Q Elders have been the Gatekeepers of American Indian/Alaskan Native wisdom, knowledge, and history. Elders traditionally hold crucial roles in supporting both formal and informal education in American Indian/Alaskan Native communities. They impart tradition, knowledge, culture, values, and lessons using orality and role modeling traditional practices. Elders are the carriers and emblems of communally generated and mediated knowledge. In the western paradigm, such relations and processes of knowledge transmission are considered "informal". Yet, these same processes are at the heart and soul of what is 'formal" to Indigenous knowledge. Elders are first and foremost teachers and role models. They are vital in the teaching process, from infanthood to adulthood and beyond. Why are elders important in the community? Remember to cite your source in the body of the paper and indicate your reference at the bottom of your initial post.