An Examination of Native Education
in
British Columbia:
Kindergarten Readiness
and
Self-Image and Academic Achievement of the
Grades 4 to 12
by
E. R. Atleo
1993
ii
ii
The Native Education Research Project was a joint effort between Native and non Native
people. To each group and individual acknowledged below the Nuu-chah-nulth
traditional thank you is gratefully applied, Kléco!!! Kléco!!!
The Native Community
Organizations
Native Brotherhood of British Columbia (NBBC) Board of Directors: Robert Clifton,
President; Jacob Nyce, First Vice President; Robin Brown, Second Vice President;
Robert Duncan, Third Vice President; Rebecca Pearson, Fourth Vice President; Mel
Alexander, Secretary Treasurer; Robert Hill, Business Agent: Board of Trustees: Bill
Cranmer, Steve Carpenter, Heber Clifton, Mel Clifton: Administration: James White,
Executive Director; Arthur Jackson Executive Assistant: and all NBBC locals throughout
British Columbia: Native Brotherhood and Native Sisterhood of British Columbia
Education Society Board of Directors: Rebecca Pearson, President; Minnie Kullman,
Coordinator; Vera Newman, Agnes Cranmer, Eva Dick: Native Home
School/Counselors Association of British Columbia; Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, and
Assembly of First Nations.
Individual Participants (in alphabetical order)
Mel Alexander, Robert Andy, Barbara Barltrop, Sybil Barker, Lila Burnette, Mary Jane
Coutlee, Sandra Carlick, Margaret Davis, Eva Dingwall, Vera Douglas, Gertrude Frank,
Lynn E. Frank, Peggy French, Karen Good, Jarvis Gray, Laura Howell, Deborah Jeffrey,
Glenn Jim, Joyce Joe, Ron Joseph, Frank Johnson, Norma Kelly, Chester Lawson,
Debbie Lewis, Diane M. Lewis, Pat M. Little, Perry Mathews, Nella Nelson, Rod Peters,
David Perry, Janet Poth, Gail Sam, Sidney Sam Sr., Adeline Saunders, Anfinn
Siwallace, Peter Siwallace, Louisa Smith, Evans Stewart, Patricia Teichert, Darla
Thevarge, Muriel Thomas, Mary D. Vickers, Barbara White, Hannah White, Barney
Williams, Loretta Williams, Vernon Wilson, Ernie Voyageur, M. Underwood.
Interviewers: (in random order) Nora Wilson, Alida Reid, Ernie Webster, Betty
Neasloss, Edna Mason, Roberta Henderson, Ruth Henkel, Eva Dingwall, Nora
Underwood, Freda McLean, Mary Jane Coutlee, Vivien Narcisse, Cheryl McLeod, Gloria
Moses, Judy Peck, Karen Charlie, Lexi Charlie, E. R. Atleo, M. R. Atleo, and Kristi
Wilson.
iii
iii
Special acknowledgments: Robert Clifton, President of NBBC and his board who
supported the research initiative from the outset; Arthur Jackson, Executive Assistant to
the Director who took the initiative; Pauline Waterfall who helped Arthur to launch the
project; Sandra Montour, administrative consultant who believed in the project from the
start and made important contacts; James White, Executive Director of NBBC; Robert
Hill, Business Manager of NBBC; board members of the Native Brotherhood and Native
Sisterhood Education Society - Minnie Kullman, who is also the liaison between the
board and the principal investigator, Rebecca Pearson, president of the education board,
Vera Newman, Eva Dick, and Agnes Cranmer; Deanna Nyce, Native Education Project
Advisor; Dorry Williams, Native Education Project secretary; Madeline McIver, First
Nations House of Learning, University of British Columbia.
The Non Native Community
Governments, Foundations, Institutions, Corporations, and Businesses: Financial
Contributors:
Employment and Immigration Canada; Health and Welfare Canada; Ministry of
Aboriginal Affairs, Province of British Columbia; Ministry of Education and Ministry
Responsible for Multiculturalism and Human Rights, Province of British Columbia;
Vancouver Foundation; Simons Foundation; British Columbia Telephone Company;
Chevron Canada Limited; Kal Tire; MacMillan Bloedel Limited; Or Shalom; Ratliffe &
Company; Selby, L.A.; Ocean Fisheries Ltd.
Individuals: Noreen Campbell of Employment and Immigration Canada; Charles
Horn, Ministry of Native Affairs; Dr. Stan Shapiro, Simon Fraser University; Mr. R.
Guilbransen; and to faculty members of the University of British Columbia who provided
valuable feedback to the initial draft of the research report; Dr. J.G.T. Kelsey; Dr. Daniel
Brown; Dr. Walter B. Boldt (statistical feedback); and especially to Dr. Jean Barman who
provided the most extensive feedback and valuable academic contribution. In addition
Dr. Nand Kishor of the Department of Education Psychology at UBC must be
acknowledged for so ably teaching some basic principles of research to prospective
interviewers and finally a thank you to Dr. Michael Ames and staff of the Museum of
Anthropology for conferring research associate status upon the principal investigator and
providing the initial office space.
iv
iv
ABSTRACT
This study examined the current state of Native education in the province of
British Columbia with respect to readiness at the kindergarten level and self-
image in association with academic achievement among grades 4 to 12 students.
The findings of each area of the study are discussed in order.
In comparison to the 1950s the readiness factor among Native kindergarten
students has increased from practically 0% to 77.2%. Native families today are
successfully preparing their children for kindergarten at roughly the rate of 3
students out of 4. No significant difference was found between the readiness
factor of band operated schools and provincial schools. Females in both band
operated and provincial schools consistently but marginally outscored males in
readiness scores. Native kindergarten students in all schools are of appropriate
age and no age grade retardation was found.
More than 80% of students in grades 4 to 12 have healthy self-images. This
finding compares favorably with the reported low self-image that Hawthorn found
among Native students during the 1950s. The grade 4 to 8 students are
performing at a satisfactory academic performance level in association with their
healthy self-image but only 6 out of 10 students are completing their homework
at a rate to ensure continued academic success. Although more than 80% of the
grade 9 to 12 students also have a healthy self-image they have a comparatively
low level of academic achievement rate at 48.5%. Where the grade 4 to 8
students complete their homework satisfactorily at a rate of 60.5% the grade 9 to
12 students complete their homework satisfactorily at a rate of only 40.1%.
The conclusion is that the current state of Native education in the province of
British Columbia has shown some improvement in comparison to the failures of
the past but still lags considerably behind the academic performance of students
from the larger society.
v
v
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS........................................................................................ii
ABSTRACT...........................................................................................................iv
LIST OF TABLES..................................................................................................ix
LIST OF FIGURES...............................................................................................xi
APPENDICES......................................................................................................xii
CHAPTER PAGE
1 THE ORIGINS, THEORY AND PURPOSE OF THE STUDY...........................1
THE ORIGINS: A NATIVE EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE..................................1
A Western Association................................................................................3
A Native Brotherhood Mandate...................................................................5
THEORY OF CONTEXT..................................................................................5
Properties, Order, and Qualities of Contexts..............................................7
An Example of One Study...........................................................................9
The Problem........................................................................................10
The Theory..........................................................................................10
The Test of the Theory of Context.......................................................10
Conclusion...........................................................................................15
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY...........................................................................16
Statement of the Problem.........................................................................18
Definitions.................................................................................................20
Limitations of the Study.............................................................................25
Hypotheses...............................................................................................27
AN OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY...................................................................28
2 A LITERATURE REVIEW...............................................................................30
vi
vi
THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF NATIVE EDUCATION:
1600 TO 1992: AN OVERVIEW....................................................................31
SELF-IMAGE AND EDUCATION...................................................................39
3 A NATIVE APPROACH TO THE PROCESS OF RESEARCH......................53
A NATIVE THEORY AND ACADEMIC RESEARCH......................................53
METHODOLOGY...........................................................................................67
Research Design......................................................................................67
Measuring Instruments.............................................................................69
Kindergarten Research Instruments....................................................69
Grades 4 to 12 Research Instruments.................................................70
Student...........................................................................................70
Parent.............................................................................................71
Teacher..........................................................................................72
Data Collection Procedures......................................................................73
4 PART ONE: KINDERGARTEN READINESS.................................................78
Location of Schools and Population Distribution.......................................78
Type Of Schools.......................................................................................80
P1 FINDINGS: (KINDERGARTEN = PRIMARY ONE = P1)..........................81
The Results...............................................................................................81
Other Data.................................................................................................91
Age Grade Distribution........................................................................92
Pre School Experience........................................................................93
Hearing and Eyesight..........................................................................93
Number of Children in Household.......................................................94
Summary...................................................................................................95
5 PART TWO: NATIVE SELF-IMAGE AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
IN CONTEXT................................................................................................101
GRADES 4 TO 8 DATA................................................................................102
GRADES 9 TO 12 DATA..............................................................................119
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN CONTEXT.................................................135
Academic Achievement and 12 Variables..............................................136
vii
vii
Self Image and Academic Achievement...........................................136
Home Completion and Academic Achievement................................138
Encouragement by an Older Adult and Academic Achievement.......138
Student Perception of Parent/Guardian and Academic
Achievement......................................................................................139
Actual Rating of Student Capability by Parent/Guardian and
Academic Achievement.....................................................................140
Student Rating of Other Native Students and Academic
Achievement......................................................................................140
Student Rating of Native Heritage and Academic Achievement.......141
Student Value of Formal Education and Academic Achievement.....142
Student Employment Expectations and Academic Achievement......142
Teacher Perception of Student Capability and Academic
Achievement......................................................................................143
Birth Position of Student and Academic Achievement......................144
Student Position on School Standards and Academic
Achievement......................................................................................144
Summary of the Findings in Table 36................................................145
Profiles of Highest and Lowest Academic Achievers:
Grades 9 to 12........................................................................................147
Self Image..........................................................................................147
Number of Children in Household.....................................................148
Age-Grade Retardation.....................................................................148
Interest in Academic Courses............................................................148
How to Improve Academic Performance...........................................149
Employment Expectations.................................................................149
Variables that made no Difference....................................................150
PARENT AND TEACHER DATA..................................................................150
Parent Data.............................................................................................151
Responses to Open-Ended Questions by Parents.................................155
Teacher Data..........................................................................................157
SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION...................................................................165
6 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS............................................169
viii
viii
PART ONE: KINDERGARTEN OUTCOMES OF THE STUDY...................170
PART TWO: GRADES 4 TO 12 OUTCOMES OF THE STUDY..................183
RECOMMENDATIONS................................................................................193
Recommendation 1.................................................................................194
Recommendation 2.................................................................................194
Recommendation 3.................................................................................194
Recommendation 4.................................................................................195
Recommendation 5.................................................................................195
Recommendation 6.................................................................................195
Recommendation 7.................................................................................196
Recommendation 8.................................................................................197
Recommendation 9.................................................................................198
Recommendation 10...............................................................................199
BIBLIOGRAPHY...........................................................................................200
APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1...........................................................................................212
APPENDIX 2...........................................................................................216
APPENDIX 3...........................................................................................222
APPENDIX 4...........................................................................................226
APPENDIX 5...........................................................................................230
APPENDIX 6...........................................................................................232
APPENDIX 7...........................................................................................234
APPENDIX 8...........................................................................................236
APPENDIX 9...........................................................................................241
APPENDIX 10.........................................................................................251
APPENDIX 11.........................................................................................255
APPENDIX 12.........................................................................................259
APPENDIX 13.........................................................................................262
APPENDIX 14.........................................................................................265
APPENDIX 15.........................................................................................269
APPENDIX 16.........................................................................................273
APPENDIX 17.........................................................................................275
ix
ix
APPENDIX 18.........................................................................................277
APPENDIX 19.........................................................................................279
APPENDIX 20.........................................................................................281
APPENDIX 21.........................................................................................283
APPENDIX 22.........................................................................................285
APPENDIX 23.........................................................................................287
APPENDIX 24.........................................................................................289
x
x
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1 Cumulative Grade 12 Enrolments in 12 Academic Year Periods:
1949-1985: In Relation to the Social Orientation of Each Period.........13
Table 2 Contextual Relationships......................................................................14
Table 3 A Model of Changing Perspectives About the Education of
Native Children From the Very Distant Past to the Present..................33
Table 4 Questionnaires......................................................................................73
Table 5 General Findings of Native P1 Student Readiness in B.C....................82
Table 6 Readiness Scores of Male and Female P1 Students
Band and Provincial Schools................................................................84
Table 7 Kindergarten (P1) Readiness Scores of all Male and Female
Students in this Study...........................................................................87
Table 8 Male and Female P1 Students from Band and Provincial
Schools who scored in the category of more than ready......................89
Table 9 Comparative Readiness Scores of Male and Female P1
Students: Bands A,B,C,D.....................................................................90
Table 10 P1 Age Distribution: Band and Provincial Schools...............................92
Table 11 Size of Household: Children age 19 and under....................................94
Table 12 Comparative Readiness of Children Over Time...................................97
Table 13 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distributions: Levels of Self-image
in School.............................................................................................104
Table 14 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Student perception
of parent perception of student capability in school............................105
Table 15 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Rating of self-capability
in school by last year's report card.....................................................106
Table 16 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Rating of capability of
Other Native students.........................................................................108
Table 17 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Rating of Native Heritage.......109
Table 18 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Employment Expectations.....110
Table 19 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Value of Formal
education as perceived by students...................................................112
Table 20 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Student perceptions of
parent's perceptions of formal education............................................113
Table 21 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Student's perception of
rate of encouragement by parent.......................................................114
Table 22 Grades 4 to 8 Frequency Distribution: Rate of Homework
completion..........................................................................................115
Table 23 Comparative Perceptions of Grades 4 to 8: Student in context..........117
Table 24 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Student perception of
other's perceptions about student capability.......................................121
xi
xi
Table 25 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Student perception of
capability as rated by self...................................................................122
Table 26 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Student perception of
parent perception of student capability in school................................122
Table 27 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Rating by last year's
report card..........................................................................................123
Table 28 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Rating of other
Native students...................................................................................125
Table 29 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Rating of Native Heritage.....126
Table 30 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Employment Expectations...127
Table 31 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Importance of Formal
education to the student.....................................................................128
Table 32 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Student's views of
parent's views of formal education.....................................................129
Table 33 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Student's perception of
rate of encouragement by parent........................................................130
Table 34 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Rate of Homework
completion..........................................................................................131
Table 35 Grades 9 to 12 Frequency Distribution: Direction of adjustment
to school standards (SS)....................................................................133
Table 36 Comparative Chi Square Statistics: Grades 4 to 8 and 9 to 12
Controlled for Academic Achievement by 12 Variables......................137
Table 37 Parents actual perception of the capability of their own
children in school................................................................................152
Table 38 Frequency Distribution: Parents rating of Native heritage..................154
Table 39 Frequency Distribution: Teacher perception of the capability
of Native students in school................................................................158
Table 40 Comparative Perceptions by students, parents, and teachers
of student capability in school.............................................................161
Table 41 Comparative Perceptions by student, parent, and teacher:
Student in context...............................................................................164
Table 42 Model of Inquiry..................................................................................176
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1 Theoretical Model...................................................................................6
Figure 2 Theoretical Model...................................................................................8
xii
xii
Figure 3 Two Perspectives Converge in Native Education Policy of 1973.........38
Figure 4 All Schools............................................................................................82
Figure 5 P1 Students: Ready and Not Ready.....................................................83
Figure 6 Band and Provincial Schools: Male and Female Readiness................85
Figure 7 Age Distribution of P1 Students............................................................93
Figure 8 Assumed Comparative P1 Readiness Scores Over Time....................97
Figure 9 Grade 9 to 12 Students: Self-image and Academic
Achievement Levels............................................................................124
Figure 10 Comparative perceptions of student self-image................................162
Figure11 Assumed Comparative P1 Readiness Scores Over Time..................173
Figure 12 A Bicultural Model..............................................................................181
Figure 13 Current Conditions of Context...........................................................184
1
1
INTRODUCTION
This study is an examination of Native students in British Columbia. It asks the
question: What is the current state of Native education in British Columbia with
respect to readiness at the kindergarten level and with respect to self-image at
the Grade 4 to 12 levels? The examination is guided by a theory of context. This
first chapter is divided into three sections. The first section outlines the genesis
of the study, its initiative, association, and mandate. The second section
discusses the purpose, definition of self-image and the limitations of the study
while the third section explains the application of the theory of context to
education including a brief summary of one study as an example. The third
section concludes with the hypotheses.
