all too readily imagine that this future driver of over a ton of steel is the same child who broke objects and fumbled through life as a toddler. On the other hand an uncle is close enough in relationship to carry the burden of keeping a youngster alive, while at the same time distant enough to keep things in perspective. Hunting in the Arctic is difficult enough. Hunting while keeping an eye on a young person is just that much more so. The apprenticeship begins on the day that the uncle chooses to take the future hunter out. In contrast to Western systems of education there is no predetermined beginning and ending schedule for the apprenticeship. The age at which this happens depends upon the maturity of the youngster. The uncle has been watching the young hunter and one day, with almost a casual air, the uncle and his hunting partner agree to take the youngster out. The young hunter has been trying to show, in numerous ways, that he is ready for this. The youngster may have been hunting ptarmigan, usually with a bow and arrows that he and his friends have made. Why is this hunting so important to the young man? Observation has demonstrated to the boys that hunting is valued in many ways. As a child he has seen the appreciation and admiration shown to hunters returning to the community. As a child, when he got his first ptarmigan or rabbit, he was required to give it to his oldest female relative-grandmother, great-grandmother or an aunt. The female relative made a great deal of the event-praising the fine size of the catch and noting how long it had been since they had seen one as good as this. The boy was then instructed toxrun to the homes of many relatives and friends inviting them over for a feast. The women prepared a great many foods, but the center of the feast was a stew in which the little bird or rabbit was transformed into a meal for many people. All would eat and praise the stew and note how clever and hard working the young hunter had been in acquiring this meal for the community. All the conversation praising the hunter would take place as though he were invisible and yet he would feel a mixture of pride and embarrassment at all the attention. The lesson of the importance of hard work and persistence in hunting would not be lost. Apprentice hunters might not actually hunt the first time they go out to a hunting camp. The youngest person sets up the tent, hauls water, perhaps prepares sleeping bags, collects firewood, cooks and certainly cleans. But is this only dreary labor? First, keep in mind that these chores are being done out at camp and so everything is edged with excitement for the young apprentice. But, the real lesson, as a young person, is to learn to deal with the long and hard labor without giving in to fatigue. While out at camp, the young boy learns about good locations for certain animals, fish or materials during certain seasons. The boy also learns about how to select the location for the hunting camp, what equipment to bring for certain areas and for different kinds of hunting, fishing or trapping. A person would certainly be expected to learn about terrain, travel routes and hazards. A young hunter would also learn something about local weather and about basic weather prediction. Sometimes the significant event is learning about the location of good water and, always, hunting is about maintaining hunting equipment. From these early experiences a person begins a lifetime of learning about animals, fish, various other foods, habitats and animal behaviors. If the hunt went well a boy would also begin to observe the techniques and skills used by hunters in locating and stalking an animal. The apprentice hears the male hunters discuss the nature of the hunt and anything learned, anything unusual or notable. Often the discussion revolves around how and why things turned out the way they did. They may even tease about the lack of success. But if there is success, the young apprentice helps in packing and hauling the catch. He learns how to pack and store and how to move from one place to another, efficiently and intelligently. The room for error is very slim at times. The apprentice is taught to think about what he is going to do and to ask himself: What can go wrong? What are the dangers? Then he is taught to think again and not to take unnecessary risks, because the necessary ones are dangerous enough. The boy learns that taking risks is for people whose lives are very different than his. Caution and appreciation for life are the dispositions of the hunters who know that life cannot be taken for granted. The Community as a School In contrast to the system of modern Western education, in traditional Iñupiat society the community is a school. The observations that a young boy makes are not scheduled in classes or confined to a school building or other restricted environment. The immersion of the young hunter in the stories and customs of the community are likewise an integral part of the child's life. Older men tell stories about everything and the stories are the lessons. When, where and what lessons occur are dependent upon the time, the place and the season. The lessons are tied to the traditional cycle of life. The apprenticeship, while perhaps seemingly familiar as a model used in Western education, is best understood in traditional Iñupiat education, as one more piece of an educational system that is integral to the notion of the community as a school. Why a particular uncle steps forward to guide a young hunter is dependent upon complex family, social, psychological and community relationships. It is also within the context of a community of hunters that the apprenticeship occurs. Preservation of the communities and societies depends on the cooperation of its members and the apprenticeship occurs within this hunting community. While the apprentice might focus on a particular task, there is no separation of the task from the larger context. Traditional Iñupiat hunters must learn to do several things at the same time. For example, the hunters may discuss how exceptional circumstances in the hunt will be met while they are, at the same time, cleaning their equipment. For the apprentice there is no isolation from the realities of the hunting community. Within this context traditional education is a highly disciplined education. There is a need to