Latest news with #OcetiSakowinEssentialUnderstandings
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings revised
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Some Native Americans pressed the South Dakota Education Standards Board to hold off a year so that formal consultations could be held on how public schools should present information about indigenous people and cultures to their K-12 students. But the governor-appointed board's five members are instead following the recommendation from South Dakota Education Secretary Joseph Graves and have gone ahead with approval of a revised version of what are known as the Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings. The board also decided during its meeting on Monday in Rapid City to adopt a first-ever set of computer science standards for K-8 students and approved a revised set of standards for English language arts. Pronounced oh-chet-ee sak-oh-in, the understandings originally came together through work by a group of indigenous elders and educators in 2008. South Dakota law requires teachers take a three-credit course in South Dakota Indian studies. But decisions on how to use OSEUs are left to local school districts. The main complaint voiced Monday about the OSEU revisions was that state government failed to formally consult with any of the nine tribal governments. Several people called for the state board to pause a year and allow time for the consultations. 'A rushed process cannot produce strong standards, but an inclusive one can,' said Deborah Bordeaux, executive director for the tribally-run Commission for Oceti Sakowin Accreditation and a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. The state board spent a half-hour listening to testimony from Bordeaux and eight others, and then considered for another 30 minutes what to do on the proposed OSEU revisions. Secretary Graves defended the preparation of the OSEU revisions, telling the board there was a complete review by a committee of 34 that was double the normal number and included anyone who asked to be on it. He said the review committee spent three days developing the revisions. Monday marked the last of the four public hearings that state law requires the board to hold before adopting or changing K-12 standards. The Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings had also become a regular agenda item for the state Indian Education Advisory Council, whose members include all nine of the tribal education directors, as well as a variety of other appointees chosen by the governor. 'So this was not a rushed process,' Graves told the state standards board. He added, 'If we continue to pause, my fear is we're simply going to pause forever.' Sarah White, an Oglala Lakota who founded and is executive director for the South Dakota Education Equity Coalition, said the Indian Education Advisory Council has been 'gagged and censored,' the group's meetings are scheduled without consideration for other duties of the tribal education directors, and that state Office of Indian Education director Fred Osborn has been 'superficial' in his dealings. Former Gov. Kristi Noem moved the Office of Indian Education from the state Department of Education to the state Department of Tribal Relations six years ago. 'To date not a single tribal consultation has taken place,' White said. State law says the Department of Education is to consult with the Indian Education Advisory Council to develop and review the OSEUs. The state board's president, Steve Perkins of Sioux Falls, said he was born and raised at Pipestone, Minnesota, a place of significance in Plains Indian culture. 'This is important to me,' he said. Perkins acknowledged that school districts vary in their use of OSEUs and said South Dakota generally was 'moving in the right direction' in recognizing the importance of indigenous people and history. But he also said that the state board and the state Department of Education clearly need to work harder on communication. Gov. Larry Rhoden, who succeeded Noem earlier this year, has called for a restart of relations between state and tribal governments. 'That's going to take some time,' Perkins said. He assured the people who had called for a pause that he wasn't voting against them. He said the process of revising the OSEUs was similar to what was done on the science standards that the board approved a year ago. The science standards weren't everything he wanted, Perkins said, but they were an improvement over the ones they replaced. 'This is even more important than that,' Perkins said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
South Dakota Senate rejects effort to boost Native American history, culture lessons in schools
John HultSouth Dakota Searchlight PIERRE — A bill to move Native American culture and history from a permitted to a required part of South Dakota's curriculum was loosened by its sponsor in the state Senate on Tuesday, but still failed its floor vote. In its original form, Senate Bill 196 would have mandated the teaching of the Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings. The phrase 'Oceti Sakowin' refers to the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota people. The set of standards and lessons was adopted seven years ago by the South Dakota Board of Education Standards with input from tribal leaders, educators and elders. A survey conducted by the state Department of Education indicated use of the Essential Understandings by 62 percent of teachers, but the survey was voluntary and hundreds of teachers did not respond. The bill from Sen. Tamara Grove, R-Lower Brule, passed the Senate Education Committee unanimously one week ago. On the Senate floor, Grove moved an amendment that tossed the requirement that the standards be taught in favor of a requirement that the state's Indian Education Advisory Council and heads of the education departments in the state's nine tribes be involved in the next rewrite of the understandings. 