Changing orientations to language, informed by poststructuralism and postcolonialism, challenge modernist representations of languages as bounded entities, tied to particular territories and identities (Canagarajah, 2019; Makoni and Pennycook, 2007). Viewing language as a hybrid and fluid practice, these developments question the theoretical…

The vitality of most Indigenous languages in North America, like minority languages in many parts of the world, is at risk due to the pressures of majority languages and cultures. The transmission of Indigenous languages through school-based programs is a wide-spread approach to maintaining and revitalizing threatened languages in Canada and the…

This article examines the discourses of the Tagish website team as they formulate an Indigenous language ideology based on traditional values and contemporary responses to language endangerment that contrasts with the approaches of outside agencies. The Tagish website project makes use of digital sound files, photographs, videos, and text. In…

Case study describes the efforts of Kuinerrarmiut Elitnaurviat, the K-12 school in Quinhagak, Alaska, to implement school reform initiatives that support the merging of school and community values and priorities. Despite nearly a century of outside acculturation efforts, the Yupik people of Quinhagak are attempting to integrate their language,…

This paper presents personal reflections on factors in the preservation and stabilization of North American indigenous languages. All indigenous languages in North America are in danger of being lost. Linguistic and cultural minority communities must control the institutions that affect their lives if there is to be significant and sustainable…

This paper discusses the impact that recent educational reforms by the New Zealand government had on Maori individuals involved in community decision-making processes, focusing on one predominantly Maori rural community. Three strands of recent educational change in New Zealand are the move to self-managing institutions; ongoing debate over…

Describes the struggles and triumphs of a Maori community in the Bay of Islands (New Zealand) as it took local control of its rural school and made it fully bilingual. A series of government reforms have made the Maori people responsible for administering the school with insufficient funds while the government maintains power over the curriculum…

Describes alternative educational innovations at all educational levels, developed by the Maori of New Zealand in response to the dual crises of educational underachievement and the loss of language, knowledge, and culture. Major intervention elements are validating cultural identity, incorporating culturally preferred pedagogy, mediating…

After a long history as a tool of forced assimilation of indigenous populations, education is now a key arena in which indigenous peoples can reclaim and revalue their languages and cultures and thereby improve the academic success of indigenous students. Community-based education offers a means by which indigenous peoples can regain a measure of…

Federal and state bilingual education legislation since 1923 has not enhanced the education of Pueblo Indian children in New Mexico. Lacking public school control, Pueblo Indians have resisted the establishment of bilingual education programs for their children. Bilingual-bicultural program development must be preceded by giving Pueblos community…