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Volume 25 1985 Contents

  • Issue 1 October 1985
    • PREVALENCE OF OTITIS MEDIA IN CREE AND OJIBWAY SCHOOL-CHILDREN IN SIX ONTARIO COMMUNITIES
      Wm. A. Scaldwell; Janet E. Frame [pp. 1-5]
      A study comparing middle ear infections in 739 Indian children (Grades K-8) in two southern Ontario and four northern Ontario communities to the children's difficulties in word recognition and spelling. According to the authors, as a result of an ear infection, the concomitant interference with the processing of sound presents a barrier to normal hearing and language development. The authors conclude that, as there is a high incidence among Indian children, teaching methods and programs which put less emphasis on auditory skills must be developed. *

    • THE PROMISE AND PROBLEMS OF THE NATIVE AMERICAN STUDENT: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS ON THE RESERVATION AND SURROUNDING AREAS
      Ruey-Lin [pp. 6-16]
      A study which investigates the problem of Native American low achievement by comparing the attitudes of 117 Native American students and 705 White students toward education. The major finding of the study is that contrary to prevailing stereotypes, there is little statistically-significant difference between Native American and White students with regards to their attitudes toward education. Possible alternative explanations are presented. Includes a three-category appendix outlining the variables shown in the article's four tables.

    • ENGLISH FLUENCY VIA COMPUTERS AT YAKIMA TRIBAL SCHOOL
      Rhet Diessner; Edwin E. Rouscul; Jacqueline L. Walker [pp. 17-24]
      The article examines a project which used Apple IIe word processing stations and Apple Writer II to increase written English fluency among the 47 Native American students, grades 7-12, enrolled at Yakima Tribal School during the 1984-85 school year. The authors conclude the project as successful in utilizing computers and word processing to increase English fluency as demonstrated in writing samples. The six areas explored were: (1) familiarity with word processing equipment, (2) basic keyboarding, (3) Apple Writer II commands, (4) elaboration during re-writes, (5) thematic maturity, (6) writing apprehension.

    • THE EDUCATIONAL STATUS OF FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED INDIAN STUDENTS
      Glenn I. Latham [pp. 25-33]
      An article exploring data describing the educational status of Federally recognized Indian students enrolled in, and eligible for enrollment in (1) BIA and BIA contract schools, and (2) public schools receiving support via the Johnson O'Malley Act of 1934. The study explores Indian enrollment, average daily attendance of Indian students, Indian student dropout rates and the incidence of non-enrollment of school aged Indian children in any type of BIA or public school. The author concludes that in "every" instance, the status of Indian students, whether enrolled in BIA, BIA contract or public schools, was inferior to the status of non-Indian students.

    • USING THE SELF-DIRECTED SEARCH WITH AMERICAN INDIAN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
      Graham Hurlburt; William Schulz; Lyle Eide [pp. 34-41]
      A study which examines high school vocational testing, utilizing 75 Native American high school students from northern and central Manitoba, and northern Ontario, Canada. As a result of the study, the authors believe Holland's Self-Directed Search is moderately reliable and stable, and may be appropriate for use with Native American high school students.

    • GUIDANCE OF AMERICAN INDIAN CHILDREN: THEIR HERITAGE AND SOME CONTEMPORARY VIEWS
      Harriet K. Light; Ruth E. Martin [pp. 42-46]
      An article which discusses the Native American culture's traditional view of children. The authors support the appearance that children occupied a very special place in Native American culture, were taught to respect life, and were viewed with "love" and "caring." The authors also present perceptions of 32 female contemporary Native American preschool teachers about the eight behaviors they consider most troublesome and four commonly used methods of discipline.

  • Issue 2 January 1986

    • RIGHT-BRAINED INDIAN: FACT OR FICTION?
      Roland D. Chrisjohn; Michael Peters [pp. 1-7]
      An article which describes the hopes for "right-brain" curriculum development as "ill founded." The authors outline some general reasons for their "uneasiness" about the "right-brain" curriculum for Indians; the authors point out that the sort of evidence that has been used to argue in favor of the "right-brained Indian" does not in any way support the conclusion that Indians differ in brain organization from non-Indians. The article covers Neuropsychology and Performance on Intelligence Tests. The authors conclude that the evidence supporting a "right-brained Indian" is too weak to justify any emphasis on "right-brain" curricula in Indian Education.

