Cunt)ra fames
Owned, controlled and edited by Tundra Times. Inc., a corporation of Alaska
natives. Published at Fairbanks, Alaska, twice monthly, on the first and third
Mondays.
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the Act of Marcli 3, 1879.
Tundra Times, Inc., publisher <Howard Rock, Martha Teeluk, and Alfred Ketzler);
HOWARD ROCK, editor: Thomas Snapp, assistant editor; Vivian P. Spurgin, office
manager; contributing editors, Guy Okakok, Martha Teeluk, and Alfred Ketzler.
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Editorial
High School Dropouts
(Continued from Page 1)
munities to the seriousness of dropouts stressing this fact
especially to parents.
One great obstacle has been simply a lack of educa
tional tradition that has not yet been established within
the native population of Alaska.
The solving of the problem will have to proceed with
cooperative effort between educators, students, and par
ents. The nucleus of establishing educational tradition
among native peoples can be initiated.
This will have to be a studied effort on the part of
educators, considering facets of cultural backgrounds,
newness of educational systems in regard to native chil
dren in Alaska, and it will require patience of Job.
The tradition of education in the world's great coun
tries has been in existence for thousands of years, while
in Alaska, educational system has been in existence in
northern Alaska for only about 80 years. In view of this
care should be taken having in mind the transitional pro
cess that is taking place in working out educational sys
tems for Alaska.
It is heartening indeed that a serious study of native
educational problems have been made by University of
Alaska and disturbing situations have been unearthed.
The University has found that out of Alaska's 5,368
native youth of high school age only 34 per cent are en
rolled in secondary schools. The other 66 per cent is lost
through lack of school facilities and by dropouts.
The University summarized in its report:
"While the problems encountered in native schools
are severe, they are not insurmountable. In fact, school
personnel are very much aware of the problems cited and
are cognizant that the solutions to these problems are rel
atively simple in several instances if someone would take
the initiative to start the process. Discouraging and frustrat
ing situations could be effectively avoided if key admin
istrative personnel were able to spend more time in out
lying schools.
"The problem which may capse the discouraged
teacher to resign often can be recognized and remedied
before becoming critical. Patience and initiative are re
quired, yet the outstanding dedication and intelligence
of many presently employed school personnel working
under serious handicaps provide encouragement that the
effectiveness of the schools will be improved.
"Still, action is needed, for once a child leaves school
he seldom returns. And while he usually regrets his de
cision in later life, the deed has been done, and society has
lost the services of a potentially valuable human being."
Fditorial
Welcome, Commissioner Nash
This week, Commissioner Philleo Nash, is in Alaska.
Commissioner Nash is the man who heads the far-flung
Bureau of Indian Affairs, a service that covers the conti
nental United States and Alaska.
On his first visit to Alaska, Tundra Times would like
to take the liberty of welcoming Commissioner Nash, on
behalf of the native peoples of Alaska.
This is the first of several trips to Alaska the Com
miissioner will be making in the future.
We hope that this trip will be enlightening to Com
missioner Nash, and profitable for both the State as a
whole and the native peoples of Alaska.
NORTH STAR
AWARD
(In each issue, the Tundra
Times will single out for a North
Star award one who has made an
outstanding accomplishment or
done a meritorious act.)
Monday, March 20, 1961 was a
momentous day for the twenty-six
students of the BIA Elementary
School at the small community,
Aretic Village. With every penny
they could muster, the students
hurried to school to begin the first
student banking in northern
Alaska.
The School Savings project was
started at the suggestion of Prin
cipal-Teacher. Mrs. Marie Mott.
But under the program, Mrs. Mott
does not handle money. She is
simply an advisor.
The class sent to a Fairbanks
bank for signature cards, each pupil
brought to school what money he
could scrape together, deposit slips
were made out. and accounts were
opened. A parent was required to
sign each signature card. The par
ent. of course, would inherit any
money in case of the sudden demise
of a depositor.
An upper class student was
elected as the cashier to collect the
deposits and transmit them to the
bank. The first deposit totaled
$36.37.
Every so often a day is set aside
as banking day when the pupils
bring in their money for depositing.
Many times the deposits are slim.
“But on the whole the children
really try," says Mrs. Mott.
At present the bank balance of
the students amounts to $402.50! As
the amount has climbed upward,
parents have really been astounded.
The most money a single student
has saved is $69.83 and the smallest
balance is held by a little beginner.
Her balance is 10 cents.
The children save their money
with the idea of spending it for
particular things. Withdrawals are
made, for instance, for spending at
school carnivals.
“The younger ones seem to save
for the fun of saving. That is, to see
it written in the book. The olcter
ones have a more competitive feel
ing about it—trying to get the
most money saved."
Since Arctic Village students
started their bank savings plan
students at other places, for ins
tance, English Bay, followed suit.
