The South Dakota Board of Education on Monday adopted a set of core concepts and standards for teaching Native American history and culture that one former educator said could result in more "accurate and respectful instruction."

Created over the past three years by mostly Native American educators, the Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings and Standards will lead to changes in the way all South Dakota schools teach about the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota people. They include grade-level standards, corresponding activities and suggested resources for use in instruction, such as films, books and tribal organizations.

"I would hope that it would finally lead to accurate and respectful instruction," said Stuart Zephier, a former Flandreau social studies teacher and high school principal, who helped developed the standards.

The 2007 Indian Education Act mandated the development of a new curriculum for Native American history and culture. The curriculum will be developed later and woven into the state's standards for social studies and other subjects.

Roger Campbell, the state's Indian education director, said the standards are meant for use in all schools, not just those with high Indian populations. However, they represent "a validated version" of what already is being taught on reservations.

"We can have a reference point for everybody to go to," he said. "In Indian country (today), you may get a lot of different interpretations of the same material."

Marcia Zephier, who teaches Native American Connections classes at Roosevelt High School, said the standards will bring a tribal point of view to instruction.

"A lot of times what's written in our history book is from the European perspective and doesn't necessarily put us in the best light," Zephier said. "It's going to educate our kids about who we are as people; how we lived, how we governed ourselves, what our families were like."

Stuart Zephier thinks that will improve race relations in the state over time.

The essential understandings say, for example, that:

• The tribes "have a distinct and unique interrelationship with the environment that contributes to South Dakota."
• "There is no 'generic American Indian.' "
• "The origin, thought and philosophy of the Oceti Sakowin continues in the contemporary lifestyle of tribal members."
• "History told from the Oceti Sakowin perspective, through oral tradition and written accounts, frequently conflicts with the stories mainstream historians tell and becomes subjective information. Currently, historical perspective is being revisited to be more inclusive."
• "Federal policies and treaties put into place throughout American history have affected Oceti Sakowin people adversely."
• "Tribal communities have put considerable efforts into economic development ventures, tribal universities, alternative education, wellness centers, cultural, traditions and language revitalization."

• Gov. Dennis Daugaard spoke before the board in favor of the standards.

  "Students are more engaged when they find the curriculum relevant," he said. "It's important for Native students to have that relevancy, but it's also equally important for our non-Native students to have a better understanding of the cultural background of the state."

Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings and Standards

Indian Education
The South Dakota Department of Education is committed to improving educational opportunities for American Indian students in our state. The department works closely with an Indian Education Advisory Council, which represents all nine tribes in South Dakota along with American Indian educators from all parts of the state.
http://doe.sd.gov/IndianEducation/index.asp

Office of Indian Education
The mission of the Office of Indian Education is to support the efforts of local educational agencies, Indian tribes and organizations, postsecondary institutions, and other entities to meet the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives so that these students can achieve to the same challenging state standards as all students.
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oese/oie/index.html