The Navajo calendar is a means of educating people to thrive in their surroundings, realize their individual potentials, and perpetuate their society. Describes in Navajo and English: the Navajo calendar, ceremonies and activities appropriate to each month, the moccasin game and string game (played in winter), and the significance of the number…

Describes Navajo philosophy and implications for teaching and learning. Explains four branches of knowing that provide a framework for conceptualizing teaching content, as well as interrelationships within the framework providing opportunities for critical analysis and reflection. Advocates inquiry-oriented, experience-based instruction that…

Four hataalii (Navajo medicine men) discuss why they chose and how they studied their profession, how ceremonies correct spiritual imbalance, why ceremonies cannot be done for non-Indians (differences in Navajo and non-Navajo belief systems), and how the Native American Church was founded to allow legal use of peyote and was commercialized by…

Traces development at Navajo Community College of educational models based on Navajo cultural foundations, most recently the Dine Educational Philosophy based on male/female dualist aspects of knowledge and values traditionally identified with the cardinal directions, and providing students with the means to integrate Navajo and Western knowledge…

Discusses why and how to integrate Navajo language and culture into daily lessons so as to reinforce the cultural identities of Navajo learners. Gives examples of how an elementary teacher has incorporated Navajo knowledge into literature, geography, and social studies lessons. (Author/TD)

Argues for the implementation of "True Education" based on Navajo knowledge associated with the four cardinal directions. Through mentorship and apprenticeship learning programs that unite children and adults and that promote Navajo language, culture, and values, a clockwise road may be built that restores students' sense of physical,…

Describes the influence of the Progressive Education movement, with its emphasis on experiential learning and community schools, on Bureau of Indian Affairs schools during the 1930s. Discusses the subsequent development of bilingual education programs for American Indian students and offers recommendations for improving the education of Navajo…

Describes how a college teacher used Navajo traditional knowledge to rethink the teaching of college biology. Suggests that teachers intimidated by the intricate Dine Philosophy of Education may integrate Navajo knowledge into their courses through focused research guided by Navajo consultants. Includes five examples of redesigned curricula for…

Describes a Navajo model by which individuals may assume responsibility for reversing Navajo language shift. Argues that reversing Navajo language shift requires that Navajos acknowledge the problem, that Navajo principles of balance and the natural order be applied to the problem, and that Navajo individuals and families make a commitment to…

Highlights the lifelong work of linguists Robert W. Young and William Morgan in developing written Navajo. In contrast to technical orthographies, Young and Morgan developed a practical orthography that took advantage of native speakers' implicit knowledge and opened up possibilities for producing materials in written Navajo. Young and Morgan also…

Proposes the development of a Navajo education system utilizing a reorganized curriculum structure, successful teaching/learning situations and strategies from Navajo culture, and research on Navajo learning style and cultural strengths. Calls for changes in curriculum, instruction, testing and student evaluation, core knowledge requirements, and…

Dr. Robert W. Young discusses what led him to work in the Navajo Nation and to begin studying Navajo, the method he used for developing a Navajo orthography, his professional relationship with Dr. William Morgan, the system they used to develop an English-Navajo dictionary, his views on language loss, and his greatest accomplishment--a reservation…

Navajo school board members felt that American Indian administrators exhibited better administrative skills and had a better sense of the cultural context of their roles than non-Indian administrators. Perceptions of personal characteristics of the two groups, such as honesty, intelligence, and self-control, did not differ. Non-Indians hold 43 of…

Describes a framework for social studies curriculum in Navajo schools that fosters critical citizenship through student research into the physical, historical, economic, political, and cultural dimensions of community life. Aims to promote social studies that reflect the human environment in which Navajo students live and also arm students with…

A speech presented to Navajo high school seniors on the eve of graduation challenges students to take advantage of educational opportunities, to set goals, and to continually strive to achieve their plans. Discusses the speaker's own experiences as a disabled Native American pursuing a career in computers and achieving independence. (LP)