Toward a Redefinition of American Indian/Alaska Native Education

Abstract

My name is Eber Hampton Jr. I was born in Talihina, Oklahoma and am a member of the Chickasaw nation as was my father Eber Hampton Sr. My mother Evelyn is white; her maiden name was Cowling. I have been educated in two cultural traditions. My white education was in public elementary and secondary schools, Westmont College, the University of California at Santa Barbara, and the Harvard Graduate School of Educa­ tion. My Indian education was different in both structure and content. While some of it was explicitly taught, I mostly felt as if I were acquiring my own knowledge with the assurance of elders who taught me a little of what they know of plants, ceremonies, and healing. ...