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    Nap Seminar Reflection

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    1) The student completed a Native American Historical Inquiry project where they examined texts relating to US history from Native American perspectives to understand their own biases. 2) They learned that Columbus was not the hero they were taught in previous classes and oppressed Native Americans, contrary to their prior understanding that he discovered America. 3) Through multiple perspectives in readings and class discussions, the student gained a broader understanding of history and the importance of acknowledging different viewpoints to avoid repeating mistakes of the past.

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    Nap Seminar Reflection

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    1) The student completed a Native American Historical Inquiry project where they examined texts relating to US history from Native American perspectives to understand their own biases. 2) They learned that Columbus was not the hero they were taught in previous classes and oppressed Native Americans, contrary to their prior understanding that he discovered America. 3) Through multiple perspectives in readings and class discussions, the student gained a broader understanding of history and the importance of acknowledging different viewpoints to avoid repeating mistakes of the past.

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    1) The student completed a Native American Historical Inquiry project where they examined texts relating to US history from Native American perspectives to understand their own biases. 2) They learned that Columbus was not the hero they were taught in previous classes and oppressed Native Americans, contrary to their prior understanding that he discovered America. 3) Through multiple perspectives in readings and class discussions, the student gained a broader understanding of history and the importance of acknowledging different viewpoints to avoid repeating mistakes of the past.

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    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    42 views2 pages

    Nap Seminar Reflection

    Uploaded by

    api-217658731
    1) The student completed a Native American Historical Inquiry project where they examined texts relating to US history from Native American perspectives to understand their own biases. 2) They learned that Columbus was not the hero they were taught in previous classes and oppressed Native Americans, contrary to their prior understanding that he discovered America. 3) Through multiple perspectives in readings and class discussions, the student gained a broader understanding of history and the importance of acknowledging different viewpoints to avoid repeating mistakes of the past.

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    of 2

    Hannah Langford

    Native American Historical Inquiry Reflection


    The Native American Historical Inquiry (NAHI) was a mini research project in which we
    examined different texts relating to our countrys history. Through studying these, we hoped to
    be able to de-cloud our minds of our biases and see the situation clearly. Our focusing topics
    were the intentions of Columbus, the Trail of Tears, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and what its
    like to be a modern day Indian. We started off reading chapters from A Peoples History of the
    United States by Howard Zinn, in which a basic understanding of Native American History was
    established. Zinn also made it clear on why learning this is important and how we can be more
    aware of our biases and the impact they can make. Next, we watched a movie called Reel Injun,
    which basically talks about how Indians have been stereotyped over time and how the media
    has a huge influence in how Native Americans are portrayed. After that, we read selected
    stories from Sherman Alexies Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, and got a more
    personal perspective on the result of the colonization of the Americas. In addition to that, we
    also read two personal essays from First Person, First Peoples, edited by Andrew Garrod and
    Colleen Larimore, which provided another look at modern day Indians. Through these reading
    we gained a wide array of perspectives and learned why being educated on history is important
    so that we can be more aware of our actions.
    There are far too many things I learned in this inquiry to name them all, but to name the most
    influential one would be to talk about how little I actually know. It took very little time in this
    inquiry before I noticed I knew close to nothing about the country Ive lived in all my life. We
    had begun reading chapters from Howard Zinns book, and I soon discovered that Columbus
    was not exactly the good guy. My previous American History classes had been decent, but our
    learning was based on a notion that Columbus was this hero that discovered land and gold and
    made a new world. What those classes didnt teach me was that for every good thing the
    colonists accomplished, it had a complete opposite effect on the Native Americans. Yes,
    Columbus was the first European to land on America, but what happened to the native people
    that were already there? I could list more examples, but the main point is that my previous
    education only acknowledged one perspective, but learning the other perspective allowed me
    to look at not only American history in a new light, but also things that I had always assumed to
    be true. After the NAHI, my knowledge of Native American history has evolved from Columbus
    discovered America and gold, he is a hero to us all, to Columbus found America, implemented
    a harsh plan which oppressed the Native Americans, and stole Gold from the little land the
    Indians still had. Pretty drastic change, dont you think? Another thing I noticed throughout
    this project was how difficult it was to appear not-ignorant. Since I had grown up with a pretty
    strong bias, it was hard to look at the content objectively and sometimes I felt I appeared

    disrespectful of other perspectives. This inquiry provided me not only with the basic historical
    knowledge of our nation, but also the skills on how to analyze and notice biases.
    After all of our research had concluded, we participated in a seminar where we shared what
    knowledge we gained throughout the inquiry and what questions still remained. Our group
    landed on the controversial topic of affirmative action. Does it really give Native Americans a
    higher chance of success? Does it promote a stereotype that Indians are unable to have a
    successful life on their own? Is there a better way to assist the Native Americans besides
    affirmative action? Is affirmative action necessary? Many people had different opinions about
    this topic, and the questions go on, yet our answers began to whittle down. At this point, I
    began to realize this seminar didnt necessarily help clear up questions I had about the content,
    it just brought more unanswered questions into sight. However, I now know that the point of
    this project wasnt to figure out what went well and what didnt, but to recognize different
    perspectives and understand where they come from. Additionally, during seminar, I made a
    connection between Columbus methods concerning Native Americans and how that technique
    is still used today. Ever heard of imperialism? Imperialism of third world countries is very similar
    to how the colonists discovered the Americas, and how they treated the Natives of that land.
    This made me think about how this process may never end because, for the intruders, its
    working pretty well. I feel our groups general perception of Native American History was
    wisely stated by JJ in saying, Its crazy.
    Now, its the end of the Native American Historical Inquiry, and I have yet to address my
    opinion on the essential question: How can an examination of multiple sources and
    perspectives lead to a more enlightened understanding of history AND contemporary, social,
    cultural and political realities? I think the main discovery I made was that there will never be
    one right way to do something. Throughout my evaluation of the given sources, I noticed how
    each perspective had its own right way to do things. Yes, some might be more humane than
    others, but everyone thought they were doing the right thing one way or another. With that,
    how are we supposed to evaluate historical events and decide on who was good and who was
    bad? My answer to that question is that we dont necessary have to know who the bad guys
    are, but it is necessary to acknowledge the different perspectives so we can become more
    conscious of our actions. As the saying goes, those who do not learn history are doomed to
    repeat it.

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