How does the Navajo culture influence Ned while he is at school?

As a boy, Navajo tribal member Ned Begay attends an American-run boarding school, where he discovers that speaking the Navajo (Diné) language is forbidden.I think this makes Ned appreciate and long for his culture even more. Ned grounds himself in his "forbidden" identity: this makes him a better person that will later become an asset to the US military.