A NATIVE EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE
The genesis of this study begins with a presentation made to the ESL (English as
a Second Language) Advisory Committee within the Ministry of Education in
Victoria, British Columbia, by the Native Brotherhood of British Columbia on June
4, 1990. The presentation was made by Arthur Jackson, then Office Manager of
the Native Brotherhood. He made four significant points. One, he alluded to the
distinguished history of social struggle in which the Native Brotherhood has been
engaged since its inception more than sixty years ago. Part of this social
struggle had to do with fighting for the right of Native students to education
beyond the elementary school level. Two, he reminded the ESL Advisory
2
2
Committee that although Native education has enjoyed some improvement
recently there continues to be grave concern about the "levels of failure that
reveal something is desperately wrong in Indian education." Three, this grave
concern about the state of Native education requires examination which might
lead to some effective remedy or remedies and four, he averred, only Native
people were equal to the task.
The final point is moot but difficult to gainsay since all efforts from the very
beginning have failed to adequately advance Native education in Canada, first
with the missionaries during the early 1600s and subsequently with the federal
government into the early 1970s (Barman, Hebert and McCaskill 1986, 1987;
Berger 1979; Brooks 1976; Coates 1986; Duff 1965; Frideres 1974; Friesen
1985; Hawthorn 1966, 1967; Hawthorn, Belshaw and Jamieson 1958; Jaenen
1986, 1988; National Indian Brotherhood 1972; Titley 1986; Vallery 1942; Wilson
1986;). In any case the interpretation of the final point may be that the research
project be conducted and controlled by Native people rather than non Native
people as has been, hitherto, the usual practice. Control of the research project
does not exclude the cooperation and participation of non Natives. On the
contrary, a strong association is maintained with the University of British
Columbia whose staff is primarily non Native.
The ESL Advisory Committee agreed to a need for a research project about
Native education and would support such a project financially provided the
principal investigator was qualified at the doctorate level. This condition was met
and a three year Native Education Research Project was launched in August,
1990. In order to facilitate fundraising and provide Native support for the project
the Native Brotherhood hired a Native fund-raiser, and created a Native
Education Board and a three member Native Advisory Committee.
3
3
A Western Association
Since Native people do not have a tradition of academic research the Native
Brotherhood of British Columbia considered an association with the University of
British Columbia (UBC) essential. For this purpose the Museum of Anthropology
provided office space at the university and conferred the title of Research
Associate upon the principal investigator. Later the Native Education Research
Project office moved to the Department of Administrative, Adult and Higher
Education building. This association with UBC was important for two reasons.
The first reason is academic. The university is a research institution whose
faculty can provide valuable guidance and feedback in the development,
execution, and reporting phases of a research project. In addition any research
at UBC which involves human subjects must be screened by an ethical review
committee to ensure that the rights of human subjects are respected and not
violated. For example, human subjects must clearly understand that they have a
right to refuse to participate. Research procedures must be ethical and protocol
observed. In a province wide study these criteria translate into the necessity of
making formal presentations to all levels of authority in two communities of
people, the non Native community and the Native community. Although both
communities have many things in common the Native community nevertheless
retains a culturally distinctness rooted in the traditional past. This traditional
cultural strain woven into the fabric of modern Native community cultures creates
distinct demands upon protocol that is different from the protocol expected within
the larger society.
Within the larger society formal presentations to conduct a major project are
made first to the top levels of authority, to the provincial Ministry of Education,
followed by provincial school boards and their superintendents, followed by
individual school principals and their teaching and support staffs and, if all these
4
4
presentations to conduct research are found acceptable, then finally the parents
are contacted for their permission. Even after parental consent is acquired
individual students can still opt out (as one did) of participation in the research
project. In addition to the usual attention paid to protocol it was also necessary
to have the research project subjected to a second ethical review besides the
one conducted by the University of British Columbia. The second ethical review
was conducted by a large provincial school district which is surrounded by two
universities and numerous colleges, all of whom may, at different times or at the
same time, request research access to local public schools, and thus create
undesirable research conditions for the school district. To prevent abuse and to
regulate research flow, this school district has created its own research ethics
review committee. Not only did the Native Education Research Project meet all
the research criteria set by the Ethical Review Committee at UBC but it met all
the criteria set by this large school district. These activities were the first steps in
the ultimate objective of meeting all university academic standards, from
inception to conclusion, in order to obtain a measure of credibility within the wider
society in which Native people are contextualized.
At the same time, protocol within the Native community demanded that formal
presentations, in the form of letters, be made, and were made, to all Bands within
the province. Band governments have the authority to initiate Band operated
schools on their own reserves and it is these local governments which provide
the legal basis for the existence of both provincial and national tribal councils.
Thus when Band governments are formally contacted then all tribal councils
automatically have access to the relevant information since all tribal councils
cannot exist without Band council authority.
In addition, formal presentations to participate in the research project were made
to the Native Home and School Counselors Association (NHSCA) of BC. This
5
5
association was originally composed of paraprofessional Native Education
Coordinators whose original purpose was to mediate between the Native
student/home and the school. The name change from Coordinator to Counselor
more accurately reflects the activity of these education workers. Since the
NHSCs work within and throughout the school system of British Columbia, and
since they are primarily of Native heritage, they seemed the best candidates to
help the research project as research interviewers.
The second reason that an association with UBC is important has to do with the
poor relationship of long standing between Native and non Natives in Canada.
Therefore one objective of this research project is that both Native and non
Native benefit from the association. Native people can benefit from the
acquisition and use of the Western tool called 'research' while non Natives may
benefit from the outcomes of research conducted from a Native perspective. The
realization of the above objective is consistent with traditional Native practices
which sought to harmonize all elements within a given environment, a given
context.
A Native Brotherhood Mandate
From the outset the Native Brotherhood insisted upon the utility of the Native
Education Research Project, that it be applied, rather than basic, research. The
Native Brotherhood saw that in spite of some recent improvements in the
education of Native children, in spite of increased participation by Native people
at the post secondary level, there continues to be grave concerns about the
apparent high rate of educational failure of Native children. Why, in spite of
many changes, are Native children continuing to fail at apparently unacceptable
levels? The question of continued educational failure by Native students is the
problem to which the Native Brotherhood addressed its mandate. Practical
solutions are the principal objectives of the Native Education research project.
6
6
The next section is a discussion of the purpose, problem statement and
limitations of the research project.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
There is a perception that Native students continue to fail at unacceptable levels
within the school system. One of the first large scale research projects about
Native education was conducted by Hawthorn (1967). The study covered the
period between 1949 and 1962. He reported the national failure rate of Native
students at an astounding 94%. The percentage of failure was calculated by
taking the difference between the Grade one enrolment and the Grade twelve
enrolment eleven years later. Although this method of calculating education
failure is an unacceptable practice today (because of multiple confounding
variables such as mobility, death, change of Indian status, age-grade retardation,
age-grade acceleration, and dropping in and out of school several times,) the
Grade twelve enrolment was, at the time, so small in comparison to the possible
numbers of students eligible, as to make the method of calculation irrelevant. In
fact if the above mentioned confounding variables are taken into account one
effect would be to reduce the 6% success rate even more, and for all intents and
purposes, the failure rate might be said to be roughly 100%.
In British Columbia, Hawthorn's method of calculation for educational failure
registered at 96%. There was no question from this Canada wide study that
Native education during this period was almost a total failure. By 1976, in a
general bibliography about Native education in America, Brooks could observe
that "studies examining the academic achievement of Indian children yield what
is now a familiar and dreary statistic. Clearly, we have not been successful in
this regard, yet there are few answers available" (p.192).
7
7
However, perhaps unknown to Brooks and other observers of Native education,
one of the first vital answers to the problems of Native education was proposed
to the Canadian government by the then National Indian Brotherhood (now
Assembly of First Nations) in 1972. The proposal was entitled 'Indian Control of
Indian Education' (National Indian Brotherhood 1972). When the federal
government accepted the proposal in principle, in early 1973, almost four
hundred years of Native education policy was radically changed. Until 1973 the
responsibility for the education of Native children had always been assumed by
others, first by missionaries, and subsequently by the federal government. The
ramifications of this new policy proposal impacted both education policy and
program at the local level.
Since that time a number of Native communities have assumed some
responsibility or management over the education policy and programs of their
own schools. Where Native communities do not have their own schools but
where they have significant numbers of Native children in public schools there is
a Master Tuition Agreement (between the federal and provincial governments)
which allows for Native involvement within those schools. Native 'involvement',
management, control, responsibility, highlighted the difference between Native
education before 1973 and after 1973. In the light of these sweeping changes in
Native education it seems best to avoid the typical piecemeal approach to
education research. Rather than examine individual problem areas such as
learning style, leadership style, teaching style, curriculum relevance, dropouts,
language retention, or examine specific schools or grade levels, it seemed timely
for a broader examination of Native education. The Native education policy
change of 1973 signaled changes not only to education policy and program but
also changes to the nature of the relationship between the Native and non
Native, at all levels of society, at the institutional level and at the
8
8
intergovernmental level. These changes have been characterized by Native
involvement which might range from passive interest to active management at
the school board/trustee level. Therefore, in the context of these changes to
Native education what is the state of Native education today? This question is
discussed in the following paragraphs.
