Nez Perce Tribe, Lapwai Educators Urge Critchfield to Reconsider Endorsement of PragerU Curriculum | Idaho

Originally published on IdahoEdNews.org on November 25, 2024

Educators from the Nez Perce and Lapwai tribes are calling on the Idaho Department of Education to reconsider its endorsement of PragerU’s controversial conservative curriculum. The curriculum is “severely biased,” Nez Perce tribal leaders wrote in a Nov. 13 letter to state Superintendent Debbie Critchfield, and its historical content “seems to serve the sole purpose of justifying actions and decisions that have profound impacts on minority groups and indigenous peoples had.” ” The Nez Perce tribe said a final decision on the curriculum “should not be made until more thorough input has been provided by all parties involved.” Leaders of the Lapwai School District, located on the Nez Perce Reservation, joined calls for the state to withdraw its endorsement of the curriculum in letters sent last week. Scott Graf, the IDE’s communications director, confirmed that the state had received the letters. “We have been working with the tribes on this matter and will continue to discuss it with them in the coming weeks,” he wrote in an email to EdNews. The IDE announced its endorsement of the curriculum in October, with reactions ranging from cheers to concern. The curriculum is supplementary and not compulsory; It must be approved by local school boards before teachers can use it in their classrooms.

In their letter, Nez Perce leaders called PragerU and similar curricula “attempts to rewrite the history of this country.” Efforts to “wash away the parts that some people don’t like to acknowledge are misguided and harmful,” they wrote. “Indoctrinating students with a watered-down curriculum will only encourage the growth of racism and resentment in Idaho.” On Nov. 14, the Nez Perce Tribe also released an official statement on the curriculum, calling it a “step backwards from the progress made in developing a more comprehensive and comprehensive tribal-related curriculum in Idaho.”

Iris Chimburas, the director of Indian education at the Lapwai School District, joined calls for the IDE to reconsider its support for the PragerU curriculum. In a Nov. 22 letter, she called on the state to instead “adhere to standards that prioritize culturally responsive education.”

The PragerU curriculum, and particularly its videos about Native American history and culture, are “not consistent with Idaho’s social science standards” and “contribute to negative educational outcomes for Native American students,” she wrote. ““(The curriculum) reinforces colonial stereotypes by justifying colonization and the erasure of indigenous cultures while ignoring the ongoing impact of historical intergenerational trauma,” she wrote. “It suppresses cultural identities, reinforces stereotypes and negatively impacts student identity, engagement and achievement.” D’Lisa Penney, an administrator for the Lapwai School District, wrote in a Nov. 21 letter to Critchfield that she was “more concerned” about the impact of the curriculum on non-Native students “who continue to be denied true and accurate educational learning opportunities.” about people of color, indigenous peoples and the history of the United States of America.” She urged Critchfield to reconsider her support for PragerU, saying it is critical for the state to consult with tribal nations in good faith. In October, EdNews asked Critchfield whether some of PragerU’s content undermines its efforts to include accurate Native American perspectives in the classroom and how it would respond to students or tribes who might feel offended by the content. “As with any other supplementary … material, there may or may not be places where it is applicable, and this might be one of the places where it is not applicable,” she said. She also said that the IDE “does not release materials that are intentionally harmful to students, not just minorities, but anyone.” Further reading: Emails show that Critchfield’s chief of staff met with PragerU for the first time in January