Useful Links

Key Organisations, Teaching Resources and Websites

Resources, data and information to support Indigenous teaching (and research) can be found in a wide range of places, as the following selection shows.

 

Australian Bureau of Statistics
For all Census data, as well as resources designed for teachers and students: see, for example, ‘Indigenous Statistics for Schools’ under ‘Education’.

 

Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER)
ACER is responsible for several major national surveys, including the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE). Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians are surveyed each year, as well as Maori and Pacific students in New Zealand. (For an analysis of the 2009 Indigenous data, see Asmar, C., Page, S. & Radloff, A. (2011).

 

Australian Human Rights Commission
The Commission was established in 1986 and is an independent statutory organisation which reports to the federal Parliament through the Attorney-General. It has a specific Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner.

 

Australian Indigenous Health Info Net
A free web resource for anyone working or studying in the area of Indigenous health in the tertiary sector.

 

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS)
AIATSIS is a Commonwealth body set up to undertake and encourage scholarly, ethical community-based research in Indigenous studies. Of particular value for teachers, students and scholars are the AIATSIS Guidelines for Ethical Research, founded on respect for Indigenous peoples’ inherent right to self-determination, and to control and maintain their culture and heritage.

 

Australian Learning and Teaching Council

The ALTC was established by the Australian government as a national focus for the enhancement of learning and teaching in higher education. In 2011, the ALTC ceased to operate. In its place the Minister for Tertiary Education established the Office of Learning and Teaching (OLT).

 

Australian Indigenous Studies Learning and Teaching Network
The Australian Indigenous Studies Learning and Teaching Network website provides teaching and learning examples, publications, information about the network, research projects, courses, and events. Anyone with an interest in teaching and learning Indigenous studies is welcome to join the network.

 

Close the Gap Coalition
A coalition of forty Indigenous and non-Indigenous organisations urging the Federal, State and Territory governments to commit to closing the life expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians within a generation.

 

Get Up!
GetUp is an independent, grass-roots community advocacy organisation giving everyday Australians opportunities to get involved and hold politicians accountable on important issues. They have run several campaigns relating to Indigenous Australians including: saving homeland communities, the Northern Territory intervention, Closing the Gap, and the Apology.

 

Indigenous Voices, teaching us better
This website gives trainers insights into the experiences that Indigenous learners have when they come in contact with the education and training system, as well as to provide them with some strategies to try out to improve the educational experiences of Indigenous learners.

 

Koorie Heritage Trust
The Koorie Heritage Trust is an organisation devoted to the protection, preservation and promotion of the living culture of south-eastern Indigenous people in Australia, and to bridging the cultural gap between the Koorie people (link to Koori in Glossary) and the wider community. The Trust plays an important educational role and provides rich resources for teachers and students, including a research library dating back to the 1800’s.

 

NSW Aboriginal Education Consultative Group (AECG)
An Aboriginal community-based organisation made up of volunteer members who are involved in Local and Regional AECGs throughout NSW. It is recognised as the principal source of advice, on behalf of Aboriginal communities, on issues relating to education and training.

 

NSW Aboriginal Land Council
The NSW peak representative body in Aboriginal Affairs.

 

National Health & Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
The source of authoritative guidelines for Ethical Conduct in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Research. While related specifically to health and medical research, these guidelines provide valuable advice for all researchers and teachers.

Reconciliation Australia

Reconciliation Australia is an independent, not-for-profit, peak national organisation building and promoting reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians for the wellbeing of the nation

 

 

Reducing stereotype threat
‘Stereotype threat’ is a very useful concept for analysing issues in Indigenous student learning. This very helpful website offers summaries of research on stereotype threat, discusses unresolved issues and controversies in the research literature, and provides some research-based suggestions for reducing the negative consequences of stereotyping, particularly in academic settings.

 

Reducing stereotype threat

‘Stereotype threat’ is a very useful concept for analysing issues in Indigenous student learning. This very helpful website offers summaries of research on stereotype threat, discusses unresolved issues and controversies in the research literature, and provides some research-based suggestions for reducing the negative consequences of stereotyping, particularly in academic settings.

 

Teaching 4 Change
Funded by the ALTC and developed by academics from the Univeristy of Queensland and around Australia it provides practical resources for educators in Indigenous Australian studies.

 

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
The Declaration is a non-binding document setting out basic standards for the recognition and protection of Indigenous peoples’ rights internationally. It provides a framework for countries … to help reduce levels of disadvantage and discrimination experienced by many of the world’s 370 million Indigenous people.

 

What I Learned in Class Today: Aboriginal Issues in the Classroom
This research project, developed in the First Nations Studies Program at the University of British Columbia, explores difficult discussions of Aboriginal issues that take place in classrooms. It includes some excellent videos of First Nations students relating their classroom experiences.

 

What Works: The Work Program
A set of web based and print materials, with case studies for those working in schools. It is designed to assist schools to plan and take action to improve educational outcomes for Australian Indigenous students.