Bozana Novkovic

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Bozana Novkovic
18407567
Pegah Marandi
Aboriginal and Culturally Responsive Pedagogy
102085
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“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Histories and Cultures is a cross-curriculum priority designed
for all students to engage in reconciliation, respect and recognition of the world’s oldest
continuous living cultures.”

Developing knowledge and an understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

histories and cultures benefits Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. Understanding the

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experience allows Indigenous students to strengthen

their sense of identity, and for non-Indigenous students to strengthen the understanding of

how rich the longest living culture is of our Indigenous peoples within Australia. However, as

educators, it is our moral duty to make a conscious effort of consistently building our

knowledge, connecting with our students and Indigenous community and ensuring that

Aboriginal and Torres Strait histories and cultures are recognised and actively assisting

students to the best academic, social, emotional and physical learning outcomes throughout

the cross-curriculum.

To truly gain a mutual respect between yourself as an educator and your students is to

know your student. Knowing your students and creating a safe learning place is essential for

your class. In Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, this is a vocal point of their

schooling experience and ultimately determines what type of learning outcomes will be

achieved. Though, the first step would be for educators to identify what the students need

to achieve in their schooling environment, as well as identifying what measures will be

effective for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. Sarra (2003) shares, “On their

first day at the school, we worked intensively on establishing our collective belief about

what we wanted for the children and what we had to do to achieve this. It was clearly
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identified that effective learning and teaching that embraced and was responsive to the

children’s cultural and social context would underpin much of the change required.”

Building a positive student-teacher relationship should be vocalised to your Indigenous

students, meaning that your students should be aware that you are genuinely here to assist

them with their learning, individual needs and that respect exists within the student-teacher

relationship. However, this can be a verbal or a non-verbal action, your students will be able

to sense this while they are in the classroom environment. “Any teacher knows that a kind

of partnership in working with a particular student. When things are working well, so is the

tacit agreement between teacher and student. When things are not working well, one of

those statements is probably not true” (Works, 2011). To ensure that you are creating or

contain a safe positive learning environment; to really understand your students, they

should be granted the privilege to share with you their experience or experiences that have

a significant impact on how they perform academically, or how they withhold themselves

socially and emotionally. As an educator, you have the power to develop new knowledge on

what measures can be taken to get to know your Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

students in a culturally meaningful way. This can be created through a yarning circle. A circle

that unites the teacher and students together to share their narrative.

Yarning circles is an Indigenous ritual that continues to this day. The circle symbolises unity

between the participants and provides each individual to openly share their narrative and

thoughts with no interruptions or judgement (Donovan, 2015). By making this a priority in

your classroom, this highlights the respect towards Aboriginal culture and can gain an

understanding of where to guide the students where necessary. “The relationship between

the Aboriginal student and the teacher is a key feature when engaging Aboriginal students
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in a learning environment. This understanding of an authentic relationship was repeated by

Aboriginal students across the Yarning Circles as they discussed the teachers that treated

them like real people. An authentic relationship was foundational to many of the Aboriginal

students wanting to engage with their teachers in the classroom” (Donovan, 2015). This

practice illustrates and demonstrates the flexibility of ones teaching practice, and how they

can incorporate Indigenous ways of learning within the classroom whilst following the cross-

curriculum. The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers outlines this and highlights

the importance of knowing students and how they learn, along with obtaining knowledge of

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, histories, and linguistic background (AITSL,

2017). Incorporating this knowledge and constructing it into an effective conceptual learning

framework that contains relevant context of country/place, culture and people results to a

flourishing learning progress.

