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North Dakota’s public schools are getting new resources to teach about the state’s tribal nations.
The Department of Public Instruction has released an updated textbook called Journey to Understanding. It’s the first new edition in more than two decades. The book, led by Standing Rock Sioux author Cheryl Ann Kary in collaboration with other contributors, covers tribal history, culture, and sovereignty.
The story was investigated in depth by The North Dakota Monitor.
Free digital copies are posted through the University of North Dakota, and printed books will be provided to K-12 classrooms statewide. DPI officials say the material supports a 2021 law that requires Native American history to be part of the curriculum.
Four tribe-specific texts—on Standing Rock, the MHA Nation, Spirit Lake, and Turtle Mountain Chippewa—are also being revised. And for the first time, a volume on the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate is in development.
The project is a partnership with tribal colleges and cultural organizations, with tribal elders and educators having editorial oversight of the content.
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