Arianna Pavoncello 1
Education:
American Indian Students Vs. American Students
Two Realities in One Continent
Index:
Graduation Rates
Dropout Rates
Higher Education Access and Persistence
Higher Education Outcomes and Employment
Causes
Arianna Pavoncello 2
Education:
American Indian Students Vs. American Students
Two Realities in One Continent
The Native American population has been systematically threatened, mistreated and put
down by the Euro-American political power, which several times attempted a physical as well as
cultural genocide of the American Indians in their own land. Education has been a powerful
weapon used by the European settlers to solve the ‘Indian problem’ since 1568, when the first
mission school was established for Florida Indian.
One-third of American Indians live on reservations, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and
as a result of living in remote rural areas, American Indians living on reservations have limited
access to higher education. The number of American Indian/Alaska Native students enrolled in
colleges and universities more than doubled in the past 30 years, along with the number of
associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees conferred to Natives over the past 25 years. Yet
American Indian/Alaska Natives were less likely to earn a bachelor’s degree or higher than their
non-Native peers.
Although many American Indian (AI) students do well in school nowadays – achieving
academically, graduating and going to college or other training programs, a large number of
these students are unsuccessful in the educational system. Evidence of fundamental educational
failure can be found in schools across the nation, most notably in the form of low graduation and
high dropout rates.
Arianna Pavoncello 3
Graduation Rates
Native American students comprise less than 1 percent of students in the U.S. public school
system, but higher concentrations exist in states such as Alaska, South Dakota, New Mexico,
Montana and Oklahoma, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. The
graduation rate among Native Americans appears to be significantly lower than the one of white
American Students. Although there are similarities between the AI students’ graduation rates
and that of the other minorities, the declining graduation rates among Native American students
are in sharp now contrast to the improvement among other minority groups. Graduation rates
among Latino students jumped by more than 5 percentage points for the second year in a row,
and rates for black students improved 13.2 percentage points in the past decade.
Moreover, data show that
from state to state, the
graduation rates of the AI
students
changes
significantly. Statistics say
that the states with higher
graduation rate among AM
students
are
Oklahoma
(63.8%) and Arizona (52.4%).
Graduation Rates
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
On the other hand, the states
with the lower graduation
rate among AI students are
South Dakota (30,4%) and
North Dakota (37,9%).
AI
White
Black
Asian
Hispanic
Arianna Pavoncello 4
Moreover, the Graduation rate sees a significant difference in gender, as females are often
found to graduate less and dropout school more. Many scholars have offered reasons for the
widening gender gap in educational attainment. Some have pointed to economic factors—as labor
market barriers to women have been lowered, the benefits of a college education grew more for
women than men. Others say the higher incidence of behavioral and school disciplinary problems
among boys may be a factor. Citing some of these findings, last week President Obama announced
a new initiative, called My Brother’s Keeper, that aims to empower young black and young
Hispanic men, focusing on improving educational attainment and employment prospects while
reducing involvement in crime. In general, dropouts face significant challenges to obtaining
employment and achieving economic security. Female dropouts are at particular economic risk.
As compared to their male peers, girls who fail to graduate from high school have higher rates of
unemployment; make significantly lower wages; and are more likely to need to rely on public
support programs to provide for their families. With so many students dropping out of high
school each year, the aggregate drain on our nation’s economy—through foregone income tax
revenue and increased public spending—is substantial. There is a gap of over 5% between AI
male and female in terms of graduation rates, which shows a significant gender inequality, which
is not necessarily given by the communities itself but it can also derive from the surrounding
environment.
Overall, the huge gap that there is between graduation rates among white Americans and the
graduation gap among AI students in worrying, and it reveals U.S. racial disparity and
discrimination.
Arianna Pavoncello 5
Dropout Rates
American Indian and Alaska Native students have a dropout rate twice the national average;
the highest dropout rate of any United States ethnic or racial group. About three out of every ten
Native students drop out of school before graduating from high school both on reservations and
in cities. Academically capable Native students often drop out of school because their needs are
not being met while others are pushed out because they protest in a variety of ways how they are
treated in school. As the psychiatrist Erik Erikson has pointed out, positive identity formation is
an ongoing, cumulative process that starts in the home with a trusting relationship established
between mother and child and develops through the child's interaction with other children and
adults.
