Native American Studies
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/51
The Department of Native American Studies was established to provide and advance quality education for and about American Indians of Montana, the region, and the nation. In fulfilling this mission, the Department is committed to meet the changing needs of Montana's Indian tribes and all Montana citizens through excellence in teaching, research, and service. In its academic program, the department provides concentrated study through an undergraduate minor, the first online graduate certificate in Native American Studies offered, and a Master of Arts degree in Native American Studies. Students in any major can also gain a multicultural perspective through NAS offerings in the University's core curriculum. The Department, through its research and other creative efforts, actively pursues interdisciplinary scholarship in the field of Native American Studies.
Browse
9 results
Search Results
Item Secondary social studies teachers' perspectives on primary source planning(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2016) Johnson, Spencer Theadore; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Christine Rogers StantonHow are 21st Century teachers incorporating primary sources into their history lessons, and what challenges do they face in doing so? The social studies classroom is changing from pedagogy driven by textbook memorization to one that embraces a more authentic understanding of how history works. This change is accelerating due to new technologies and available primary sources on the Internet. This qualitative study questioned professionals in the field and resulted in four themes: Criteria for Effective Sources, Points of Access for Appropriate Source Material, Challenges Encountered in Finding Appropriate Sources, and Planning Lessons Using Sources. 'Criteria for Effective Sources' centers on what makes primary sources useful in the classroom. The 'Points of Access for Appropriate Source Material' theme describes how accessible primary sources are. The 'Challenges Encountered in Finding Appropriate Sources' theme describes why planning is time consuming. Finally, the 'Planning Lessons Using Sources' theme describes how teachers use sources in their lesson planning process. In essence, primary sources are available, but teachers need time to find and modify those sources to fit their instruction. Better website designs that look at efficiently presenting material on websites, as well as more focused professional development concerning the implementation of sources, could solve some of the challenges social studies teachers face.Item Flathead Watershed curriculum development : knowledge, skills, and disposition results from the Flathead Watershed delphi survey(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2016) Vallor, Rosanna Rohrs; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Michael BrodyThis research focused on the establishment of foundational knowledge, skills and dispositions for the Flathead Watershed Educators Guide, a place-based watershed curriculum for middle school grades based on the Flathead Watershed Sourcebook. The methodology of this research was the consensus building process known as the Delphi survey. Survey participants (n=33) were chosen based on their expertise as educators, resource managers and scientists living and practicing in the Flathead Watershed in northwestern Montana, USA. Participants' responses were gathered through the three-round survey by the Montana State University (MSU) research team using MSU's online software program Desire 2 Learn (D2L), an anonymous, asynchronous platform with distance accessibility. Round One responses were gathered through the D2L discussion function so that participants could read each other's responses and reply if desired, allowing an exchange and development of ideas. Round One discussion responses were formatted into statements, which were then made available to the participants to rate through two successive rounds using 1-5 Likert scales. Of the initial 142 statements, 91 statements were retained in the final round. The 91 final statements were matched to Flathead Watershed Sourcebook contents to identify the learning objectives for the Flathead Watershed Educators Guide. The final statements listed the knowledge, skills, and dispositions survey participants felt were most important for students in the Flathead Watershed to learn. Statements showed concern for conservation and protection of the natural environment through place-based watershed education.Item Lowenfeld mosaic responses of Crow Indian Head Start children(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1970) Chaloupka, Karen ElaineItem Ability to benefit : a credible basis for admissions to tribally controlled colleges(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1991) Boham, Sandra LeeItem After the buffalo days : documents on the Crow Indians from the 1880's to the 1920's(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1970) Bradley, Charles CraneThe period in the history of the Crow Indians of Montana between the 1880’s and the 1920's for a long time concerned historians less than the period ending with the Custer Battle. In this thesis I have attempted' to present the important events as based on documentary evidence. Most of the documents referred to in this thesis were the letters received by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs filed in the National Archives at Washington, D.C. Reference was also made to Congressional Hearings in the Interior Department library and to Chief Plenty Coups Letter File and Note Book in the Plenty Coups Memorial. After reading between 1500 and 2000 letters concerning the Crow Reservation I concluded the basic mistake the Indian Office made was training the Crows to become farmers, herders, irrigators, carpenters, and blacksmiths. The Office of Indian Affairs never foresaw the day when a few educated Crows would attempt to manage the Reservation. Thus, when the political authority on the Reservation disintegrated, members of the Crow Business Committee were ill prepared for administrative work. The important Issues concerning the Crow