In this article it discussed learning and saving the native language. Adriana feels it is very important to her that keeps her native language going so that it does not ever go away. As she grew up she was not able to speak nor understand the language. Along the way she had also learned that her grandmother had some difficulties too. Her grandmother would not speak her native language in public because she did not feel comfortable speaking it. She would only speak it in private areas. Adriana later discovers that her grandmother was demanded to only speak “castellano” which she told that she would be able to get a better job and it would be “generally better. That’s when Adriana decided to start learning her native language and start taking classes for it at the age of 25. Adriana faced many challenges along the way. She went through three different teachers just to understand “grammar and structure” of their native language. She also took classes on zoom during the pandemic and she felt that it was a little difficult for her because of the long hours of learning in an area of isolation. Although she is not fluent yet, slowly but surely she will get there because her goal is to save her language so that she is able to pass it down to the next generation to come. “When I think about the risk of Traditional Knowledge not being passed down to new generations, I worry about how life and harmony among living creatures will continue. The languages are a part of a whole. We cannot speak of the overall well being of indigenous Peoples if our languages are not included.” Also she could speak the language with pride whenever and wherever because her grandmother couldn’t. 

“Restoring and Protecting Our Languages and Native Landscapes.” Cultural Survival, https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/restoring-and-protecting-our-languages-and-native. 

In the article “”We Are Not Orphans on Our Land”: Securing the Future of Indigenous Languages” it talks about the importance of having knowledge of your indigenous languages. “It’s not just about learning the language, it’s also about bringing our people together.” During the year of 2022 the cultural survival hosted a panel discussion where they honored the International Decade of Indigenous Languages. In the year of 2021 they also had a virtual conference where there were open discussions about the experiences on language revitalization. That was a good way of getting other people input about this around the world. In this conference there were more than 30 participants from different communities that shared what was going on and what they were doing in their community to help keep the language alive. A recommendation that was made and most agreed on was that funding should directly go to the communities. This was because in the communities where the language is most spoken and where community members are fighting to keep their languages going and not ending. Dr. Richard Grounds, Yuchi/Seminole member, works with Yuchi elders to try and help create more fluent speakers in the Yuchi community. In the process of doing this they are hoping to bring back the language into the community and into their homes.  This is called the Yuchi Language Project. This strongly focuses on the language in the community of Yuchi where the elders utilize long hours a week with the younger generations within Yuchi hoping and trying to pass down the language to them so that later on down the road they can also pass it down to other generations to come. This program also allowed them to learn the language through activities such as cooking and telling stories. “The whole time we’re laughing and telling jokes, and being together as a family, it’s really beautiful. It’s such an honor that we get to learn our language in this way.” All in all this article was based on the importance of saving the language and keeping it alive. Having the knowledge and understanding of the language to bring the community together to be strong and having great courage to speak the language fluently like the elders of the Yuchi community. “Language courses are simply not enough. You have to learn to live the language and think in the language, it takes a whole community effort to do that.”

“‘We Are Not Orphans on Our Own Land’: Securing the Future of Indigenous Languages.” Cultural Survival, https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/we-are-not-orphans-our-own-land-securing-future-indigenous-languages. 

In this video it was said that students that are attending school in Nova Scotia, they are learning from the indigenous elders and teachers within their community. They are learning by the elders speaking to them in their native language instead of english. The lady said that they hope they understand what they are saying to them as she asks the students “what did I say.” Meanwhile at the Alberta public school, the man is teaching the students about the culture and tradition of the indigenous people. Although this way of teaching in schools is rare, they say that this calls for change for a “real long-term sustainable change.” Elder, Pauline, says that, they the indigenous people should be the ones to educate the children. Pauline and her sisters were taken to a residential school in Alberta. There they were told not to speak the native language and they cut their hair. Students were forced to assimilate, abused for their culture and speaking the language and they were told they were going to learn the white way. So they just want a better way of educating the younger generations without having any problems like she did when she grew up.

GlobalToronto, director. YouTube, YouTube, 30 Oct. 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxbL_Zjcnpg. Accessed 14 Dec. 2022. 

Native American Students face a dropout rate of over twelve percent. To address this, there is the Indian Education Professional Development Grant. Under the program, 373 persons have finished their four-year education. Graduates repay the scholarship by working as teachers in public schools or reservations with sizable American Indian populations. The Bureau of Indian Education reports that there are 183 schools throughout 64 reservations. According to the college president, native professors can serve as role models for students. In order to maintain native pupils in school, more native teachers are required, according to Marlin Spoonhunter. One of the 45 colleges to get a grant from the Department of Education is Wind River Tribal College. With the funding, teachers can get a bachelor's degree without having to leave their positions or their communities. The program also covers living expenses, books, and tuition. 

DeNisco, Alison. “Grants Pave Way for Native American Teachers.” District Administration, vol. 49, no. 7, July 2013, p. 15. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A337184801/OVIC?u=nm_p_elportal&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=5386b5db. Accessed 21 Nov. 2022.

In this article it discusses the United States policy has changed significantly during the past 20 years. The Native American Languages Act (NALA), which was first passed by Congress in 1990, affirms that the position of Native American cultures and languages is unique and the United States has the obligation to act jointly with Native Americans to secure their survival. With the declaration that it was now official government policy to preserve, defend, and promote Native Americans' rights to use their indigenous languages anywhere, including as a medium of instruction in schools, this legislation made a lot of promises to Native American communities.

Klug, Kelsey. “[Nearly] Gone, but Not Forgotten.” Cultural Survival Quarterly, Sept. 2012, pp. 12–13. Ethnic NewsWatch, https://www.proquest.com/magazines/nearly-gone-not-forgotten/docview/1069227139/se-2?accountid=39531. Accessed 7 Dec. 2022. 

