Change, Control, and Research Methodology in Native Education: A Response to Folds

Abstract

Changes in North America's social and physical environment over the past century have made it virtually impossible for the majority of Native people in this part of the world to live their lives as their ancestors once did. The Innut of Labrador are no exception. Like so many other Native people, they have had little choice but to abandon many aspects of traditional life and attempt to cope with the complexities of the Europeanbased culture into which they have been thrust. Sadly, the efforts of the Innut and of most other Native groups to deal with the pressures that have accompanied this rapid change have met with little success. Pain and anguish, turmoil and turbulence are the norm rather than the exception in many Native communities. Those concerned with this state of affairs have sought out those resources they believe will assist Native people with the difficult task of dealing with these problems. Education is one such resource. Many Native and non-Native people see formal schooling as a vehicle through which Native people can acquire the knowledge and skills to overcome the turbulence that is now very much a part of their lives. I have sought to illustrate, on the other hand, that formal schooling as we know it is not a panacea (Ryan, 1989a). Indeed, it contains as many pitfalls as it does opportunities for Native people. One substantial problem with this form of education, for example, rests with the particular organizational framework that most schools adopt, a framework that Foucault (1979) refers to as discipline. This system of organization alienates many of these young people, prompting them to reject the very process that many feel is the key to their survival in the modern world. I have also