Native American V.S. African American Education Essay

In assessing the differences in breeding surrounded by African Americans and aborigines Americans in the U. S. , the ideals sh argond by western sandwich agri finale towards these various(prenominal) minority groups must be taken into account. It is almost as though a triangular descent is taking place, one in which both parties atomic number 18 a direct byproduct of their interactions with the third. The way in which the American companionship has viewed American Indians in parentage to members of the pitch-dark alliance since 1900 has a dramatic effect on the way Universities and Western society interacts with individual members of the respective groups.Research shows that despite an underlying pushing among college faculty to better support indigen Americans, and even the multiple campaigns for unripe exsanguine western women to take on marriages with innate American in a hope to integrate them and buy their land, what Africans Americans lack in the benefits of bein g awarded this hospitality and helping hand by the U. S. government they make up for in a allow foringness to further integrate into American society than the American Indian.The fact of the matter is both natural Americans and African Americans have demonstrated difficulty in transitioning from their respective cultures into the western society, but the possibility for primeval American training is virtually crippled by the lack of representation inside the western world. Public instruct System From 1980 through break through the 1990s, American Indian overt schooldaysing was at risk. The Indian Education do of 1972, as well as known as Title IV of public law, was the sole(prenominal) federal legislation that provided patronage for all American Indians and endemic Alaskan students in public schools.By 1995, the budget had fallen to 1$ and the entire program was in risk of being shut down until President Clinton vetoed the bill and re- manifested the bill as a proper sou rce of funding for potential Native American college students. To this day, this act serves as the sole source of federal funding for native American students in the public school organization accounting for the actually poor quality readingal facilities bordering and residing in Native American reservations (Banton, 1998). In 1954, Brown v. Board of Education ruled that segregated education was unconstitutional (Savitt, 2000).In 1963, it was found in the case of Jackson v. the Pasadena City School District that Pasadena manipulated school boundaries in order to principal(prenominal)tain racial separationism at Washington Junior High. Washington Junior High was located in a neutral zone, many purity parents started moving their children out of the school in the early 1940s. The result of this was a defect from a 10 percent black population in 1946, to 52 percent in 1958, and thence 84 percent in 1964 (Savitt, 2000). Jackson v. the Pasadena City School District marked the court s awareness of this overlooked segregation in the school system.The image of the black America has evolved over the past couple hundred years, since the end of sla real. The media has had a major influence on this as well. This is the same for all races in American society. Joane Nagel addresses this theory in her essay on American Indian Ethnic Renewal. She claims pagan identity is a trans-historic concept. Scientist, near the end of World War II, separate ethnicity as something that would finally fade away with evolution, but their theory was continuously contend by the ethnic resurgence of each generation.People were reclaiming their ethnic identity in newly changing ways. Nagels essay argues that even grounds for the definition of inkiness is up for debate. Where whites can freely choose whether to be considered ethnic or not, blacks dont have the same choice. On top of this, the media characterizes what it means to be black, and this is done from a white perspective. But Nagel argues that the identification of blackness is no longer as easy a label to assign. This is especially reliable if one tries to characterize race based solely on the statistics.It is true that the majority of the minorities in this country are in the low income bracket. Its almost like the definition of ethnic has been replaced with poor. Racial stratification that existed in the U. S. at the beginning of the last century withal deprived its colored citizens from the access to the most valuable resources the American society had, from the education, proper medical intercession etc. To make the Afro-Americans believe in the uniqueness of the whites they developed ridiculous theories of the mental or physical prevalence of their race.(Banton, 1998)Despite of the principles about the equality of all of the societys members that are declared in the contemporary society nowadays, the phenomenon of discrimination still exists in our country. From one viewpoint it is natural for p eople to treat those who circumvent them regarding to their age, gender, religious beliefs, physical condition or some other parameters, but when these peculiarities are use for to determine the persons rights or regulate his or her freedom of action and choice, it created huge problems in interpersonal and affable communication, and other processes.Tallys Corner is the sociological interpretation of the culture of negro street-corner men. Elliot Liebow sets out to show the hypocrisies that lead black men to this circumstance. The study is carried out in Washington D. C. The key argument posed by Liebow is that black males are unequal to(p) of attaining jobs because they lack education (1967). He also argues that this is a cycle that inevitably results in a trans-generational marginalization of the black race. On top of this, he argues that the white middle class are unrelenting with their methods of depriving black advancement in American society.Knowledge of this incites many b lacks to take dead-end jobs, or to settle for second-rater in the face of adversity. A large number of black males in America find themselves forced to take jobs that offer no security, or socioeconomic growth. He also argues that many blacks are not very literate and therefore left behind in cultural revolutions like the information age. The main thesis of Liebows argument is that black men lack self fulfillment (1967). Liebows conclusion is that men can only find self-realisation as family providers.He credits their diversion from mainstream society to many different