108 STAT. 236 PUBLIC LAW 103-227—MAR. 31, 1994 (i) methods of instruction and educational practices (including community services) which improve the achievement and retention of at-risk students; (ii) the quality of educational opportunities afforded at-risk students, particularly the quality of educational opportunities afforded such students in highly concentrated urban areas and sparsely populated rural areas; (iii) methods for overcoming the barriers to learning that may impede student achievement; (iv) innovative teacher training and professional development methods to help at-risk students meet challenging standards; (v) methods to improve the quality of the education of American Indian and Alaska Native students not only in schools funded by the Bureau, but also in public elementary and secondary schools located on or near Indian reservations, including— (I) research on mechanisms to facilitate the establishment of tribal departments of education that assume responsibility for all education programs of State educational agencies operating on an Indian reservation and all education programs funded by the Bureau on an Indian reservation; ' (II) research on the development of culturally appropriate curriculum for American Indian and Alaska Native students, including American Indian and Alaska Native culture, language, geography, history and social studies, and graduation requirements related to such curriculum; (III) research on methods for recruiting, training and retraining qualified teachers from American Indian and Alaska Native communities, including research to promote flexibility in the criteria for certification of such teachers; (IV) research on techniques for improving the educational achievement of American Indian and Alaska Native students, including methodologies to reduce dropout rates and increase graduation by such students; and (V) research concerning the performance by American Indian and Alaska Native students of limited-English proficiency on standardized achievement tests, and related factors; (vi) means by which parents and community resources and institutions (including cultural institutions) can be utilized to support and improve the achievement of at-risk students; (vii) the training of teachers and other educational professionals and paraprofessionals to work more effectively with at-risk students; (viii) the most effective uses of technology in the education of at-risk students; (ix) programs designed to promote gender equity in schools that serve at-risk students; (x) improving the ability of classroom teachers and schools to assist new and diverse populations of stu-
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