Indigenous Education: What Works Lecture

1. Indigenous Perspectives Across the Curriculum
Evaluating Resources
1 9/17/09

2. • Check the publica.on date
Authen'city
and beware of reprints.
Is the material up to date?
• As a general rule do not use
material published before
1980.
9/17/09 2

3. • Lookout for statements
Authen'city
such as ‘vast and empty
Does the material perpetuate the
concept of terra nullius?
land’ and ‘explorers
discovering vast tracks of
unused land’.
• Do not use.
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4. Terra Nullius
The idea of terra nullius can be present
in less obvious ways.
This picture from the book Dot and the
Kangaroo provides an interes.ng
example. By itself it seems a
reasonable historical representa.on
(allowing for the story of a talking
kangaroo).

5. Terra Nullius
But in the context of the other pictures
in the book Aboriginal people are part
of this construc.on of an exo.c and
prehistoric land.

6. Terra Nullius
Or are constructed as part of ‘nature’.

7. • Aboriginal people are oPen
Authen'city
represented as
Does the material ignore or
misrepresent Aboriginal resistance to
‘treacherous’ or
European occupa.on of the land?
‘murderous’ and not as
defenders of their land.
• Next slide gives an
example, again from Dot
and the Kangaroo.
• The film version of this can be seen at
hTp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpbbnjqaLLw
• This should load automa.cally aPer the next slide
if watching on slideshare.

9. Authen'city
Does the material over‐generalise?
Many resources call on limited images
and icons.
Avoid resources that ignore the
diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander cultures.

10. Balance
Are stereotypes and racist
connota.ons present?
Or do we see Aboriginal people
engaged in the diversity of ac.vity that
they really are engaged in?
– in this case replan.ng a bauxite
mine.

11. Balance
Does the resource emphasise the
‘exo.c’ and exclude other cultural and
community prac.ces?
These three slides show pages from an
‘alphabet’ book A is For Aunty (Russell,
2000).
They show contemporary images
relevant to many Indigenous children.

12. Balance
They include important parts of life
that are not at all exo.c.

13. Balance
They do make reference to difference
in the history and experiences of
Indigenous communi.es but as part of
a broader context.

14. Secret and Sacred
It can be distressing for some Indigenous students to be exposed to material that they
should not see. There is also an issue of respect – some events, images and ideas
belong to the par.cipants only.
• Look for: • Do not use without
– Material presen.ng discussing with local
par.cular ceremonies, eg community/AECG
ini.a.on rites
– Dreaming sites of
par.cular groups
– Photographs and names of
deceased Torres Strait
Islander and/or Aboriginal
people

15. Useful Resource
Curriculum Corpora.on (1995)
Resource Guide for Aboriginal Studies
and Torres Strait Islander Studies
This presenta>on is based on the
informa>on in this book.
Pages 2‐8 of the book are available on
e‐reserve and moodle. They for the
basis for the resource review op>on in
the final assignment.