A Special Five-Year Program for Adolescent Indians: Education for Cultural Adjustment (United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Branch of Education) is a government report detailing a structured educational program designed for Native American adolescents. The publication outlines a five-year curriculum aimed at facilitating cultural adjustment, reflecting federal policies during the mid-20th century that sought to integrate Indigenous youth into mainstream American society while addressing the perceived challenges of navigating multiple cultural contexts.
The report provides descriptions of academic instruction, vocational training, and social guidance components, emphasizing skills intended to prepare students for both economic participation and social assimilation. It also discusses administrative structures, pedagogical strategies, and evaluation methods used to implement the program across Indian boarding schools and day schools.
From an academic perspective, this document is valuable for researchers studying federal Indian policy, education, and assimilationist strategies, offering insight into how the Bureau of Indian Affairs operationalized cultural adjustment programs and the broader ideological frameworks that shaped Native American education during this period. It also serves as a historical reference for understanding the long-term impacts of federal education programs on Indigenous communities.