Statement of the Problem
Since the problem is focused upon the Native student, the question may be
refined to ask: What is the state of Native education today from the school entry
level to the grade twelve level? This question is still too general and requires
some contextual background in order to arrive at a specific focus.
In 1967 Hawthorn identified the problem of the school entry level for the Native
student in the following way. "The Indian child falls behind immediately" he said,
"because he has to acquire many of the skills the non-Indian children already
possess upon school entry." (p. 127) In contrast to the experience of other
middle class Canadian children the Native children were not coming to school
appropriately prepared. "There is no question" Hawthorn said, "that schooling
presents a clear discontinuity of experience for the Indian child." (p. 108) The
major problems were identified as language and culture. Native children did not
usually come to school with a sufficient command of English nor did they come to
school with the required Western social orientation. Consequently, Hawthorn
found that "teachers did not expect Indian students to perform well in school at
any level [emphasis mine]" (p. 144). In comparison to that period the specific
question for this study is: What is the current level of readiness among Native
kindergarten children in British Columbia?
Another problem identified by the Hawthorn study was self-image. In general,
the social context of that day was very negative for Natives. Hawthorn, Belshaw
9
9
& Jamieson (1958) reported that Whites characterized Natives as "lazy, shiftless,
and irresponsible (p. 74), of a low intellectual capacity and without "the potential
to develop as rapidly as Whites along the lines of social, emotional, educational,
moral or economic attainment" (p. 70). This prevailing negative social context in
which Native people lived in general was reflected in the classroom in the
negative expectations which teachers held about Native students. In fact the
entire Native community in Canada, with few exceptions, suffered social, political,
and economic exclusion and oppression which provided a very negative climate
for Native students in every context of life, at home, at school, at play, in or
peripheral to the workforce, and in politics. Hawthorn characterized the Native
experience of the 1950s in this way.
Discontinuity of socialization, repeated failure, discrimination and lack
of significance of the educational process in the life of the Indian child
result in diminishing motivation, increasing negativism, poor self-
images and low levels of aspiration. (p. 130)
The specific question for this part of the study is: How do Native students in
grades 4 to 12 in British Columbia regard themselves today? How do these
students perceive their innate academic capability to perform in school? Is there
an absence of self esteem among Native students today?
In summary, the purpose of this study is to examine the level of readiness of
Native kindergarten students and the levels of self-image as it relates to
academic achievement among grades 4 to 12 Native students in the province of
British Columbia in the context of home, school, society, and heritage.
Definitions
Self-esteem is commonly used by both professional and lay people alike when
problems of education are discussed. Curry et al. (1990) argues that the word is
poorly defined since its meaning may have the four dimensions of acceptance,
10
10
power and control, moral worth, and competence. Others like Gecas and
Schwalbe (1986) limit the meaning of self-esteem to a sense of self-worth and a
sense of self-efficacy. Hughes (1984) finds that self-concept and self-esteem are
used interchangeably in many studies and that there is no widely adopted
conceptualization of self-concept and self-esteem. One area of consensus to the
meaning of self-esteem is the notion of value as in self-worth, moral worth, and
human value. Covington's (1992) work indicates an acute, albeit ambiguous,
awareness of both self-worth and ability in students. It seems appropriate to
accept these two dimensions, value and ability, as a definition since these have
meaning for the students.
Although the term 'self-esteem' is widely used in association with academic
performance this study prefers the more neutral term 'self-image'. Self-image in
the context of school is defined by a perception of the student's own academic
ability in school. A student's academic self-image in school is dependent upon
the student's perception of academic ability in the same school setting. High
academic ability corresponds with a high value of the self in that academic
context. Low ability corresponds with low value of self in the same context.
Whenever other terms such as self-worth, self-concept, and self-regard, are
encountered in this study these words are used interchangeably with the word
self-image.
In the scale developed to measure self-image the word capable is used in the
context of school. The question arises as to what is meant by the phrase
capable in school. Since this study is phenomenological the short answer is
tautological. The meaning attached to capable in school is the meaning which
the student perceives in the phrase. This answer may not be satisfactory so a
more comprehensive discussion of the phrase seems necessary.
11
11
In general those who understand and speak English may be said to attach
common meanings to ordinary words. Otherwise communication is impossible.
After a student completes a school task the teacher indicates the capability level
of that performance by a score or by comment. Cumulative school tasks may be
reduced to grade point average which indicates capability in school level.
Whether the student perceives self-capability as inherent or as developmental is
not an issue. The examination is of student perception of self-capability
irrespective of the philosophical implications. It is assumed that when untold
thousands of students attempt the same tasks which are scored by teachers, that
yearly replication of the process tends to produce a common perception of the
meaning of capability in school.
Another concept that requires definition is the aboriginal of Canada. Many terms
today, such as First Nations people, Indian, Native American, Amerindian,
indigenous people are all used to indicate the aboriginal. This study prefers the
term Native but will use the other terms equally to refer to any person who
identifies himself or herself as one of Native ancestry. Two other main groups in
Canada are those of aboriginal ancestry from the Northwest Territories and those
of aboriginal ancestry of mixed descent and, organized into communities, known
as Metis. These latter two categories are not included in this study.
Historically, the most used misnomer to designate the aboriginal is the term
'Indian'. Although much has been written and spoken about the mistake
Columbus made when he landed in the Americas and thought he had landed in
India it may still be useful to explain the word. After the initial mistake the word
'Indian' passed into the constitutional legal jargon whenever the Canadian
government made or instituted laws with respect to the aboriginals of Canada.
'Indian' is therefore a legal term which describes, for constitutional purposes a
certain group of people in Canada. In early colonial times the term 'Indian'
12
12
equated with other terms such as 'savage', 'barbarian', and 'primitive'. Perhaps
for sound historical reasons the aboriginal people today prefer the designation
'First Nations' when speaking about themselves.
Another term which requires some explanation is the word 'Band'. What is an
Indian Band? This word can be better understood when it is contrasted with the
word 'reserve'. An Indian reserve is a plot of land. On the prairies a community
of Native people may live on, and own, one large reserve whose boundaries are
determined by the federal government. In this case the name of the Band and
the name of the reserve may be the same. In British Columbia, particularly on
the coast, a community of Native people may live on one small reserve and own
23 other small reserves. For example, the Ahousaht people on the west side of
Vancouver Island live on Marktosis reserve which is one small reserve (plot of
land) of many owned by the Ahousaht people. One of these other reserves is
known as Ahous from which is derived the community name 'Ahousaht'. The
Ahousaht people can be called the Ahousaht Band. The word Band refers to
community members.
Limitations of the Study
This study is limited to an examination of Native students in Kindergarten and
grades 4 to 12 in the province of British Columbia. Numerically, this is a severe
limitation since Native people form only 3%, roughly, of the population in British
Columbia. The Native people are an indigenous group set apart in Canadian
society by the Indian Act within the constitution. At present this legal distinction
or 'setting apart' has led to the current constitutional issue whereby Native
governments are demanding recognition as another order of government in
Canada. It is not necessarily the legal distinction which is a limitation to the study
since there may be Natives of indeterminate number who have adopted enough
of Western ways as to lose any distinction of consequence. Nevertheless, there
13
13
are still evident in many parts of this country a Native culture distinct from others.
In British Columbia, variants of the ancient traditional potlatch are still practiced
throughout the province. Traditional indigenous names are given, traditional
hereditary chiefs recognized, traditional foods prepared for feasts, and much
traditional singing and dancing is still heard in modern long houses. In so much
as traditional Native practices and values are upheld is the degree of distinction
between the Native and non Native in Canadian society.
The study is a survey and therefore is restricted for analytical purposes to a
snapshot of events over a brief period of time. No comparative information is
gathered from recent years and therefore the analysis cannot account for
temporary intervening variables which may skew results one way or another.
Self selection is a usual limitation of survey research. Letters of introduction and
invitation to participate generate subjects of study which may not be a fair
representation of the population. However, once a favorable response is had
from a school district or Band operated school, the limitation of the study
depends upon capture. In some cases there was limited or little response from
parents and in other cases the entire student population was captured.
Another limitation to the study is that it is phenomenological. The survey
questions require a perceptual response. Although some student perceptions
may be cross checked with parent and teacher perceptions the study design
provides no method of cross checking other perceptions. For example, student
perception of academic achievement is not validated by an examination of the
previous years report card. Another limitation of a perception study is that
different students may interpret the same question in different ways. For
example, one student may choose the answer "very capable" {from the possible
range of [1) not very capable; 2) borderline; 3) capable; 4) and very capable]} to
mean academic performance to potential. This answer may translate into
14
14
average grades in comparison to others who may interpret the same response to
mean above average grades. Another student may choose "borderline" as an
answer and this may translate in a report card to mean a satisfactory academic
record.
In summary, the main limitations of the study have to do with the cultural
distinctness of the subjects, their numerical minority position in society, and the
qualitative nature of the responses required by the research design. These
limitations may mean that results from this study are not generalizable and in fact
the results may have limited or no application anywhere except to the time and
place where data was gathered.
In the next section the theory of context which guides the study is discussed
together with an example of one study which provides some credence for the
theory. The section concludes with an outline of the hypotheses.
THEORY OF CONTEXT AND HYPOTHESES
The theory of context assumes that education takes place in, and is affected by,
a variety of contexts. For the purpose of this study these contexts may be limited
to, and described as, the student, the home, the school, society, and heritage.
Figure 1 on the following page illustrates the assumed relationship between the
student and the other contexts. Theoretically, the quality of academic
performance depends upon the dynamics of the relationship between the student
and the context of home, school, society, and heritage.
Each of these contexts may be considered an environment in which the student
must live. The environments occur in both time and space. The student may
15
15
move spatially from home to school to social settings and back home again in the
present while the heritage environment has already occurred in the past and is
assumed to have an influence upon the student irrespective of consciousness or
awareness about it. The contexts taken as a whole have certain properties,
order and qualities which are discussed in the next subsection.
Figure 1
Properties, Order, and Qualities of Contexts
The concentric circles in Figure 1 are not meant to reflect the precise nature of
reality but simply to indicate the assumed contextual nature of the relationship
between student, home, school, society, and heritage. The contextual property
indicates integration, connection, and interrelationship, between contexts. Thus
the student context is integrated into the home context and thereby establishes a
connection and interrelationship between the two. The home has an influence
upon the student who lives in the home and the student has an influence upon
the home. Similarly, the home and school may have a mutual influence upon
16
16
one another as would the school and society, or home and society. However, for
the purposes of this study only one orientation is considered for examination,
namely, the orientation of the student in the context of the home, school, society,
and heritage.
In Figure 2 on the following page the assumed strength of each relationship,
under normal circumstances, between the student and the other contexts is
illustrated by the thickness of the arrows. The thicker the arrow the stronger the
assumed relationship and the thinner the arrow the weaker the relationship. The
home context is normally expected to have the strongest relationship with the
student as indicated by the thicker arrow, and gradually diminishing in strength of
relationship as we move to the contexts of school and society. The strong
relationship between student and home is especially applicable during the early
school years when children are much more dependent upon their parents than
they generally are later in life.
Since life is a process rather than a still photograph the strength of these
relationships may differ at any given time and change over time depending upon
the activity and focus of the student. If, for example, the Native student is
engaged in an intense school project about the contributions of Native heritage to
the world then it is expected that the strength of relationship between contexts of
student and heritage would be very strong, particularly during the school project.
As the student moves on to other activities and interests either in school, at
home, or in society, the strength of relationship may shift accordingly.
Figure 2
17
17
Ordinarily, the strongest relationship, as indicated by the thickness of the arrows,
is expected to be between the home and the student during the early years but
as the student enters the teen years the strongest relationship may shift from the
home to the peer group.
The time dimension (see Figure 1, page 16) of the theory of context provides
historical perspective. Everyone may be assumed to have a heritage. The
Native heritage has often been said to stretch back to time immemorial while
Canada's heritage begins around 1600. The Native student is contextualized in,
and assumed to be affected by, both of these two different but interconnected
legacies. The quality of the relationship between the contexts may be
characterized as positive or negative. A home context which encourages and
facilitates the academic life of the student is a positive relationship and the
degree of encouragement and facilitation is the strength of that relationship.
Similarly, a negative home context works against the academic achievement of
the student. The same principles would apply to the relationship of the student
with both the school and society together with society's (including the school
18
18
curriculum) portrayal of that student's heritage. However before the hypotheses
are discussed it may be useful to provide an example of one study which
provided some credence to the theory of context.