To build a strong positive identity, new adults that the child interacts with need to reinforce
and build on the cultural messages that the child has previously received. However, too often in
schools today teachers are not reinforcing what Native parents show and tell their children
producing cultural discontinuity between home and school and forcing Native children to choose
between their Native heritage and school success with disastrous results. Many of the problems
faced by students such as drug and alcohol abuse are symptoms of the poor self concepts of Native
students who have unresolved internal conflicts resulting from educators asking students to give
up their Native culture. Teaching methods and school curriculum need to be changed to reduce
cultural conflict between home and school. In addition, the underlying causal factor of internal
identity conflict in many Native teenagers needs to be treated at a community as well as an
individual level through community-based counseling programs.
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In
order
to
help
Native
students form positive, mature
identities and to reduce the number
of Native dropouts large schools
need to be restructured to allow
teachers to get to know and interact
with their students, caring teachers
(especially Native teachers) need to
School Dropout School
16%
14%
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
All Students
White Students
Event Dropout Rate
AI Students
Naional Status Dropout Rate
be recruited who will spend the time
and effort to learn from as
well as teach their students, these
caring teachers need to use active
teaching
strategies
with
motivated, Native curriculum needs
to be developed and used in Native
to
reduce
track them into non-academic programs, and parents
their
students to keep their students
schools
used in schools to help students learn rather than to
cultural
discontinuity, testing needs to be
need to have the power to demand schools give their
children an education that will strengthen Native
families rather than separate Native children from their
parents.
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Higher Education
Access and Persistence
Numerous studies, including those of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES),
have documented persistent gaps between the educational attainment of White males and that of
American Indian males. Further, there is evidence of growing gaps by sex within these
racial/ethnic groups, as females participate and persist in education at higher rates than their male
counterparts Postsecondary attendance rates are generally lower for youth from lower
socioeconomic backgrounds and those from various racial/ethnic groups.
American Indian students are retained and graduated from colleges at rates far below their nonNative peers. Making a successful adjustment to college is a formidable challenge for many people.
It is particularly challenging for American Indian students. The enrollment, retention, and
graduation rates for American Indians are lower than any other ethnic group. Leaving college
prior to completion of a degree signals delayed or forgone personal aspirations and often
diminished opportunities. The attrition of these students also has a negative impact on their
campus communities because their absence diminishes the multi- and cross-cultural educational
potential the learning environment has for all students.
There are several reasons for the low number of Indian students in college: the lack of high
school graduates; non-existing or inadequate programs and services, a lack of administrative
support where the student attends college; faculty misconceptions and stereotyping; and poor
student relations with the college institution and other students.
Although there are a number of theories on American Indian retention, there remains much
uncertainty about the real factors that influence American Indian students’ ability to persist in
college. Several studies have identified family support, supportive faculty and staff, institutional
and personal commitment, and connections to culture as key factors in persistence. Many of these
Arianna Pavoncello 8
studies have also identified a number of obstacles including inadequate academic preparation,
unclear and/or ill-defined academic or vocational goals, insufficient financial aid, incongruence
between high school and college environments, prejudice, and social isolation.
Studies suggest that Native
American students who are able to
draw strength from their cultural
Indicators of Higher Education Access and
Persistence by Race and Gender
identity while adapting to the
demands of college life are more
likely to succeed in their academic
pursuits than either culturally
assimilated
students
or
those
unable to establish a level of
comfort
within
their
campus
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
FEMALE
MALE
All Students
FEMALE
MALE
FEMALE
White Students
MALE
AI Students
APE >3
G. 2004 C.2006
ACT 2011
18-24 G. 2010
C. 2006 G. in 6 Y.
STEM 2010
environment. However, American
Indian
certain
culture can
that
loneliness when the student refuses to seek help in
problematic for Indian students to
adjusting to this new environment. The pressure to
successfully
the
assimilate into the college environment often conflicts
For
with tribal culture and results in internalized conflict that
example, tribal elders promote a
hinders students from persisting and completing degrees.
acclimate
environment.
strong sense of
may
personal independence that may ultimately result in
be
college
traits
foster
to
Arianna Pavoncello 9
Higher Education
Outcomes and
Employment
In recent years, Native Americans have increased their income and wealth through new and
innovative economic development activities. For instance, tribes have increased their control over
their natural resources and food systems, they have become players in the country’s energy sector,
and they have begun trading with Asia (National Congress of American Indians 2013b). Despite
these positive developments, however, Native Americans are still one of the United States’ most
economically disadvantaged populations.
