Neto's Tucson: Language, land endure for visiting indigenous teachers (fwd link)

[Phillip E Cash Cash]

Neto's Tucson: Language, land endure for visiting indigenous teachers

Ernesto Portillo Jr. Arizona Daily Star | Posted: Sunday, October 30,
2011 12:00 am
USA

The elementary-school students of Catalina Díaz Manuel and Rafael
Entzín López come to their classrooms speaking their native language.

And both teachers insist on delivering lessons in the students' native
languages, which they believe affirms the kids' cultural heritage and
identity.

But these teachers feel pressure to teach in the dominant language of
their country - which, in this case, is Spanish. .

Díaz Manuel and her pupils speak Cuicateca, an indigenous language of
Oaxaca in southeast Mexico. Entzín López and his students speak
Tzeltal, a Mayan dialect from the southeastern state of Chiapas.

The two maestros, part of a group of 19 teachers from rural indigenous
communities in Mexico, are studying this academic year in a University
of Arizona cross-cultural program funded by the U.S. government.

Access full article below:
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/neto-s-tucson-language-land-endure-for-visiting-indigenous-teachers/article_c8f98446-be4a-5a7d-932d-5a1ab6a020a1.html