aspects, the fear of failure, the contentment with mediocrity, and the fear that applaudd ones will evacuate them. This is a very depressing and pessimistic view, considering that the family structure is to a greater extent prevalently a support system in most cultures. Liebow tributes this difference in family ideals to the conflicted relationship between black men and women (1967). The income that these men brin g in is a direct result of their education ironically, their income will also directly effect the quality of education their children have.Dually, very little search takes into account the affect amicable environment has on the education of inner city blacks. In their study The Roles of Stress and manage in Explaining Gender Differences in Risk for Psychopathology Among African American Urban Adolescents Ginger Carlson and Kathryn Grant assess the relations among gender for 1,200 low income African American urban adolescents. In this study girls reported having more symptoms than boys, and having a gamyer tendency to internalize their responses to stress.Boy stress stemmed from major events, they go through more exposure to violence, and they had more sexual stressors than girls. Boy in gangs specifically reported a higher rate of sexual stressors and having substance abuse problems (Kazdin & Johnson, 1994 Loeber & Keenan, 1994 Overbeek, Vollebergh, Meeus, Engels, & Luijpers, 2 001). Researchers were also adamant to pint out that ethnic minority groups, such as African Americans, are highly underrepresented in gender study literature, which do this sight of information that a good deal more valuable.They found that the press down socioeconomic status and urban environment increased the frequency of stressors as well as the ardor of stressful circumstances. Gender differences in stress, coping, and psychological symptoms in adolescents have been well documented with White, middle-class samples. Results suggest that female adolescents have a higher relative incidence of psychopathology than do male adolescents (Romano, Tremblay, Vitaro, Zoccolillo, & Pagani, 2001 Steinhausen, 1992).This gender difference appears to be fully accounted for by gender differences in internalizing problems, such as depression and anxiety. (Carlson & Grant, 2001) Dually this inclination towards social anxiety it was reported do African American female adolescents more prone to the insecurities that peer pressure to have sexual intercourse at a younger age only enhancing the threat of catching sexually transmitted diseases, as a well as contributing to emotional distraction from education.A wide range of theorists and politicians have used the American educational system as a platform on which to gain civil approval. There is a everyday consensus that income designates the quality of ones education in America. This state of socioeconomic prejudice has a detrimental effect on the face of American society. The Ebonics controversy in America has developed into a major conflict over the years. It has become a more serious concern within the public school system.The complex where the nations school systems lower their expectations of black youth to coincide with the patterns of Ebonics, the word used to refer to African American vernacular English, has resulted in an epidemic where blacks graduate from High School reading three grade levels below their wh ite counterparts ( griffin, 2006). For the multiple number of theories that attempt to explain this phenomenon, very some have been able to counter the adverse culture that has developed in America as a product of Ebonics being considered a logical dialect.A major cause of the low expectations placed on black youth in schools can partly be credited to those doing the research, as Kimberly Griffin points out in her article Striving for Success A Qualitative Exploration of Competing Theories of High-Achieving dreary College Students Academic Motivation, when she says, research on the academic performance of Black students has focused on low-achievers, framing their academic motivation as maladaptive and driven by externally (e. g. , competition or compliance) rather than internally (e. g. , love of cultivation) generated forces (Griffin, 2006).This heavy focus on those blacks who have low quality achievement, has led to a neglect in the understanding of what drives the higher achi eving students to be successful. Findings show that self-government theory, socio-cognitive theory, and attribution theory cannot individually explain the motivation of these Black high-achievers. Instead, a multidimensional framework that incorporates all three models and that highlights internal and external sources of motivation trump accounts for these students experiences (Griffin, 2006). Griffin goes on to cite an interview with a young black student that was less affluent than others.The dialogue reveals that the pressure of stereotypes and low expectations has a slowness effect on the level of effort and achievement that black students have in the class room. This is a stigma that is present whether the student is of a lower or higher class, but the lower the class of the student the even heavier the stereotypes are that weigh on them. A wide range of theorists and politicians have used the American educational system as a platform on which to gain civil approval. There i s a popular consensus that income designates the quality of ones education in America.This state of socioeconomic prejudice has a detrimental effect on the face of American society. It can be argued that a hit standard political program should be equally implemented and taught throughout the nation, and that this curriculum should be similar to the elite executive curriculum, which Jean Anyon identifies as the trounce education our country has to offer. Anyons article argues in favor of integrated curriculums to equalize the educational system. She feels that lower classes are being exploited and instead of being self-colouredly educated, the students are being herded into remedial jobs.In compliance with traditional standardized test laws, both public and private schools will be tested, whether they are in the poorest communities or the wealthiest. These will be the new tests to decide whether students carryover to the next grade, whether the schools remain in session, and whe ther certain children are awarded grants and scholarships. Authentic assessment asks that students acquire knowledge and be able to practice logic as apposed to average being able to