A photographic case study of Navajo children's views of their education

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether an alignment exists between the mission of Puente de Hozho Magnet School and the visualization of how current Navajo students view their education at the school. Qualitative research was used as an opportunity to explore the significance and to gain an in-depth understanding of how Navajo students view their education in the context of their personal experiences. The population consisted of six Navajo fifth grade students who lived outside the boundaries of their Indian reservation and attended school at Puente de Hozho Magnet School. The six student participants were asked to respond to the question, "What does your education look like at Puente de Hozho Magnet School?" through the pictures they took with a camera in and around the school. After the pictures were developed, students were individually interviewed by utilizing selected pictures to prompt their memory in eliciting descriptions and meanings of the images they captured. The students' responses generated a data set for coding and analysis, from which a wealth of data yielded prominent themes as to their education at Puente de Hozho Magnet School. Analysis of this research concluded that the students' visualization of their education at Puente de Hozho is aligned with the original mission and vision of the school. The student voices represent a relationship of natural connections to their cultural heritage as experienced in their school by disregarding stereotypes and rising above the expected.