Few states require Native American education curriculum to be taught in public schools

The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) released a new report today summarizing the landscape of current efforts by states to bring high-quality educational content about Native peoples and communities into all kindergarten to 12th grade (K-12) classrooms across the United States. The report was completed in partnership with IllumiNative, the National Indian Education Association (NIEA), the National Education Association (NEA), and Wend Collective.

The purpose of the  Becoming Visible: A Landscape Analysis of State Efforts to Provide Native American Education for All  report was to determine the extent to which states require or provide support for Native American K-12 curricula for all public school students and to review the policies, laws, and practices that states currently use to authorize, provide, or improve the delivery of their Native American K-12 curriculum. The report includes the following results:

• Almost 90 percent of states surveyed said they have current efforts underway to improve the quality of and access to Native American curriculum; and

• A majority of the states surveyed indicated that Native American education is included in their content standards, but far fewer states require Native American education curriculum to be taught in public schools;

In order to raise awareness about the findings and galvanize action to advance Native American education for all K-12 students, the report includes a tool kit of resources for those working to advance state support and implementation of Native American education curricula.