Assignment 1: Research Essay
The history of education in Australia since the late 1700s has seen a massive discrepancy between the Western system of education and traditional Aboriginal education. Aboriginal children suffered greatly under a system of discrimination that continued until major policy changes in the 1970s. Discrimination caused separation and exclusion of Aboriginal children under the guise of 'protection' and created an ongoing deficit in quality of education for Aboriginal communities. Throughout the last century, the philosophy that underpins Aboriginal education policy and practise has evolved from this base of exclusion and segregation to a delicately balanced cultural inclusiveness. Despite these changes in policy, however, the educational experiences and results of Aboriginal peoples continue to fail to match up to those of Australia's non-Aboriginal peoples. To understand the current educational environment for Aboriginal children, it is important to consider the policy shifts since colonisation, as they provide the context for current Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander educational programs and policies. Today educational policies in Australia claim equal access to educational opportunities for all children, Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike.
In the years before the 1960s, the responsibility for Aboriginal affairs rested solely on the state government, meaning that Aboriginal education policies differed from state to state. Although the exact policies for Aboriginal education prior to the 1960s were inconsistent across Australia, there was an underlying perception that Aboriginal peoples were inferior to non-Aboriginal people and hence should receive only minimal schooling (Bateman, 1948). These policies therefore excluded Aboriginal children from equal education and basic amenities. Contact between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people also meant that government run schools in the 1950s did not allow Aboriginal children to attend at all, meaning that accessing any form of formal education during that time was reliant upon Christian missions and other, primarily religious based, institutions (Neville, 1947). Records suggest that approximately one quarter of Aboriginal children were receiving an education from these missions and institutions, although the quality of these ‘educations’ is highly inconsistent.
The relatively high number of Aboriginal children receiving an education at a Christian mission across the 1940s to 1970s was mainly a result of the racial assimilation policies then in practise. The forcible removal of Aboriginal children from their families and placement at Christian missions and government run institutions could hardly be considered a positive learning environment, especially when the education provided by these institutions was highly limited, focusing primarily on religious indoctrination and service skills such as cleaning and cooking for girls and farm labouring for boys (Zubricket al., 2005). Aboriginal culture and language had no place within these systems. Children were often beaten for speaking their own language or attempting to follow their culture’s practises. This practise was usually justified from presumed genetic differences related to ‘Social Darwinism’ (Gordon et al., 2002) and were integral components of colonial educational policy.
Although the exclusion of Aboriginal children from government education was abolished in the 1950s, elements from those policies have been recorded in schools from as late as the 1970s. Despite education becoming more accessible, participation of Aboriginal students ismainly in primary school (ABS, 2012), a problem which continues currently. School attendance and retention of Aboriginal children remains poor with numbers decreasing significantly as the year level increases (DEST, 2013). This negative trend can still be seentoday, demonstrating that a legacy of segregation from education and mainstream society has had a deep and long-lasting effect on Australia’s Aboriginal peoples.
A Referendum made 1967 was the first change in Australian policy regarding the government's responsibilities for Aboriginal education. This referendum lead to a greaterfocus on formulating educational policies targeted towards improving the social and economic situation for Aboriginal peoples. Since the 1967 referendum, the philosophy behindAboriginal education policy and practice has evolved away from exclusion towards a greater level of cultural inclusiveness(MCEETYA, 2000).One particular document from the 1970s stated that the purpose of education for Aboriginal children “should be to produce a bicultural child who is capable of functioning both in his sub-culture and in the mainstream” (Bachrachand Baratz, 1970). This was a significant leap away from previous policies that focused on eradicating Indigenous culture from students, coinciding with the implementation of the Aboriginal Study Grants Scheme(ABSTUDY) and the Commonwealth Department of Aboriginal Affairs.Throughout the 1970s, Aboriginal education began to receive increased attention and appreciation by Indigenous communities, who began to view a secondary education as an element worthy of pursuit. However, this improving view was and still is often undermined by poor job prospects and discrimination in the job market (Watts, 1981).
Since the 1980s various studies at national and state levels have concentrated on the current condition of Aboriginal education, exploring issues around student retention and performance. (Aboriginal Affairs WA, 1974; AEPTF, 1988). Many of these studies found that poor retention and performance is endemic of Indigenous communities, although some small progress has been observed in recent years. Improved educational outcomes have been found to be prevented by a range of issues beyond the sphere of education, such as poor physical health and nomadic communities. In 1988 a group was formed to target these problems surrounding Aboriginal education, called the Aboriginal Education Policy Task Force (AEPTF). The AEPTF recommended that a coordinated national policy be formed to create uniformity in aboriginal education across Australia (AEPTF, 1988). The recommendation was taken up by the Commonwealth government and agreed to the following year, leading to the formation of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Policy (AEP), completed in 1990. This policy remains today, having undergone several revisions, and links points of policy, schools and communities for Aboriginal peoples.
