THE EDUCATION OF AMERICAN INDIANS

A SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE

BREWTON BERRY

Research Foundation

The Ohio State University

Columbus, Ohio

DECEMBER 1968

(V)

FINAL REPORT

Project No. 7-0813

Contract No. OEC-3-7-070813-3032

The research reported herein was performed pursuant to a contract with the Office of Education, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Contractors undertaking such projects under Government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their professional judgment in the conduct of the project. Points of view or opinions stated do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Office of Education position or policy.

U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Office of Education, Bureau of Research, Washington

I. INTRODUCTION

The American Indian, more than any other race, has always aroused the curiosity and piqued the imagination of the rest of mankind. Centuries ago Europeans eagerly awaited the reports and tales of missionaries and explorers from the New World; and, when Indians were taken abroad, by force or bribery, as they often were, they were met everywhere by enthusiastic and curious crowds.

Indians, far out of proportion to their numbers, have enjoyed the attention of people who write books and of those who read them. The New York Public Library requires 23 drawers in its card catalog for its holdings on American Indians, while 16 drawers suffice for the Jews and seven for Negroes, and certainly neither of these latter groups has been overlooked by writers. The Library of Congress devotes 18 drawers to Indians, 17 to Jews, and seven to Negroes.

The greater part of this massive literature, however, deals with the Indians as they used to be. Interest has focused on their origin and antiquity, their arts and crafts, their history and archeology, their wars and migrations, and their diverse and colorful cultures. The Indian as he is today has proved far less popular with writers and with the public. Poverty and disease, vice and despair, discrimination and exploitation, which are the dominant themes in the current picture, seem to attract a very limited audience. Occasionally, to be sure, one reads of the deplorable conditions on the reservations-substandard housing, poor sanitation, unemployment, and high infant mortality; and, when a blizzard or some other crisis strikes, the Indian makes the headlines. But most of the time he is ignored and forgotten, or used simply as an attraction to tourists.

This report is concerned with the educational status of the Indian, and is, for the most part, a record of disappointment and frustration. Millions of dollars have been spent, and continue to be spent each year, on Indian education; the results are disappointing. It is easy to criticize the motives and the competence of those who have been engaged in this effort, and much of this criticism is well founded. At the same time there have been many able and dedicated teachers and administrators, as is amply manifested in the numerous personal documents which are available (cf., e.g., 83, 119, 215, 568). It is also possible to defend the thesis that progress has been made against insuperable obstacles. Even so, there is widespread agreement that the Indian has not profited satisfactorily from this vast expenditure of money and effort.

Who is an Indian? This is the first and most fundamental question in any discussion of the American Indian, and is a surprisingly dif ficult one to answer. None of the nations in this hemisphere has ever adopted an official definition, and in the United States the criteria. vary from one situation to another (39: 153, 55:6, 81:11, 318:3).

1 References appear at end of publication.