Aboriginality and pedagogy

This chapter is an introduction into some Indigenous issues written from an Indigenous Australian viewpoint. The chapter provides a brief overview of the stark reality of Indigenous Australia in 2006. It is mainly written for students, mostly university students, many of whom may never meet, teach or interact at a personal level with Australia's Indigenous people. A small percentage of readers will be Indigenous Australians, who can identify with many or all of the issues raised in the chapter. The chapter provides an introduction to the life experiences of many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples that often thwart their limited chances to receive an education. The author discusses the mistreatment of Indigenous people and the ongoing destruction of Aboriginal societies. It continues with an introduction to Indigenous identity and a discussion about whether there should be special treatment for Indigenous students. There is a brief outline of the history of Aboriginal education in Australia, then an introduction to Indigenous education, including the teacher's role. What teachers should know is the next topic. This provides an overview of some of the material that educators should familiarise themselves with. They include the early childhood patterns of learning of Indigenous children, the occurrence of Otitis media among Indigenous youth, and Aboriginal English. The final area discussed is classroom strategies for effective teaching with Indigenous students. [Author abstract, ed