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Policy (AEP) presents goals that are consistent with the goals stated for all Australian children. The 1999 Adelaide Declaration on National Goals for Schooling in the Twenty-first Century includes eighteen goals that are applicable to all Australian students, including Aboriginal students, and includes some goals of specific relevancy to Aboriginal students. Goals 3.3 and 3.4 focus on social justice and state that:
‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students have equitable access to, and opportunities in, schooling so that their learning outcomes improve and, over time, match those of other students’;
‘all students understand and acknowledge the value of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures to Australian society and possess the knowledge, skills and understanding to contribute to, and benefit from, reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians’.(Taken from the Adelaide declaration on National goals for schooling in the twenty-first century, 1999)
It is vital to consider the wider impact of social elements on education. The goals taken from the AEP demonstrate a focus on improving social justice, awareness and life-long education for Aboriginal students and non-Aboriginal students. Aboriginal studies in schools encourages the self-esteem and self-identity of Aboriginal students and creates a wider community that respects and honours the culture of Australia’s native peoples.However, the policy does little to address wider social environments and does not fully consider the poor educational outcomes that are caused by institutional, historical and socio-economical elements (Beresford , 2003). There are some claims that negative policies, although not official by the Commonwealth, are still impacting on current policies and practice (Beresford, 2003). Aboriginal education continues to not be granted the focus it needs, nor is Aboriginal culture understood sufficiently by the people responsible for developing Australia's education system. A report from the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) Taskforce on Indigenous education formally acknowledged this problem in 2000 (MCEETYA; 2000). Despite this, efforts made to improve the education circumstances of Aboriginal children have been limited by the inability of schools to implement new policies and programs due to lack of resources, local community support and funding (Beresford, 2003, Dep. Indigenous Education NT, 1999, MCEETYA; 2000).
Some argue that Aboriginal ceremonial and social obligations impact negatively on school attendance rates (DEST, 2013), while others claim that Aboriginal cultural orientation acts topromote resilience in young people and hence promotes better educational results (Watts, 1981). Either way, it has been shown that cultural differences can create an educational detriment for Aboriginal children beyond the school environment. A lack of understanding of Aboriginal culture on the parts of teachers and other students restricts opportunities for learning and engagement with the school community. Majority of the educational policies leading up to the 1970s were built upon deeply racist ideologies and incorporated exclusion and separation policies that continue to impact upon student retention today. The carry-over from generational trauma continues to negatively impact current Aboriginal students through family influence and community expectations. Aboriginal children often experience isolation from mainstream society and educational resources as well as, conversely, separation from their own culture and community (Gordon et al., 2002). Due to this, Aboriginal students must face great challenges when negotiating the transition between schooling and wider society.
One of the most significant indicators of academic performance is the completion of the Year 12 certificate. A study of graduating students (Western Australian Certificate of Education) made in 2010 looked at the proportion of students who graduated against those who had completed Year 11 the previous year. Across Government and Catholic schools in 2010, only 22.2 % of Aboriginal students who had completed Year 11 the previous year continued to achieve their Year 12 certificate (Beresford, 2003). This compares poorly to the recorded 62.0% of non-Aboriginal students achieving their certificate. This kind of poor educational outcome is influenced strongly by a wide geographical dispersion of Indigenous populations, poor knowledge of Australian English, and a plethora of chronic health conditions. These build on top of several negatively impactful decisions and actions since colonisation, as well as a continuing trend towards treating some schools as ‘dumping grounds’ (Watts, 1981) where low retention levels and poor academic outcomes are considered expected and unavailable (Mellor & Corrigan, 2004). When such expectations are the base of a school community, it can be no surprise when educational outcomes continue to prove poor. Although many of the causes of these poor expectations and outcomes are directly related to the realm of education, a great many tie over from broader historical events from colonisation onwards. For example, there is considerable documentation prior to the 1970s regarding the exclusion and expulsion of Aboriginal people from mainstream Australian society (Bateman, 1948, Zubricket al., 2005). This legacy of denial to land, culture, language, citizenship and schooling has crippled Aboriginal communities and created the poor condition of Aboriginal education that is being fought today (Mellor & Corrigan, 2004). The impact of the Stolen Generation continues to have an impact on later generations of children as parents suspect and distrust government run education services and teachers, preventing their children from attendance and fostering on-going division between the cultures (Comer, 1998). Because of this, it may take a family several generations of continual safe access to education to overcome the disadvantage of previous exclusion. Several studies have shown anecdotal evidence to suggest that the involvement of Aboriginal parents in their child’s education is heavily influenced by their own experiences (HREOC, 1999). For example, a parent who has had a poor education is less likely to get involved in their children’s’ education, and may even actively discourage participation. Quite often, the parents do not have the skills necessary to aid their children with school work and can foster the belief that doing well at school is of little to no real value, something to be ashamed of, or simply unachievable (Purdie, 2000).
Education policy and practise for Indigenous Australians prior to the 1970s were founded in acts of discrimination, separation and exclusion. Until the first referendum formed in 1967, no Commonwealth wide policy was given any notable attention. The education of Aboriginal children dependant on Christian missions and institutions with no moderation between the states. The referendum granted the Australian Commonwealth the power to legislate directly on matters of federal policy in relation to issues effecting Aboriginal peoples, uniting policies across state lines. For many decades these policy have been slowly updated and shifted to counter negative factors steaming from colonisation and segregation of Indigenous Australians. However, intergenerational educational (as well as broader social) disadvantages continue to be an ongoing issue. Policies to improve the educational outcomes of Aboriginal children cannot be developed in isolation from other areas that address social and economic wellbeing of Indigenous communities.
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