In 1879, Native Americans were placed in the horrible boarding school that was the Carlisle Indian Industrial School run by the United States government, and to this day those boarding schools still exist, and so do other options. Why is education still a struggle for Native Communities? There has been a lot of trial and error in the past trying to find the most effective way to educate Native American students, like the boarding schools, while also incorporating Native culture teachings. I think Native students should attend public schools, where the education is stronger, and use the money going towards the BIE (Bureau Of Indian Education) funded elementary schools to set up different cultural programs in Native communities.

The Background of Native American Education

Education is one of the main importances of developing, a good education is a way to learn new things, and right now Native Americans do not have easy access to that. Centuries ago, the United States government decided to exchange land with the Native Americans, and in return, the United States government would cover all education funds. The Americans stuck to their word, but not entirely… Beginning in the year 1879, the United States government took Native children from their parents, and placed them in terrible boarding schools. The idea of these boarding schools was to erase all Native culture, and “Americanize” Native children. On the BIE page, they write, “The report details the conditions experienced by attendees including manual labor and discouraging or preventing American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian languages, religions, and cultural beliefs. While children attended federal Indian boarding schools, many endured physical and emotional abuse and, in some cases, died.” 

Right now, Native communities rely on the BIE, which helps fund Native education. The thing is, it doesn’t provide the best learning experience for Native communities. But the problem is, the BIE has some major gaps in their system, the main problem with this organization is underfunding. If a school is underfunded, it won’t be as appealing to skilled teachers and principals. The lack of funding creates what some may call an “achievement gap”, but according to the book “Everything You Wanted To Know About Indians But Were Afraid To Ask” Anton Treuer writes, “The ‘achievement gap’ is really an ‘Opportunity Gap.’”(P141). The source of money and funding all lead to the lack of technology, and a safe learning environment. The current state of Native Education isn’t allowing Native students to reach their full potential.

The Current State of Native American Education

Based on some studies, Public schools provide a better education for Native students than BIE funded schools. According to a Propublica Article, Around 90% of Native students are attending public schools, with a 70% graduation rate for highschool, compared to the students attending BIE schools with a much lower rate of 53%. We have realized the BIE is not the best spot for children to be rightly educated, Native students in public schools (according to the statistics above), are doing much better. Since public schools are funded from taxes paid by other people, and have a curriculum to build off of, this way, public schools may have a bigger budget to apply all the resources needed for public schools. In the Propublica article, they shared the story of Kimasha Shorty, a Native American mother of nine children, one of whom attended Wild Ruins Community School, a school funded by the BIE. Her son was diagnosed with a learning disability, but was doing amazing in school, even skipping a grade. But when he made it to a real public middle school, he was far behind the curriculum, and his peers. Kimisha said “Her daughter’s middle school math class started with geometry, but her fifth grade at the elementary school had barely touched long division.” This quote shows how this school didn’t just affect one kid, it affected different generations, who now have to learn all over again. In another article, “The Issues Surrounding Native American Education”, Native Hope writes, “Usually, August means excitement for children. Back to school means buying school supplies and new clothes for the school year, plus the benefit of seeing their friends again. However, for many Native Americans, it is a time filled with anxiety and stress because of negative school experiences.”, showing that the BIE undeniably doesn’t have the right learning materials to do the best they can. Based on this study, public schools provide the education needed for a student. The BIE doesn’t use the money given to create an accessible yet effective learning environment.

My Solution

Based on all of the data, I have come to a conclusion to find a better way for Native children to be educated about both culture and academics. Since the evidence shows the BIE funded schools are not using the money proactively, and that students attending public school are thriving more, public school seems like the best option. Public schools will be better funded, better teachers, more resources, including technology access. Private schools are another schooling option, but due to the lack of employment among Native communities, private schools may be too expensive. Public schools are built on a stable foundation, with a curriculum, while BIE funded schools are more unstable, like they were built on a pile of rocks. Because according to The BIE website, the BIE is being provided almost 900 million dollars for schools, but kids are still not being well educated. If more Native kids were encouraged to go to public schools, the BIE could cut their budget, and spend it more on cultural teachings in Native communities. Public schools don’t solve the whole equation, there is also the culture aspect, which neither the BIE nor public schools contribute to. Past attempts like the boarding schools definitely didn’t care much for this cultural aspect. The thing is, Native culture plays a big role for these communities, not learning one's own identity is hard. I think it is important to realize things about yourself, and your ancestors, so you can have a deeper understanding of the world. I think public schools will deepen the kids' understanding of academia, and BIE funding will deepen the children's understanding of their culture.

There has been a fair amount of attempts trying to find the best strategy for Native communities to get the education they deserve. The systems right now aren’t providing a good education for Native students to reveal their hidden talents. I feel that Native students should attend public schools, where studies have shown they are the most effective. Using the saved money from Native education programs, we can create more programs teaching them about their culture. One of the main aspects of this problem is awareness, not enough people understand enough about the Native communities. Raising awareness about this situation would help fund more schools,providing a better education. Before starting this writing, I did not know enough about Native communities, but after carefully researching the issue, I noticed not enough people are informed of this situation. I know I was not, it wasn’t until now that I realized that for change to happen, awareness is a really big part of the equation. Awareness will get people engaged, will spark conversation, and will seek solutions.

Works Cited

U.S Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Education Bureau of Indian Education

Faircloth, Susan. “The Education of American Indian Students.” American Federation of Teachers The Education of American Indian Students

Woods, Alden. “The Federal Government Gives Native Students an Inadequate Education, and Gets Away With It.” Propublica, 6 Aug. 2020 Propublica

The Red Road. “Education Of The First People.” The Red Road The Red Road

Treuer, Anton. Everything You Wanted to Know about Indians But Were Afraid to Ask. United States, Borealis Books, 2012, pp. 141

National Congress of American Indians. “Education, Health & Human Services” Education NCAI

Native Hope. “The Issues Surrounding Native Education.” 29 Aug. 2022 The issues surrounding Native American Education

U.S Department of the Interior. “Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative” Bureau of Indian Education Bureau of Indian Education