Title: Indigenous Education
1Indigenous Education
- Looking Back, Creating Positive Futures
- Wayne Muir
2Indigenous Education Looking Back, Creating
Positive Futures
- Current Policy Directives
- Current Indigenous student performance
- Who is responsible Who makes a difference
- Suggested approaches going forward What makes a
difference
3Current Policy Directives
- National Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander
Education Policy (1989), long term goals include - Involvement of Indigenous people in educational
decision making - Equality of access to educational services
- Equity of educational participation
- Equitable and appropriate educational outcomes
-
4Current Policy Directives
- Australian Directions in Indigenous Education
2005-2008 - School and community educational partnerships
phased in by 2010 - Training for Indigenous people to take on
educational leadership roles - Personalised learning for Indigenous students
- Information campaigns to promote value of
education - Learning outcomes for Indigenous students to form
part of accountability requirements for
principals - Incentives to retain high performing principles,
accredited training programs for school staff re
Indigenous education issues - By 2010 provide pre service and in service
professional learning accredited by teaching
accreditation authorities re Indigenous education - Develop strategies to attract and retain high
quality teachers (esp. regional and remote
communities with high Indigenous student
enrolments
5Current Policy Directives
- Council of Australian Government (COAG)
- Closing the Gap Commitments
- Within five years
- all Indigenous 4 year olds in remote communities
enrolled in/attending a proper early childhood
centre or opportunity. -
- Within a decade
- halve the gap in infant mortality
- halve the gap in reading, writing and numeracy
for Indigenous children - halve the gap in employment outcomes for
Indigenous Australians. - By 2020
- Halve the gap for Indigenous students in year 12
equivalent attainment - Within a generation
- Close the 17 year gap in life expectancy.
6Current Policy directives
- Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for
Young Australians - Goal One Australian Schooling promotes equity
and excellence. School sectors must - Ensure that schools build on local cultural
knowledge and experience of Indigenous students
as a foundation for learning, and work in
partnership with local communities on all aspects
of the schooling process, including to promote
high expectations for the learning outcomes of
Indigenous students - Ensure that all the learning outcomes of
Indigenous students improve to match those of
other students - Goal Two All young Australians become successful
learners, confident and - creative individuals, and active informed
citizens. Successful learners - Understand and acknowledge the value of
Indigenous cultures and possess the knowledge,
skills and understanding to contribute to, and
benefit from, reconciliation between Indigenous
and non Indigenous Australians - Schooling should be socially just, so that
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students
have equiteable access to, and opportunities in,
schooling so their learning outcomes improve and,
over time, match those of other students (Goal
3.3) - All students understand and acknowledge the value
of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures
to Australian society and possess the knowledge,
skills and understandings to contribute to, and
benefit from, reconciliation between Indigenous
and non-Indigenous Australians (Goal 3.4) - All students understand and acknowledge the value
of cultural and linguistic diversity, and possess
the knowledge, skills and understanding to
contribute to, and benefit from, such diversity
in the Australian community and internationally
7Current Policy directives
- Indigenous Learning and Arts Strategic Plan
20082011 - Queensland
- Overall Goal Strong Indigenous communities
supported by - learning and the arts
- Focus
- improving education, training and employment
outcomes for all Indigenous Queenslanders - developing a DETA workforce skilled in maximising
educational and training outcomes for all
Indigenous Queenslanders - strengthening Indigenous arts and culture.
8Boosting Education increases labour force
participation rates income
9National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy
(NAPLAN) At or above minimum standard
10NAPLAN Data Qld Indigenous Geolocation at or
above national minimum standard
11Progress made, disadvantage remains
- Less Indigenous students meet literacy and
numeracy minimum standards compared to non
Indigenous students - Less Indigenous students complete yr 12 national
2006 apparent retention rates was 40.1 compared
to 76 for non Indigenous students (Qld
Indigenous apparent retention rate 54.3, 2nd
highest behind ACT) - Attendance remains lower for Indigenous students
- National Indigenous 2006 VET participation rate
13 vs 11.4 for national VET participation rate - Indigenous people remain under-represented in
Australian higher education courses and
over-represented in lower AQF levels. (43.4 of
Indigenous enrolments at AQF Certificate 1 II
levels nationally in 2006) - Overall national 2006 Indigenous module
completion rate 70.8 compared to non
Indigenous module completion rate of 83
12What makes a difference role of educators
- Parents/Families
- Teachers
- Administrators
- Indigenous Community
13Going Forward Suggested Approaches
- Diversity of Student Experience - Shared
Responsibility Indigenous and non Indigenous
programs - Parents Community as equal partners
- Evidence based developing and building
performance frameworks - Professional Development
14Going Forward Suggested Approaches
- Positive outcomes for Indigenous Australians will
generally - occur when all of the following seven key factors
are present - Community involvement and ownership
- Indigenous identities, cultures, knowledge and
values - Working in true partnerships
- Flexibility in course design, content, delivery
and assessment - Quality staff and committed advocacy
- Extensive student support services
- Appropriate funding that allows for sustainability
15School of Indigenous Australian Peoples
Southbank Institute of Technology
- Indigenous students using VET as second chance
- Indigenous students generally have lower levels
of education (literacy and numeracy), negative
past experiences - Strategies include
- Flexible delivery and assessment strategies
- Indigenous teachers /culturally sensitive non
Indigenous teachers - Innovative teaching and learning strategies,
authentic assessment practices - Comprehensive student support
- Identify pathways for articulation into higher
level courses or onto employment
16Conclusion
- Outcomes have improved slightly but unacceptable
gap remains - Greater focus on improving Indigenous outcomes
than ever before - Acknowledge role of families, communities,
schools, bureaucracy and business sectors in
improving outcomes - Suggested approaches include acknowledging
diversity, ensuring shared responsibility,
building capacity of parents, community
schools, flexibility, being evidence based
17In 1984, I was a 17-year-old Aboriginal youth
just finishing school. I hada Tertiary Entrance
score that told me I was average and that I only
hadthe capacity to do some type of agricultural
course if I was serious aboutentertaining the
notion of study beyond high school. Fortunately
for me,what is now the Queensland University of
Technology was running aprogram designed to
encourage more Aboriginal people into teaching.
Ienrolled and my mentor there taught me a great
deal, most importantly tosee myself positively
regardless of how others with limited
expectations perceived me. What started off as a
lucky break saw me, many years later, graduating
with a PhD in psychology and on a continuing
journey to challenge other educators to believe
in the learning capacity of Indigenous
Australians.
18Useful Web Info
- www.aiatsis.gov.au/
- www.strongersmarter.qut.edu.au/
- www.budget.gov.au
- www.racismnoway.com.au
- www.sustainabledreaming.com/what.html
- www.whatworks.edu.au
- www.daretolead.edu.au
- www.atsis.uq.edu.au/ajie/index.html?page33821
- http//toolboxes.flexiblelearning.net.au/demosites
/series9/907_demo/907/index.htm