Noelia Toscano - Connections to People and Place
docx
keyboard_arrow_up
School
Grand Canyon University *
*We aren’t endorsed by this school
Course
420
Subject
Arts Humanities
Date
Jan 9, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
7
Uploaded by Gorda1422
Noelia Toscano-Arteaga
October 22, 2023
ED F420
Connections to People and Place
Alaska has now been home for 7 years of my life. I think its safe to say that it is now considered my forever home. When I first moved here it was a complete cultural shock of everything. This ranged from seeing the snow, to meeting the people, to seeing all the towns and cities. I like to say that Alaska moves slowly, everyone enjoys life and there are quiet times unlike a busy city. The people are also different, they are nicer and there is more community. The
more time I spend studying and writing about my experiences and connections, the more I realize
I have changed along with the time I have been here. The place of interest I chose was Fairbanks. The most interesting thing I found was that Fairbanks was founded in 1903. This was 56 years before statehood happened, and I did not realize that Fairbanks had such an extensive amount of history. The first Fairbanks Public School
was opened in the winter of 1904, ten years after Fairbanks was founded. As time went on so did the enrollment numbers of the school. The school began with 10 students, within one semester grew to 50 and by the next year there were 150 students. As I was doing research on Fairbanks, boarding schools made an appearance. I fell into a downward spiral of boarding school research. Some of the terms that began to appear were Quaker Indian Boarding Schools, Wrangell Institute boarding school, and Mount Edgecumbe. I also found information about Effie Kokrine Charter School. In connection to what we are
learning about culture and being culturally responsive, these schools can be placed on a wide range along the scale. An example of being a culturally responsive and inclusive school would be
Effie Kokrine Charter School. Effie Kokrine’s curriculum has criteria established where teaching
methods based in Native ways, project-based learning, curriculum based in Native knowledge of the world, and the presence and involvement of Native Elders is prioritized. Effie Kokrine speaks
of community and building of the knowledge, values, and practices of the Alaska Native cultures
for future generations. This is very different to other historical schools such as the Wrangell Institute that came to light when I was researching Fairbanks. I found a news article about a former student of the Wrangell Institute named Jim LaBelle. He speaks of his experiences where he left Fairbanks and was sent to the Wrangell Institute. He speaks of the bad memories of the abuse he experienced. There was talk about how the Wrangell Institute would be redone to create an accelerated learning program based at UAA. I did not find any other information whether this idea is still continuing or not. As I looked beyond the news article, I found a paper based on the long-term effects boarding schools have had on Alaska Natives and their communities. Wrangell Institute is
known to have had intense physical, sexual, and emotional abuse of their students. As well as evidence that students were beaten for speaking their first languages. This goes into how now language revitalization is occurring but a reason why languages were going extinct in the first place could be an effect from the schooling history of Alaska. Connecting to my family, I decided to learn more about my mother’s experiences and compare and contrast them to the historical education we have been exploring in class. My mom began school in Lima, Peru. In the fifth grade, she moved to the United States and began school in Fairfax, Virginia. She then proceeded to go to community college in Virginia and later on
finished her degree online through Grand Canyon University. One of the biggest contrasts with the historical education that I have been learning is how
my mom’s education differed due to her beginning school in Peru and being an English Language Learner when she moved to the United States. She did not know any English and had not even been in the United States for a week before she began school. She talked about her experiences in Peru during primary school where they had uniforms, there were gated schools, and sometimes she could not go to school because of terrorism. She talked about how there would be people bombing the streets so it was not safe to go to school or let alone leave your house. Peru’s educational system still differs from Alaska and the United States as a whole today.
