Transformative Teaching
We believe in reciprocal and communal learning that reaffirms Native identities.
Longevity
We have been committed to Indigenous language education since 1978. AILDI has provided an Indigenous language education experience to hundreds of language teachers, educators and advocates for the past 40 years.
Purposeful Research
Our classes are part of the University of Arizona and its larger efforts to produce research that revitalizes and promotes Indigenous languages.
Collaborative Partnerships
We form partnerships with educators, language advocates, cultural organizations and Indigenous communities to promote Native language reclamation and vitality.
Our Mission
The American Indian Language Development Institute's (AILDI) mission is to provide critical training to strengthen efforts to revitalize and promote the use of Indigenous languages across generations. This is accomplished by engaging educators, schools, Indigenous communities and policy makers nationally and internationally through outreach, transformative teaching, purposeful research and collaborative partnerships. As a result of our work, we envision that the larger society will know that language revitalization is critical to sustain and reinforce Indigenous linguistic, cultural, and spiritual health and identity.
Summer Session
AILDI is synonymous with its intense summer institute. We offer courses related to language teaching, maintenance, documentation and revitalization. The institute promotes and cultivates an atmosphere of sharing among the participants by structuring classes with both a teaching and learning component. Participants are also able to immediately apply language learning methodologies and materials by creating an immersion lesson.
Services
AILDI offers workshops and other educational and training opportunities in addition to the annual summer institute. We run workshops on documentation technology, dictionary making, games and technology in Indigenous languages, traditional ecological knowledge and many more. These are offered both at the University of Arizona or throughout communities and locations in the Southwest.
