Recommendations

=Recommendations and Suggestions for Parent/Community Involvement=



Too often in the past, Native Americans have been at odds with the U.S. - because of violence committed against them, because of treaties signed in good faith then revoked against their will, because their heritage was erased by the Indian boarding school system, or because systemic discrimination and segregation limited who and what they could become. This history does not sit easily with many, and the wounds caused by it often carry over into relationships between schools and the communities they serve.

According to research done by Karen S. Cockrell (1996), parents of Native American students have reported feeling like "silent bystanders" in the education of their children. They say that teachers and school staff often "talk down" to them and don't take the time to listen to their questions and concerns, and that communication between school and home "flows one way". Much of this parent-school conflict - and other potential conflicts between schools and Native American communities – can be alleviated by considering three key points...


 * 1. Be knowledgeable about the backgrounds of Native American students:** //"Native American students who are grounded first in American Indian culture are more likely to do better in school" (Sorknes, 2006).//
 * Teachers should "get to know the culture and values of their students as well as students' background of experience" (Sorknes, 2006).
 * Native Americans "typically value present time, patience, extended family, 'we' thinking, few material poss[[image:na_fam2.gif width="201" height="131" align="right"]]essions, being in balance with nature, holistic thinking, and the spiritual" (Robinson-Zanartu, 1996).
 * Understand traditional Native American modes of discourse.
 * School personnel often use a loud voice - Native Americans use a more moderated voice
 * School personnel regularly interrupt each other - Native Americans wait until someone's entire thought is complete
 * School personnel deliver information directly and abruptly - Native Americans engage in "spiral" conversations
 * School personnel rely on bureaucracy to get things accomplished - Native Americans use the communication process to reach a conclusion
 * Realize the modern problems they face - they are at dramatically higher risk of drug and alcohol abuse, violence, and death than other groups.
 * One in four Indian communities reported active youth gangs in 2000 which committed crimes such as graffiti, vandalism, drug sales, assault, burglary, theft, and robbery (Aguirre and Turner, 2007).
 * The alcoholism death rate for Native American youth between "15 and 24 is 5.5 deaths per 100,000 compared to 0.3 for other minorities and whites" (Aguirre and Turner, 2007).
 * Native American youth are "58 percent more likely than either black or white youth to become crime victims" (Aguirre and Turner, 2007).
 * Education professionals must “engage in systematic, continuing education” (Robinson-Zañartu, 1996) around Native American cultural issues


 * 2. Make sure communication between school and community is a "two-way street":** //Native American "parents are more likely to participate in the educational process if they feel welcome and respected" (Cockrell, 1992).//
 * Encourage parental involvement in the school and classroom
 * Students need “to see the connection between what they’re learning in school and what they need to know to be a valuable member of their tribe and community” (Sorknes, 2006).
 * Integrate students’ cultures into the classroom.
 * “Respect parents as you would your own parents” (Sorknes, 2006).
 * Ensure that contact with parents is not just related to discipline and health issues – demonstrate that you care more for the “welfare of their students” than the rules or “being in control” (Cockrell, 1992).
 * Use resources that the community can offer – language classes, traditional crafts, artwork, dances, mentoring, etc.
 * Be open to community influence: "Teachers should become part of the community" and “have Native American friends” (Sorknes, 2006).


 * 3. Be sensitive to feelings the community may have toward mainstream society (including schools).[[image:na_transformation.jpg width="219" height="123" align="right" caption="A boarding school transformation."]]**
 * “Native Americans have been expected… to give up virtually all that was sacred and unique in their traditional lifestyles” (Robinson-Zañartu, 1996).
 * Indian boarding schools were established “for the purpose of ‘civilization’ and the elimination of Indian identity” (Robinson-Zañartu, 1996).
 * Because school culture is so different from their home culture, Native American students often feel “cultural discontinuity” that can result in opposition or resistance to school and learning.
 * Historically adversarial relationship between Native American parents and school – they represent a deficit because they embody the culture and language that schools worked to eliminate in Native American students.
 * Native American communities are subject to systemic segregation: "around 40 percent of the Native American population is dramatically segregated" (Aguirre and Turner, 2007) on reservations, which creates a sense of isolation from mainstream society.
 * Native American communities are victims of "institutionalized discrimination": legalized landgrabs by European settlers, Indian Removal Act (1830), Relocation Act (1956), and regulation by mostly white Bureau of Indian Affairs are all examples (Aguirre and Turner, 2007).
 * Understand the principle of disharmony: many Native American parents will avoid situations that are full of “predicted disharmony” (Robinson-Zañartu, 1996) and may simply avoid contact with school personnel to avoid that negative “depletion of spiritual energy”.