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Ballinger, R. & Noonan, M. (2004). Transitioning Students with Disabilities in a Rural Native Hawaiian Community: One Teacher's Perspective. Rural and Special Education Quarterly 23(4), 17-24. Retrieved December 14, 2005 from http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4052/is_200410/
ai_n9521257.

Special education teachers in rural settings face unique social and cultural challenges. Geographic and economic constraints, cultural and lifestyle differences, and social boundaries between local residents and newcomers may significantly affect the transition process of youth with disabilities. This qualitative case study explored the experiences and influence of a Caucasian transition and reading teaching in her first year in an isolated primarily Native Hawaiian community.

Davis, J., Erickson, J., Johnson, S., Marshall, C., Running Wolf, P., & Santiago, R. (Eds.). (2002). Working Group on American Indian Research and Program Evaluation Methodology, Symposium on Research and Evaluation Methodology: Lifespan Issues Related to American Indian/Alaska Natives with Disabilities. PDF (606 KB) Flagstaff: Northern Arizona University, Institute for Human Development, Arizona University Center on Disabilities, American Indian Rehabilitation Research and Training Center. Retrieved July 25, 2006 from http://wili.org/docs/AIRPEM_Monograph.pdf.

This monograph was developed to address alternative and appropriate methods of conducting research with the American Indian and Alaska Native population. Research with American Indians needs to be academically acceptable to the general research community as well as appropriate culturally and linguistically. Research and program evaluation experiences shared in the monograph are offered as viable methods of impacting these multifaceted issues and problems.

Faircloth, S. (2000). Issues in the Education of American Indian and Alaska Native Students with Disabilities. PDF (34 KB) Charleston, WV: Clearinghouse on Rural and Small Schools. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED448009).

Over 10 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students in public schools and more than 18 percent of AI/AN students in Bureau of Indian Affairs and tribal schools are eligible for or placed in special education programs. This digest addresses four selected issues in the education of AI/AN students with disabilities. First, the 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) provide for the awarding of personnel preparation grants to colleges and universities; some grants have been awarded specifically for training special educators to work with AI/AN students. Grant recipients include a program on the Navajo Reservation that trains both Indian and non-Indian service providers, programs aimed at AI/AN college students, and grants to tribal colleges. Second, IDEA guarantees parents certain rights concerning their involvement in their child's education. Suggestions are offered for facilitating the involvement of AI/AN parents. Third, IDEA mandates that all students be evaluated using nondiscriminatory evaluations and multiple forms of assessment and using their native language. Suggestions for culturally and linguistically appropriate assessments are offered. Finally, IDEA requires education in the least restrictive environment. The inclusive model of education adopted by Kayenta Unified School District (Arizona) is briefly described.

National Research Council. (2002). Minority Students in Special and Gifted Education. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Special education and gifted and talented programs were designed for children whose educational needs are not well met in regular classrooms. From their inceptions, these programs have had disproportionate representation of racial and ethnic minority students. This book considers possible contributors to that disparity, including early biological and environmental influences and inequities in opportunities for preschool and K-12 education, as well as the possibilities of bias in the referral and assessment system that leads to placement in special programs. It examines the data on early childhood experience, on differences in educational opportunity, and on referral and placement. The book also considers whether disproportionate representation should be considered a problem.

Montgomery, D. (2001). Increasing Native American Indian Involvement in Gifted Programs in Rural Schools. Psychology in the Schools 38(5), 467-475.

Recent changes in the field of gifted education, including calls for redefining the gifted education specialist's role and the classroom teacher's desire to collaborate, have led to consultative and collaborative approaches to serving gifted learners. Resource consultation and collaboration, the pooling of expertise among all school staff in order to do more for students, is emerging as a popular service delivery strategy in gifted education programming. This article reveals much about the nature and context of the processes only recently applied to gifted learners. Specifically, it contains a description of the consultation and collaboration processes, management issues for related programming, delineation of consultation and collaboration activities, and presents the educational implications for their implementation.

Sarouphim, K. (2002). Discover in High School: Identifying Gifted Hispanic and Native American Students. Journal of Secondary Gifted Education 14(1), 30-38.

Based on Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, the Discover assessment was designed to identify gifted minority students for placement into programs for the gifted. In previous studies, the reliability and validity of the assessment in elementary grades were examined and yielded mostly positive results. In this study, similar analyses were carried out to investigate some validity aspects of Discover with secondary students. The sample consisted of 303 predominantly Hispanic and Native American ninth grades. The results provided evidence for an alignment of the assessment with the theory of multiple intelligences. Also, no overall gender or ethnic differences were found in the numbers of students identified. In addition, the results suggested that the use of the Discover assessment might help in reducing the problem of minority students' under-represented in programs for the gifted, as 29.3% of the high school students that participated in this study were identified as gifted.

Tepper, N., & Tepper, B. (2004). Linking Special Education with Multicultural Education for Native American Children with Special Needs. Rural and Special Education Quarterly 23(4), 30-33.

Special educators need to be able to work well with Native American students who have special needs and their families to insure that their cultural background is used to support, rather than impede their progress in education. The authors propose a set of questions that can be used to assist educators in collaborating with families to incorporate key aspects of the child's cultural background into the individual education plan.

Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (2004, April). Serving American Indian Students: Participation in Accelerated Learning Opportunities. PDF (353 KB) Boulder, CO: Suzanne Benally. Retrieved December 6, 2005 from http://www.wiche.edu/Policy/WCALO/documents/
AmericanIndianStudents_000.pdf.

This study examines American Indian student participation in accelerated learning opportunities. The paper is organized in two sections: a report on the findings with policy consideration and a discussion of relevant research. The study is designed to develop a context for understanding American Indian student access to and participation in accelerated learning programs in several Western states.

Disclaimer and Terms of Use

Disclaimer: The papers on this web page are provided for your convenience. We believe these papers provide information that is relevant and useful to efforts to improve teaching and learning for Native American students. The opinions expressed in these papers, however, do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of the Office of Indian Education or the U.S. Department of Education. Also, the inclusion of papers here does not represent, nor should it be construed or interpreted as, an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education of any private organization or business.

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