Stories of Native Youth: Supporting Self-Determination in Digital (Re)Storytelling

• In Event: Sense of Place: Context, Indigeneity, and Migration

Abstract

Native communities maintain a rich history of community education, despite historical atrocities that have severely damaged the relationship between Native peoples and the U.S. education system. In this juxtaposition, Native educators are continuously working to offer culturally sustaining/revitalizing learning experiences for Native youth. As part of an ongoing collaboration between Native educators, university researchers, designers, and cultural technologists, in this paper, we share our exploration of integrating digital restorying practices in a summer camp for Native youth and their families. Findings present technological and rhetorical self-determination as two enactments of restorying as a critical practice of digital storytelling. Insights contribute to the ongoing conversation around the cultural learning experiences of Native youth as they connect with their communities.

Authors

• Dallas Haws, Utah State University

• Breanne K. Litts, Utah State University

• Eileen Quintana, Nebo School District

• Analysa Allison, Nebo Title VI Indian Education

• Christina Morgan, Utah State University