    • HEMISPHERIC DOMINANCE OF NATIVE AMERICAN INDIAN STUDENTS
      John Stellern; Jim Collins; Bob Gutierrez; Elaine Patterson [pp. 8-17]
      According to the authors, American Indians are presumed to be right-hemisphere dominant, and therefore need special teaching techniques. This study examines the language and spatial lateralization of 49 American Indians from the fourth, fifth and sixth grades at the St. Stephens Indian School on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. The examination utilized the cognitive-manual dual task model as well as psychoeducational assessment techniques. According to the authors, the Indian students were lateralized to the left hemisphere for language, and some of those students were also lateralized to the left hemisphere for spatial function. Also, as scores went up on tests of right hemisphere dominance, behavior, problems, and spatial function, scores went down on tests of reading, spelling, left hemisphere dominance, and being good students. The authors conclude that (1) the Indians of the study were not right hemisphere dominant, and (2) that right hemisphere dominance appears to be associated with a risk of learning and behavior problems.

    • BEYOND 180 DAYS
      Carl G. Foster; Emma Gabel [pp. 18-23]
      An article relating the implementation of the Chinle Agency's Summer Supplemental Special Education Program that trained 137 people which, according to the authors, raised participant special education knowledge and skills. The authors believe the most significant observation was that the majority of the Pinon Boarding School's staff and 80 percent of the Agency's kindergarten through junior high school age exceptional student population received instruction which augmented an appropriate and a least restrictive educational environment. The authors also indicate that the results from the Minnesota Teacher Attitude Inventory revealed that teacher attitudes were conservative at the beginning of training but became less conservative toward the end of the training. The authors believe that the training affected their feelings about teaching the exceptional student.

    • PROGRAMMING FOR BEHAVIORALLY DISORDERED NATIVE AMERICANS
      Paul L. Beare [pp. 24-31]
      According to the author, providing services for Behaviorally Disordered (BD) students is a uniquely difficult task. The described program attempts to serve the Smallville Public High School which served 462 students. Three types of students were included in the program: (1) students seriously considering dropping out of school, (2) in-school dropouts (poor attendance rate, excessive numbers of unexcused tardies and failing grades), (3) students exhibiting severe behavior disorders which impeded their academic performance. Aspects of the program were designed to create a "fit" between the Native American consumer and the school district offering educational services. According to the author, results demonstrated a decrease in the number of failing grades and classroom tardies while no change in attendance behavior was revealed.

    • COLLEGE ACHIEVEMENT AMONG SIOUX AND WHITE SOUTH DAKOTA STUDENTS
      Terry E. Huffman; Maurice L.Sill; Martin Brokenleg [pp. 32-38]
      An article relating social factors (family income, parents' educational level, high school GPA), cultural factors (college integration, participation in college environment, Native American Traditionalism), and aspirational factors (parents' and students' educational aspirations) to college achievement among Sioux and white students at the University of South Dakota and Black Hills State College. According to the authors, analysis indicated that college achievement for whites is related to social factors, such as, high school GPA and parental encouragement to attend school, whereas, retention of native cultural traditions seem to contribute to higher educational success for Sioux students.

    • A COGNITIVE PATTERN OF THE YAKIMA INDIAN STUDENTS
      Rhett Diessner; Jacqueline L. Walker [pp. 39-43]
      According to the authors, patterns of Bannatyne's recategorized Weschsler Intelligence Scales (WISC-R and WAIS) scores for 75 Yakima Indian students, enrolled in a private, tribally controlled and operated Junior and Senior High School in the Columbia River Basin, were investigated. In congruence with similar studies, a statistically significant pattern was found: Spatial Ability, Sequential Ability and Verbal Conceptual Ability. The authors believe evidence is presented indicating that the discovered cognitive pattern may be typical across American Indian populations. The authors believe the evidence presented increase the possible validity of a particular American Indian cognitive style.

