The Ministry Initiative : Aboriginal Perspectives Essay

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

Education looked remarkably different than the Education that takes place today in Canada’s schools. Before European contact, “Indigenous peoples in North America had a highly developed education system” (Neegan, 2005, p. 4). Their education was based on experiential and immersion learning in the community and in nature. The whole community was responsible for teaching the younger people through the sharing of knowledge and resources (Neegan, 2004). Respect for the environment and the land was intricately woven into all forms of learning, as the land is the center of their livelihood

60% of aboriginal children are significantly behind non-indigenous Australians by the time they start years one. Only 40% of aboriginal children stay at school through to year twelve. Causes of this include language because English is their second language, inappropriate context; material being taught does not relate to the aboriginals lives. Over crowed house where aboriginal children cannot learn to do homework is a big factor in them being behind in education.

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.

A lot of aboriginal students are now graduating high school in the past few years. But, now they seem to rank lower in education, higher rates of unemployment, along with higher rates of smoking, alcohol and drug abuse, which can lead to needing a lot more health care than the average person. (Dr. Chandrakant P. Shah. 2005, page.3)

After this unit, I really saw the importance of incorporating Indigenous history and culture into the curriculum because they are a central part of Canadian history and culture. From our class discussion, I

Despite the challenges and changes that still need to be made to insure no Aboriginal Child is left behind, there are changes currently being made that show the benefits of a culturally responsive program and bring hope to the future of Aboriginal early childhood education. The Aboriginal Head Start early childhood education program is slowly expanding. As well other programs have developed, like Awasisk Cultural Development Program in Prince George, British Columbia that uses Metis curriculum and Mannawasis AHS programs that teaches both Cree and English (Nguyen, 2011). I believe that these programs are the foundation for a future where all Aboriginal children have an opportunity to be educated through their cultural traditions and language.

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.

The Aboriginal peoples of Canada had gone through many situations to get to where they are today with their education system. Pain, sorrow, doubt, and hope are all feelings brought to mind when thinking about the history and the future of Aboriginal education. By taking a look at the past, anyone can see that the right to education for Aboriginal peoples has been fought about as early as the 1870s. This is still is a pressing issue today. Elder teachings, residential, reserve and post-secondary schools have all been concerning events of the past as well as the present. Though education has improved for the Aboriginal peoples of Canada, there are still many concerns and needs of reconciliation for the past to improve the future.

There is a height of significance when it comes to embedding Indigenous perspectives in the curriculum and in schools. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families, their students thrive in educational environments where staff respect and promote strong Indigenous culture and identity, build collaborative relationships and set high expectations (Kerley, 2015). Abiding by this principle would see students thriving for higher education, recognizing this has made it quite common for schools to introduce indigenous programs or units. These are put in place for the purpose of being extra support to not only Indigenous students but for everyone at school serving as a source of information and guidance. By incorporating these Units, cross-curriculum

It is vital for teachers to recognise indigenous literacies and aboriginal English in all classrooms as it builds a sense of equality and a non-discriminating environment. As a future teacher I believe that it is my role to create a classroom that mirrors these key factors, as it will build the foundations for a nourishing learning environment. This type of learning environment will aid in linking the students parents and the surrounding community together that encourages an equal society.

The last twenty years has seen these themes played out in both policy and practice. Indigenous self-determination had played a big part in educational policy since the 1970s but by 2012 Marcia Langton in her Boyer Lectures attacked the concept as a “vaporous dream” (Schwab, R.G., 2013,p. 212)with critiques fuelled by the Little Children Are Saved Report. Langton saw Noel Pearson’s Cape York Aboriginal Australian Academy as an alternative model focused on outcomes but incorporating Indigenous art, culture and sport. This is actually a “top down”

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.

Supporting Aboriginal students for successful literacy outcomes is fundamental to reciprocal satisfaction in learning for both teachers and Aboriginal students, families and wider communities. Unfortunately, many Aboriginal students do not have the benefit of shared reading experiences at home prior to their formal school entry, which significantly disadvantages Aboriginal students as they try and negotiate one-way learning in the Australian education system (Bonney, 2015; Harrison, 2011, pp. 90 – 91; WA Department of Education [WADE], 2002). Providentially, there are a range of two-way Indigenous strategies and resources available to educators today that make literacy curriculum accessible, relevant and engaging for the heterogeneous student

The World Health Organisation ‘dietary risks’ as the important reason of illness and death in Australia exceeding both smoking and obesity(Browne J, Gleeson D). Arming Indigenous people with quality education would afford them with opportunities to secure better jobs, ensuing quality life through higher incomes and good health. The education sector would need special improvements in the form of genuine cooperation and discussion between Education providers and Indigenous Australians. The foremost emphasis part must be generating alertness among the family as it applies strong inspiration on children’s attitude towards school and ensures attendance, specifically in rural areas. A right step towards this direction is the five year Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Action Plan 2010-2014, in which, education providers would close the educational gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students through six essential policy requirements. More on, government needs to take some steps with indigenous people. For example by proving free educational campaign and necessary education to all the indigenous students. The indigenous people are more dependent on the government schemes and welfare which resulting in increasing in poverty and unemployment. Why they are more dependent on government because they don’t have much employment opportunities. The AICC [Australian Indigenous Chamber of Commerce (Indigenous Chamber)] was launch to encourage and help the interests of Indigenous Australians through economic individuality. Employment opportunities not only help them financially but they also support them to secure their future and helps to improve standard of living. For greater employment opportunities for Indigenous people. Governments and employers have to work together with them and