Indigenous Literacies And Aboriginal English

In regards to the AITSL standard 1.4, it is essential to include a curriculum and teaching practices, which respects Indigenous peoples perspectives in order to build positive learning relationships between educators and their students in the classroom. Educators can incorporate various approaches in many ways; however, they must ensure that the curriculum is applicable and respectful towards Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander knowledge, ensure they continuously develop and release engaging and culturally inclusive curriculum in learning environments. As for literacy and numeracy accomplishments, it is essential to advance in teaching practices of valuing and respecting the knowledge of including Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander language.

The discourse of whiteness has severely impacted on the educational outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (herein referred to as Indigenous Peoples). The discourse is based on an ontology founded on overt racism, discrimination, prejudice, exclusion and dispossession and towards all Indigenous Peoples. Subsequently, the history of Indigenous Peoples experiences in relation to education is extremely negative. They have been denied the right to the same education as non-Indigenous students, frequently expelled and continually forced to deny their cultural identity. The discourse of whiteness has resulted in pedagogies and pedagogical practices that are overly racist and not inclusive of Indigenous Peoples culture. To improve future educational outcomes it is necessary to decolonise Australia and rewrite the curriculum so that it is inclusive for all students.

The Australian Curriculum currently is struggling with incorporating indigenous perspectives as a key focus in the curriculum properly. It is lacking the ability to normalise indigenous knowledge and instead represents

In this essay we will try to provide a brief overview of educational issues of Aboriginal communities in Australia and Victoria and the elements that influence the educational outcomes of young Aboriginal people, such as culture and contemporary challenges. In addition to this, the inclusion of Aboriginal content in the Victorian curriculum and classroom practices will be explored as well as contemporary government policies.

The participation and full engagement of all students in education is a ‘key factor affecting the life chances of all Australians’ (Buckley & Armstrong, 2011, p. 62). It is clear from current statistical information, that participation and eventual success in educational studies is particularly vital for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who among us all have the lowest level of participation in education (Buckley & Armstrong, 2011). Ockenden (2014) notes that whilst more Indigenous students are completing Year 12 than ever before, there still exists a significant gap between educational achievement in literacy, numeracy

Teachers in Australia have the responsibility of catering to the learning needs and abilities of the students in their classroom. Additionally they are also responsible for catering to the unique cultural backgrounds of each student, in particular the cultures of Indigenous Australians. The teacher can cater to the diverse and complex Indigenous cultures by creating a learning environment that is based on effective student engagement for Aboriginal students. Studies have shown that Aboriginal students are currently not academically achieving as well as non-Aboriginal students (What Works: Core Issue 5). Closing the academic performance gap is considered a national priority. As a result, the Aboriginal Cultural Standards Framework has been developed to ensure that schools are delivering the best possible education to all students, specifically those who identify as Aboriginal. During term 3, 2017, I completed my final practicum at Baler Primary School in a year 4 classroom. The students in my class came from a diverse range of cultural backgrounds, many of which identified as Aboriginal. Throughout this essay I will use examples from my final practicum at Baler Primary School in South Hedland to discuss how to make learning engaging, accessible and culturally responsive for Aboriginal students.

How does ‘I’m Australian Too’ support language and literacy for children from diverse cultural backgrounds and home languages?

Embedding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in the curriculum has now become a high priority amoungst schools across the nation. The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) (2013), recognises “that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures cross-curriculum priority is designed for all students to engage in reconciliation, respect and recognition of the world’s oldest continuous living cultures”. By including this, the curriculum will continue to see Indigenous culture throughout school become part of the norm. Furthermore Indigenous Australian perspectives can and should be included in the classroom and any barriers that arise can be overcome.

In relation to teaching Indigenous origins, history and culture - the demonstration of the Australian Institute for Teaching and Schools (AITSL) standard 2.4 will assist me. “The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (the Standards)* reflect and build on national and international evidence that a teacher’s effectiveness has a powerful impact on students” (Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, 2012). There are seven teaching standards that can guide teachers and improve their

Throughout the last fifty years two diametrically opposed views have played out. H.C. Coombs argued that the priority was to use the curriculum and teaching methods to rebuild and sustain traditional Aboriginal culture destroyed by colonisation, racism and oppression. He supported Moira Kingston’s view that all Aborigines had a “world view derived from the Dreaming and irreconcilable with the demands of a modern industrialised market economy.” Sir Paul Hasluck represented the opposing assimiliationist view that schools should give priority to literacy, numeracy and technical and scientific knowledge to asssist integration in the workforce.Many theorists and practitioners have focused on the one third of students in Aboriginal schools with a specifically Aboriginal education rather than the majority attending the same schools as non-Indigenous children. In either case major problems were indentified with Aboriginal education by 2000.

As an Indigenous Education Advisor, I’ve witnessed a shift in the commitment to educate non-Indigenous students about First Nation, Métis and Inuit people in post-secondary institutions. My experience in developing an Indigenous Awareness Week and conducting assessments to measure the learning outcomes of non-Indigenous students has led me to want to do research in this area. I would like to further look at long-term effects of Indigenous programming for non-Indigenous students to determine how to develop effective and valuable Indigenous programming in higher education. What attracts me to the Department of Integrated Studies in Education are the positive experiences and interactions I’ve had with students and professors from the department. Both Dr. Claudia Mitchell’s and Dr. Naomi Nichols’s research appeals to me and I believe can give a unique perspective to my work.

A great majority of those are living in indigenous communities and speak first languages other than English”. (Linkson, M. 1999, pp. 41-48) Indigenous students in remote communities present a number of challenges for teachers as students often have English as a second or even third language, thus teaching a curriculum that is biased to western culture and language would further exacerbate the gap between learning and achievement.

As an educator it’s very important to be aware of your own culture and how it influences in the way you think, react and approach other people with different cultural background. Identifying and acknowledging the differences that prevail in indigenous and non indigenous culture is an important aspect for the educators to reflect and act upon while dealing with ATSI children and families.

With the brief knowledge that I have about Australia, I would imagine that any language that has survived the spread of English would be located in the center of Australia, away from cities and tourist attractions. According to the “Aboriginal Language” page of the Central Land Council website, over eighteen distinct Aboriginal languages still exist in Modern Australia. I was correct to assume that many of these languages are found in the deserts of Central Australia. Some large cities in this area- Alice Springs or Tennant Creek- contain large populations of people who speak more than one Aborigine language. Another area that fosters a few Aborigine languages is the Northern Territory. Here, students are taught their ancestral language in

Teachers need a pedagogy that embraces cultural enabling respectful cross-cultural relationships that giving presence to the Indigenous community in the school (State Government of Victoria, 2017). The What Works Program, 12ccanoes.com.au, Stolen Generation testimonials, ABC Splash and Kids Matter offer information to help achieve this best practice.