Gifted native American students: Underperforming, under-identified, and overlooked

There has been limited focus among researchers on the nature and needs of gifted Native American students in the past 30 years, and the work that has been done frequently generalizes findings across Native American cultures. This article reviews recent literature on Native American youth and on gifted Native American students; examines the current condition of education in the Dine (Navajo) Nation through a sociocultural motivation lens and based on work with one tribal community on this reservation; calls researchers and educators to action and to recognize that, as with all ethnic groups, many individual cultures exist within Native American populations; and offers suggestions for education personnel. (c) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.