While educators have made a conscious decision to broaden their knowledge on Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander culture, histories and ways of learning, it is crucial to recognise

why Indigenous students may fall behind in achieving certain learning outcomes throughout

the curriculum. Unfortunately, there is a great negative stigma attached towards Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander students due to effects of colonisation within Australia, and lack of

understanding, knowledge, and research of Indigenous cultures within Australia. This has

resulted to a massive gap in the education system for Indigenous children from the

government, educators, and even Indigenous students themselves. “Specifically, teacher

discrimination had a consistently negative effect on both academic disengagement and self-

sabotaging behaviour for all students. While teacher discrimination even had a negative

impact for the non-Indigenous students on both outcomes, this negative effect seem even
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more pronounced for the Indigenous students” (Andrews et al., 2013). As educators within

Australia, the priority of understanding each students background is essential, although, we

must come back to our First Peoples and maintain that priority for Aboriginal and Torres

Strait Islander students. Yunkaporta et al., (2009), discusses the danger of holding stigmas

against Indigenous students. She found that many teachers held negative perspectives of

Indigenous students’ academic performance and that educators would result to lowering

their expectations on these students. Though many teachers also withheld a fear of

disrespecting and exploring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures while

in the classroom. Teachers also feel that the resources at hand are unreliable, however, this

can be recognised as cultural discomfort. These factors and barriers continue to diminish

the chance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to achieve academically,

socially, and emotionally throughout their school experience. Therefore, future educators

whether Indigenous or non-Indigenous should continue to develop their knowledge and

incorporate the effective design of respect, reconciliation, and recognition through the

cross-curriculum. This can be performed and is relevant across all teaching areas.

Teachers from Indigenous and non-Indigenous backgrounds will face some type of barrier

within their careers, though the next step is to produce ways of learning that are

appropriate and culturally meaningful within the teaching area at hand for Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander students. The teaching areas of History, Society and Culture and

Indigenous Studies are subjects that recognise the histories and cultures of Indigenous

peoples and the significance it holds for students today. Firstly, recognising the country you

are on or making an acknowledgement of country when commencing the class is a culturally

meaningful way to show your respect and demonstrate to Indigenous and non-Indigenous
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students the importance of respecting the First Peoples both past and present. “At this

school, acknowledgement of country is incorporated explicitly into the school pedagogy.

Teachers talk with children about why they acknowledge country and they discuss the

concepts of custodianship, connection to Aboriginal land and tradition” (Harrison &

Greenfield, 2011). To highlight inclusivity in the classroom; Indigenous and non-Indigenous

students could also participate and strengthen their deliverance on an acknowledgement

each lesson. Another effective way of building a repour with the students, is to also build a

positive relationship with the students’ parents and the community. This would also assist

teachers from a non-Indigenous background on learning what kind of activities and

protocols should be followed. Connecting with parents and elders in the community can be

insightful as to what kind of person the student is, and what their interests are outside of

the classroom environment. Also, parents and elders can share their schooling experience

and what kind of impact it had on them as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander student.

“At the forefront of parents’ responses was their socially constructed experience with

mainstream education. Parents expressed a desire for change, but realised that their

history, collectively and individually, is negative, not forgotten and influenced how they

interpreted and responded to their current experiences, especially through the experiences

of their children” (Lewthwaite et al., 2015). As a result, this will be beneficial for your

students in your classroom and will help teachers navigate what step to take next within the

curriculum.

The subject areas of History, Society and Culture and Indigenous Studies entail teaching

students about various histories, how society is constructed, and different cultures co-exist

within the world. Essentially these subject areas aim to strengthen students’ social
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awareness and maintain respect within Australian society. Aboriginal Studies is a subject

that attempts to educate students on the importance of Indigenous culture and identity

within Australian society. The fundamental factors of social justice and shared histories are

also illustrated for learning students. By working together, students can develop their

knowledge and respect for Indigenous Peoples and become socially and culturally aware

individuals within Australia and the world (NESA, 2010). Throughout this subject, graduate

teachers are expected to meet standards that will ensure effective learning. In particular,

the standard that greatly impacts the teacher’s role in Aboriginal Studies is 1.4.1,

“demonstrate broad knowledge and understanding of the impact of culture, cultural

identity and linguistic background on the education of students from Aboriginal and Torres

Strait Islander backgrounds” (APST, 2017). As mentioned previously, yarning circles is an

effective Aboriginal way of learning that unfolds individuals’ thoughts and perspectives and

can also be an opportunity to discover what type of learning styles is appropriate for your

students. Exposing students to community-based learning experiences such as a guest-

speakers can enhance opportunities highlights the purpose or rationale of what Aboriginal

Studies holds as a subject. This results to a much deeper understanding of syllabus concepts

and terminology that will make tackling an assessment a much smoother and clearer task

for students. The principles, people, culture, identity, country/place, and community from

the curriculum are consistently represented and can be utilised when relevant to the

content (ACARA).