regurgitate pre-fed facts. The main characteristics of these evaluations, is that they apply standardized test curriculum to real sustenance circumstances.Authentic assessment is the product of a reform in education, and the ultimate realization that our educational system may not be serving the best interests of its students. This shift is to make standardized testing less drill oriented and applicable to what is expected will be necessary in the students adult life. These tests insure students to higher standards as well as create a growing body of accurate awareness pertaining to student learning. This way the teacher learns from the student as well. (Wiggins, 1990) Standardized testing has been long been viewed as the final equalizer for the American Education system.Every top student from every high school, regardless of where their schools circle academically, is utilisen first priority to attend the top private and state Universities. America creates a myth in placing so much faith in these tests that proposes the best of society rise to the top. In all actuality, success on these tests is largely dependant on the quality of schooling provided by the country, or the sum of money one has to shell out on test preparation. In her essay, From Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work Jean Anyon observes the hypocrisies prevalent in the education system.One of her major points is that in the higher income classrooms the majority of the students parents are executives, and only 10% are minorities. A common finding in her research is that the working class schools lack the necessary materials and much enough faculty to be considered equal with the other school systems. Anyon also argues that the curriculums are different. Historically, the most good form of learning u sed in America, more so than even the textbook, is the field trip this is also known as project based learning (B.I. E. , 2002). It is also a very expensive learning tool, which is why most lower class curriculums are deprived of it. Project based learning has a long lived tradition of learning through the implementation of field trips, labs, investigations and other projects. It is considered to be part of the American dream, as well as a substantial method of teaching. The premise backing this form of learning revolves around the idea that students will be more liable to gain interest in curriculum that they can connect to their surroundings.Just studying the work in a text can grow to be mundane. When she analyzes elementary and secondary classroom curriculums, she finds a methodology very different from what is inherent in Project based education. Anyon discovers that the majority of contemporary textbook instruction is designed for the working class. PBL programs are unremarka bly not supported in public schools because of the amount of funding they require. This discrepancy is usually applicable to public schools and whether one is located near high income house or low income housing.This is a difficulty that both Native and African Americans share alike. Starting in elementary school on through high school, since the integration of the education system in 1950, minority students such as blacks, Native American and Hispanics, have been geared toward working class fields as opposed to handling positions of an executive nature. Current advancements in Project Based Learning and authentic assessment attempt to counter the herding of minority students into the lesser of what Anyon proposes are the two main types of learning in America.Jonathan Kozol describes the discrepancies between these two types of schooling in his interview with Marge Scherer. In the interview titled, On Savage Inequalities A Conversation with Jonathan Kozol, he talks about his experi ence in St. Louis and how the schools in low income areas barely have money for water, while the schools near by in the wealthier districts could buy advanced school supplies as well as carryout project based learning, such as field trips (2005). Kozol credits this problem to the use of prop valuate to fund schools in low income areas.He states we ought to finance the education of every child in America equitably, with adjustments made only for the greater or lesser needs of certain children. And that funding should all come from the collective wealth of our society, mainly from a steeply graduated progressive income tax. (Kozol, 2005) This particular tax could make project based learning more affordable, which would be the most influential step to improving classroom education. The most common contemporary causa of PBL is dissecting insects and animals.It has become an American tradition and almost a right of passage in high school. Project Based Management has a very advantage ous influence on the education of our country. One might wonder why its not the only curriculum used. The use of chaperones, instructional tools, and methods of transportation are often required and considered expensive. The benefit is that people tend to remember more from their field trips than textbook lessons and many of these labs require authentic assessment, which is good considering the new shift in standardized testing.The downfall is in the fact that authentic assessment is dependent on the students past experiences. This allows for some projects to result in the isolation of certain students. The inner city children are deprived because their school systems cant afford implementing PBL curriculums. Chairperson of the Department of Education at Rutgers University, in her essay From Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work Jean Anyon analyzes the nature of underprivileged education (2006).Anyon argues that depending on their social class, different levels of education s are in stock(predicate) to young people. This mostly applies to schools in different districts and social communities and it can particularly be seen in the difference between private and public schooling. To make the concept clear, she further applies this to a description of a kind of mental segregation happening within the classroom in which, students sitting next to one another(prenominal) are rewarded differently solely based on their socioeconomic standing in the community. She does this by pointing out that,students in different social-class backgrounds are rewarded for classroom behaviors that compare to personality traits allegedly rewarded in the different occupational strata the working classes for docility and obedience, the managerial classes