Empowerment and cultural conflict: Navajo parents and the schooling of their children

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Abstract
This article is about contemporary Navajo parents caught between the traditional Navajo world of their elders and the dominant world of their Anglo neighbors. Ethnohistorical and current sociocultural factors influencing the attitudes of Navajo parents toward their children's schools are viewed in light of current arguments suggesting that one means of changing the school failure rates of some minority groups is through parent and student “empowerment.” Differences between Navajos and Anglos are particularly evident in interactions over schoolrelated issues and parenting. Through an analysis of power and cultural differences, the current practices are seen to be ineffective, indeed, “disabling” rather than “empowering” these parents.
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