Teachers have a responsibility to their students to foster safe learning environments that motivate and challenge students to meet their potential. (AITSL, 2012) When examining teaching practises for indigenous diversity this goal must be the focus of planning and facilitating. Within every classroom world-wide teacher’s work to address diversities and provide equal opportunity to all students, “teachers must recognise and vale each student’s unique interests, experiences and abilities, needs and backgrounds.” (Moffat, 2010, p. 252) Since The first Commonwealth-State National Aboriginal Education Policy in 1989 the education sector has been working to promote equality between indigenous students and non-indigenous students learning standards.
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However current statistics suggest that teachers do not feel comfortable with their understanding of indigenous cultures “More than 25% of surveyed Australian teachers feel that they need more professional development for Aboriginal education” and education programs for teachers are not readily applied “More than half the teachers of schools with more than 10% Aboriginal students said they had no professional development in schooling them during the past 3 years. Only 23.9% had more than one day of training.” (Korff, Barriers to Aboriginal Education, 2012) This discrepancy has resulted in studies, programs and resource development for teachers and students. In early 2005 the resource Sharing Culture was developed as a way to provide curriculum based educational programs and resources for indigenous communities and Australian schools. (Sharing Culture, 2014) In 2008 the department of education NSW implemented the Aboriginal Education and Training Policy to establish the requirement for classroom learning and teacher training; the policy was created in collaboration with indigenous communities to address their personal desires for progressing classroom learning. (Department of Education NSW, 2015) The Policy and Shared Culture provide a theoretical base for teachers while programs and centres such as Redfern’s National Centre of Indigenous Excellence (NCIE, 2015) and other indigenous centres across the country foster a practical involvement in collaborating between communities and schools. These centres work with indigenous elders and communities to develop training and provide resources for schooling and education for
However current statistics suggest that teachers do not feel comfortable with their understanding of indigenous cultures “More than 25% of surveyed Australian teachers feel that they need more professional development for Aboriginal education” and education programs for teachers are not readily applied “More than half the teachers of schools with more than 10% Aboriginal students said they had no professional development in schooling them during the past 3 years. Only 23.9% had more than one day of training.” (Korff, Barriers to Aboriginal Education, 2012) This discrepancy has resulted in studies, programs and resource development for teachers and students. In early 2005 the resource Sharing Culture was developed as a way to provide curriculum based educational programs and resources for indigenous communities and Australian schools. (Sharing Culture, 2014) In 2008 the department of education NSW implemented the Aboriginal Education and Training Policy to establish the requirement for classroom learning and teacher training; the policy was created in collaboration with indigenous communities to address their personal desires for progressing classroom learning. (Department of Education NSW, 2015) The Policy and Shared Culture provide a theoretical base for teachers while programs and centres such as Redfern’s National Centre of Indigenous Excellence (NCIE, 2015) and other indigenous centres across the country foster a practical involvement in collaborating between communities and schools. These centres work with indigenous elders and communities to develop training and provide resources for schooling and education for