ABSTRACT
One of the defining characteristics of colonial schooling for Indigenous children was its intentional disregard for the community “funds of knowledge” children bring to school (González, Moll, Floyd-Tenery, Rivera, Rendón, González, & Amanti, 1995). “Back then,” Galena Dick recalls of her early school experiences, “we easily distinguished between the home and school cultures…. When we returned to school, we identified ourselves as a different person” (Dick & McCarty, 1996, p. 75). These conflicts are nearly universal in Indigenous accounts of going to school (see, e.g., Grant, 1996; Ilutsik, 1994; Lipka et al., 1998; Sekaquaptewa, 1969; Watahomigie, 1998; cf. Home & McBeth, 1998). The conflicts and their material consequences influence both the responses of Indigenous communities to contemporary education programs, and the linguistic and cultural resources available to implement those programs.