pay attention to the stories that told about right and wrong attitudes and behavior. There is a need for the young hunter to develop both the physical and mental dispositions of a mature hunter, including understanding why something is being done in a particular way. When hunting in the Arctic, things often do not go as planned and skilled hunters must know how to solve problems. An educational goal of traditional Iñupiat society is a careful preparation of the young for the roles of adults. This goal is shared by the community and the children are both attended to and expected to be attentive. The values of traditional Iñupiat education include cooperation and intense effort. These values are rewarded in many ways, including the satisfaction that the hunter feels when people are fed and he knows that he has contributed to the effort that has provided some of the food. A Cautionary Tale This description is only a fraction of the traditional educational system. Hunting skills and conditioning were, and are, learned through traditional games and competition such as wrestling, weight lifting and the one- and two-foot high kick. In addition to hunting, traditional education has provided and is continuing to provide a way for children to learn and accept other adult roles that are essential to survival. Further, Iñupiat society has developed many art forms including sculpture, music, dance and story. Celebrations and ceremonies were a part of Iñupiat communities as were people who were philosophers and historians. Despite the challenge of the environment, the Iñupiat survived and developed a complex society. The traditional Iñupiat system of education worked well within the framework in which it developed. There are many factors that have contributed to the erosion of the traditional educational system. The relocation of Native people and the establishment of boarding schools had devastating effects, as children were separated from the traditional educational system that taught them how to participate in the community. As Western culture collided with Alaska Native cultures, some practices associated with traditional education, such as the telling of stories by the hunters, were condemned by some as "Satanic." As the Western educational system was imposed in Alaska Native communities, those arriving concluded that Native people were primitive and backward and thus no advice was sought in the kind and direction of the education system formed. When missions were established, the choice of location was often unfortunate. Bethel, Alaska was located at its present site simply because it was as far up the river as the boat could travel given the limited knowledge that the missionaries had about the river channels. If they had sought advice, they might have ended a bit farther up the river at the present day site of Aniak with a better source of water, some trees for construction and higher ground for a foundation. One story tells that when the missionaries arrived in Kivalina in the summer they set the school building on a sand spit, not considering that their school would be held primarily in the winter and that the winter locations for the Alaska Native people in that region would have been by fresh water, in the tree line across the lagoon. Today, teachers and other educators often ask, "Why don't Native parents care about the education of their kids?" This question demonstrates an ignorance that is pervasive in our educational system. Imagine an entire community of adults who do not care about the ability of their children to meet the future. This is so unlikely that it is ludicrous. Also, it seems obvious that any culture that has survived thousands of years must have had a successful system of education. But many people remain ignorant and unconcerned with the complex and successful aspects of traditional Native education. Why does this estrangement between school and community continue? Some parents may have questions about the goals of the school. The parents may not care about the school or they don't equate it with education. Many parents see lots of papers passed back and forth but do not see their children being prepared for anything that they value. Some parents believe that learning about traditional life is the most valuable knowledge that can be taught to their children. Many parents still participate in the more traditional Native educational system as they prepare their children to contribute to the community. Whatever the reasons for estrangement, the school does not have a monopoly on education in an Alaska Native community and is seen by some as a competing system of learning. The stories told here are repeated all over Alaska. In a sense they might be considered as cautionary tales. Tales about how good intentions may produce mixed results when they are not combined with thoughtful discussions with local people. A little advice from the people who were thought "too primitive or backward" might have resulted in communities that were located in more desirable geographic locations. Knowledge about the traditional educational system of Alaska Natives might, even today, result in schools that are more completely integrated into our communities. This essay is an attempt to break some of the stereotypes about the Iñupiat that persist in American society and by doing so to promote better opportunities for Alaska Native students. | |
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Cultural Standards and Test Scores by Ray Barnhardt, Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley and Frank Hill:Harriet Nungasak, Alicia Kanayurak, George Olanna (instructor), Kimberly Rychnovsky and Donald Tritt work on their science projects at the ANSES Science-Culture Camp held at Gaaleeya Spirit Camp July 11-25, 2000. Skills gained at science and cultural camps are brought into the classroom and utilized throughout the school year. See "AISES Corner". With the release of the first Benchmark and High School Graduation Qualifying Exam scores this fall, educators throughout Alaska have been convening to address the many issues that are raised by these new checkpoints on the educational landscape. Debates are already underway on ways to interpret the results and develop appropriate responses, given the predictable differences in performance among various students and schools. At the