Introduction
The American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey 2015 and 2019 (AIAN FACES 2015; AIAN FACES 2019) is a nationally descriptive study of children and families enrolled in Head Start programs operated by federally recognized tribes. Region XI Head Start provides grants to federally recognized American Indian or Alaska Native tribes, tribal governments, or consortia. These programs incorporate their unique history, community traditions, and beliefs into their operations and integrate language and culture into the delivery of services to children and families. AIAN FACES 2015 was informed by a workgroup comprising Region XI Head Start directors, researchers from universities and Mathematica Policy Research (which conducted the study), and federal officials from the Administration for Children and Families (which funded the study). AIAN FACES 2019 is the second round of the study and continued the Workgroup to give feedback including updates including updates to study measures.
Native culture and language are important components of the Head Start experience in Region XI, and therefore a particular focus of the AIAN FACES (2015 and 2019) study was to document the Native language and cultural experiences that children attending Region XI programs have in their classrooms. Workgroup members, in particular the Region XI Head Start directors, urged that the study capture the cultural experiences in the classroom in addition to using more common measures of classroom experiences. Prior to 2015, an observational measure of culture and language in Native classrooms did not exist, so the study team collaborated with Workgroup members to develop an observational measure of Native culture and language in the classroom for use in data collection as a part of AIAN FACES 2015. The Native Culture & Language in the Classroom Observation (NCLCO) records the types of cultural materials that surround children in Region XI Head Start classrooms and can capture information on materials’ use. The Workgroup provided suggestions and feedback on types of items to include in the NCLCO, as well as examples of each item type listed in the final measure. The measure was further refined, using data from AIAN FACES 2015 and discussions with the Workgroup, for the AIAN FACES 2019 data collection. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was not possible to conduct NCLCO observations as planned in all AIAN FACES classrooms. Here we include the original measure from AIAN FACES 2015 and the revised version from AIAN FACES 2019.
Purpose
The purpose of these reports are to share the Native Culture & Language in the Classroom Observation (NCLCO), which is a measure that records the types of cultural materials that surround children in Region XI Head Start classrooms. We provide the NCLCO that was used in the AIAN FACES 2015 data collection and the updated NCLCO that was revised for AIAN FACES 2019.
Key Findings and Highlights
- An observational measure of culture and language in Native classrooms did not exist, so the study team collaborated with Workgroup members to develop the NCLCO.
- The NCLCO records the presence or absence of a particular item, but does not detail the quantity or depth of use of items existing within a classroom.
- The language and cultural practices questions ask whether Native language use occurred in the classroom and, if so, whether it was used in instruction or in conversation.
- The questions also ask if storytelling following a Native oral tradition occurred.
- The 2019 update includes more detail on Native language and storytelling.
Methods
The NCLCO was administered in AIAN FACES 2015 during a four-hour observation. The NCLCO notes the presence or absence of a particular item. It does not detail the quantity or depth of use of items existing within a classroom. For example, a classroom with 100 cultural books would score the same as a classroom with one book. The language and cultural practices questions ask whether Native language use occurred in the classroom and, if so, whether it was used in instruction or in conversation. The questions also ask if storytelling following a Native oral tradition occurred. These items capture only whether these experiences occurred and not how frequently they occurred. Therefore, a classroom that used Native language in all lessons during the observation would score the same as a classroom that included Native language in just one lesson. To our knowledge, AIAN FACES 2015 is the only study so far to have used the NCLCO, but other studies have adapted the measure to capture the cultural and language experiences in classrooms. The measure was further refined, using data from AIAN FACES 2015 and discussions with the Workgroup, for the AIAN FACES 2019 data collection. The COVID-19 pandemic halted classroom observations in the spring of 2020 and the revised version of AIAN FACES 2019 was not fully tested.
Citation
The AIAN FACES 2015 Workgroup.1 (2019). “Native Culture & Language in the Classroom Observation”, OPRE Report #2019-84, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The AIAN FACES 2019 Workgroup.2 (2021). “Native Culture & Language in the Classroom Observation”, OPRE Report ##2021-38, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
1 Developed by a working group comprising the following members (alphabetical): Jessica Barnes-Najor, Meryl Barofsky, Sara Bernstein, Patty Brown, Ann Cameron, Angie Godfrey, Jacki Haight, Lizabeth Malone, Laura McKechnie, Michelle Sarche, and Maria Woolverton.
2 Developed by a working group comprised of the following members (alphabetical): Jessica Barnes-Najor, Meryl Barofsky, Sara Bernstein, Lana Garcia, Laura Hoard, Lizabeth Malone, Laura McKechnie, Ethan Petticrew, Christine Sims, and Allie Walker. For a list of all AI/AN FACES 2019 Workgroup members, please see https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/research/project/american-indian-and-alaska-native-headstart-family-and-child-experiences-survey-faces