Supporting the Cultural Identity Development of Indigenous Youth: Findings from an Indigenous Educators’ Community-Of-Practice

Research reveals a positive impact on educational achievement for Indigenous students when their teachers are also Indigenous. The educational value of shared identity between students and teachers manifests in the form of increased student attendance rates, grades, and graduation rates. Fewer than 5% of public-school teachers in Alaska are Indigenous, while nearly 20% of students are Indigenous. Thus, it is unlikely that most Indigenous students in Alaska will experience a shared cultural identity with their teachers—nor would it be desirable, in this age of global mobility, for society to strive for teachers and students to share cultural identity in all instances. Yet it is important to discern what teaching practices and teacher dispositions support the cultural identity development (CID) of Indigenous children. This project brought together Indigenous educators from across Alaska to critically examine their practice as educators and to seek answers to the research question. Utilizing a collaborative autoethnographic framework, qualitative data were coded and analyzed to uncover answers to the research question. Key findings from this study indicate that teaching and using the local Indigenous language, shared cultural history documented in stories, and experiences related to the Land contribute to students’ CID. Furthermore, findings reveal that micro cultural validations, fleeting interactions between teachers and students, play a significant role in supporting the cultural identity development of Indigenous youth. Findings also suggest that Indigenous teachers are best positioned to discern the teaching practices that contribute to students’ cultural identity development.