Catholic Diocese Tucson

8 CATHOLIC OUTLOOK DECEMBER 2019 By MICHAEL BROWN Managing Editor Edith Manuel teaches the Tohono O’odham lan- guage to students and families at San Xavier Catho- lic School, but she knows that what she’s doing isn’t simply teaching a language. She is teaching her students about who they are and about their culture Known as “Miss Edith,” Manuel, a Wa:k com- munity member, an elder in the tribe and a long- time faculty member, has taught Tohono O’odham language and art at the school for more than 36 years. In October, the San Xavier District and Wa:k O’odham Ni’oki committee received copies of their first comprehensive curriculum guide, paid for by a series of grants from the Multicultural Initiative for Community Achievement Group (MICA). The most recent grant was less than $1,000 and was used to print about 100 copies of the guide, and to help pay for food for the families attending language learning sessions. The guide is a compilation of lessons she has been using for the last three years, and its structure reflects the nature of the O’odham language. Miss Edith explained that O’odham is a visual language filled with heart, so a simple memorization model won’t work well. “It is mostly a lot of listening. That is how we were taught,” Miss Edith said. “We also learn by visual.” The plans are based on the feasts, festivals and months of the year, Miss Edith said. For example, in November the lessons were based on the feast of All Souls Day. She explained that tribal members set a table for their deceased family members and then vacate their homes for 24 hours to decorate their family members’ gravesites in other parts of the reservation. She visited her mother’s grave in Pan Tak and her father’s in San Xavier, placing crepe wreathes she made herself on each of their burial sites. Loretta Pablo has been a teacher’s aide at the school for two years after serving 26 years in the school cafeteria. Pablo, a Wa:k community member, sits in on the language class even though she was raised speaking the O’odham language in her home. “It’s a very visual language,” said Pablo. Miss Edith noted that “Tucson” is a O’odham word that translates “at the base of the black [hill]”, a reference to a basalt-covered hill now known as Sentinel Peak, as one example. Both noted that when they were children attending school, they were prohibited from speaking O’odham, and all classes were taught in English. Miss Edith said that it took her until third grade to be comfortable in English. Pablo, who speaks perfect English, said she is still not comfort- able today in the language. Both recalled how other members of the tribe were sent away to boarding schools and lost almost all contact with their culture. Miss Edith said that O’odham language has dif- ferent dialects and that even the meaning of words can change depending where you live. For example, about 2,000 O’odham live around San Xavier, and speak Wa:k; however, if you go to Pima O’odham communities, they speak Akimel O’odham. With almost all the young people today speaking English, O’odham language and culture is starting to fade. Tribal leaders decided to make an active at- tempt to preserve language and culture, although not all tribal elders were comfortable with such an ag- gressive approach. Miss Edith noted that she needed permission from her committee to be interviewed about the curriculum guide, knowing it would be published in the Catholic Outlook and potentially garner even wider attention. Teaching O’odham is based on a modest learn- ing model, Miss Edith said. San Xavier students in grades 1-5 meet one day a week for 30 minutes. The San Xavier Wa:k community meets twice a month; families gather for a meal and lessons for about two hours. Sometimes as many as 20 families have attended. The curriculum revolves around subjects such as “Colors,” “Feel- ings,” “Food” and “Cowboys,” referring to the roles played by Tohono O’odham men. It’s essential that the next genera- tion comes to understand and appreciate the beauty of O’odham language and culture. “They have to know their culture and their his- tory,” Miss Edith said. “I really want them to learn the language and keep it alive.” She read the dedication from the curriculum guide, first in Wa:k O’odham, then in English. “This book is for all the Wa:k Community: those that were here before, for those who are here now and for the ones yet to come. Our O’odham Ni’oki is very important. It is our hope that everyone speaks O’odham and that our language is not for- gotten, it is up to everyone to learn, and speak our O’odham Ni’oki.” However, when she read the same dedication in O’odham, each syllable and word were spoken as if it had a life of itself. “It’s really coming from my heart,” Miss Edith said. Mission schoolteacher seeks to preserve culture through language Catholic Outlook photo by Michael Brown Color palette in O’odham. Catholic Outlook photo by Michael Brown “Miss Edith” Manuel and Loretta Pablo discuss the efforts to teach - and learn - the traditional language of the O’odham community. Miss Edith has compiled a bound curriculum guide for students at San Xavier Catholic School in Tucson. “It is mostly a lot of listening. That is how we were taught,” Miss Edith said. “We also learn by visual.”