Reservation from the point of view of the Government included leasing Tribal lands, granting right of ways to railroads, authorizing irrigation construction, and establishing schools. Leasing Crow land to stockmen drew much excitement and considerable brain work from the Indian Office. Leases, however, concerned the Crow Tribe less than the ceding of the western and northern portions of the Reservation. The railroads cutting through the Reservation brought economic advancement to the surrounding white people, but the Crows became dubious toward them. The Crow Irrigation Survey was significant in that it Was the first large scale employment of Crow Indians. Schools on the Crow Reservation were regarded by the Indian Office as indications of material progress and progress toward white man’s culture. World War I involved the Crow Indians in the world situation. In short, the period from the 1880’s to the 1920’s was the period of a major transition in Crow culture and also a forgotten portion in the life of Chief Plenty Coos.Item The history of the catechesis of the Catholic Church on the Crow Reservation(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1983) Watembach, KarenThe thesis presented in this paper states that the Catholic Church through the missionary activity of the Jesuits on the Crow Reservation from 1887-1921 established a permanent mission school, St. Xavier Mission Boarding School, as the center of a European feudal model of church. This model was built upon two constructs: the stationary center and the philosophical-historical concept of world view. The Crow people were in contrast nomadic and held a cosmological concept of world view. The teachings of Jesus were woven through a series of cultural conflicts, misunderstanding of methodologies and language differences, clashes of values as well as loving concern, Crow language preservation, education of the young, and spiritual gifts which spoke to the Crow people. Using a historical approach, the writer researched archival materials - letters, diaries, school and government records, sermons, prayers and catechisms translated into the Crow language; gathered information through oral history; and interpreted theological and philosophical constructs in Catholic Church history and in Crow tradition. Through this research it was concluded that the Catholic Church did in fact build a model of feudal church on the Crow Reservation with the boarding school as its stationary center. However, in 1907 the model began to disintegrate when the government and the Crow people desired day schools. The center of the feudal model was lost when St. Xavier Boarding School closed in 1921.Item School readiness and achievement of Crow Indian children, first through fouth grades, at Pryor, Montana(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1969) Jensen, Joyce MartinItem The integration of English language arts, science and other subjects : learning from elementary educators' knowledge and practice(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2013) Nollmeyer, Gustave Evan; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Lynn Kelting-Gibson.A cursory review of the literature reveals that integration is a difficult practice to define, yet elementary teachers are quick to speak positively of integration and many claim to integrate in their practice. If there is a lack of consensus about what integration means, what then are these teachers doing when they say that they integrate? Surprisingly, few researchers have taken the time to explore the descriptions and practices of elementary educators. This study investigated five cases in an effort to establish how teachers view the domain of subject area integration. Qualitative data was collected through interviews with the participants and observations of the integrated lessons they taught. The data revealed a healthy mix of commonalities within and differences between the teachers' descriptions and practices. These similarities and differences revealed a model of integration that goes beyond the linear continuums common in the literature. The conclusions of this study propose a model of the domain that consists of four variables. These variables can be used to describe with great detail an individual practice of integration and allow educators and administrators an opportunity to consider and plan for growth in the practice of subject area integration.Item An analysis of tribal college student's backgrounds, motivations, and attitudes : the relationship to classroom retention(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2006) Thornton, Samuel David; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Betsy PalmerThe purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between students' backgrounds, motivations, and attitudes and their academic successes or failures while enrolled in a single core level general education class at the Blackfeet Community College. The study examined indicators as identified in the literature and as identified through a pilot survey given to students at the Blackfeet Community College. A literature review yielded little research on student classroom retention in tribal colleges. The population for this study was n=113 students enrolled in core level academic courses. These students responded to a survey developed specifically for this study and were subsequently tracked through the semester to determine academic success or failure. The survey responses were then analyzed to determine which student indicators or groups of indicators were indicative of student academic success or failure. The significant findings of this study revealed that students who were academically unsuccessful were less likely to re-enroll in the next year. Specific indicators were identified to suggest that students who had not completed high school or their GED were at-risk. Male students without school-age children are more likely to be academically unsuccessful than female students without school-age children and female students with school-age children are more likely to be academically unsuccessful than male students with school-age children. Also identified as at-risk were students who did not drive themselves to campus.