for initiative and personal assertiveness. (Anyon, 2006) This is the key ideal of Anyons theory. An example of the theory at work can be seen in research that finds project based learning prepares students for more abstract as sessment, and prepares them to handle real world situations, as opposed to those in the textbook.PBL is most prevalent in private and high income community public schools. This creates a system where the students taught in the private schools are taught to think separately in a rational but unconfined way, while the lower income children are only taught to follow instructions. These differing perspectives on education have had a contentious and conflicting history in America. Gary Colombo based much of his research on this conflict.Aware that the Constitution would be opposed by the working class, who made up the majority of the people, the construction of the deceleration and its signing were held in private. The media was used conceal the constitutions actual goal, while at the same metre to persuade people in its favor. Along with a literate media Colombo points out that the American government found it necessary, particularly during doubting Thomas Jeffersons presidency, to levy and finance a literate working class.It is Colombos view that the sole purpose of their education was to develop individuals who would maintain the nation (2005). These educated individuals were viewed as secondary to their task. This is the first sign in American history of education being used to exploit people for the benefit of the government. By identifying the failure of Thomas Jefferson to educate the Native American people, Colombo shows that American education was initially designed with dead no regard for the people.He best displays this conflict when he cites a letter written by a Native American to the President. our ideas of this kind of education happen not to be the same with yoursseveral of our young people were formerly brought up at the college of the Yankee provinces they were instructed in all your sciences but when they came back to us, they were bad runners ignorant of every means of living in the woods unable to bear either cold or hunger knew neither h ow to build a cabin, take a deer, or kill an oppositethey were totally good for nothing. (Colombo, 2005)Here Colombo identifies that, quality in education is deemed only as good as its ability to assimilate one into the culture in which they live. This assimilation is not one that produces equal opportunity for its participants. As previously proven by Anyon, socioeconomic conditions impede this dream dramatically from attack into fruition. Anyon argues that todays working class curriculums center more on teaching students to follow instructions rather than teaching them how to authentically assess problems (2006). It just so happens the majority of these working class group tend to be Black students.She undeniably proves that the children of higher income families are not taught in this fashion, and they are steered more towards developing skills in problem solving and decision making. If students are subject to the exact same nationwide testing, it is only just that they receive the same educational curriculums. Lower income students are being herded into remedial work, while the upper class students are being prepared for executive positions. This is an immoral practice, but there are risks that can occur if Anyons elitist curriculum is equally distributed throughout the country (2006).Everyone can not manage the corporation some have to toil for the pursuit of the company. The working class may potentially have a better understanding of executive duties, if Anyons curriculum is implemented (2006). With a greater grasp for the business structure, working class employees may be educated enough to demand more benefits from their companies. The end result of implementing Anyons theory is that there will be a more diverse group of qualified candidates from which corporations select.This makes the face of corporate America as cultured as the nation its in, and it eliminates much of the disadvantaging prejudice that comes with elitism. This is proof that it i s wise to utilize Anyons elite curriculum throughout all school systems. Universities & Extended Education In 2002, Native Americans made up less than 1% the student population enrolled in college, and most of them attended two year programs in tribal regions (Guillory & Wolverton, 2008). It is was also found that Native Americans reported having a low retention rate in American Universities, estimated as low as 15%.The statistics and the circumstance differing between Native Americans and African Americans in the their relationships with Western culture. While blacks have had a complex history with the United States, the history of Native Americans has been virtually non-existent. The relationship the black community has with western culture has a much different effect on the young black college student attending for the first time than the native American community backing the young American Indian student. Numerous studies of Native American students who attend mainstream college s and universities suggest that factors such as precollegeacademic preparation, family support, supportive and involved faculty, institutional commitment, and maintaining an active presence in home communities and cultural ceremonies are crucial elements that impact these students ability and/or desire to persist in college. (Guillory & Wolverton, 2008) These concerns by the Native American student are no different from those of any other student from any other cultural background the conflict arises when the ideals developed within the confines of the reservation contrast those in the outside world and the University.While African American communities, throughout the years, have had a history of political and social descent from the American government and western culture, they are still legally a part of America and by that rule of law they can only revolt so much without impeding their own away of life. Studies show that there is an overwhelming push by the Indian community in Am erican reservations to stray from leaving the land and to avoid integration with the government.With over 304 American Indian reservations, the U. S. Federal government would just as easily prefer to give the land to the Indians for a decided value and then have them pay property tax. This is a tactic that has long been avoided by the Native American Tribes, since 