Provides background and context for the Make It Count project and how the key school and the Cluster set about to improve maths outcomes of their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

1. Numeracy, mathematics
and urban Indigenous
learners

2. Background issues

Indigenous children in
Australian schools could be
regarded as ESL (English as
Second Language) learners.
For some of them, the
language spoken at home is
an Aboriginal dialect or
‗Aboriginal English‘, a type of
‗kriol‘ language, or a mixture
of English and a local dialect.

3. The local context
The Swan Valley Cluster
 Swan View Primary School
 72 Indigenous students K-7 (17%)
 Moorditj Noongar Community
College
 93 Indigenous students K-7 (100%)

4. CRMP
Culturally Responsive
Mathematics Pedagogies
 Are these necessarily different
from ‗sound mathematics
pedagogies‘?
 Is it not a question of ‗what are
good pedagogies to use with
indigenous children?‘ . . . And
that these are reinforced by
mathematical content knowledge.

5. or is it …
First, respond to, empathise and connect
with the child and his/her culture and then …
 Use the appropriate pedagogies and

strategies to teach the mathematics needed.

6. Initial focus points
Practice of „culturally sensitive‟ and
„culturally aware‟ teachers
2. Knowledge and practice of
teachers, Education Assistants (EAs) and
Aboriginal & Islander Education Officers
(AIEOs) as part of „professional learning
communities‟
3. Provision of resources for learning
1.

7. Two ‘interventions’

Swan View Primary School
Cluster all Indigenous children in four classes
taught by „culturally sensitive‟ teachers

Cluster wide professional learning
First Steps in Maths for teachers, EAs and AIEOs
Using mathematics learning sequences
EAs and AIEOs devise intervention plans
Resource-making workshops

8. Effective teachers?
Criteria for identifying „effective‟
teachers of Indigenous children.
Treat as individuals – no „blanket rule for all‟
whether they are Indigenous or not.
 Non-threatening to children
 Aware of impoverishment of children
 Do not blame children for their
impoverishment


9. With this is mind Swan View PS trialled
the following class structures.
Year 2/3/4 Indigenous
students.
 Year 5/6 class




(13 Aboriginal, 10 Non
Aboriginal)
Year 6/7 cluster
Year K/PP/1 cluster
Teachers collaborated with GIRN to improve their
Mathematics understanding and cater to the
Indigenous students Mathematical needs.

10. Practice of ‘culturally sensitive’ and
‘culturally aware’ teachers
What do they do that works best with
Indigenous children?
 Build relationships through empathy
and connection
 Display cultural sensitivity and
awareness
 Provide support mechanisms
 Provide clear goals and expectations

11. Build relationships through empathy and
connection

The key thing is that you‘ve
got to have empathy with
them. You‘ve got to trust
them, then they‘ll want to
come and talk to you and
then you‘re half way there. If
you don‘t have that, then it‘s
―I‘m not interested, see you
later‖. It‘s a critical thing—
be open, let them talk to
you, talk back with them.
(Dan, Teacher)

12. Knowledge and practice of teachers, Education
Assistants (EAs) and Aboriginal & Islander
Education Officers (AIEOs) as part of
‘professional learning communities’
Effect of professional learning




Improved levels of confidence
Development of a team approach
Improved content knowledge
Improved engagement with children

13. Improved content knowledge

Basically, we‘re the children aren‘t we?
We‘ve had to go back and re-learn, and a lot
of the procedures we learned [in the
P/learning] have really helped, so when I see
the teacher do it on the board, I think that‘s
the way for them to do it - you‘re
understanding it better; it‘s breaking it right
down. (Rose, EA)

14. Teaching practices
Teacher questionnaire
identified these:





Identify individual weaknesses
and plan for teaching based on
learning sequences.
Revise, re-teach, and use
continuous reinforcement of key
ideas to account for short
attention span
Use oral discussions and drawing
to communicate ideas
Use game playing to teach key
concepts
Use rhyme, rhythm and
movement in real life contexts

15. . . . and . . .






