As I continue my journey into the new (to me) world of indigenous education I came across this report that targeted the philanthropic sector of Australia. It provides information that would help them to understand the challenges and opportunities associated with improving primary and secondary level indigenous education outcomes in any country. In addition it also provide a guide for practitioners in the not-for-profit and government sectors with an interest in Indigenous education. As such his document could be useful to any interested in indigenous education in any part of the world.
At first I found targeting investors to be a an interesting approach but after considering that children are the most important legacy of any society it became an obvious approach.
Of all the points mention in this report the one that stood out to me was the the need for teaching courses that include Aboriginal or Indigenous Studies as a core component since a good teacher can overcome many of the negative effects caused by the problems and barriers facing Indigenous children. However non-Indigenous teachers which makes up the most of the teaching force often find it difficult to adopt to the needs of Indigenous students without adequate training and preparation. Yet only about half the universities in Australia offer teaching courses that include Aboriginal or Indigenous Studies as a core component.
I came away from this paper with the belief every teacher training institution in a country with Indigenous people must make Indigenous Studies as a core component of teacher training.