Creating Zones of Linguistic Sovereignty: The Title VI Indian Education Policy as a Pathway for Diné Language Reclamation

Abstract

Abstract:Title VI Indian Education programs provide academic support and culture-based education to American Indian and Alaska Native students attending K-12 public schools. This includes teaching Native American languages. However, little is known about how Native language instruction is implemented in Title VI programs. This article explores the Title VI Indian Education policy from an ethnographic perspective through participation in a Diné (Navajo) language class in a Title VI program in an urban school district. Two questions are addressed: What does the policy state about the role of Native American language teaching in Title VI programs? And, how was the Title VI Indian Education policy negotiated to teach Diné language and culture? Findings are framed using the zones of linguistic sovereignty; a theoretical framework that positions the emergence of Native American language learning in English-dominant schools as linguistic sovereignty in practice.