heart of these debates are concerns over the use (or misuse) of the test results to make critical judgements about students, teachers and schools in ways that attempt to reduce complex school performance issues down to a few simplistic variables. We need look no further than the latest editions of Education Week, Phi Delta Kappan or Educational Researcher to see that these debates are occurring on a national scale and that Alaska is not alone in venturing out into uncharted waters in the name of school accountability. Hopefully we can learn from other peoples mistakes, and by doing a few things right, maybe others can learn from our successes. However, this will require taking a long-term perspective on the many issues involved and not expecting to find a silver bullet that will produce instant solutions to long-standing complex problems. First of all, we must recognize the practical limits of the tests themselves. As diagnostic tools coupled with other related indicators of ability and performance, tests that are properly designed, flexibly administered and judiciously interpreted can provide valuable information to guide educational decision-making. However, there are two features of these legislatively mandated high-stakes tests that inhibit their educational value and thus make it necessary to exercise considerable caution in their use as accountability tools in the current standards-driven environment. Since the tests are mandated for all students at four grade levels, the sheer number and frequency of the testing introduces a major time and cost factor. As a result, the design of the tests tends to rely on approaches that are simpler and cheaper to administer and score (i.e., multiple choice and short-answer questions) with only minimal use of the more costly, but flexible, culturally adaptable and educationally useful performance-based approaches to assessment. Unfortunately, this emphasis on ease of administration has also narrowed the selection of which content standards count and which ones don't, leaving the harder-to-measure aspects of the standards in the background. As a result, teachers (and districts) are caught in the dilemma of aligning their teaching and curriculum with the full range of learning outcomes outlined in the standards or narrowing their lessons down to that which is measured on the tests (see Education Week, July 7, 2000, p.1 at www.edweek.org for a more detailed discussion of this issue). In this regard, the current testing system can be seen as working against the implementation of the standards-based school reform efforts with which it was originally associated. A true standards-based educational system requires a much broader approach to assessment than current resources allow. The second feature that reduces the educational value of high-stakes testing is its intended use in making critical decisions that can adversely impact people's lives and careers (e.g., grade-level promotion, eligibility for graduation, teacher reward/punishment and school rating/ranking.) When used for such purposes, the tests themselves tend to revert to those measures that the test-makers (in Alaska's case, CBT/McGraw-Hill) can defend in court when challenged by those affected. Consequently, we see a heavy emphasis on standardization (in both content and administration), whereby many important aspects of the content standards that require local adaptation or are not easily measured are set aside in favor of those items and testing practices that meet the test of "legal defensibility." So we should not be surprised when we run into problems with a testing system that has been constructed around legal and political, rather than educational considerations. What are the Options? For better or worse, the Alaska Benchmark and High School Graduation Qualifying Exams are a reality and it is our professional responsibility to do what we can to minimize their negative effects and to maximize their potential benefits. Most critical in that regard is the need to examine the issues that emerge in the broadest context available to us and not to use the results to promote simplistic, short-term solutions to long-term, complex problems. Nor should we fall into the trap of "blaming the victim" (i.e., the student) when there are significant group variations in academic performance. This is especially true in a cross-cultural setting such as rural Alaska, where we have a long history of repetitious unsuccessful educational experimentation on students while ignoring the well-documented source of many of the problems-that is the persistent cultural gulf between teachers and students, school and community. Based on the experiences in other states and the rife speculation underway here in Alaska, we can expect several things to happen over the next few months. The initial responses to the release of the test results are likely to point to two factors to explain differential performance between students and schools-low teacher expectations and lack of opportunity to learn-each of which will lead to predictable forms of remediation. Under the banner of "all students can learn to high standards," teachers will be admonished to teach harder and more of whatever it is that students are determined by the tests as lacking. While this may seem logical on the surface, it ignores the possibility that the real issue may not be low expectations at all (though certainly that does exist) and that "more of the same" may exacerbate the problem by producing higher dropout rates rather than addressing the more fundamental issue of lack-of-fit between what we teach, how we teach it and the context in which it is taught. Intensifying the current curriculum and extending schooling into the weekend or summer also ignores the inherent limitations to school improvement in rural Alaska that result from having to import teachers and administrators from outside for whom the village setting is a foreign and inevitably temporary home. The second issue of making sure students have had the opportunity to learn the subject matter on which they are being tested is more readily identifiable as a problem, but no less complicated (and expensive) in producing a solution. If a small rural school is not offering the level of mathematics instruction that students need to pass the exam, the solution is not to send the students