Level 4 – Advanced Practice (High School) | Social Studies | Project-Based, Inquiry-Based

How did Russian Orthodox and Presbyterian Schools Impact Traditional Ways of Knowing in Alaska? Alaska Studies Grade 9, Social Studies Grades 9-12 Introduction Historically, Alaska Native tribes used art and the spoken word as a form of expression and/or a way to maintain cultural traditions versus abiding by the written word. They were all affected by the settlement of whites, as their arrival introduced religion, boarding schools, disease, sickness, and the implementation of new ways of learning and knowing that contradicted and stamped out their existing belief systems. That, in combination with the introduction of new germs and diseases depleted many Alaska Native populations. Those who survived would face cultural changes. “First contact with the Europeans occurred in 1741. By the early 1800s, the Tlingit were trading regularly with non-Natives. They were eager to possess modern goods and follow the white man’s trends. By the time the United States purchased…