An Example of One Study
The theory of context emerged from a dissertation by Atleo (1990) entitled
"Grade 12 Enrolments of Status Indians in British Columbia: 1949-1985". This
study is summarized under the subtitles of the problem, the theory, the test of
the theory, and conclusion.
The Problem The problem addressed by the 1990 dissertation is the
same problem that is being addressed by the current study, namely, the
perception that Native students continue to fail at unacceptable levels within the
school system. However the approach of the earlier study is different from the
current study in that the focus of the earlier study was upon one grade of
students over a thirty seven year period. This longitudinal type of study allowed
for an examination of changing conditions over time (both within the school
system as well as within society at large) in association with the changing
conditions of Native education.
The Theory The theory of context is expressed in essentially the same
way in both the 1990 dissertation and in this current study with this difference.
The earlier study focuses upon the general term education as taking place in a
context of conditions both internal and external to education while this current
study focuses upon the student in the context of home, school, society, and
heritage. The principle of the assumption of the contextual nature of things
remains unchanged. The manner in which the theory was tested in the 1990
study is discussed next.
19
19
The Test of the Theory of Context The 1990 study examined the
number of Grade 12 enrolments of status Indians in the province of British
Columbia from 1949 to 1985 in the light of changing conditions (contexts) over
time. The theory of context predicted that prevailing external and internal
conditions to education would affect the academic performance of the Native
student. However, rather than characterize these prevailing conditions as
positive or negative they were characterized as inclusive and exclusive of Native
people. For example, one external condition for Native people during the 1950s
is identified as political exclusion because Native people were, by law, excluded
from the exercise of the federal franchise. Political inclusion began in 1960 when
Prime Minister Diefenbaker granted the federal vote to Native people.
Social and Economic exclusion of Native people by the dominant society during
the 1950s is indicated by the exclusion of Native people from such activity as the
following; service in restaurants, rental of rooms in motels and hotels, purchase
or rental of housing in urban areas, and the exclusion of Native people from the
job market.
At the same time as the external conditions to education were found exclusive in
orientation towards Native people the internal conditions were also exclusive in
terms of teacher characteristics and curriculum. Teachers during the 1950s did
not expect Native students to perform well at any level of the school system and
the curriculum contained pejorative views about Native heritage. There was a
consistency of political, social, and economic conditions characterized by a
climate of exclusion toward Native people in all areas of society both external
and internal to the education of Native children.
The study found that, over a period of decades, changes did take place in the
conditions of society, moving from a position of exclusion towards Native people
20
20
to a position of inclusion towards Native people. These changes, external to
education, were accompanied by concomitant changes to the internal conditions
of education. External conditions to education were accurately reflected in the
internal conditions of education. For example, whereas teachers were found
during the 1950s to be exclusive in attitude towards the Native student, there
was, beginning in the 1960s and more so from the 1970s onwards, a move by
teachers towards a position of inclusion. Similar changes took place in
curriculum, where it moved from a position of exclusion to a more inclusive
position over the same period of time. Inaccurate and negative stereotyping of
Native heritage was gradually eliminated from the school textbooks. Prevailing
social, political, and economic conditions within society towards Natives were
reflected accurately within the prevailing conditions of education. Housego
(1980) in a study of the changing styles of governance evidenced in the
behaviour of education superintendents during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s,
noticed the apparent dependency of conditions within the education system to
conditions within the larger society. As society's attitude to the issues of life
changed over time the style of governance by the education superintendent
changed accordingly. Style of education superintendent governance reflected
prevailing conditions and attitudes within society.
Similarly, Atleo's 1990 study found that when society at large generally excluded
Native people then the school system also generally excluded Native people.
The prediction of the study was that the quality of these conditions would affect
Native academic performance. When these conditions were prevailingly
exclusive then academic performance would be negatively affected and when
conditions moved to conditions of inclusion then academic performance would be
positively affected. These predictions were confirmed by the study.
21
21
Table 1 on the next page shows the cumulative Grade 12 enrolments of Native
students over the three periods identified. The changes in external conditions
were positively associated with the internal changes to Grade 12 enrolments.
The cumulative enrolment rose from 561 Native students during the first period
between 1949 and 1961 to 4256 Native students during the final period between
1973 and 1985. This change represents a 7.6 fold increase. Over the same time
the population base for these enrolments experienced a 1.6 fold increase.
Table 1
Cumulative Grade 12 Enrolments in 12 Academic Year Periods: 1949-1985
In Relation to the Social Orientation of Each Period*
1949-1961 1961-1973 1973-1985
Social
Orientation
Exclusive
Transitional
Inclusive
Grade 12
Enrolment
Totals
561
2005
4256
*Source- Atleo's "Grade 12 Enrolments of Status Indians in British Columbia:1949-1985"
Table 2 below illustrates two different Native responses to the changing
conditions which took place within society and within the education system. One
response to society's changing conditions was proactive and the other response
was passive. Native communities which reacted in a proactive manner became
more involved with the education system at every level, from paraprofessional to
professional, from passive interest to active control of Native school boards and
Native schools. Other Native communities, perhaps still deeply distrustful of
government motives and hence more wary, reacted with a wait and see attitude,
22
22
choosing to remain under the governance of the federal government rather than
assuming any type of management or responsibility.
Table 2
Society's Orientation Native Orientation Academic Achievement
Exclusive
irrelevant
unsuccessful
Inclusive
proactive as in 'Indian
control'
positive gains
passive as in gov't
control
no gains
*Source- Atleo's "Grade 12 Enrolments of Status Indians in British Columbia:1949-1985"
The information in Table 2 is based upon a ten year study of two Native
communities one of which reacted to society's changes by assuming control over
their own school while the other community opted to remain under the
governance of the federal government. The difference in Grade 12 enrolment
changes over ten years between the two Native communities was dramatic. The
proactive Native community showed dramatic Grade 12 enrolment increases
over ten years while the other Native community showed no significant increase
in Grade 12 enrolments over the same period of time. These findings indicate
that the positive gains made in academic achievement amongst Native students
may be associated with active involvement of the Native community in the
education system. This active involvement by the Native community did not
become practical until the federal education policy change of 1973.
Conclusion The 1990 study found that various conditions, external and
internal to education, seem to be closely associated with the academic
23
23
performance of Native students. When these conditions were exclusive both
external and internal to education then academic performance tended to be
negative and when the external and internal conditions to education became
more inclusive then academic performance tended to become more positive.
Moreover it was found that the positive academic performance was associated
with a proactive response to inclusion but not to a passive response to inclusion.
This means that favorable external conditions alone are not sufficient to explain
academic achievement nor should unfavorable conditions alone be sufficient to
explain educational failure. Individual response is also an important variable in
academic performance. Thus when external conditions to education became
inclusive for Native people it was those who were proactive to this external
condition of inclusivity who experienced increased academic achievement. While
those Natives who did not respond proactively, but rather responded passively or
suspiciously, to inclusivity, did not experience any increase in academic
achievement. In this way the theory of context received some credence and the
following hypotheses are based upon the same theory.
Hypotheses
Since the prevailing conditions of society external to education remain inclusive
to Native people it is expected that Native homes therefore will have been
positively affected by these external changes such as to improve the readiness
levels of Native kindergarten students. When the external conditions of society
are inclusive, a Native family may respond to these inclusive conditions by
perceiving realistic opportunities for their children. In general, a Native family
may respond to inclusive societal conditions by participating meaningfully within
society by voting for school board/trustee members, attending various school
functions, voting for a political party member, and paying attention to local,
provincial, and national events of interest. This type of societal participation
24
24
might have the effect of better preparation of Native children to participate in the
school entry phase of the educative process.
In Grades 4 to 12 the quality of self-image of the student is predicted to be
associated with prevailing conditions or attitudes within the home, the school,
and also associated with the student's perception of opportunities in society and
perception of heritage. Perception by the student of positive prevailing conditions
are expected to be associated with positive academic performances while
perception of negative conditions by the student are expected to be associated
with negative academic performances.
It is also predicted that the quality of student response to the prevailing inclusive
conditions of society together with an encouraging home and a positive school
environment will be associated with academic achievement. The quality of
student response can be measured by the amount and degree of homework
completed by the student. Where the student tends to respond very proactively
to inclusivity it is predicted that there will be a tendency to academic
achievement. Where the student does not respond proactively to inclusivity it is
predicted that there will be a tendency to academic mediocrity or failure.
An Overview of the Study
First Nations people have had a significant and ongoing relationship with Canada
since the early 1600s. It is therefore sound academic practice to continue to
include historical considerations in any examination of Native education. Chapter
2 is therefore a literature review which includes a brief historical overview of the
education of Native children. The best reason, other than the academic reason
25
25
implied above, for continuing to highlight the history of Native education in
Canada is that it not be forgotten and thereby hopefully avoid any repetition of it.
Since the study is about self-image and its assumed relationship to academic
achievement the second part of Chapter 2 is a brief review of this literature.
Chapter 3 is a discussion of the research design, research instruments, data
collection procedures and the Native approach to the process of research.
Chapter 4 presents part one of the study about P1 readiness while Chapter 5
presents part two of the study about academic self-image in the context of home,
school, society, and heritage. Chapter 5 brings the study to a conclusion and this
is followed by a lengthy appendices which contains the commentaries of
students, parents, and teachers. These commentaries are the responses to the
open ended questions of the survey about Native education. The inclusion of
the complete primarily unedited commentaries is in keeping with a Native value
of respect for all life. The traditional practice of this value includes the
democratic principle of allowing each person to speak and to be heard.
26
26
CHAPTER 2
A LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter presents two topics relevant to the examination of readiness in
kindergarten and the examination of self-image in grades four to twelve among
Native students in British Columbia. The first topic presented is an historical
overview (an abridged version of Atleo, 1990) of the education of Native children
and the second topic presented is a brief discussion about the literature
surrounding the assumed association between self-esteem and academic
achievement. The historical context is important because its effects are still
current issues and must therefore be considered unfinished business. Current
constitutional issues surrounding aboriginal land claims and aboriginal self-
government in Canada today have roots stemming from Colonial perspectives
which are the same perspectives that framed early Native education policy.
While modern education theory and practice may have moved towards cultural
egalitarianism the unfinished business with respect to land claims and aboriginal
self-government introduces a possible external contextual contradiction. What
does it mean when the rationale for the denial of a current British Columbia land
claims case is based upon the same perspectives of cultural assumptions which
characterized colonial thinking about Native people? Does this judgment expose
the real Canadian perspective which is otherwise camouflaged or constrained to
appear egalitarian within the Canadian education system?
The second topic is a review of some of the literature about the widely used term,
self-esteem, which is thought to be associated with academic achievement. The
27
27
perception of Native educational failure is best understood in the context of a
history the effects of which may have contributed to the devaluation of the Native
person and hence, damaged the self-esteem of the Native student thereby
negatively affecting academic performance. Each of these topics is discussed in
turn.
THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF NATIVE EDUCATION:
1600 TO 1992: AN OVERVIEW
The pace of contemporary change does not render the past
irrelevant; it merely shifts the perspective from which we
weigh its influence and interpret its lessons. (Tosh, 1984, p.1)
The present is still understood in the light of the past in spite of the pace of
contemporary change. Rapid and major constitutional changes that are being
proposed in Canada in 1992 'does not render the past irrelevant, it merely shifts
the perspective from which we weigh its influence and interpret its lessons.' The
'shift of perspective' notion can be modeled by the theory of context, sketched in
Chapter 1, because of the historical dimension to the theory. An example of a
shift of perspective is the proposal to enshrine Aboriginal Self Government into
Canada's constitution in 1992. (Although this study is not a national study it has
a national context because of the peculiar condition whereby the education of
Native children who ordinarily reside on reserve is a federal responsibility
[Government of Canada, 1981b] rather than a provincial one which is usual for
other children.) The constitutional proposal represents a major shift of
perspective about Native people in Canada compared to the perspective of the
Indian Act of 1876 and compared to the perspective of colonial attitudes dating
back to the 1600s.
28
28
When perspectives are extended back to time immemorial it becomes possible to
see Native people in a much different light than that hitherto assumed by the
dominant society. This greater perspective of the past may be important for a
greater understanding about the background to the long history of Native
educational failure. Table 3 on the following page characterizes Native people
over a long period of time and one can see that aboriginal people may have been
successful much, much longer than they have been assumed to be unsuccessful
or dysfunctional. Table 3 is a model of shifting perspectives about Native people
and is framed by the theory of context.
The model is a vast oversimplification of a complex historical process but it is an
argument put forth for serious consideration. The assumption of the model is
that Native people were not what the Europeans assumed them to be from time
immemorial. These European assumptions are well known and include notions
of a Native people who were savage, barbaric, without laws and morals,
genetically inferior, weak-minded, incapable of performing ordinary cognitive
functions, and behaving, according to a contemporary member of the judiciary,
not by forethought but by instinct.
