Two self-defeating assumptions represent recurrent themes in the literature of American Indian education. One assumption explains Indian educational underachievement as stemming from value conflicts with the dominant culture; the second explains underachievement on the basis of poverty and isolation. The two assumptions imply that the Indian lacks…

Studies the social interactions of two bilingual ethnic minority children during informal work and play settings in a kindergarten program. Finds that their literacy learning is hampered by isolation, the staff's apparent lack of interest in the children's home language and culture, and the staff's unawareness of cultural biases in the testing and…

Indian students who have withdrawn from public schools for various reasons may receive alternative education at Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Boarding Schools, but they may also face academic, environmental, and personal problems. Attending a boarding school involves a radical culture break. Students are often far from home, deprived of parental…