The students in this very prac
tical way are learning the value
of money and how to save it, some
thing that will be extremely valu
able to them in later life,
And so to Mrs. Marie Mott and
the 2S students of the BIA School
at Arctic Village for their very
worthwhile pioneer project goes
the Tundra Times’ eighth North
Star award along with our congrat
ulations.
Eskimo Poem
The Raven
By Howard Weyahok
Black plumaged winged being,
Raven,
I list to thy racous cry.
‘Tis unlovely, to be sure.
But yea, I’m resting here in quiet
glen.
Thither on yon hill stand lofty
spruce
Majestic and grand.
While below me, I harken
To the bubble of a rill.
Above me the azured firmament
With white spring clouds slowly
drifting.
Soft breezes, redolent with blossom
fragrances,
Gently brush my cheeks and caress
me.
With all this resplendant beauty
abounding,
Somehow, ebonied creature,
Thy cry mingles fittingly—
And I’m here in peace, peace,
peace ... "... 4
Editorial
Encourage Education
By Markle Ewan
One of the greatest needs in Alaska is the encourage
ment of education.
As for myself, I have only gotten a third grade educa
tion and in the past twenty years I have many times re
gretted that I did not have more education.
Many times good jobs and business opportunities
have passed me by because of my lack of education.
As you know, education cannot be bought, but you
can consume it by taking more and more time.
I am chairman of the Education Committee of the
Alaska Native Brotherhood, Camp No. 31, Copper River
Valley, and would like to urge parents to help their chil
dren in every way possible to obtain an education and stu
dents to try their hardest to study and to learn.
The world is growing so' fast that we people of Alaska
:annot live as we did 40 years ago. Those ways today are
obsolete.
We, the native people of Alaska, have changed our
ways of living to match the other people of Alaska. Today,
one must be a technician of some kind, a diploma is
needed.
If a child does not acquire an education, he will regret
it for the rest of his life.
We, as parents, must help our children acquire an ed
ucation. You may ask, "How?" Well, we can start by teach
ing our children good behavior and getting the right tools
of education.
If a child is not encouraged, he may not want to en
ter school at the right time, or a child if he is not encour
aged may lose interest and drop out of school. I sincerely
hope the people of this state will take the time to encour
age the students of today who will become the adult citi
zens of tomorrow.
STUDY REVEALS
Many Recommendations
To Decrease Dropouts
Alaska needs to develop secondary*"
school facilities to allow every will
ing eighth grade graduate to obtain
a high school education.
This is the first recommendation
if a 411-page study of Alaska na
‘ive secondary school dropouts
recently completed by the Uni
versity of Alaska. The study' showed
hat more than half -of the native
students drop out before finishing
high school.
The research was performed by
'he University for the U.S. Office
of Education.
Dr. Charles K. Hay, head of the
University’s Education Department,
was director of the project; Miss
Toan Ryan was executive director;
ind Seymour Parker was consult
ing anthropologist.
Here are the study’s other recom
mendations:
1. Regional high schools should
be established in an effort to allow
students as much as possible to at
tend school near their home com
munities.
2. The class size should be re
luced in cases where more than 30
students are in one room.
3. Standards for pupil promotion
and marking should be developed in
terms of the student’s own abilities
and background.
Unrealistic expectations lead stu
dents to adopt an attitude of de
featism and non-promotion magni
fies the problem of dropouts, it
was pointed out.
4. Clearly-organized programs
must be established to communicate
to parents and village leaders the
objectives of schools.
“Parent-teacher associations can
benefit these efforts; however even
more direct communication is re
quired to impart to the community’s
adults the advantages of education
and to elicit their support in en
couraging youth to remain in
school.”
"Only when parents understand
the objectives of school can
they be expected to support the
program.”
5. School programs must be adapt
ed with emphasis on techniques of
teaching English to bi-lingual or
non-English speaking people.
6. More counseling is needed for
imparting to students the require
ments of occupations and careers.
7. Closer cooperation between
health and education officials is
needed. According to the study,
many children have remained in
school with serious maladies. Reg
ular physical examinations for all
school children is urged.
8. Orientation, in-service train
ing sessions, and summer workshops
should be provided for teachers to
enrich their understanding of the
values and special problems found
in Alaskan native schools.
“Teachers and admin istrators
should not expect the students to
make the entire adjustment to im
posed concepts and instructional
program.”
It was pointed out that scnooi
personnel need to comprehend the
frustrations and agonies faced by
groups caught inexorably in the
proess of acculturation.
It was suggested at summer work
shops teachers could be supplied
information by anthropologists, ex
perts in teaching English as a sec
ond language, and persons versed
in school-community relations.
9. In making academic judgment
involving native students, less re
liance should be placed on stand
ardized tests. Without exception,
authorities in testing minimize the
validity of nationally standardized
tests when results are applied to
culturally atypical groups.
10. Expansion of present programs
of adult education will provide par
ents with additional understanding
of the value of education for their
children.
(Continued on Page 8)