29
29
Table 3
A Model of Changing Perspectives About the Education of Native
Children From the Very Distant Past to the Present
Time immemorial
1600
18001992
Natives are independent
and self governing.
Thousands of years of
effective cultural
transmission suggest
thousands of years of
successful education,
thousands of years where
the self image of Native
children is likely not a
major concern.
Natives are still largely
independent and self
governing nations and serve as
useful military allies. Pure
traditional education remains
successful but the education of
Native children by the
missionaries is a failure and
self image among these
children may have begun to be
a problem then.
The Natives lose their
independence with the
Indian Act of 1876.
Native education is
eventually taken over
by the Federal Gov't
which continues the
same education policy
until 1973, by which
time, self image among
Native children is a
major concern.
The historian Patterson (1972) argues that at "the time of first contact , Indians
were treated as separate states or nations." (p. 1) However, over "the centuries
from about 1500 to the present," Patterson observes, "Indians have moved from
a position of autonomy to one of loss of control in most if not all of the major
areas of their lives. (p. 187) Trigger (1988) agrees and notes that:
In histories of Canada written prior to the 1840s Indians played a
prominent role and were treated respectfully. This reflected the
actual significance of native people, who as trappers and traders
were important to the Canadian economy and who, with the
exception of the Iroquois prior to 1701 and the Micmacs in the late
eighteenth century, were allies of successive French and British
governments in their struggles against the English colonists and
later the Americans to the south (p.19-20).
The theory of context assumes that as these historical perspectives or
conditions shifted over time, that these changes in societal conditions, in
30
30
perspectives about Native people, had an influence, an effect, in general, upon
the academic performance of Native children.
In the following paragraphs an attempt is made to provide a brief overview of the
changing historical perspectives or conditions in which Native children received
education in Canada. The following material and much more can also be found
in Atleo's 1990 study.
Barman, Hebert and McCaskill (1986) state that while the aboriginal population
for the most part, accepted the European at face value the Europeans assumed
the superiority of their culture over that of any aboriginal peoples (p.2). For
example, in 1632, a Jesuit missionary penned the following Indian educational
policy statement that endured with little modification until 1973.
Their education must consist not merely of the training of the mind,
but of weaning them from the habits and feelings of their ancestors,
and the acquirements of the language, arts, and customs of civilized
life. (cited in Vallery, 1942, p.114)
The Native education policy statement above is an example of certain prevailing
perspectives about Native people held by the new comers to the Americas.
These prevailing perspectives translated into Native education policy which, in
turn, were translated into a variety of methodological education practices. Prior
to this time, from about 1600 back to time immemorial it is assumed that
successful traditional education obtains. Even after 1600, so long as Native
people governed their own communities, it is assumed that successful traditional
education continued without problems of failure or self-image among Native
children. It might be assumed, based upon colonial attitudes, that traditional
Native education was characterized by savagery, barbarism, and primitivism.
After all, primitive savages by definition are without laws and morals. Although
some or many in Canadian society may still hold views reminiscent of colonial
31
31
biases about Native people there is now a growing body of evidence to indicate
the enormous magnitude of the error that early colonialists made about the
nature of the aboriginals who first inhabited this land. A good example is
Weatherford (1988, 1991) who writes about the numerous positive contributions
that have been made to western civilization by the aboriginals of the Americas.
Positive contributions to any civilization cannot be made from people who are
characterized by primitive savagery without laws and morals.
As the newcomers gained greater political control over Native people the
prevailing European perspectives about Native people gain concomitant
importance in the European style education of Native children. The
consequences of this early perspective about Native people resulted in
educational failure. Since both the French and English held similar perspectives
about Native people their efforts produced similar results. For example In 1688,
Mother de l'Incarnation made the following observations:
It is however a very difficult thing, although not impossible, to
francize or civilize them. We have had more experience in this than
any others, and we have remarked that out of a hundred that have
passed through our hands scarcely have we civilized one. We find
docility and intelligence in them, but when we are least expecting it
they climb over our enclosure and go to run the woods with their
relatives, where they find more pleasure than in all the amenities of
our French houses. Savage nature is made that way; they cannot be
constrained, and if they are they become melancholy and their
melancholy makes them sick. Besides, the Savages love their
children extra-ordinarily and when they know that they are sad they
will do everything to get them back, and we have to give them back
to them. (cited in Jaenen, 1986, p.58)
On the other hand the English succinctly described their efforts to educate Native
people by cultural extirpation as a 'complete failure' (Wilson, 1986).
Not all early attempts at Native education were unsuccessful. Father Maillard, in
1735, discovered an effective approach to teaching literacy to the Micmacs but
decided against using it because of fears that through literacy the Micmacs might
32
32
form political coalitions "to the detriment of French interests" (cited in Battiste,
1986 p.31). In this connection the Reverend Silas Tertius Rand, who arrived
among the Micmacs a century later in 1845 observed that,
Had their language been reduced to writing in the ordinary way, the
Indians would have learned the use of writing and reading, and
would have advanced in knowledge so as to be able to cope with
their more enlightened invaders: and it would have been a more
difficult matter for the latter to cheat them out of their lands and
other rightful possessions. (cited in Battiste, 1986, p.33)
Thus, from about 1600 onward there are two perspectives, two conditions that
obtain as contexts for the Native student. One is of European origin as
expressed by the Jesuit missionary whose aim is to educate Native children by
extirpating Native culture out of them and inculcating European culture. The
other perspective is of aboriginal origin and is characterized by resistance to
extirpation, to destruction. The former perspective persisted in education policy
and practice until it was changed in 1973 when the federal government accepted,
in principle, the National Indian Brotherhood proposal change entitled, "Indian
Control of Indian Education". The latter perspective, in spite of suffering heavy
losses, particularly in the language area, also persisted, sometimes underground,
sometimes contrary to law, to the present day. The new Native education policy
of 1973 essentially brought the two divergent perspectives into relative harmony
as modeled in Figure 3
________________________________________________________________
Figure 3
1600 - 1973 1973 - 1985
EP
NCR
NP
Legend
EP=European Perspective: ENC=Extirpate Native Culture: F=Failure
33
33
NP= Native Perspective: MNC=Maintain Native Culture: GLC=Gradually Losing Culture
NCR=Native Cultural Revival: NEI=Native Education Improving
________________________________________________________________
The period of divergent perspectives, beginning around 1600 and continuing until
1973, provided a condition of ambivalence for Native people. For example,
traditional Native people had certain kinds of knowledge and experience which
had been proven over millennia. When these proven experiences diverged from
that observed in European behaviour it became a matter of ambivalence. For
example, Sagard, a Recollet, recorded one of these observations of strange
European behaviour which astonished Native people. Sagard wrote:
[T]hose of their Nation...offer reciprocal Hospitality, and help each
other so much that they provide for the needs of all so that there is
no poor beggar at all in their towns, bourgs and villages, as I said
elsewhere, so that they found it very bad hearing that there were in
France a great number of needy and beggars, and thought that it
was due to a lack of charity, and blamed us greatly saying that if
we had some intelligence we would set some order in the matter,
the remedies being simple. (cited in Jaenen, 1988, p.121)
Ultimately the Native perspective did not matter because the European
eventually gained numerical superiority to add to the technological superiority
which, together with the presumed cultural superiority, provided no other
perspectives for the Native in education except that presumed by the newcomers
to the Americas. These early Native education policies and practices carried
over into the contemporary post second world war period. In the next section the
relationship between the historical context of Native education, the self-image of
the Native student, and current literature about self-esteem and academic
performance is discussed.
34
34
SELF-IMAGE AND EDUCATION
It was harsh treatment: first stripping a people of their cultural identity,
then preventing them from securing another identity which they had been
told was superior and ought to be emulated and, in the end, confining them
to a physical area where they could look as through a glass window, at
what they had been first enticed to have, then wished for
should have had
get and, indeed, that their present desolate condition was possibly
deserved. It was a sure way to create hopelessness, futility, and self-
hatred of the strongest kind and produce a massive ambivalence toward
the dominant culture together with isolation, apathy, and estrangement
from whatever identity a people could possibly retain with their own
culture. Indeed, it was nothing less than a cultural double-bind treatment.
(Rosenthal, 1974, p-135)
The description above is from a study about the Chippewa in the United States
where Rosenthal found that the Chippewa child "evaluates himself depreciatively
and surely much more negatively than he does the white child" (p. 45). Both the
description and conclusions about Native self-image accurately reflect the
findings by Hawthorn and others about the condition of Native people in Canada
during the first part of the contemporary period. The following is a comparative
statement from the Hawthorn (1967) report about the conditions of Native people
in Canada during the same historical period.
They have long been regarded as inferior beings unable to decide what was
good for them by some Whites who were responsible for their welfare.
These misconceptions have been the basis of a paternalistic policy on the
part of the central government, which gradually reduced the Indians
national pride, initiative and ability to plan beyond the immediate future.
These are some of the repercussions of the policy of the central
government, restricting the Indians to a limited cultural world, so limited in
fact, that the Indian has come to despise himself and feel inferior not only
in his prospects for earning a living (economically, legally and
educationally), but even from the ethnic point of view. (p. 162)
One of Hawthorn's conclusions was that "[d]iscontinuity of socialization, repeated
failure, discrimination and lack of significance of the educational process in the
life of the Indian child result in diminishing motivation, increasing negativism,
35
35
poor self-images and low levels of aspiration" (.130). As mentioned in Chapter 1
the educational outcome associated with all the negative conditions of
discrimination, exclusion, and oppression was a rate of academic failure which
approached one hundred percent.
However, conditions for Native people have changed during the latter part of the
contemporary period (Atleo, 1990). Atleo's study clearly indicates that
contemporary history can be conveniently divided into three distinct periods: the
1950s, the 1960s, and the 1970s onward. Conditions for Native people during
the first period may be categorized as negative, the second period as still
negative but transitional and the third period as a time of positive change. In
brief, some significant changes were: the granting of the federal franchise to
Native people in 1960, permitting Natives to be elected as school trustees in
British Columbia beginning in 1968, the creation of post secondary training
programs for Native teachers, the creation of Native home and school
coordinators in 1968, and the Native education policy change in 1973 which
formally signaled a reversal of a 400 year old negative attitude about Native
people and Native heritage and allowed (amongst many other positive factors
such as curriculum adaptations) for the establishment of band operated schools.
As external social, political, and economic conditions in general became more
positive for Native people after 1973 there was an associated improvement in
academic performance. To this point the assumption that self-esteem and
academic performance are closely associated (Battle, 1982; Brookover, Sailor, &
Paterson, 1965; Coopersmith, 1967; Smith 1969) also seems to hold true for
Native students. What in the literature is called 'low self-esteem' is attributable to
Native students and this is the reason that Native students are assumed to
continue to fail.
36
36
What follows is not a comprehensive coverage of the literature about self-esteem
and academic performance but sufficient to indicate some of the findings and
some of the problems associated with the subject.
Coopersmith (1967) is often quoted in the self-esteem literature. His definition of
self-esteem introduced contradictions to the established dictionary definitions of
self-esteem. Dictionaries essentially define, and continue to define, self-esteem
as 'high regard for oneself, for one's worth'. Coopersmith's definition is as
follows:
...the evaluation which the individual makes and customarily maintains with
regard to himself: it expresses an attitude of approval or disapproval, and
indicates the extent to which the individual believes himself to be capable,
significant, successful, and worthy. (p. 4-5)
The neutral term 'self-image' may have been more appropriate to allow for the
positive and negative evaluative range in the definition. However, studies about
'self-esteem' have abounded and the term is now common to both professional
and lay people alike. For example, Covington (1992) states that "poor
performance in school is associated with low levels of self-esteem among
middle-class whites" (p. 92). This association between self-esteem and
academic performance has been made by many other observers such as Battle
(1982), Brookover, Sailor, & Paterson (1965), Coopersmith (1967), Smith (1969),
and so on, but Covington significantly attributes the statement to 'middle class
whites'. This observation introduces the problem of generalizability since most of
the studies about self-esteem focus upon members of the dominant society.
Covington goes on to state that "feelings of well-being among many castelike
minorities have little to do with performing well in school" (p. 92). This is a logical
statement to one who is a member of the 'castelike minority' but perhaps a
puzzling statement to another who may be a member of the majority. Under
37
37
general negative conditions of exclusion from meaningful participation within
society, a 'castelike minority' is forced to find a sense of well-being from outside
those negative conditions. For Native people, as perhaps for any people, any
sense of well-being under generally negative conditions is difficult, if not
impossible, to obtain. Often it was found temporarily in a bottle of liquor. Even
academic achievement under such conditions might produce an ambiguous
sense of well-being since no meaningful participation in society could be
attached to the achievement.