In this video it was said that Oregon has committed unprecedented resources to ensuring Indigenous students have access to higher education. The program was introduced by Governor Kate Brown during the 2022 legislative session. She cited the necessity for the award as a result of the long structural disadvantages suffered by Native Americans. Legislators in Oregon provided $19 million in grants through the Oregon Tribal Student Grant to help Native students all throughout the state with their college costs for the upcoming academic year, 2022-2023. Athena Rilatos, a Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians student, is one of many Indigenous students who are aware of the exorbitant price of education. Athena had a bit of a rough time while earning her bachelor's degree. She lived in her car for three years while attending college. Unfortunately while still going to school to collect her master’s degree, she was not able to follow through with it because it has gotten expensive. “It’s very expensive to get a master’s and my family lives on the reservation in Siletz and, you know- we just don’t have that kind of money.”

Pitawanich, Author: Christine. “Hundreds of Oregon's Indigenous College Students Will Receive Grant Assistance Next Year.” Kgw.com, 6 May 2022, https://www.kgw.com/article/news/education/oregon-indigenous-native-college-students-grants/283-cbf006be-8f6e-417c-bbf7-be5fce081ae0.

In the article “Tribes unite for global language movement” representatives from tribes and communities around the world all came together both in person and virtually, gathered on the Cherokee Nation reservation to attend and launch the United Nations’ International Decade of Indigenous Languages. In this discussion It was well-spoken and demanded that these representatives are very compassionate and strongly hopeful to keep fighting for each of the indigenous languages to be incorporated and to be brought into public spaces and into the school settings. Language is defined as our identity, as it says in the article “Our language is our identity as Native peoples and our identity is everything, language is what makes us unique. It’s the chain that links us to our past, and it’s what binds us together today.” This is also because they are all hoping that the language is being passed on to the future rather than lost and forgotten. Which positively leads the future generations to have the ability to also have the chance to learn, write, read, and speak the language. It is a duty of respect and responsibility to learn and speak our mother tongue that was given. It is estimated that there are about 350 indigenous languages spoken but currently only 115 remain. There is also another estimate that 79 languages could possibly disappear in the next two decades. The Cherokee Immersion School in Tahlequah, is taught entirely in both spoken and written Cherokee language. The Cherokee Nation plans to make another immersion school. Sequoyah,  who is one of Cherokee’s influential member, has spent 12 years developing the written language for his people. It was when CN adopted the syllabary in 1821 and within months Cherokees became well educated by learning to read and write their language. The Indigenous Languages kickoff was another chance for  the Cherokee Nation to acknowledge 200 years of the tribe’s own written language.  

HUNTERReporter, CHAD. “Tribes Unite for Global Language Movement.” Cherokeephoenix.org, 11 Jan. 2022,https://www.cherokeephoenix.org/culture/tribes-unite-for-global-language-movement/article_b0f4e4e6-6fd6-11ec-8496-0b662970de27.html. 

According to the article “Nahuatl and Spanish in Contact: Language Practices in Mexico” it  focuses on adults' Nahuatl language use in the bilingual town of Santiago Tlaxco, Mexico. Adults were asked to identify their language preferences Spanish, Nahuatl, or both languages when engaging with individuals in various linguistic domains such as personal, public, occupational, and educational, using a survey technique. The findings revealed that Nahuatl was mostly utilized among family members, with the exception of children aged 12 and younger, for whom bilingualism was the norm. Similarly, bilingual language usage was favored in the public realm for contacts with young people who are  under the age of, showing a tendency toward the progressive displacement of Nahuatl. Nonetheless, Nahuatl remained the primary language for interactions in the workplace, places of religion, and social circles.In the educational domain, in the clinic, and in new contexts, such as with strangers. In the educational domain, in the clinic, and in new contexts, such as with strangers, Spanish was favored. While adult usage of Nahuatl aids in language maintenance, more intergenerational transmission is required. The findings are explored in relation to language planning.

Gomashie, Grace A. “Nahuatl and Spanish in Contact: Language Practices in Mexico.” MDPI, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, 13 Aug. 2021, https://www.mdpi.com/2226-471X/6/3/135. 

According to the video “How the Canadian government is working to revive Indigenous Languages” it is said that more than 70 indigenous languages are spoken across canada but 75 % of those are barely hanging on and losing their first language speakers most days. The Six Nations is also trying to “breathe new life” into the languages. They claim that the language is what describes the seasons and/or the time of day and months. Some of their written language has almost been abandoned by the colonialism government policies. There has also been an issue where their school system had forced the children to assimilate and abandon their native language which made it harder for them to speak and translate things into english. Realizing that without their language, there was a huge gap missing part from them and their culture. The woodland cultural center in Brentford has made it a goal to revive the language by teaching those who are in need of learning and those who want to learn the language. This program starts with teaching the younger generations with books and stories. Then onto videos and audios of their first language speakers. They claim that all these strategies will help preserve the native language again.The whole purpose and goal is that their people are able to learn, speak, and teach the language so that they never forget it because their language is a big part of them and who they are. They are hoping this program will be up and running for continuous months. 

YouTube, YouTube, 30 Sept. 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rfzI_DFzfI. Accessed 14 Mar. 2023.

Aguilar, Judith, Action plan 1. 11, Nov. 2022 

Aguilar, Judith, Action plan 1. 11, Nov. 2022 

Aguilar, Judith, Action plan 1. 11, Nov. 2022 

Aguilar, Judith, Action plan 2. 10, March 2023

Aguilar, Judith, Action plan 2. 10, March 2023