What is Native Education
The Office of Native Education (ONE), formalized in 2011 by the Legislature (RCW 28A.300.105), serves under Washington state’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) as a liaison among school districts, tribal governments, state-tribal education compact schools (STECs), tribal schools, Native communities, parents and guardians of Native children and other groups and individuals. The primary goal is to help school districts meet the educational needs of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students.
Planning with Native and Indigenous Learners in Mind
It is important to understand that there is no one way to plan for Native learners. Native learners come from distinctly different Tribes, lived experiences, and cultural backgrounds. One critical initiative is to incorporate the John McCoy (lulilaš) Since Time Immemorial (JMLSTI) Curriculum. This curriculum was created so that Native students will see themselves in curriculum and to help better educate our citizenry about the unique political and cultural status of our Native citizens. The curriculum is endorsed by all 29 federally recognized Tribes in the State of Washinton.
Examples of how Native Education interacts with the grade level learning standards
The JMLSTI curriculum promotes three approaches. First, an inquiry-based approach with five essential questions:
- How does physical geography affect the distribution, culture, and economic life of local tribes?
- What is the legal status of tribes who "negotiated" or who did not "negotiate" settlement for compensation for the loss of their sovereign homelands?
- What were the political, economic, and cultural forces consequential to the treaties that led to the movement of tribes from long-established homelands to reservations?
- What are ways in which Tribes respond to the threats and outside pressure to extinguish their cultures and independence?
- What do local Tribes do to meet the challenges of reservation life; and as sovereign nations, what do local Tribes do to meet the economic and cultural needs of their Tribal communities?
Secondly, A place-based approach. Our approach encourages teachers and students to address the essential questions in the context of tribes in their own communities.
Lastly, an integrated approach. Teachers choose how much time to spend on tribal sovereignty content to complete their units throughout the year. The integrated approach provides three levels of curriculum for each of the OSPI-recommended social studies units, each level building on the last. Tribal sovereignty lessons are aligned to the Common Core State Standards for English/Language Arts. Where appropriate, units build toward successful completion of Content Based Assessments (CBA).
Resources to Learn More
John McCoy (lulilaš) Since Time Immemorial: Tribal Sovereignty in Washington State