It may not surprising then that O'Donnell and Cross (1975) found in a study of
Oglala Sioux adolescents that the same behaviour which described low self-
regard among White adolescents in a school context described bravery among
the Sioux. The suggestion is that, in this case, the same behaviour which
describes low self-regard among the White students describes the opposite
among the Sioux. This situation does not necessarily contradict the findings of
Rosenthal and Hawthorn since O'Donnell and Cross attribute the findings about
the Sioux students to the relative strength of Sioux culture. Such findings may
also be dependent upon the timing of the study. Minority cultural strength may
wax and wane over time depending upon the nature of the general policies and
practices of the dominant group towards the minority. Many other factors can
also determine relative cultural strength over time such as the degree of
population decimation caused by the introduction of foreign diseases, sometimes
as a consequence of colonial policy, the number of Native leaders who survive,
and so on.
During the same contemporary time period, but under different external
conditions, the findings of O'Donnell and Cross with Sioux and Rosenthal with
the Chippewa indicate different cultural strengths. Although Rosenthal's
description of the, then current, sad state of the Chippewa is attributed to
38
38
conditions imposed by the dominant society, he also attributes the same negative
cultural attributes to the traditional Chippewa of the distant past. This typecasting
of an entire people in a purely negative light over a long period of time appears to
be biased since it is not reasonable to assume that any culture whose chief
characteristic is negative will survive. The Chippewas have survived to date from
time immemorial.
Parry (1982), in another study of Native American children including Black
children, concludes that self-concept is not totally dependent upon the appraisal
of a dominant group such as is found in the colonial framework but that it is
dependent upon both the appraisal of the dominant group and the appraisal of
the self. Although Parry's conclusion appears self evident it does contain a
contradiction in that it is assumed that while Native students may engage in self-
appraisal today, they did not do so during colonial times, because the colonialist
orientation and perspective provided it for the Native child. Everything being
equal it would seem impossible to have a 'self' concept without a 'self' concept.
In any case, Parry's observation that self-concept may be derived from two
sources is useful and relates directly to the theoretical framework of this study.
The theory of context assumes a relationship between any context and that
which is contextualized, such as minority groups found within dominant groups.
This assumption supports Rosenthal's and Hawthorn's conclusions where each
attributes the condition of minorities to the kind of treatment imposed by the
majority. In both cases the negative treatment is associated with the assumed
negative self-image of the minority.
It is now evident that the study by O'Donnell and Cross highlight the problem of
interpreting the same kind of behaviour in students from different cultural
backgrounds while Parry indicates the necessity of acknowledging the different
sources from which arises the personal sense of self-worth. Both ideas
39
39
contribute to a greater understanding about how to analyze the notion of 'self-
esteem', self-image, and self-regard. For example, when conflicting messages of
assimilation and exclusion are received from the dominant source both
Rosenthal (1974) and Hawthorn (1967) assume a causal relationship to the
consequent ambivalence, hopelessness, frustration, and sense of futility that may
arise in a Native individual.
However, as Atleo (1990) found in his study, the prevailing negative conditions
for Native people within society have moved towards the positive. This move
towards the positive has tended to weaken the conflicting messages of
assimilation and exclusion and permitted a growing sense of resurgent pride in
culture both in and outside the classroom. Native studies have been created at
all levels of the school system while ancient traditions such as the potlatch are
practiced in a modern context.
In the political arena the colonial perspective which rejected Native ways has
been reversed to the point where the entrenchment of Aboriginal self-government
within the Canadian constitution is being seriously considered. These positive
changes may be assumed to affect the sense of self-worth, the sense of self-
esteem, self-regard, and self-image within the Native student in a positive way
just as the concomitant former negative context affected the Native student in a
negative way. But whatever the current state of self-image held by the Native
student a recent work by Covington (1992) on self-worth theory indicates that the
assumed relationship between self-esteem and academic performance is not as
straight forward or as simple as it has been assumed to be by many educators.
Self-esteem, or self-worth, it seems becomes confused and equated with
accomplishment and capability which is measured by grade point averages.
Covington explains the problem in this way.
40
40
In our society there is a pervasive tendency to equate accomplishment with
human value, or put simply, individuals are thought to be only as worthy as
their achievements. Because of this, it is understandable that students
often confuse ability with worth. For those students who are already
insecure, tying a sense of worth to ability is a risky step because schools
can threaten their belief in their ability. This is true because schools
typically provide insufficient rewards for all students to strive for success.
Instead, too many children must struggle simply to avoid failure. (p. 74)
Whether or not accomplishment equates with human value (and there are
compelling arguments for and against) is less relevant for the purposes of this
study than the problem that the equation creates for students. The source of the
problem, it appears, may be the dual expectations that teachers hold about which
students will achieve in the instructional situation and which students will
succeed in prestigious occupations. Teachers expect students to work hard in
order to achieve academically but when predictions are made about occupational
success Kaplan and Swant (1973) found that 'teachers weigh ability as the more
important factor (cited in Covington, 1992). Since self-worth theory assumes that
everyone, including students, seeks a sense of self-worth, a sense of self-
acceptance as the highest human priority the preservation and maintenance of
any sense of self-worth becomes critical. In school where self-worth is equated
with achievement the risk of not achieving is a risk of not preserving or
maintaining a sense of self-worth. The risk of losing a sense of self-worth,
Covington maintains, forces students to employ a variety of strategies to avoid
academic failure.
The most common strategy to avoid failure and avoid diminishing human value is
simply not to make any effort. The rationale is simple. By not making any effort,
the student reasons, there can be no proof of stupidity. In this way the student
preserves a personal belief in his or her own ability and of course thereby
preserves a personal sense of worth.
41
41
In another study conducted with Omelich (1984), Covington found that college
students value ability above performance, that the reputation for brilliance was
more important to them than their actual grade point average. These findings do
not imply that students in general make no effort in school because many, or
most, may make much effort sometimes and minimal or no effort at other times,
while the normal student must make a certain amount of effort in order to make
some progress. When success is assured on an academic project of value, then
it can be assumed that greater effort will be made than upon this type of project
than upon one where success may neither be assured nor highly valued. Where
success is uncertain then students will likely jeopardize any chance of success
by not making sufficient effort because the risk of losing self-worth may be
perceived to be too high. However, such strategies may be confined in
application to older students since Covington states that 'self-worth dynamics
have a clear developmental history'. Apparently students go through
developmental phases in their perception of effort and ability as explained in the
following paragraphs.
Primary grade students, Covington observes, perceive effort as a source of well-
being. In this regard student and teacher share common views about what is
important in school. For the primary grade student the work ethic embraces a
number of behaviours all of which relate to being well-thought-of by the teacher.
These behaviours include complying with authority, behaving oneself, not getting
into trouble and, always doing what is expected and acceptable by the teacher.
The rationale for this behaviour is provided by Nicholls (1978, 1984) who
describes the developmental stages of children in four phases.
Phase one corresponds roughly to the preschool and kindergarten years where
children have not yet differentiated between ability and effort. During this phase,
effort is the same as ability to the child, and equates with self-worth. Less effort
42
42
means less self-worth and more effort means more self-worth. In fact these
students believe that trying harder and exerting more effort will increase ability.
Any increase in ability means an increase in self-worth.
Phase two corresponds with the early and middle elementary years. This phase
is transitional in that ability and effort are still largely undifferentiated but now
effort begins to come to the fore as the more important cause of success. There
is a similarity to phase one in that students in both phases consider effort as
being directly related to outcome. In these early phases the students and
teachers are in agreement about work and achievement.
Phase three occurs during the late elementary years. Now students begin to
differentiate between effort and ability. They understand that high ability may
require less effort and low ability require more effort to accomplish the same
school task. Mixed in with this understanding is a carry over of the old
understanding that more effort equals success. George Orwell's concept of
double-think begins during this phase. Students perceive ability as more
important to achievement and at the same time perceive work as more important
to achievement.
Phase four begins around the age of thirteen. Here ability reigns supreme as the
cause of success. Students now believe that unintelligent people who study hard
do not do well. It is believed that students of low ability exert tremendous effort in
vain. Failure avoiding strategies begin but they will not be discussed in depth
here except to say that such strategies confound the notion of the assumed
association between self-esteem and academic achievement because the
students themselves are confounded by the two ideas.
There is a range of strategies that students employ in their efforts to avoid
academic failure and thereby avoid loss of a sense of self-worth. These
43
43
strategies, which include no effort, procrastination, underachieving,
overachieving, setting unattainable goals, setting very low goals, academic
cheating and so on, throw into doubt the simple idea that self-esteem is
associated with academic achievement. Self-esteem may be associated with
academic achievement but it may also be associated with under-achievement,
lack of achievement, over-achievement and every level of achievement in
between. This means that a high sense of self-worth and a low sense of self-
worth may both be associated with academic achievement. Moreover, a student
with a low sense of self-worth may overachieve to compensate while a student
with a high sense of self-worth may underachieve in order to protect this high
sense of self-worth.
In addition, studies which show an association between self-esteem and
academic achievement do not necessarily apply to other groups who are
described pejoratively by Covington as 'caste-like' minorities. Discussions
surrounding any findings based upon an examination of subjects from the
majority society may or may not apply to members of its minority population.
Native students may or may not suffer a sense of low self-image, low self-worth,
depending upon both external societal conditions and internal cultural conditions.
Since external conditions for Native people have in general moved from a more
negative to a more positive state means that Native students may have less
reason to suffer the negative self-image consequences noted by Rosenthal
(1974) and Hawthorn (1967). Since Canadian policies and practices have
become more inclusive of Native people in the past two decades it may be that
the Native response to inclusion might mean a similarity of perceptions about
ability and achievement between students from both the majority and Native
community. The argument that is being made here is that the conditions that
apply to the majority student may also apply to the minority Native student. If this
44
44
is so then it may be possible that the confounding of the association between
self-esteem and achievement among majority students may also apply to Native
students. One indication of this application will be to see if the current survey
about Native student work habits shows any similarity to the pattern of work
indicated for students from the majority society. Since avoidance strategies
begin at about age thirteen for the majority student and if Native students employ
the same type of strategies then Native student work habits should diminish at
about the grade nine level.
In conclusion, this chapter has provided a brief overview of the historical
conditions in which the problem of this study is set. It has been shown that both
the early French and English missionaries were unsuccessful at Indian
education. The failure was attributed to, in the words of Mother de l'Incarnation,
the "Savage nature" of the Indian (cited in Jaenen, 1986, p.58) rather than to an
aversion for French culture and a preference for Indian culture. European
assumptions of cultural superiority over other cultures persisted well into the
second half of the twentieth century. These assumptions were reflected in the
classrooms which presented problems of experiential discontinuities for Native
pupils who continued to fail at unacceptable levels. These early European
perspectives led to certain education policies which proved ineffective for the
education of Native children. The negation of Native heritage and the Native
person as core to education policy proved an impossible task for methodology to
overcome. Whether the Native children were instructed on reserves, in
residential schools, in missionary compounds, in provincial schools, made no
difference so long as education policy and practice negated Native heritage.
In recent times Native educational failure has been attributed primarily to cultural
discontinuities between the experience of the Native child and the expectations
found within the Western value oriented classroom. However, since 1973 the
45
45
education policies predicated upon colonial perspectives have changed so as to
allow for a more positive view of Native heritage in the classroom which in turn
allows for a more positive self-image by the Native student.
The second part of this chapter has briefly discussed the assumed association
between self-esteem and academic achievement. The simplistic notion, of the
assumed relationship between self-esteem and achievement, is that students
have, what is called in the literature, 'high or low' self-esteem whereby the former
is associated with academic achievement and the latter is associated with
academic failure. Covington's (1992) work in self-worth theory has shown that
the assumed association between self-esteem and achievement is confounded
by a student belief that accomplishment equates with self-worth. Self-worth or
self-esteem is necessary to achievement and this achievement, in turn, is a
measure of self-worth, of self-esteem. This belief generates a number of
avoidance strategies designed to protect the students sense of self-worth,
designed to avoid the real possibility of devaluation of self-worth in such a way as
to cause self-worth, self-esteem, to be associated with every conceivable degree
of achievement. In other words both high and low self-esteem may now be
associated with high academic achievement, average academic achievement,
and low academic achievement depending upon the avoidance strategies which
the student may employ.
The historical context of Native education together with a brief discussion about
self-esteem and its relationship to academic achievement are the background
against which the examination of kindergarten readiness and self-image are
examined.
CHAPTER 3
46
46
This chapter describes the approach of the Native Education Research Project,
its Native theoretical and logistical orientation, its academic design, type and
number of measurement instruments and the data collection procedures. Since
this study is about, for, and with Native people, a description of this particular
research process may be considered not only useful but also an addition to
knowledge. The discussion begins with the apparent conflict between Native
views of reality, from which the theory of context has been derived, and a
Western view of reality found within the assumptions of the scientific method of
experimentation.