In comparison she has experienced some of the same feelings when it comes to racism, judgment, bias, and even the challenges of going to school. It makes me think that my mom has experienced similar conditions to what many have experienced in the historical education we are learning. This includes language barriers and even assimilation. English Language Programs were not the same as they are now. Being bilingual or different from others was seen as something bad and everyone was meant to fit in. There were many that wanted my mother to give up her culture and identity. There was even shame that my mother was not meant to be bilingual anymore. They wanted her to completely embrace the US culture and speak the “language.” Concerning my class community, one of my favorite discussion boards to look back on throughout the week was the week four discussion board. The quotes that people resonated with were truly eye-opening. My thinking and awareness expanded when I read, "And I can still remember years later as children who were much older, saying, ‘I thought my name was my number.’" It is interesting to think of how inhumanely and horrible these children were being
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
treated. This history connects to the treatment of Jews during World War II. It makes me think that if so many can advocate and say that the Jews did not deserve any of that and there is so much history and media about it, why is it different when in comparison to Alaska Natives? This seems like something I would have read in Anne Frank's Diary or in the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. I do not think I have actually read or heard of a popular book or even movie that takes Alaska Natives in consideration. Anne Frank’s Diary and the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas are popular in the sense that they are heard of and sometimes children even study them in schools. I also think of the quote of “The first thing they had us do was to strip completely naked on this receiving room's concrete floor. A lot of children did not understand the commands that the directions and oftentimes in frustration a lot of matrons ran over to these little guys and just kind of ripped their clothing off. We were all told to get in a line to get haircuts. These were done
in a way that was kind of like being sheared. Ever see these videos of sheep being sheared off? Well that’s what happened to us." This shows a reminiscence of survival, these children were scared and hurt. They are survivors and these events are something that many would think of to be torture if it were to occur today. Another discussion board I think of is week three discussion where we began to go farther in depth with being culturally responsive. There needs to be change where there are schooling opportunities that reflect the unique needs of diverse students. Topics can be included that collaborate with the land the students currently live on. Students can develop a strong connection and ties to the land. I also take into consideration how quickly and evolving educational policies change. There are so many different programs that are thought of and implemented, as well as more diverse communities are being created. It makes me think and feel that we are now to a point where being different is accepted and instead of refusing to open doors
to all, everyone is now being included. This not only is taking place in Alaska Native schooling and education but as well as a whole where dual language programs and special education programs are being evolved. All in all, I have learned an extensive amount of new information and ways to think of the world around me. Just 7 years ago, I didn't even know Alaska had its own culture and what it was composed of. I still continue to learn new things everyday whether that be about this beautiful state or about its educational history and educational future. I have made many connections to myself and my family and I have seen how the world around me has changed. This is the first time I have had to deeply make connections not only to people but to places as well. References
ALASKA’S URBAN BOARDING HOME PROGRAM
. Chapter I: Alaska’s Urban Boarding Home Program. (n.d.). http://www.alaskool.org/native_ed/research_reports/urban_boarding_home/CHAP_1.html#CHA
PTER%20I Borough facts, history & seal
. Borough Facts, History & Seal | Fairbanks North Star Borough, AK. (n.d.). https://www.fnsb.gov/456/Borough-Facts-History-Seal#:~:text=Borough
%20History,passed%20the%20Mandatory%20Borough%20Act. CB Elementary Sch Status
. UAF North. (n.d.). https://canvas.alaska.edu/courses/15596/files/2952765?wrap=1 Department, K. N., & Aaron Bolton, K. (2016, July 14). Why a Wrangell Boarding School plan stirs bad memories -- and opportunity
. KTOO. https://www.ktoo.org/2016/07/13/why-a-wrangell-boarding-school-plan-stirs-bad-memories-and-
opportunity/ Effie Kokrine Charter School Proposal
. Effie Kokrine Charter School. (n.d.). http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/NPE/EKCS/FinalProposal.html#two Fairbanks Public Schools Historical Marker
. Historical Marker. (2023, April 1). https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=219204 History of alaska native education: Alaska education timeline
. Jane Haigh History of Alaska. (n.d.). https://sites.kpc.alaska.edu/jhaighalaskahistory/history-of-alaska-native-
education/
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
Sage Smiley, K.-W. (2021, November 29). Wrangell to survey site of former boarding school for native children
. Alaska Public Media. https://alaskapublic.org/2021/11/29/wrangell-to-
survey-site-of-former-boarding-school-for-native-children/ Thirty years later the long term EFFECT of boarding schools on Alaska ... (n.d.). https://iseralaska.org/static/legacy_publication_links/boardingschoolfinal.pdf