Culturally Relevant Teaching : Making Space for Indigenous Peoples in the Schoolhouse

American Indian Education/indigenous education is still faltering today and is not producing significant differences in results where school practices follow those for the dominant culture. Inroads have been made in some classrooms/schools where Culturally Responsive/Relevant Pedagogy (CRP) is practiced. However, the drop-out rates for American Indian/indigenous populations are still extremely high in comparison to other ethnically diverse groups of students.

here are two factors that can make or break indigenous students’ abilities to be resilient in the face of many educational negatives in their lives and enable them to continue on to graduate from high school and in many instances, go on to complete undergraduate and graduate degrees in institutions of higher learning.

This book is intended to be used for undergraduate and graduate students in education, anthropology, sociology, and American Indian studies. It is also intended for use by educators working in areas with large concentrations of American Indian students, whether in rural, rural reservation, urban, or states with large Native populations, such as California and Oklahoma. It is a useful tool for policy makers and those involved in American Indian education at the national and state levels, as well as organizations such as the Nation Council on American Indians, the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the National Indian Education Association.