Modern economic and technological changes are accelerating the
rate of social change in indigenous cultures around the world.
The Ashéninka of the Amazon jungle region of east-central Peru
confront change from two perspectives: the individual and the
sociohistorical. All Ashéninka recall through their stories the
four centuries of change since their earliest contacts with
Spanish speakers. For the Ashéninka, all learning is situated in
a complex blend of factors: history, beliefs, motives,
practices, and persons. Children learn some skills in a guided
manner, similar to apprenticeship, in which an adult consciously
aids the child. They learn other skills in a nonguided manner;
the child organizes the learning activities, which take the form
of dramatic play, solitary experimentation, and collaborative
learning with peers. As with learning traditional Ashéninka
culture, the learning of a new culture is situated in its own
complex blend of factors. Increasing contact with Spanish-
speakers and increasing depende