  • Issue 3 May 1986

    • NATIVE AMERICAN READING DISABILITY
      Rhonda Lankford; James D. Riley [pp. 1-11]
      The authors believe that a gap still exists between the Native American community and the schools and suggest that the two directions Indian people initially can take to become a working part of school are (1) evaluate current institutional programs for cultural relevancy, and (2) evaluate current instructional programs and procedures for process relevancy. The article includes an overview of the historical "periods" in which school-community conflicts evolved and their impact on literacy and reading interests. The article also discusses the potential for overcoming conflict through the activation of two types of "control processes:" (a) conceptually driven or top down processing, (b) data processing or bottom up processing. Through this awareness, the authors argue, the discrepancy between Native American and national norms in the reading area will be reduced, and this will, in turn, raise the quality of life for Indian people.

    • IMPLICATIONS OF THE ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT
      Gary C. Anders [pp. 12-21]
      According to the article, the Alaskan Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) created a new set of social conditions for Native peoples of Alaska. The article (1) explores the effects of ANCSA within the context of rapid social change, (2) examines the long-term implications of the new reality, and (3) seeks to determine the logical consequences of limited success. Consideration is given to the viability of village life in rural Alaska and to the economic and social relevance of traditional Native culture. The author believes the expansions of state and federal programs that impose welfare dependence are a powerful and persuasive force undermining traditional self-sufficient Native communities in Alaska. The author argues that a strategy capable of helping Natives face the new challenges must concentrate on educational and community development issues.

    • OCCUPATIONAL VALUES OF RURAL ESKIMO
      G. Williamson McDiarmid; Judith S. Kleinfeld [pp. 22-29]
      An article comparing the occupational values of 232 rural Eskimo secondary students, the entire high school population from four small Eskimo villages on the lower Yukon, with those of a random sample consisting of 117 Caucasian (or white) urban students from Fairbanks High School, Alaska, who represented the widest socioeconomic spectrum in the community. The study adopted the distinctions of "intrinsic" and "extrinsic" values to determine results. Discussions of work schedule and location, and reasons for occupational choices are included. The authors state that while they found significant cultural differences in occupational values between rural Eskimo and urban Caucasian adolescents, these differences were typically not great. Nor did the cultural differences found conform to the popular stereotype of rural Natives who prefer intermittent work to year-round jobs. The authors believe, however, that Native responses may indicate not so much that Eskimo adolescents prefer unconventional work schedules as that they tend to look less to wage work for intrinsic satisfactions.

    • DEVELOPING ENGLISH LANGUAGE SOFTWARE FOR ATHABASKAN STUDENTS
      Miki McCurry; Judith Kleinfeld [pp. 30-39]
      An article presenting a model for developing computer software targeted to Native American students from particular language communities. The authors suggest ways for school districts to develop localized software, rather than relying exclusively on commercial software not designed for Native American groups. The article reviews the limited research literature on computer software for Native American students as well as discussing the reasons school districts might want to develop their own computer software. The authors also describe the process through which the Yukon/Koyukuk School District in Alaska developed computer software for Athabaskan students.

    • EDITORIAL COMMENTARY: EDUCATION REFORM
      John Red Horse [pp. 40-44]
      According to the author, education reform measures have sparked concern among tribal leadership in Arizona, measures which have introduced stiffer requirements for admission to universities, increased credit requirements for high school graduation, and influenced consideration for measurement of skills-acquisition prior to grade advancement in elementary schools. The author believes these reforms, which mirror national efforts to redirect education, will have serious repercussions for Indian education throughout the United States. The author advocates partnerships between tribes and universities as a logical strategy through which research and development activities may reverse alarming trends in Indian Education. The article concludes with four points: (1) rather than funding titled programs through local education agencies, block grants, directly allocated to tribes, would empower tribes to negotiate with districts that are motivated to design effective schooling programs which build upon strengths of Native culture and language; (2) universities could organize laboratory-type schools to "tease out" effective methods of motivation, language and concept bridging, and appropriate testing procedures; (3) a bilingual-bicultural education service offered through a cultural center could mediate for the "unalterable circumstances" that resident Native American students confront; (4) universities could develop sister-institution programs with tribes to foster capacity building through extern academic services for paraprofessionals in tribal health, education, and welfare units.
* Page numbers refer to location in the original published version of the article.

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