Horticultural Education of Indigenous Students

Despite the heterogeneity of American indigenous communities and a tremendous variety of educational, regional and individual backgrounds, there are remarkable common patterns regarding higher education of indigenous students, which predominantly characterize them as highly appropriate for succeeding in horticultural careers. Globally, education of indigenous youngsters has become a growing concern and resulted in manifold strategies: from strengthening indigenous languages, to inter- and transcultural approaches and models that differ from Western education. Moreover, there is consensus about the advantages of integrating indigenous knowledge in undergraduate teaching:  improvement of the learning process of indigenous students and global benefits from their know-how, which is commonly based on a close interaction with their environment. Due to their talent to process virtual information, many (largely rural) indigenous undergraduates bring in a profound understanding of ecological interactions or even a practical horticultural experience to the classroom. Especially in Latin America, natives involve from an early age in agricultural activities, which is why they show impressive creativity regarding the application of their knowledge in the field.  Besides their consequential social skills, their observation abilities and talent to extemporize practical solutions, indigenous undergraduates are also widely respected as dedicated students (frequently outgoing their non-native peers). Contrariwise, indigenous students all over the Americas suffer from poorer schooling than their non-native colleagues; they also tend to struggle with the processing of auditive information. Due to their cultural background and/or experience with racial discrimination, indigenous undergraduates may appear silent, timid and reserved to their teachers. Finally, there might be linguistic restrictions: even if they speak the educational language fluently, some students tend to misinterpret certain concepts. Therefore, language integration plays an important role in indigenous education. It requires the faculty to get familiar with the richness of indigenous concepts regarding organisms, soils, weather and crop management. Likewise, teaching in an intercultural environment demands teachers to learn about the cultural and ethic background of their students, so they can offer space for observation and understand that their potential reservation is not necessarily a sign of disinterest. Given the virtues of indigenous students, experiential education, where the imparted content in the classroom is linked with its application outdoors, is indispensable for succeeding in this milieu. We should not forget that indigenous peoples were the first agricultural teachers in the Americas and that we can learn a lot from each other.