Our Purpose
Currently, Indigenous youth are experiencing a great loss to their languages and cultural connections. Within each Indigenous tribe in the United States, approximately half of the population currently speak their tribal languages. Although native elders are a source to learn the language, the youth is assimilating fast and their native practices are slowly phasing out. While traditional methods of teaching, including storytelling, are important, technology and interactive games can entice younger generations to learn their native languages in an active and engaging way. IndiGenius Games is helping to address the problem of antiquation using technology, math, and art to creatively promote language and culture of tribes across the United States.
Who We Are
We are a group of students interested in preserving Native American culture through technology, art, and design. This project was done among students on the East Coast and students of the Navajo origin. Students from the Navajo Preparatory School were involved in creating audio recordings, phonetic spellings of the numbers and words, and designing the visuals in the games with the purpose of appropriately representing their culture.
We also worked on this project with the intentions of gaining exposure to STEM concepts. Through the design of this website and coded games by students, we hope to also encourage others to pursue projects in technology and design.
Native Americans are part of an underrepresented community in STEM. Only 2% of Native Americans have college degrees and only 1.3% of Native American students are a part of the STEM field according to Code.org. This project is so important because it helps underrepresented individuals gain hands-on experience with various technology concepts.