Kathleen J. Martin

American Indian Studies and the Politics of Educational Colonialism

Kathleen J. Martin et al. — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:42:38 PDT

The politics of higher education at universities pose challenges for Native and Indigenous students that impact equity and equality, and the teaching and learning process. The most recent challenge: Native Studies Departments are no longer necessary as an academic discipline. This paper calls into question the right to education and future success and achievement in scholarship that increases knowledge for all peoples in the future. However, higher education institutions are still “working on deconstructing colonialism” with less attention to the enduring marginalization of disempowered peoples as campuses continue struggle with issues of inclusion, budgetary crises, and the minimizing of scholarship. Included is an examination of the current status of five (5) “critical points” identified by Robert E. Powless (2002) as important for the future of American Indian Studies, faculty and students.

The Language Of Oral Narrative: Educating Lakota Students

Kathleen Martin — Fri, 20 May 2011 09:37:39 PDT

Teaching and Learning with Traditional Indigenous Knowledge in the Tall Grass Plains

Kathleen J. Martin et al. — Fri, 20 May 2011 09:37:18 PDT

This article presents the work of American Indian and Indigenous college students in the United States on a native and heritage plant restoration project at a tribal college. It supports an interdisciplinary approach to studying the natural sciences, and situates the acquisition of knowledge within Dakota oral tradition. Students learned about the grass plains environment and Dakota environmental ethics, sovereignty and values from Traditional Indigenous and Ecological Knowledge (TIKlTEK). The "plant tribes" helped their human caretakers learn important qualities of care and respect. Also included is an educational model based on the project and recommendations for the use of narrative in teaching, bridging interdisciplinary studies, and creating learning environments and developing partnerships.

Photography and a City in Yellow and Black

Kathleen J. Martin — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 14:53:12 PST

"Why Don't They Leave?" Saving Faith and Other Issues of Catholic Missionization

Kathleen J. Martin — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 14:53:10 PST

Translation and Interpretation of Ella C. Deloria's "A Sioux Captive Rescued by his Wife"

Kathleen Jeanette Martin — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 11:34:14 PST

In general, Native American communities provide a tradition of education for children based on oral narrative and storytelling. Oral narrative is indispensable in the understanding and maintenance of cultural traditions (Egan, 1987; Goody, 1995; Havelock, 1986) and displays cultural differences through language (Hymes, 1981) as well as providing the means for the continuation of community beliefs and traditions. Nora and Richard Dauenhauer (1990) note, Tlingit stories connect people and are "like a gaff hook reaching out across a distance and becoming hooked with another person who is hooked" (p. ix). Jerome Bruner (1986) identifies narrative as a way to put "timeless miracles into the particulars of experience, and to locate the experience in time and place" (p.13). Narratives and stories engage others in multi-layered experience and provide the opportunity to bridge differences between peoples.

The transcription, translation and interpretation of Native oral literatures has not always provided fair and accurate representations of the multiple meanings and teachings present in the texts. "The apparent lack of literary value in many past translations is not a reflection but a distortion of the originals, caused by the diction process, an emphasis on content, [and) a pervasive deafness to oral qualities" (Tedlock, 1983b, p. 74). Substantial contributions to the field can be found, however, in the work of Dennis and Barbara Tedlock, (1983), Brian Swann (1992), Dell Hymes (1981), and recently, Julian Rice (1994). For the most part, however, the translation and interpretation of traditional narratives has not been pursued or utilized as a form of literature (Swann, 1992; Rice, 1994). In addition, the direct implications of stories and narratives with regard to traditional ideals and values have been, only in a few instances, based on sociolinguistic and cultural perspectives.

This paper presents a free translation, analysis, and interpretation of "A Sioux Captive Rescued by his Wife" (Rice, 1994), a Lakota narrative transcribed and translated into English by Ella C. Deloria in 1937. Multiple methods of verse and narrative analyses were used in order to arrive at an interpretation based on multiple perspectives. Through the use of various methods, it was possible to arrive at an interpretation that reflects Lakota traditions and culture. The methods clarified the cultural constructions and social relationships present in the narrative, and elucidated traditional beliefs and ideals.

