Journal of American Indian Education

Volume 31 Number 1
October 1991

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PREFACE

Educational programs and practices for gifted and talented American Indian and Alaska Native students are on the increase. As public education in the United States begins to diversify its efforts to meet the needs of all gifted students, an awareness is occurring that "giftedness" applies to all students, regardless of their racial background, ethnic heritage, or socio-economic status. The emergence of gifted and talented education practices for American Indians and Alaska Natives is patterned after the general trend in U.S. education. However, there are unique aspects that clearly define the special needs regarding gifts and talents of American Indians and Alaska Natives. Educators of Indian students have found that their gifts and talents are manifested in a variety of ways influenced by the tribal cultures from which they come.

To date, gifted and talented American Indian and Alaska Native students are not participating in gifted and talented programs in numbers proportionate to their participation in the larger society. The reasons for this exclusion are not certain, however, it is likely that narrow assessments of giftedness such as standardized test scores, and stereotypic thinking which excludes Indian students from consideration act as major barriers in the process. Until recently there has not been a strong voice speaking for a broader recognition of giftedness among American Indian and Alaska Native young people.

This issue of the Journal of American Indian Education is devoted to the topic of gifted and talented education for American Indians and Alaska Natives because we recognized that there is virtually no literature base for this area. Each of the authors included in this theme issue has written about the topic from a different perspective.

Stuart A. Tonemah has presented a basic philosophy for the reader's consideration in "Philosophical Perspectives of Gifted and Talented Indian Education." Mr. Tonemah is director of the American Indian Research and Development (AIRD) Center, the recipient of a grant to provide teachers of Indian students with a masters degree in gifted and talented education from Oklahoma City University.

Rosemary Ackley Christensen, in "A Personal Perspective on Tribal-Alaska Native Gifted and Talented Education," discusses the importance of a definition which is Indian-owned. Her perspective is based upon experience in operating a program for gifted and talented Indian students in a large metropolitan setting. Dr. Christensen is Director of Ojibwe Mekana, a center for Ojibwe language, instruction, and American Indian curriculum materials at the University of Minnesota, Duluth.

In the manuscript, "American Indian Gifted and Talented Students: Their Problems and Proposed Solutions," Rockey Robbins has captured the thoughts and feelings of gifted and talented students who are participating in a special program called Explorations in Creativity VI. Mr. Robbins is coordinator of the enrichment program operated at the American Indian Research and Develop- ment (AIRD) Center in Oklahoma City.

Following Mr. Robbins' article there are three essays by students who have been identified as gifted and talented and are participating in the special enrichment programs operated by AIRD. Charles Ulrey and Marilyn Stops have written about being gifted and/or talented, and James Wilcox has written about the importance of being a tribal member.

Jill LaBatte, a teacher and student in the masters degree program at Oklahoma City University, expresses her thoughts about encouraging gifted and talented behaviors in "Nurturing Creative/Artistic Giftedness in American Indian Students." Ms. LaBatte is a former elementary classroom teacher and is now an instructor at Standing Rock College in Fort Yates, North Dakota.

The last two articles present research-based perspectives on differences in creativity and giftedness. Charmaine L. Shutiva in "Creativity Differences Between Reservation and Urban American Indians," compared creativity test scores and academic achievement between two groups of American Indians and examined the influence of culture on creativity. Dr. Shutiva is a former employee of AIRD and currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Elizabeth Ann Hartley compared the perceptions of giftedness and talent among parents and teachers of Navajo and Anglo children in "Through Navajo Eyes: Examining Differences in Giftedness." Dr. Hartley is an Education Specialist with Interface Bilingual Education Multifunctional Resource Center in Anchorage, Alaska.

This theme issue on gifted and talented Indian education is the second time a collection of manuscripts which present several viewpoints on a single topic has been published in the Journal of American Indian Education. A special issue on Learning Styles was published in August 1989.

The viewpoints in this issue range from philosophical foundations of Indian thought about the topic, to personal narratives of students and teachers to an empirical base developed by educational researchers. We invite your comments on the topic of gifted and talented Indian education and on the concept of future theme issues for the Journal of American Indian Education.



Karen Swisher, Editor
Stuart A. Tonemah, Guest Editor




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