A NATIVE APPROACH TO THE PROCESS OF RESEARCH
This section explains some of the approach to the process of research that
characterizes this study based upon the marriage of a powerful western tool with
a Native theoretical perspective. Although the theory of context is discussed in
Chapter 1, its Native orientation, and traditional value base, is not. The Native
world view, a Native perspective of life, a Native perspective of the universe, has
been found by observers to be relatively consistent throughout the traditional
Americas concerning the assumed oneness of reality, the interconnectedness,
interrelatedness, and interdependence of all things (Berger, 1985; Defaveri,
1984; Fuchs, 1973; McCaskill, 1987; McShane, 1984; Sealey, 1973). This view
of reality has implications for research focus.
The Western tool called research, the empirical assumptions of which may be
said to be antithetical to traditional Native views of reality, is responsible for the
current technological explosion that is now upon the world. The principles of this
Western tool as exemplified in the scientific method assumes that reality is not a
47
47
unity since the onus to indicate or prove unity rests with the conclusions of a
scientific experiment. That these scientific experiments sometimes find variables
significantly related to one another does not alter the first assumption that reality
is not a unity. Related variables in this view of reality simply make up larger bits
of united variables in a universe of disunity. In fact, from the scientific method
point of view, variables that are found related to one another to a significant
degree, are not necessarily a unity in the sense of belonging to a common
creation. If smoking is found to be related to cancer within humans from the
scientific method point of view, the relationship creates a unity between the two
variables but when the relationship is deliberately terminated the unity
disappears. On the other hand the Native view of reality assumes relationality
between variables irrespective of significance. It is not that significance is not
important it is rather that no thing is excluded. Traditional reality is an inclusive
whole.
It is the assumption inherent in the scientific method that reality may be
composed of unrelated variables which creates the antithesis to the traditional
Native view. The traditional Native view is that reality is a unity, a whole, in which
are not found any variables which are unrelated, excluded from the wholeness of
reality. All variables are related because all are part of one whole even if they do
not appear to be related.
Ultimately this view of reality becomes mystical, metaphysical, and spiritual, and
can therefore be neither proven nor disproven. It must be observed that the
same can be said for the antithetical view of reality, that the assumption of
disunity can neither be ultimately proven nor disproven. What is relevant for the
purposes of this study is the apparent antithesis between the two views of reality.
From the Native perspective the marriage of research with a Native theoretical
48
48
perspective is a problem of not whether variables are related but of determining
the relative strength of the relationships between variables.
Although the assumptions of research and Native views of reality may be
antithetical they are not incompatible in the practice of research. While the
problem statement, hypotheses, methodology, findings, and conclusions are
developed in the usual way the theoretical frame may assume antithetical
assumptions about the variables being examined. In this case the theory of
context, which is founded in Native views of reality, assumes a relationship or
association between all variables being examined. Some relationships or
associations may be very strong, very weak, or somewhere in between. Hence
on an absolute scale of 0 to 1 the strength of relationship of each variable to
another may range from close to 0 (very little strength) to 1 (what empirical
studies may assume to be causative relationship).
It may now be evident that a Native theoretical frame in a research project may
arrive at the same conclusions as any other theoretical frame. The only possible
difference in interpretation might be the assumptions made about very weak
relationships. One view of reality may label the weak relationship as a non
relationship and the other view of reality as a relationship, albeit a very weak one.
But other than the underlying philosophical difference between the two views of
reality it seems entirely possible to wield, without contradiction, research as a tool
from a Native theoretical perspective where all variables are assumed to be
related in varying degrees. As a formal academic research project then it is not
inconsistent for this study to be subject to all the same standards and criteria as
any other academic study.
However, research by Native people about Native people today introduces the
possibility of misunderstanding, conflicting protocol, and a conflict between the
49
49
execution of sound research while attempting to respect the values of the human
subjects being examined. For that possible reason some of the important events
in the process of the current research project are explained in the following
paragraphs.
The process of the current research study has been attempted in such a way as
to minimize any conflicts that might arise as a result of the marriage between
research and Native theory. It is assumed that the principles of the process of
research in general are well known and therefore an explanation of it will not be
considered necessary. What will be explained in greater detail is the Native
theoretical perspective and the interface of this perspective with the perspective
of the formal academic research process.
Traditional Native group oriented values translate into a necessity for group
sponsorship in order to achieve credibility and acceptance. Organizational
sponsorship for the research project came from the same organization which
initiated the project, the Native Brotherhood of British Columbia. Native
traditional values preclude an individual acting in isolation to perform community
oriented activities. Since the traditional view of reality is unity or oneness,
behaviour requires community or consensus type of decision making.
Phase one, step one of the process required a group (organizational) initiative
which was fulfilled by the Native Brotherhood of British Columbia. Step two of
the research process was an internal logistical matter whereby a Native
education board and Native advisory committee were appointed. In this day of
self-help, self-government, and increasing participation within the larger society
by Native people, boards, committees, and various entities are constantly being
created to meet complex modern demands. Representation on the advisory
50
50
committee was based upon the availability of a limited number of academic
resource people within British Columbia.
Step three involved increasing the group effect by approaching other Native
organizations for their approval. This process included visiting the Assembly of
First Nations which represents the 596 bands within Canada who supported the
Native Education Research Project in writing. In British Columbia, besides the
support of the Native Brotherhood of British Columbia and all of its locals, there
was also garnered the support of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council and the
Native Counsellors Association of British Columbia who have Native Education
Counsellor representation throughout the province, together with the support of
both the federal and provincial governments and the academic association with
the University of British Columbia. This broad Native support base together with
formal provincial and federal support, including an academic association with a
university, concluded the first phase of the decision making process in the
research project.
The second phase of the traditional decision making process meant writing
letters of information and invitation to participate in the research project to all 196
First Nations bands within British Columbia. Bands are Native communities
situated on reserves which have been set aside for the use of 'Indians' according
to the provisions of the Indian Act. It is these bands at the local level, and not the
Native provincial organizations, which are the recognized authorities according to
the provisions of the Indian Act within the Canadian constitution. Native
provincial organizations, whose membership are status or registered according to
the Indian Act of Canada, are usually composed of at least three or more of
these bands.
51
51
Although an academically oriented general letter of information and invitation to
any band may not elicit any response it is still a necessary form of consultation in
the traditional decision making process. At every step in the process and
progress of the study Native people may question as to whether their band has
been informed about the research project. If it is discovered that a band has not
been informed this oversight is considered a violation of traditional values still in
practice today.
In fact, not a single band responded to the letter of invitation sent by the principal
investigator but this point is less relevant than the issue of consultation. It is not
that Native governments are ill mannered so much as they are in a stage of
community management incipience while at the same time moving to preserve
an oral tradition. The recent study by the Assembly of First Nations (1988) notes
that a chronic condition of Native programs is underfunding, lack of funding, or an
absence of funding together with insufficient training, understaffing, and so on.
The tendency, therefore, in common with the behaviour of the other Canadian
governments, is to ignore correspondence considered peripheral and respond
only to correspondence considered essential and urgent to local decision
making. In any case the fact that each band had been formally consulted by a
letter of information and invitation satisfied the demand set by the group oriented
traditional Native values still in practice today.
However, since word of the Native Education Research Project could not be
spread abroad within the Native community through the formal channel of letters
it must be done some other way. While not a single Native person became
aware of the research project through the formal letter to their own band this
meant that much of the initial awareness of the Native Education Research
Project must be spread among the Native community in other ways. This
communication was accomplished in two ways. One was through personal
52
52
contact with Native people and the other was indirect contact through the
provincial school districts who responded in kind to their letters of information and
invitation to participate in the research project. Each of these two ways is
discussed in turn.
Since the Native Education Research Project is a marriage of research and
Native theory conducted by a Native researcher endorsed by significant numbers
of the Native community it seemed appropriate to consider the possibility of using
Native Educators as data gatherers. Rather than employ doctoral candidates as
research assistants as is the usual practice the principal investigator decided that
front line Native educators with a personal and community vested interest in
education should be invited to become research assistants, research data
gatherers. There was, beginning with the late Robert Sterling in 1968, who was
the first of these within the British Columbia school system, a group of education
paraprofessionals initially called 'Home School Coordinators'.
It seemed that these front-line education workers, if they agreed, would be ideal
to help in the execution of the research project for the following reasons. The
initial mandate, arising out of severe cultural conflict, of these paraprofessionals
was that they would mediate between the home and school in order to establish
a more effective communication system between the two. Hawthorn's study of
1966 and 1967 of the conditions of Indians in Canada gave credence to the
prevailing views about the social and cultural discontinuity experienced by the
Native child in school. Hawthorn's report assumed a cultural gap and conflict
between the school and Native home, and the Home School Coordinator would
fill that gap both for the Native community and for the school community. No
formal training was available for this kind of work and no formal training was
required. Consequently, although the work was essential the absence of formal
credentials for the job created credibility problems within the school system.
53
53
Since then, training programs have been designed for the upgrading of these
education paraprofessionals who are now generally, and more appropriately,
called Native Education Counsellors.
Personal networking soon produced the information about the existence of the
Native Home School Counsellors Association of British Columbia (NHSCA)
together with a list of names and phone numbers. After preliminary discussion
with members of the executive over the phone a formal presentation was made,
first to an executive meeting of the NHSCA, and subsequently to a general
assembly of NHSCA held in Vancouver. The concept, method, and purpose, of
the Native Education Research Project was enthusiastically received and
endorsed at both presentations.
The other method by which the Native community learned about the Native
Education Research Project is through the school districts in the province.
Letters of information and invitation were sent to all provincial school districts and
eight of these districts alerted their Native oriented staff members to the research
project. The ninth school district respondent indicated support for the research
initiative but reported that they had no Native subjects in their area. In this way
information about the research project was disseminated within the Native
community. The next step required a program not usually required when an
academic research project employs doctoral candidates.
Since the Native Educators who were interested in participating as data
gatherers were not doctoral candidates they required some training as explained
in the following.
54
54
55
55
56
56
who were interested in participating did not wish to travel to Vancouver where all
the formal training workshops were held.
As the Native community became more and more aware of the Native Education
Research initiative it became evident that there was one area of the research
project where there was no conflict. There was and continues to be a kind of
consensus within the Native community about the perception that Native
students continue to fail at unacceptable levels within the present school system.
The assumption of pervasive and general Native educational failure has never, to
this point, been questioned by any Native professional educator or Native parent.
57
57
This concludes this section which has sought to explain some of the problems in
the process of this research project which may have been caused by the
marriage of a Western tool with a Native theory. In the next section the details of
the method is discussed together with an example of the outcome of one training
session.
METHODOLOGY
Research Design
This study is survey research. It takes a survey of Native students in
kindergarten as well as in grades 4 to 12 in the province of British Columbia. The
principal subjects of study are the Native students and their perceptions about
themselves and perceptions about their contexts of home, school, society and
heritage. The contextual nature of the study means that the parents and
teachers are also subjects, albeit secondary, because they provide some of the
contextual relationships within which the perceptual experience of the Native
student is examined. The students, parents, and teachers are located in a
variety of urban, rural, and isolated areas of the province of British Columbia.
The schools in the study are equally divided between Band operated and
Provincial schools including two students from a private school. The majority of
the teachers are non Native with a mix of gender and age throughout.
What is examined then is the relative degrees of strength and dominance of the
various contexts being examined as they might relate to self-image and to
academic performance. For example, Atleo's 1990 study suggested that the
exclusive social, political, and economic conditions (contexts) of the 1950s were
faithfully reflected within the education system which negatively impacted both
the self-image and the academic performance of Native students. In this
58
58
example the strongest and most dominant context associated with academic
performance was not the home or school but the external societal context. As
the external social, political, and economic contexts changed the internal
education system changed accordingly as did the academic performance of the
Native student. In the wording of the theory of context, as the broad social
context improved over time, both the Native home and school context improved
accordingly, and these improvements are associated with improved Native
academic performance. The suggestion is that the academic environment may
be affected by much more than the home and the school. The suggestion is that
sometimes, though not always, the more remote contexts of education, such as
federal politics, may exert a dominating strength of relationship such as to affect
academic performance. Since Native education is a federal responsibility the
effects of federal politics may exert significant influence upon the academic
performance of the Native student.
Measuring Instruments
The measuring instrument is the questionnaire which was
areas of the study, kindergarten and grades 4 to 12. Each is discussed in turn.
Kindergarten Research Instruments Each questionnaire is divided into
two sections, a basic student data section and a section which addresses the
research focus. The basic student data is intended to provide important
information which will provide an orientation to the research questions. Included
in the first section of the kindergarten questionnaire are Gender, age, grade, First
Nations affiliation, location, type of school, number of children in household, age
rank of the student in that household, whether student is firstborn, number of
months student attended preschool, and whether student has hearing or seeing
problems.