Use hands-on resources and manipulatives
Use natural resources such as sea shells and
familiar resources such as dice and cards
Clustering Indigenous students in four classes with
supportive peers
Supportive learning environment to gain children‟s
confidence
Indigenous peer tutoring
Strategies to attain regular attendance from
Indigenous students

16. Understanding decimals using play
dough

17. Focus: Moving from additive
thinking to multiplicative thinking

18. Moving from additive thinking to
multiplicative thinking with a focus on
mathematical language

19. Focus: Understanding and solving
division algorithms

20. Partitioning to calculate

21. Contextualising maths







Cooking
Planning meals
Literacy with recipes
Shopping
Measurement – time
Fractions – quantities
Games – manipulation of materials
. . . but the even bigger spin off is . . .

22. Contextualising maths
Social capital of the
sharing of the food

Opportunity for yarning

Connecting with others

23. V-Swans
Nic Nat (Mr Natanui) visits Swan View Primary
School

24. V-Swans





More than just about playing football
Skills one week; in-class work the next
Contextualising maths in sport
Visited Swan Districts Football Club
ABC video recorded one session
....the big gains have been about ....

25. V-Swans
Healthy lifestyles – good
diet, exercise, goal
setting, drug free
 Building resilience
 Role models
 Belonging to a club –
community

An education can give one
involvement in other aspects
of the game of football.

26. Role models
 V-Swans
Program
 Indigenous parents engaging in fund
raising, assemblies, Noongar Club,

27. Generation One
Involvement in national competition - choir
performing and singing

28. Generation One
There is clearly a mood for change - a
movement for good people across Australia
who understand we will never end the
disparity between Indigenous and nonIndigenous Australians unless there is
education that prepares you for life, training
specific for guaranteed jobs, mentoring that
gets results and employment that lasts.
(Generation One website)

29. Generation One
Based on Noongar Club – Pat Kelly (elder) is
working with children on performance
 ‗Rap‘ theme song is produced by children
 Inclusive as it involves non-Indigenous
children
... giving children a purpose and a motivation
for coming to school


30. More Engagement
Extension of the cultural empathy – class
with dedicated teacher set up for Indigenous
children „at risk‟
 More parents engaging with the school
because teacher does „blackfella things‟
(damper, campfire etc.)
 Until 2 years ago, no Indigenous children in
Kindergarten classes.


31. Expanding the learning

33. Evidence of success
Wider teacher support base
 Indigenous cultural interests
 Bush tucker garden
 Music, performance, drama
 The word gets around!
 Since 2007, Indigenous children have
increased by over three times


34. Anecdotal evidence
“Troy told (my daughter) that he was related
to both Anton and Holly in some way and
that he was happy to be in the same class as
them, as this made him feel safe”
 “(parent) came into my classroom, shook my
hand and thanked me for teaching Shania
and making her happier about school”


35. Anecdotal evidence



“The school‟s commitment to Aboriginal students
and dealing with behavioural issues is excellent”.
“I am always made to feel welcome in talking openly
with staff about any issues I have with my children
and have received assistance in areas above and
beyond the role of just a school”
“My decision to stay within the area is due to this
primary school”

36. Attendance Data
„Long-term enrolled‟ Indigenous students at
Swan View Primary. Proportion who
attended 90% or better of possible days.
2009 – 39%
2010 – 45%
2011 – 60%
2012 – 72%

37. NAPLAN
Improvement is evident at all
year levels
 Almost
all of the Indigenous children
whose Naplan levels have improved or
have maintained a level ‗at benchmark‘
or ‗above benchmark‘ have attended
90% or more of possible days.

38. Student attitudes
This is how I feel when I ...
 Do maths with my teacher
 Play games in maths
 Do maths in a group
 Use dice, counters and other things

39. Why is it working?
 The
‗carrots‘ have not been
gimmicky – they have been
substantial

Good teaching
Compassion
Empathy
Caring

Connectedness


