Native Americans in the School System: Family, Community, and Academic Achievement

by Carol J. Ward

Overview

Carol Ward examines persistent dropout rates among Native American youth, which remain high despite overall increases in Native adult education attainment in the last twenty years. Focusing on the experiences of the Northern Cheyenne nation, she evaluates historical, ethnographic, and quantitative data to determine the causes of these educational failures, and places this data in an economic, political, and cultural context. She shows that the rate of failure in this community is the result of conflicting approaches to socializing youth, the struggle between 'native capital' and 'human capital' development systems. With high rates of unemployment, poverty, and school dropouts, the Northern Cheyenne reservation provides some important lessons as Native Americans pursue greater educational success. This volume will be of use to policy makers, instructors of comparative education, Native American studies, sociology and anthropology.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780759106093
Publisher:	AltaMira Press
Publication date:	07/28/2005
Series:	Contemporary Native American Communities Series , #16
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	282
Product dimensions:	6.74(w) x 8.92(h) x 0.71(d)

About the Author

Carol Ward is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at Brigham Young University and was the Director of the Northern Cheyenne Dropout Research Project.

Table of Contents

1 Chapter 1: American Indian High School Completion: A Contradiction in Need of Explanation 2 Chapter 2: Contributions of Schooling and Community Research to an Ecological Approach to the Study of School Outcomes 3 Chapter 3: The Northern Cheyenne Reservation: The Setting for an Analysis of High School Completion 4 Chapter 4: Case Study Approach and Descriptive Data 5 Chapter 5: Evaluating Ecological Models of School Performance: The Relative Effects of Individual, Family, School and Community Influences 6 Chapter 6: Evaluation of School Dropout Models 7 Chapter 7: Evaluating Models of School Performance and Completion for Indian and White Students at Colstrip High School 8 Chapter 8: Conclusion: Native Capital and Northern Cheyenne Dropout Rates 9 References

Editorial Reviews

Ward's powerful combination of quantitative and ethnographic research methods provides us with rich data sets to help illuminate the complexity of experiences and issues surrounding American Indians and school achievement. Utilizing an ecological theoretical model positions her research at a critical edge in advancing our understanding of the astonishing and disturbing trend of an increase in the dropout rate among American Indian youth.

American Indians have the highest dropout rate of any ethnic or cultural group in the United States. Whereas educational statistics are showing a slight improvement in school graduate rates across groups, the statistics on American Indians students have been stubbornly resistant to change. Ward's book links school practices, community beliefs, student achievement, and labor force and economic opportunities in ways that challenge a simplistic view of Indian youth and schooling.

Donna Deyhle

In this detailed and thoughtful study of school retention and drop out rates among Northern Cheyenne high school students, Carol Ward has produced a fascinating portrait of schooling within this Native community. The book's breadth reflects the years Ward spent working with Northern Cheyenne educators and community leaders to understand the factors shaping the schooling experience of the students. Ward shows the place of 'native capital' in educational success and uses both quantitative and qualitative data to provide insights into the role of family, community, culture, and the schools themselves in keeping students in school.

Joane Nagel

Ward skillfully combines statistical, interview, and ethnographic evidence to produce a nuanced analysis of dropout rates in the Cheyenne Nation. Through insightful examination of their educational contexts she shows the strong positive value of cultural capital for these Native American students. Anyone with a serious interest in the roles of 'family values' in education needs to read this book.

Thomas D. Hall

Recommended.

CHOICE

The importance of family and community and the crucial nature of pride or lack of pride that Indian students have in themselves—these dimensions of schooling have universal application across Indian Country. The issue of racism remains ubiquitous. Ward's research is fresh, her assessments are balanced, and her commentary bears listening to. At Northern Cheyenne, the leadership of the nation and the language and culture programs of Chief Dull Knife College promise to address these crucial educational challenges. For the Cheyenne youth this appears to offer hope for the future.

Margaret Connell-Szasz

Recommended.

Choice