Provides an overview of published anthropological and educational information on the content, values, and methods of education in indigenous communities in Guatemala. Deals with the formation of a new collective identity in Guatemala. Examines the relationship between education in indigenous communities and official, formal education, which is…

Since January 1993, almost 5,000 Mayan refugees have returned to Guatemala from Mexican camps to which they had fled in the 1980s following army massacres and destruction of villages. The refugees overcame historical differences among 22 Mayan ethnic groups, forged a Pan-Mayan unity, and, with international support, persuaded the Guatemalan…

In the mountains of western Guatemala, Maya K'iche communities draw on extensive indigenous knowledge of the local ecosystem to manage sections of forest allocated as community responsibility for generations. Supported by spiritual beliefs, community elders seek to guide the use and preservation of the forest despite illegal loggers, corrupt…

The Latin America Project, which developed print and nonprint materials for use in grades 6-12, is described. The two-year effort was conducted in five phases: survey of existing materials; the development of curriculum units; review of curriculum by teachers attending summer institutes; field testing and evaluation; and dissemination. Titles of…

Profiles Rigoberta Menchu Tum, a Maya-Quiche woman from Guatemala who in 1992, was the first indigenous person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. The prize's youngest recipient, Menchu Tum is using the prize money and prestige to promote the international movement for peace and the rights of indigenous peoples and to contribute to indigenous…

Maintains that, as socioeconomic systems fail to address inequity, the power and wealth of the rich increase at the expense of the poor. Discusses social inequities and violations of human rights in Guatemalan society. Describes a simulation based on Guatemalan textile factories. (CFR)

This educational packet is produced as a tribute to Guatemalan activist and Nobel Peace prize winner, Rigoberta Menchu, and in honor of the Year of Indigenous People, 1993, as declared by the United Nations. The core of the packet is a simulation exercise based on an indigenous family in a Guatemalan village on the day the Peace prize was…

In December 1996, a peace accord ended 30 years of civil war in Guatemala, during which an estimated 200,000 people were killed and over 1 million were displaced. Most of the war's victims have been indigenous (Maya) Guatemalans--who make up about 65 percent of the population--and other supporters of economic and political reforms. In this book,…