A Middle School Strives to Achieve Team Leadership Through Opposition and Uncertainty

Kathleen J. Martin et al. — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 11:34:12 PST

"Learning to Lead Together: The Promise and Challenge of Sharing Leadership" examines the dilemmas for school leaders and administrators, and the benefits for schools and students, when principals work with teachers (and their communities) to share leadership. Most schools function within existing hierarchical structures that contradict and undermine many of the conditions necessary for shared leadership. Current school reform initiatives and policies urge or require that teachers be actively involved in decision-making without addressing systemic dilemmas and paradoxes. Through real-life single and multiple case studies, "Learning to Lead Together" addresses how principals and their staffs struggle with the challenge of shared leadership, how they encourage teacher growth and development, and how shared leadership can lead to higher levels of student learning. The cases show how shared leadership, a powerful adaptive change, is socially constructed across contexts and evolves as teachers and principals learn how to work together. The book also illustrates how principal preparation and professional development programs that utilize problem-based learning and provide opportunities for genuine collaboration with colleagues can provide school leaders with the skills they need to share leadership and accountability effectively

Student Attitudes and the Teaching and Learning of Race, Culture, and Politics

Kathleen J. Martin — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 09:57:14 PDT

Although multicultural education and teaching for and to equity and diversity often are viewed in higher education as important around the globe, the mismatch between theory and public opinion can remain a challenge when teaching the subject. This study investigates student attitudes and learning before and after completing a course in race, culture and politics at an American university in California, and data were gathered over a three-year period from 365 students. Utilizing a Confluent Education framework that integrates cognitive, affective, and psychomotor dimensions of teaching and learning, faculty structured opportunities for students to study and discuss issues, and then, examine social settings for evidence to tie cognitive study with real world experiences. Teaching and developing courses around issues of multicultural education, diversity, and issues of power that strengthen students' abilities to perceive multiple perspectives, think critically, and learn from others are made.

Four School Leadership Teams Define Their Roles Within Organizational and Political Structures to Improve Student Learning

Janet H. Chrispeels et al. — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:44:00 PST

A shift in educational policy and practice is to involve teachers in school reform. Many reform programs require school leadership teams for involving teachers, yet few studies have examined how teachers take up such new roles and responsibilities. Using the dual conceptual lenses of open-systems and micropolitics, we investigate how four middle school teams engaged with their colleagues to construct an identity, assume leadership roles, and situate themselves in their schools. We argue that the influence of training enabled teams to assume four roles: communicators, staff developers, problem-solvers, and leaders of change. The findings suggest that teams and educational leaders need to recognize the influence that existing organizational structures have on teams and the actions they are able to take. The results also indicate that knowledge of the organizational structure as well as micropolitical dynamics can serve as leverage points for constructing their roles and initiating change.

Learning to Advocate for Educational Equity in a Teacher Credential Program

Steven Z. Athanases et al. — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:43:56 PST

Drawing on a 5-year program-wide investigation of ways preservice teachers learn to teach to diversity, this study uses focus groups of graduates to illuminate survey results of their feeling well prepared to advocate for equity in classrooms and schools. Offering suggestions for improvement, graduates nonetheless reported two broad categories of program strength. The first was the value of infusion of culture, language, and equity content in coursework. Themes in strong coursework included focus on culturally responsive, equity-focused pedagogy; preparation to teach English language learners; developing cultural knowledge and sensitivity; and learning advocacy beyond the classroom. Faculty taught and modeled these concerns through many means. The second, which extended coursework, was sustained and scaffolded apprenticeships in teaching for equity, including student teaching supervisors as equity mentors, placements that support teaching for equity, and ongoing cohort discussions of equity teaching.

Lakota Religious Traditions

William K. Powers et al. — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:43:53 PST

North American Indians: Indians of the Plains

William K. Powers et al. — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:43:49 PST

"Oh, I have a story": Narrative as a Teacher's Classroom Model

Kathleen J. Martin — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:43:45 PST

This paper examines the teaching practices of one American Indian teacher in a high school literature class. It explores the teacher's use of narrative as an instructional strategy designed to convey abstract concepts through concrete experience. The narratives engage students in critical thinking and personal reflection, and provide them with the opportunity to make connections between social and historical contexts. In addition, the teacher uses stories to contrast multiple contexts with personal experiences, which reflects teaching strategies previously identified as those used by effective teachers. There is evidence that sharing ideas and concepts through story is an important way of encouraging social relations and helping students make connections between what they are learning in school and what they know of the world. Based on data analysis, this study presents a model of the teacher's use of narrative as a strategy to pose critical questions, frame a context for discussion, encourage students to reflect on personal perspectives, and introduce ideas and concepts. The model provides a visual representation of the teacher's use of narrative as a way of clarifying course content, contextualizing meaning, and reinforcing understanding.