Even when Native Americans are similar to whites in terms of factors such as age, sex, education
level, marital status, and state of residence, their odds of being employed are 31 percent lower than
those of whites. High educational attainment is the factor most likely to increase American Indians’
odds of securing employment.
The land that is the United States, of course, once all belonged to indigenous peoples. This
land, and its resources and assets, were taken by European immigrants through conquest,
expropriation, theft, and broken treaties. In addition to this tremendous loss of wealth, Native
Americans also lost political autonomy. Political and economic subjugation would, in and of itself,
produce tremendous cultural damage, but Native Americans were also repeatedly subject to forced
cultural assimilation.
While there is much evidence of Native Americans using initiative, creativity, and their
cultural traditions to improve their economic conditions, there is still much work to be done.
Tribes need the federal government to fully honor its promised obligations (see National Congress
of American Indians 2013a). Native Americans also need the federal government to focus on the
Arianna Pavoncello 10
country’s economic future by addressing the jobs deficit and by making investments in health,
education, and infrastructure. Without these investments, the challenges for American Indians
will be significantly greater.
All levels of government should support strong Native American self-determination and
leadership. The following policies will likely increase the Native American employment rate
through improved educational outcomes:

Improving Native American maternal and child health

Providing high-quality early childhood education for
Native American children

Maximizing the number of regular high school
diplomas obtained by Native Americans

Increasing the number and size of tribal programs
supporting higher education
The educational attainment variables produced the largest positive effect on the odds of
employment. Policies that can increase Native American educational attainment appear to have
strong potential for improving the employment rates of American Indians.
There are many policies that may be effective at accomplishing this. Educational attainment is a
product of not just a child and the child’s school, but also the family and community resources
available to the child. Children from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds tend to do worse
in school than middle-class children precisely because they come from disadvantaged
socioeconomic backgrounds. It is necessary to improve family and community resources to enable
children to do their best in school.
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Causes
American Indian dropout rates, low graduation rates, low higher education access and
persistence, and lower higher education outcomes and employment have been caused by many
different factors, including cultural, social, and curriculum issues. Majority of studies have found
that one of the largest contributions to student dropout rates is the lack of teacher support and
understanding. In an article from the website American Indian Education, they have found that
identity formation in American Indian students is obstructed due to the deficiency of teacherstudent relationships. The connection between cultures is severed because the teachers who are
placed in the schools have little or no understanding of the cultures their students come from. In
a paper done by Mary Cornelius, she found that the cultural differences, such as, responding as a
group and performing individually in front of classmates is unfamiliar with American Indian
students because the tribe does not put emphasis on individual performance; in essence, it is done
as a group. Another setback is from the home. Moreover, as a result of living in remote rural areas,
American Indians living on reservations have limited access to higher education. One-third of
American Indians live on reservations, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. According to the
most recent U.S. government statistics, the overall poverty rate for American Indians, including
children, is higher than that for the total U.S. population.
Arianna Pavoncello 12
The poverty rate among American Indian families with children under 18 (30 percent) was
double that among all families with children under 18 (15 percent). Poverty rates are especially
high among American Indian/Alaska Native families who live in American Indian areas. Another
cause of the Native American’s problems in education is health. There are known health disparities
between the Native American population and the rest of the United States. Reasons for these
health disparities include "cultural barriers, geographic isolation, inadequate sewage disposal, and
economic factors."
Alcohol is a major problem among American Indian adults, but unfortunately it is also very
popular among teenagers. The proportion of Native American adults who drink alcohol varies
according to the tribe from as low as 30% to as high as 80%, compared to 67% of the general U.S.
population.
Causes
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Feeling
unwanted
Bad S-T
relationship
Lack
paternal
support
Distance
from School
Lack self- Achool abuse
esteem
White
AI
Poverty
Poor health
Failing
assignments