'This amendment addresses the concerns of the education department,' Grove said Tuesday. Education Secretary Joe Graves told the Education Committee last week that the state doesn't need additional mandates beyond math, science, social studies and English-language arts/reading. Grove said mandated deeper involvement by tribes and the advisory council would mean Native Americans would 'be at the table when the sausage is made.' Sen. John Carley, R-Piedmont, spoke against the amended bill. He called it 'a mandate of a mandate,' as portions of the understandings are already folded into the social studies standards created at the state level. The state's educators have more important things to worry about than Oceti Sakowin lessons, he argued. 'If we're going to remandate a mandate, I'd recommend we remandate math and reading,' Carley said. The Senate voted 28-7 to defeat the bill. Meanwhile, Gov. Larry Rhoden announced Tuesday that he signed related legislation into law that will require all certified teachers, rather than only new educators or those moving from out-of-state, to take a course in South Dakota Indian Studies.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
SD Senate rejects effort to boost Native American history, culture lessons in schools
State Sen. Tamara Grove, R-Lower Brule, testifies Feb. 18, 2025, on the South Dakota Senate floor at the state Capitol in Pierre. (John Hult/South Dakota) PIERRE — A bill to move Native American culture and history from a permitted to a required part of South Dakota's curriculum was loosened by its sponsor in the state Senate on Tuesday, but still failed its floor vote. In its original form, Senate Bill 196 would have mandated the teaching of the Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings. The phrase 'Oceti Sakowin' refers to the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota people. The set of standards and lessons was adopted seven years ago by the South Dakota Board of Education Standards with input from tribal leaders, educators and elders. A survey conducted by the state Department of Education indicated use of the Essential Understandings by 62% of teachers, but the survey was voluntary and hundreds of teachers did not respond. Lawmakers advance bill requiring SD schools to teach Native American history, culture The bill from Sen. Tamara Grove, R-Lower Brule, passed the Senate Education Committee unanimously one week ago. On the Senate floor, Grove moved an amendment that tossed the requirement that the standards be taught in favor of a requirement that the state's Indian Education Advisory Council and heads of the education departments in the state's nine tribes be involved in the next rewrite of the understandings. 'This amendment addresses the concerns of the education department,' Grove said Tuesday. Education Secretary Joe Graves told the Education Committee last week that the state doesn't need additional mandates beyond math, science, social studies and English-language arts/reading. Grove said mandated deeper involvement by tribes and the advisory council would mean Native Americans would 'be at the table when the sausage is made.' Sen. John Carley, R-Piedmont, spoke against the amended bill. He called it 'a mandate of a mandate,' as portions of the understandings are already folded into the social studies standards created at the state level. The state's educators have more important things to worry about than Oceti Sakowin lessons, he argued. 'If we're going to remandate a mandate, I'd recommend we remandate math and reading,' Carley said. The Senate voted 28-7 to defeat the bill. Meanwhile, Gov. Larry Rhoden announced Tuesday that he signed related legislation into law that will require all certified teachers, rather than only new educators or those moving from out-of-state, to take a course in South Dakota Indian Studies. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmakers advance bill requiring SD schools to teach Native American history, culture
State Sen. Tamara Grove, R-Lower Brule, speaks with lawmakers on the South Dakota House floor during the governor's budget address on Dec. 3, 2024. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight) South Dakota public schools would be required to teach a specific set of Native American historical and cultural lessons if a bill unanimously endorsed by a legislative committee Tuesday in Pierre becomes law. The bill would mandate the teaching of the Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings. The phrase 'Oceti Sakowin' refers to the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota people. The understandings are a set of standards and lessons adopted seven years ago by the South Dakota Board of Education Standards with input from tribal leaders, educators and elders. Use of the understandings by public schools is optional. A survey conducted by the state Department of Education indicated use by 62% of teachers, but the survey was voluntary and hundreds of teachers did not respond. Republican state Sen. Tamara Grove, who lives on the Lower Brule Reservation, proposed the bill and asked legislators to follow the lead of Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Chairman J. Garret Renville. He has publicly called for a 'reset' of state-tribal relations since the departure of former Gov. Kristi Noem, who was barred by tribal leaders from entering tribal land in the state. 'What I'm asking you to do today,' Grove said, 'is to lean into the reset.' Joe Graves, the state secretary of education and a Noem appointee, testified against the bill. He said portions of the understandings are already incorporated into the state's social studies standards. He added that the state only mandates four curricular areas: math, science, social studies and English-language arts/reading. He said further mandates would 'tighten up the school days, leaving schools with much less instructional flexibility.' Members of the Senate Education Committee sided with Grove and other supporters, voting 7-0 to send the bill to the full Senate. The proposal is one of several education mandates that lawmakers have considered this legislative session. The state House rejected a bill this week that would have required posting and teaching the Ten Commandments in schools, and also rejected a bill that would have required schools to post the state motto, 'Under God the People Rule.'