elsewhere for schooling. To assume that a boarding school (as some legislators are suggesting) can make up for the limitations of a village high school ignores the fact that a well-rounded education consists of much more than just the subject matter that is taught in school. It also ignores the negative impact that taking students out of their home has on the family, the community and the student's own future role as a parent and contributing member of society. There is nothing taught in a boarding school that can't be taught cheaper and more effectively in a village school linked together with other village schools in a web of rich and extensive learning opportunities. Furthermore, there are many important things that are learned at home in a village setting that cannot be taught in a boarding school. Boarding schools may be justified as an optional alternative program for selected students, but not as a substitute for village schools. When providing "opportunities to learn," we need to consider all aspects of a child's upbringing and prepare them in such a way that they can "become responsible, capable and whole human beings in the process" (see Alaska Standards for Culturally Responsive Schools). When we do so, the issues associated with benchmark and qualifying exams will take care of themselves. How then do we go about this with some degree of confidence that we will achieve the outcome we seek-graduates capable of functioning as responsible adults, including passing state exams? The Alaska Standards for Culturally-Responsive Schools is available from: Alaska Native Knowledge Network P.O. Box 756730 Fairbanks, AK 99775-6730 It can also be found on the ANKN website: http://www.ankn.uaf.edu. Impact of Cultural Standards on Standardized Test Scores For the past five years, the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative has been working intensively with 20 of the 48 rural school districts in the state to implement a series of initiatives that are intended to "systematically document the indigenous knowledge systems of Alaska Native people and develop educational policies and practices that effectively integrate indigenous and western knowledge through a renewed educational system." The assumption behind the AKRSI reform strategy is that if we coordinate our efforts and resources across all aspects of the education system and address the issues in a focused, statewide manner, perhaps better headway will be realized. Two outcomes of this work are worthy of consideration as schools review the results of the state tests and ponder their next steps. First of all, building an education system with a strong foundation in the local culture appears to produce positive effects in all indicators of school success, including dropout rates, college attendance, parent involvement, grade-point averages and standardized achievement test scores. With regard to student achievement, using the eighth-grade CAT-5 math test scores as an impact indicator for the first four years of implementation of the AKRSI school reform initiatives in the 20 participating school districts (which have historically had the lowest student achievement levels in the state), there has been a differential gain of 5.9% points in the number of students who are performing in the top quartile for AKRSI partner schools over non-AKRSI rural schools. AKRSI schools gained 6.9% points in the upper quartile compared to a 1.0% point gain for non-AKRSI schools, with a corresponding decrease in the lower quartile. With AKRSI districts now producing 24.3% of their students testing in the upper quartile, they are only 0.7% point below the national average. In other words, through strong place-based education initiatives, the AKRSI schools are closing the achievement gap with the non-AKRSI schools. The following graph illustrates the gains on a year-by-year basis: Eighth Grade Mathematics Performance Percentage of Students on Top Quartile on CAT-5, 1996-1999 In reviewing this data (drawn from the state summary of the school district report cards), it is clear that something has been going on in the 20 AKRSI school districts that is producing a slow but steady gain in the standardized test scores (along with all the other indicators we have been tracking.) So just what is it that is producing these results? Since the gains are widespread across all cultural regions and the scores show consistent improvement over each of the four years, they clearly are not a function of one particular curricular or pedagogical initiative, nor are they limited to AKRSI-sponsored activities. The best summary of what it is that has produced these results can be found in the Alaska Standards for Culturally Responsive Schools. These "cultural standards" were compiled by educators from throughout the state as an outgrowth of the work that was initiated through the Alaska Rural Systemic Initiative and implemented in varying degrees by the participating schools. As such, when coupled with the impact data summarized here, they provide some concrete guidelines for schools and communities to consider as they construct school improvement plans aimed at producing more effective educational programs for the students in their care. We now have strong evidence that when we make a diligent and persistent effort to forge a strong cultural fit between what we teach, how we teach and the context in which we teach, we can produce successful, well-rounded graduates who are also capable of producing satisfactory test scores. The AKRSI staff are currently working with the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development to provide assistance to schools for whom cultural considerations play an important part in the design of their educational programs. Alaska Native educators, including Elders, are an important resource that all schools need to draw upon to make sure that our responses to the results of the Alaska Benchmark and High School Graduation Qualifying Exams go beyond Band-Aid solutions and lead to long-term improvement of our education systems. The future of our state depends on it. Curricular resources and technical assistance for such efforts are available through the regional Native Educator Associations, as well as the Alaska Native Knowledge Network web site at www.ankn.uaf.edu. | |
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