[Dialogue] Native American Education

[Chagnon@comcast.net]

Karen,
   I am sending this to the two listserves to add to what is, I presume, a tentative list of interested colleagues.  I can't begin to tell you how hopeful the possibilities that you have raised seem to be.
   Count me in to your Native American Project.  I believe I bring two particular strengths to what you describe as both a variation on the Town Meeting project and an educational venture with incredible potential.
   First, the educational component.  For years, I have been a member of the US version of Georgi Lazanov's suggestopedia or accelerated learning organization, the International Alliance for Learning (formerly SALT, the Society for A. L. and Teaching).  I have presented workshops on my Literacy Acceleration vision at IAL's January conference for the past several years and will be doing so again in Alexandria, VA next week.  I am also leading a one-hour IAL Conference Call on Literacy Acceleration tomorrow evening, Thursday, Jan 5th.  I will leave website information on both for interested colleagues at the end of this e-mail since it is not too late to register.  Interestingly enough, one of the most active IAL members is Chuck Bubar, an early member of the Christian Faith and Life Community in Austin who remembers Joe Mathews well.
   Carl Stock and I took the Town Meeting multi-week set-up model and reduced it to one week in Canada when, with other wonderful colleagues, we spent the first quarter of 1978 setting up Rendez-vous Quebec in pairs. 
   When I.got to Europe in April 1978, we were sometimes able to reduce the set-up time there to one or two days, especially in farming communities, and still get a very good-sized representation of local people around the table.  After Belgium, France, and Luxembourg (just one meeting there--that Paul Schrijnen led in German) we took it to England.  Roger Bannister was at one of the Community Meetings, and he invited me and Chris Boivin, who was still in High School at the time, to his home after.  
   I'm enjoying the reminiscing, but the point is this:  You have been wise to seek out the grassroots leadership first.  The strategy that works with the Native American population is a different one altogether when you talk with the local people themselves.  With those visionaries and go-getters in tow, you can get to those who hold the purse strings and do an end-run around the need for formalities that can delay everything by months.  Another plus is our colleagues who have lived and worked in HDPs or other native communities around the globe.
   As I re-read this, I realize that I am preaching to the converted. Keep us in the loop, Karen. 
Lucille Chagnon, Wilmington, DE
IAL website:  ialearn.org   for information on the Alexandria Conference and/or the current Conference Calls. 
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Subject: [Dialogue] Native American Education
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