1887, when the Dawes Act legislated wide-scale private ownership of reservation lands in the United States strictly for American Indians. The plan called for an allotted 80 acres to be given to each Native American from each respective Tribe.It was the job of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to make sure these allotted lands stayed in a trust for at to the lowest degree 25 years, after which Native American land owners would receive a patent for their land. The a fear that arose from this in many tribes was that the land would eventually be sold to non-Indian citizens run corporations or citizens, or that the tax on the land would be overwhelming for Tribal members who had no way of accruing income. The end result was a rejection of this proposal by native American Tribes.This only further exemplifies the nature of the relationship between Native Americans and the United States government. This inherent distrust of western culture is carried into the first year adjustment process for Native American students and makes it very difficult for them to integrate and eventually graduate from the program. In the article, Its About Family Native American Student Persistence in Higher Education, researchers asses barriers to degree completion as they relate to Native American students at Washington State University, the University of Idaho, and t State University (Guillory & Wolverton, 2008).And 2002 May Americans represented less than 1% of all students enrolled in college. Year to year persistence rates were uncertain, but throughout the years Native Americans have proven to have the lowest retention ra te. The study points out that the lack of Native American faculty contributes to difficulty American Indians have in adjusting to Universities, but there has also been a recent push to train university faculty in better handling Native American.While this is also often true for African American students, it is very rare in the modern era that one can find a University where there are absolutely no black faculty, or at least some form of Black student organization for community support. The major conflict that arises for a Native American student in an American University stems from an unwillingness or incapability to integrate into western culture.While the same could be argued in reference to blacks, American Indians lack the same level of community support that is present in western society for black Americans. There are very few clubs in colleges for American Indians, very few organizations to address American Indian issues. On the other hand, because there is such a miniscule pr esence of Native Americans in the public school system, there is an unsaid push by school officials as well as western society to incorporate Native Americans into popular culture.This push is not promoted for the sake of bettering the American Indians In her article Margins of Acceptability, Katherine Ellinghaus assess the impact of reservation ideals on the ability of the Native American student to cross-over into the culture of Western Universities, but she points out Americas desire to claim land reserved for Native Americans and incorporate them into American society inadvertently created a need for these men and women to be adopted into the culture.Methods of promoting young men and women to marry Native Americans on college campuses and in different communities was widely encouraged due to this need. This is something that is very different from how the interracial relationships between blacks and whites are perceived. The majority of African American physicians graduated fro m universities specifically designated for blacks. There was only a small number of northern universities that accepted black candidates for medical degrees following the Civil War (Savitt, 2000).Following emancipation white northern missionary groups and former abolitionists, specifically the American Baptist foundation Mission Society, American Missionary Association, and Freedmens Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church constructed a number of schools in the south to teach rudimentary educational skills to blacks. These schools basically taught former slaves practical job skills, literacy and eventually extended their teachings to medical education.The most distinguished and successful of these medical schools were in universities such has Howard in Washington, D. C., Leonard Medical,School of Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Meharry Medical College in Nashville (Savitt, 2000). During the late 1880s, the majority of the African American population resided i n the south, those blacks who studied to be physicians in missionaries eventually followed in the path of the white medical tradition and constructed their own medical school proprieties. The first of these institutions was Louisville National Medical College in 1888, then Hannibal Medical College (Memphis, 1889), and battle of Chattanooga National Medical College (1899) (Savitt, 2000).The ability of African American students to establish early on success in the medical world and then return to establish black run institutions is prime example of the difference between the reluctance of Native Americans to participate in education and the opportunities created for themselves. Black medical schools encountered many difficulties that their white counterparts did not. They also faced problems that black missionary schools didnt have to confront.Missionary and proprietary school officials had equal ability and opportunity to raise money and collect community support among whites and bl acks, but missionary schools have the advantage of being connected to a major university and being able to benefit from the resources. Missionary schools also held the advantage of being connected with nationally known and respected church organizations, which also served well in gaining sympathy a mom white Northerners. patented colleges on the other hand were isolated and independent.There were no missionary magazines to report on their successes or to provide them with free advertising. These up-starting universities also had very few wealthy alumni to help funding for classrooms or to pay faculty. Nevertheless, these minor steps are more like leaps compared to the Native American experience in the medical field. Of the small few who did manage to attend universities and graduate, the likely-hood of them going on to become medical partitions was largely impeded by a sacred adherence to the medicative pr