Aboriginal Eight Ways of Learning is vital and can be incorporated in every lesson. This is an

effective pedagogy framework that incorporates Indigenous perspective and learning

techniques that are relevant and culturally meaningful for Aboriginal and Torres Strait
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Islander students. The Eight Ways of Learning pedagogy consists of students sharing their

narrative, visualising and imagining concepts and places, learning through symbols and

images, connecting to the land surrounding them, and performing tasks by modelling and

scaffolding from parts as well as utilising interdisciplinary approaches (Pain, 2012). Unlike

Western ways of learning, the Eight Ways enhances the learning process for Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander students and can most definitely be incorporated in lessons for non-

Indigenous students. Though these subjects contain heavy content, this content can be

delivered in various ways that are not necessarily traditional western ways of teaching.

Sasaki, Nanez & Watanabe (2010) state that, “visual perceptual learning (VPL) is defined as

performance enhancement on a visual task as a result of visual experience and has been

regarded as a manifestation of brain plasticity.” By students watching and visualising how

Indigenous Australians maintain their identity, this enhances understanding and builds

perspective on how learning about this broadens their knowledge of how first Australians

lived and maintained their identity on Australian soil. These teaching strategies essentially

assist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to develop their knowledge and skills

through culturally meaningful ways, and positively progress throughout each subject

undertaken of their schooling experience.

The Australian Education System has had an existing divide between Indigenous and non-

Indigenous students’ performance through schooling due to many factors. However, with

teachers making a conscious effort of working towards eliminating the gap for Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander students, academic achievement and social interactions will

improve. Building repour with Indigenous students and communities will guide teachers to

develop the confidence to teach Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students the
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importance Indigenous Cultures and Histories, through recognition, reconciliation, and

respect. The growth of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students should be a priority, as

well as teaching the beauty of Indigenous identity throughout the curriculum.

References

ACARA. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures. Australian Curriculum.

Retrievedfrom:

https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/media/1536/guiding-principles.pdf

AISTL. (2017). Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. Retrieved from:

https://www.aitsl.edu.au/teach/standards

Andrews, B., Denson, G, H., Bansel., P. (2013). Teacher Racism, Academic Self-Concept, and

Multiculturation: Investigating Adaptive and Maladaptive Relations with Academic

Disengagement and Self-Sabotage for Indigenous Students and Non-Indigenous Australian

Students. Australian Psychologist, 48(3), 226-237.

Donovan, M. J. (2015). Aboriginal student stories, the missing voice to guide us towards

change. The Australian Educational Researcher, 42(5), 613-625.

Harrison, N., Greenfield, M. (2011). Relationship to Place: Positioning Aboriginal Knowledge

and Perspectives in Classroom Pedagogies. Critical Studies in Education, 52(1), 65-76.

Lewthwaite, B. E., Osborne, B., Lloyd, N., Boon, H., Llewellyn, L., Webber, T., ... & Wills, J.

(2015). Seeking a pedagogy of difference: What Aboriginal students and their parents in
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North Queensland say about teaching and their learning. Australian Journal of Teacher

Education, 40(5), 8.

Pain Australia. (2012). 8 Ways of Learning Factsheet. Retrieved from

https://www.painaustralia.org.au/static/uploads/files/8-aboriginal-ways-of-learning-

factsheet2-wfklwmnralub.pdf

Sarra, C. (2003). Young and black and deadly: Strategies for improving outcomes for

Indigenous students. Australian College of Educators.

Sasaki, Y., Nanez, J. E., & Watanabe, T. (2010). Advances in visual perceptual learning and

plasticity. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 11(1), 53.

Works, W. The Work Program. (2011). Improving outcomes for Indigenous students:

Successful practice. Melbourne, Australia: National Curriculum Services Pty Ltd and the

Australian Curriculum Studies Association.

Yunkaporta, T., McGinty, S. (2009). Reclaiming Aboriginal Knowledge at the Cultural

Interface. The Australian Educational Researcher, 36(2), 55-72.