59
59
The second section of the kindergarten questionnaire contains the main question
about student readiness based on a scale of 1 to 5. Another question is about
curriculum and the final question is an open ended question about Native
education which the teacher may or may not answer.
Grades 4 to 12 Research Instruments The grades 4 to 12 questionnaires
are divided into three groups. One questionnaire is for the student, one
questionnaire for the student's parents, and one questionnaire is for a teacher of
the same student. Each is discussed under the headings of student, parent, and
teacher.
Student The Grades 4 to 12 questionnaire is divided into grades 4
to 8 and grades 9 to 12 with a very minor difference between them. The only
difference between the two questionnaires is that the grades 9 to 12
questionnaire has added a question about the relationship between student
standards and school standards. Otherwise the two questionnaires are
essentially the same and are discussed together.
The Grades 4 to 12 student questionnaire, like the kindergarten questionnaire, is
divided into two sections, one section about basic student data and the second
section containing the questions about the research focus. The basic student
data section of the grades 4 to 12 questionnaire is the same as the kindergarten
questionnaire except that additional information is requested about whether the
student has a close relationship to some older person or relative, whether this
older person or relative is male or female, and how often this older person or
relative is perceived to encourage the student about school.
The second section of the grades 4 to 12 student questionnaire is about various
perceptions held by the student. What is the student's self perception about level
of capability in school, about the previous years academic record based upon the
same scale of capability, perception of parent perception about the same
capability, agreement or disagreement with parent perception, perception of
other Native students' capability in school, perception of ancestors capability in
60
60
general, perception of parents view of the importance of schooling, student
perception of the importance of school, perception of parent expectation for the
student about schooling, student opinion about what might be improved about
school, whether the student has a place to study at home, how often student
completes homework, whether student expects to get a job when schooling is
completed, what kind of job (question applies to grades 4 to 8 only), and finally,
an open ended question about schooling which the student may or may not
answer.
Parent The parent questionnaire is also divided into two sections.
The basic parent data requires information about whether the parent being
interviewed is mother, father, grandparent, or other type of guardian.
The second section of the questionnaire contextualizes some of the student
questionnaire. It asks how that parent rates his or her child's capability in school
based upon the same scale used on the student questionnaire, whether the
parent expects the child to do well in school, the parent rating of the child's
school, the parent perception of job opportunities for Natives, parent perception
of the general capability of Native ancestors, and ending with an optional open
ended question. Only those parents are interviewed whose children were
allowed to participate in the research project.
Teacher The teacher questionnaire also contains two sections.
The firsts section provides information about gender and whether the teacher is
of First Nations origin or Non-First Nations origin. The second section in the
grades 4 to 8 teacher questionnaire asks the teacher to rate the student on the
same capability scale as was used on the student and parent questionnaires.
The grades 9 to 12 questionnaires does not ask for a specific rating of the
student but for a general assessment of the student. Each teacher questionnaire
concludes with an optional open ended question about the teacher's opinion
about any aspect of Native education or the education of Native children.
Table 4 below is a summary of the types of questionnaires that are discussed
above and the number of pages contained in each.
61
61
Table 4
Types of Questionnaires Number of pages in each
Kindergarten 1
Grades 4 to 8: student 2
Grades 4 to 8: parent 1
Grades 4 to 8: teacher 1
Grades 9 to 12 student 2
Grades 9 to 12 parent 1
Grades 9 to 12 teacher 1
Total 9
Although the kindergarten questionnaire appears to be unrelated to the other
questionnaires they are bound together to provide an answer to the question
about the general state of Native education in the province of British Columbia
today. Grades 1, 2, and 3 were excluded from the study for logistical and
maturational reasons. The student questionnaires were ideally designed to be
completed by students under the guidance of the interviewers. Grades 1, 2, and
3 students are not normally expected to be able to write with sufficient fluency to
be able to complete a questionnaire even with the guidance of an adult. In
addition, the fluency range between grades 4 to 12 allows for a uniformity in the
questionnaires which permits a comparison of different responses from different
age, grade, and gender groups to the same question.
Data Collection Procedures
Prior to data collection it was necessary, because of the Native orientation of the
research project, to hold training workshops with potential Native interviewers.
62
62
63
63
64
64
65
65
Chapter 4
Part 1, of this two part study, is an examination of the readiness factor in Native
kindergarten students who will hereinafter be referred to as P1 students. The
examiniation of the readiness factor provides one answer to the general question
of the study which asks: What is the current state of Native education in British
Columbia? The chapter begins with a description of the two different types of
schools where Native P1 students are taught.
LOCATION AND TYPE OF SCHOOLS
Location of Schools and Population Distribution
British Columbia has 17 per cent of Canada's Native population and 32 per cent
of all bands. Most of the approximately 87,700 status and 67,500 non-status
Native population live in communities along the pacific coastline beginning with
the heavily populated lower mainland area of Vancouver, liberally scattered in
smaller communities up both sides of Vancouver Island, and more widely
scattered above Vancouver Island before culminating in British Columbia's other
major seaport, Prince Rupert. The heaviest concentration of Natives, mostly
from British Columbia bands but also from the rest of Canada and the United
States, live in the lower mainland area.
About 53 per cent of the status Natives live on reserve with the balance of about
47 per cent living and working in primarily various urban areas such as
Vancouver, Prince Rupert, Prince George, Port Alberni, Campbell River,
Nanaimo, Victoria, as well as in out of the way places such as logging camps.
Also an indeterminate number reside in foreign countries, mostly in the border
66
66
states of the United States. Native people also inhabit the less densely
populated interior of British Columbia but the largest Native communities are
found in Vancouver and up along the coast.
The P1 data came from nine different communities primarily from the areas more
heavily populated with Native people. Four of these communities are exclusively
Native and five of these communities are in provincial school areas where the
population is mostly non Native. Each of the four Native communities in the
survey manage their own Band operated elementary-secondary schools. Three
of these four Native communities are isolated while the fourth is situated in an
isolated provincial area town.
Type of Schools
With the exception of two students who attend a private school the two types of
schools in this study are Band and provincial. Band operated schools are
fundamentally the same as provincial schools. The teachers are trained in the
same universities, the core curriculum is the same, the school boards are locally
elected in the same manner as other school boards, and each Band operated
school strives to maintain standards which will permit their students access to
post secondary institutions. In keeping with the variety of problems usual to
provincial schools, Band operated schools also have monetary problems, on
going concerns about the quality of education, concerns about ensuring that all
professional staff have the requisite qualifications, and a concern that the
standard of their particular school does not measure up to the apparent rigorous
standard of the neighboring school.
If there is anything unique about Band operated schools it is that they all fall
under federal government jurisdiction. Education is generally a provincial
jurisdictional responsibility except in the case of Natives who reside on reserve.
The criteria, according to the Canadian constitution, is reserve residence,
67
67
whether the Native students who reside on reserve attend a local band operated
school or attend a local provincial school, their residence determines federal
responsibility. In cases where these Native students attend provincial schools
there is a federal-provincial agreement to cover tuition fees. In general, Native
students who ordinarily reside off reserve are a provincial responsibility since
their parents or guardians are subject to all federal and provincial taxes in the
same manner as other Canadian citizens.
Fifty percent of the P1 data came from students resident on reserve and about
fifty per cent of the data came from students resident off reserve. The following
section entitled Part 1 begins the report about the findings.
PART 1 – P1: Kindergarten
The survey incorporated 92 Native P1 students from the nine different
communities in British Columbia. The survey question asked about the state of
readiness of Native P1 students according to the judgment of their teachers. The
P1 curriculum set out by the British Columbia Ministry of Education is the
standard against which readiness was measured. The standard of readiness
was broken down into a five point scale as follows: 1- not ready; 2- partly ready;
3- ready enough; 4- ready; and 5- more than ready.
The Results
Table 5 below and figures 3 and 4 on the following page, illustrate some of the
general findings about the current state of readiness of Native P1 students in
British Columbia. Data from all nine communities are tabulated into general
findings. The most salient finding is that when the scores of ready enough to
more than ready are merged to define a general category of ready the result is
68
68
71 Native P1 students out of a total 91 Native P1 students who fall into this
category for a total of 77.2%.
Table 5
General Findings of Native P1 Student Readiness in British Columbia
Readiness Scale Students Percentage
1) Not Ready 4 4.3
2) Partly Ready 17 18.5
3) Ready Enough 17 18.5
4) Ready 41 44.6
5) More than Ready 13 14.1
Totals 92 100.0
Figure 3
69
69
This result translates into roughly 3 of 4 Native P1 students of the sample who
are judged ready by their teachers. At the low side of the readiness findings
there are only 4 P1 students representing 4.3% who are not considered ready in
any way by their teachers. When the partly ready students are included in this
low side of the findings the total percentage of this low category rises to 22.8%.
In Figure 3 on page 81 the smallest score is in the lowest category of not ready
while the largest score of the P1 students falls into the ready category. In Figure
4 on page 81 the difference between not ready and ready is made graphic.
The findings about readiness is further broken down into band and provincial
schools and male and female students as shown in Table 6 below.
Table 6
70
70
Readiness Scores of Male and Female P1 Students: Band and Provincial Schools
School Type
# st m f rm % rf % nrm % nrf %
Band
47 25 22 17 68 17 77.3 8 32 5 22.7
Provincial
45 27 18 22 81.5 15 83.3 5 18.5 3 16.7
Totals
92 52 40 39 75 32 80 13 25 8 19.7
Legend: #st.= Number of P1 students: m = male: f = female
rm = number of males ready: rf = number of females ready
nrm = number of males not ready: nrf = number of females not ready
% = following each category is the indicated per cent for that category
Table 6 shows that the number of P1 students in the sample from band schools
is 47 and the this number includes two P1 students from a private school run by
members of a band. This private school has been incorporated into the band
school category because it is operated by members of a band rather than by an
outside non Native institution. Moreover, the students in this private school are
primarily from the local area bands in which the school is located. The other 45
P1 students in Table 6 attend provincial schools. As might be expected there are
more P1 males (52) than P1 females (40).
In Figure 5 below the graph shows that the percentage of P1 males who are
ready from band schools is 68% and the percentage of P1 males who are ready
from provincial schools is 81.5%. The overall average readiness percentage of
P1 males is 75%.
71
71
The percentage of P1 females who are ready from band schools is 77.3% and
the percentage of P1 females who are ready from provincial schools is 83.3%.
The overall average readiness percentage of P1 females is 80%.
These findings indicate two results. Provincial school P1 Native students are
more ready than band school P1 Native students and, female P1 students are
more ready than male P1 students by a slight margin of 5 per cent. The first
result is questionable. It is likely that the readiness scores from the band schools
more accurately reflect the general readiness levels of Native P1 students today
than the readiness scores reflected from the provincial schools. The reason is
simple. Student capture from three of the four band schools was complete while
student capture from provincial schools was very incomplete in comparison. For
example, in one band operated school, the total number of P1 students
registered is 12 and the capture for this particular school is 12 P1 students. In
comparison the P1 capture in one provincial school is 2 while the number of
Native P1 students registered in that school is 17.
The number of P1 students in the sample from band schools is 47 and the this
number includes two P1 students from a private school run by members of a
band. This private school has been incorporated into the band school category
72
72
because it is operated by members of a band rather than by an outside non
Native institution. Moreover, the students in this private school are primarily from
the local area bands in which the school is located. The other 45 P1 students in
Table 6 attend provincial schools. As might be expected there are more P1
males (52) than P1 females (40).
It is because of the descrepancy between the band and provincial sampling
which causes the interpretation of the findings to favor the provincial sample.
Provincial readiness scores indicate a better quality P1 performance than band
schools. However, these scores are based upon much smaller sampes than the
band samples.
Finally, in Table 7 on the following page, the P1 readiness findings may be
completely broken down into male and female categories according to school
and individual readiness scores for each student. Provincial schools 2, 3, 4, 6,
and 7 illustrate the very tiny samples of the P1 capture from most of the
provincial schools. In provincial school 6, the principal admitted that he did not
expect a good return response to the letters of permission to participate in the
survey sent to the parents of the Native students. The communication between
Native parents and his school was very poor, almost non existent. In this same
provincial school the P1 teacher said that the two P1 Native students who were
allowed to participate in the survey were her two best pupils. In answer to the
open ended question in the survey this teacher made the following remarks.
Yes, I have 17 native children in my classroom. Of this number 9 are chronic
absentees, or constantly late for school. We feel it is vital for early intervention
programs for parents of "at risk" native children to be implemented. The focus
would be on mediated learning for both parents and infants.
Another concern is loss of language skills and cultural identity especially in
urban centres.
