The mission of Northwest Indian College (NWIC) is to provide post-secondary educational opportunities for Native Americans that is sensitive to their worldviews, background, and academic needs and goals, and prepare them for the challenges of leadership in their tribal communities. In addition to providing effective opportunities for students to develop academic competence, the NWIC mission is to infuse students with clear communication skills, critical thinking skills, and a developed sense of civic responsibility.
The Northwest Indian College Division of Math and Science is proposing implementation of a SMET learning community educational plan that begins with entering freshman and supports them through to the completion of an AA or AS degree.
The first-year goal of this program would be to generate student interest and growth toward further education in math and science. Building on this foundation, the overall goal would be to have these students then obtain associates and baccalaureate degrees in science or math-related fields. The first year would be a "developmental year" for students whose test scores indicate that this is necessary. (Note: The majority of students entering NWIC would have test scores reflecting this need. It is often the lack of a growth or preparation period that contributes to student failure in math and science.)
During the first year, the plan would be as follows: * Each eligible student would enter into an integrated academic group or cohort. * A testing specialist would evaluate math and science competencies for each student. * All students would be enrolled in the following courses: Public Speaking, Introduction to Computers, Native American History/Philosophy, and Introduction to Successful Learning during fall quarter and throughout their first (or developmental) year. These courses, which are required for graduation from Northwest Indian College, would be fully integrated among each other while also being integrated with introductory science and math courses in which students are placed according to their initial test scores. Example: The cohort would be assigned a relevant science topic such as iswater quality.lo Individually and as a group, students would research the topic, using math to compute statistics, the Internet to find background material and group discussions to enhance individual research. Students would give oral and written presentations using the principles discussed in the cohort instruction. (Note: A somewhat different form of this schedule and approach has been used successfully with our NSF funded Tribal Environmental and Natural Resource Management program (TENRM). The result has been much higher than average retention and completion for students lacking needed skills.)
By combining required courses where NWIC students typically do well (i.e. Speech), with developmental science and math courses, students will be more likely to successfully complete essential coursework for graduation.
Northwest Indian College students have demonstrated they must be immersed in their culture, history, and philosophy if they are to effectively understand and build upon their role inthe Native communities. The college knows they must also develop the science and math skills necessary to help their culture survive and intends to meet these needs by offering introductory science and math courses fully integrated with curriculum related to Native culture, history, and philosophy. As they build increased self-esteem while finding success in the classroom, students will recognize their capacity to do science and math. They will then feel comfortable pursuing further science and math-related courses as they eventually enter baccalaureate programs and the SMET workforce.