Dr. Reinhardt's American Indian Education Blog: 2007

How can thinking about Indian education on Mars help us rethink Indian education here on Earth?

Have you ever wondered what American Indian education would look like on Mars? Obviously, I have. When I first completed my doctoral dissertation, I told my wife, Tina, that I wanted to read something as far away from Indian education as possible. That is when I got hooked on books about Mars and space exploration. I should have know that these two great passions would eventually find themselves coming together in my thoughts.

When and if we ever find ourselves on the "Red Planet" (a little ironic). We may have the opportunity to influence how Martians (both colonists and natives) are educated about American Indian stuff. How might Indian education on Mars be different than what we currently do here on Earth?

Let's begin by thinking about the "who" factor. Who will be involved in Indian education on Mars? It is very likely that most of the colonists, will be non-American Indian, much like the populations in our public school systems here on Earth. As such, it goes without saying that most of the students, and educators will be non-Indian. However, it is also a great likelihood that the Mars colonies will also be made up of many different cultures. Thus, although the colonists will be largely non-Indian, it may be that Indigenous groups from Earth are well represented throughout the Mars colonial population.

Let's move on to the "where" factor. Indian education on Mars, to the extent that it occurs, will take place on a different planet about 35 million miles from Earth (also known as the bright blue star in the Mars night sky). It will take place primarily inside of self-contained units that protect human beings from the extreme environmental conditions of Mars. Most educational interactions will take place in a virtual environment, thereby maximizing limited space. The common classroom will likely be the personal living quarters of each individual. Each person's living quarters will double as a Human Immersive Virtual Environment (HIVE). The walls will be computerized screens, similar to the Hollow Deck on Star Trek. Each HIVE will be interconnected via a central processor. Those educational interactions requiring personal contact with other human beings will likely occur in a work place or common area. Since Mars falls under the United Nations, it will also take place outside of any tribal or national jurisdiction.

"When" Indian education will occur on Mars is sometime during the non-sleeping hours of the Mars day. A day on Mars is about 40 minutes longer than an Earth day. Students would go to "school" six days per week. An average school-day on Mars may look something like the following. Wake-up at 5am after eight hours of sleep. Half hour personal time. One hour meal and transition time. Two hours computer aided instruction. Half hour personal time. Three and a half hours of job shadowing. One hour meal and transition time. Three and a half more hours of job shadowing. One hour meal and transition time. Two hours of computer aided instruction. One hour and forty minutes personal time. Lights out. Given that scenario, if Indian education is going to occur on Mars it would most likely happen during the four hours of computer aided instruction, during personal time, or during the alternating non-school/non-work day.

"What" will it include as far as curriculum? Most education will be focused on colonial survival and expansion. Any Indian education would have to somehow be related to the core values of the colonies. Conflicts between human beings will be discouraged by the policies governing the colonies and reinforced through the official curriculum. Each student will be prepared for a role in the colony that best fits their unique profile.

"How" Indian education will happen will largely be through student/computer interaction. Each student's unique profile will be loaded into a database from which the central processor will develop an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Content area specialists will be assigned as mentors to each student to prepare them to eventually take over their responsibilities for the colony.

"Why" would it be important for the people of Mars to learn about Indian anything? This is often a tough question for us to answer on earth, let alone on a different planet. How can the Earth centered American Indian educational philosophies contribute to the growth and development of the Mars colonies which will exist in a completely artificial environment? Maybe the Indian education advocates on Mars would say something like, "It is important for Martians to learn about American Indian people and cultures because they are part of who we are as people who originate from Earth". Perhaps they will argue that it is important for Martians to know that unlike the colonization of the Americas and other areas of the Earth, the colonization of Mars took place without a genocide of millions of Indigenous inhabitants. Or maybe they will say something like "Our great democracy that governs the United Nations and the Mars Colonies grew out of American Indian traditions. As such, it is vital that we strive to understand these traditions and how they might help us create an even better society for future generations of Martians".

All too often, we find ourselves dealing with Indian education from a perspective that seems like we are on another planet. This occurs for many reasons including the non-recognition of the place of spirituality in the education of all students, the lack of professional development for educators in the area of American Indian education, the lack of high quality American Indian curriculum integration, the low numbers of highly qualified American Indian educators, the lack of support for tribal education departments, the on-going struggle between states rights and tribal rights regarding the education of tribal citizens and others about American Indian issues, and perhaps most importantly, the continued disenfranchisement of American Indian people and tribes from their natural resource base due to encroachment and pollution.

Although it would be cool to be able to walk into a HIVE and bring up a virtual scene of Ojibway wigwam building in pre-colonial context, it is also a bit scary to think that a virtual American Indian education experience may be all that anyone gets eventually.

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Indian Education on Mars

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