Truly Discovering America: Analyzing Settler Colonial Curriculum Manipulation in the United States

• In Event: Settler Colonialism and Education

Abstract

This paper explores the manipulation of K-12 curricula in the United States to employ the educational sector as a tool of settler colonialism. It highlights three key themes: the depiction of Indigenous populations as primitive, the erasure of colonial atrocities, and the need for Indigenous perspectives in education. Using Post-Colonial Theory, Tribal Critical Race Theory, and Institutional Agents Theory, the study critiques revisionist narratives that glorify colonial actors while minimizing Indigenous experiences. It calls for transformative education that centers Indigenous knowledge, proposing community-driven curriculum and Indigenous partnerships with schools to decolonize educational institutions. This work lays the foundation for investigations into global settler colonial educational practices to demonstrate that settler colonial education is not a uniquely Western phenomenon.

Author

• Levon Ghanimian, Claremont Graduate University