North Dakota Plans to Integrate Native American Cirriculum

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota plans to integrate Native American culture and history into lesson plans and curriculum at public schools statewide.

The state Department of Public Instruction's plans are similar to programs in South Dakota and Montana. It's part of a project that includes interviews with elders from the Fort Berthold, Turtle Mountain, Spirit Lake and Standing Rock tribes. The elders identified seven areas of study for students.

The department's multicultural education director, Lucy Fredericks, tells the Bismarck Tribune that about 10 percent of students in North Dakota are Native American so it makes sense that a culturally relevant curriculum be developed. Fredericks says that while Native American culture has been taught periodically, this effort includes the curriculum in all content areas and at all grade levels.