EDAB113 - Australian Aboriginal Peoples, Cultures and Identities

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

Unit rationale, description and aim

Through the Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration, the Australian Governments have renewed their commitment to celebrating and learning from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge and histories and ensuring that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are supported to imagine, discover and unlock their potential. The EDAB units in this course focus on developing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pre-service teachers to become exceptional teachers and role models while exploring and developing their cultural identity, personal wellbeing. 

This unit critically examines policies associated with Aboriginal identity, government and community, as well as Aboriginal people’s responses to these over time. The unit is embedded within Australian Aboriginal ontological frameworks enabling pre-service teachers to become more aware of local Aboriginal Knowings and knowledge sources. A range of expressions of Aboriginal cultures and identities through visual and performing arts will be explored.

The aim of this unit allows the pre-service teacher to explore and critically reflect on the concepts of Aboriginal ‘identity’, ‘heritage’ and ‘culture’ within diverse Australian contexts including their own identity.

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

LO1     understand and contextualise Aboriginal relationship to ‘Country’ and the shaping of Aboriginal identities in relation to Indigenous Knowings about ‘Country’ (GA1, GA4; APST 1.4, 2.4)

LO2     explore the concept of ‘identity’, ‘heritage’ and Indigenous identities within Australia and globally as well as understand the complexity of Indigenous identities and appreciate their own cultural identities (GA1, GA4, GA6; APST 1.4, 2.4)

LO3     identify key features of culture and understand the ways in which cultural identities can be known and transmitted (GA1, GA4; APST 1.4, 2.4)

LO4     describe the interrelationships between past, present and future Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural identities and evaluate the impact of these on the diversity of lifestyles, including their local community (GA1, GA4; APST 1.4, 2.4, 7.4)

LO5     explore various genres and expressions of Indigenous identities (GA1, GA4; APST 1.4, 2.4).

Graduate attributes

GA1 - demonstrate respect for the dignity of each individual and for human diversity

GA4 - think critically and reflectively 

GA6 - solve problems in a variety of settings taking local and international perspectives into account

AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS - GRADUATE LEVEL

On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should be able to:

Content

Topics will include:

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander understandings of and relationships to ‘Country’
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander world views, Knowings and identities
• Theories of identity (Indigenous, national and global)
• Concept of Self Identity in an Australian government and now community context
• Concept of ‘Culture’: what is meant by culture and how do we identify
• Language/land/lore and their relationships to cultures and identities
• Diversity of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and identities considering rural, remote/isolated and urban communities
• Contemporary expressions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and identities in the visual and performing arts and elsewhere.

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This course is offered in a mixed mode. Pre-service teachers are required to attend two compulsory residential schools on campus each semester and to complete course work and assignments within their home communities.

Teaching will include lectures, workshops, Talking Circles, presentations, Yarns and on-line discussions.

This is a 10-credit point unit and has been designed to ensure that the time needed to complete the required volume of learning to the requisite standard is approximately 150 hours in total across the semester. To achieve a passing standard in this unit, students will find it helpful to engage in the full range of learning activities and assessments utilised in this unit, as described in the learning and teaching strategy and the assessment strategy. 

Assessment strategy and rationale

The assessment tasks and their weightings are designed to allow pre-service teachers to progressively demonstrate achievement against the unit learning outcomes. A range of assessment procedures are used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes and professional standards and criteria consistent with University assessment requirements. (http://www.acu.edu.au/policy/student_policies/assessment_policy_and_assessment_procedures).

This unit focuses specifically on APST 1.4 Strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and 2.4 Understand and respect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to promote reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

The three assessment tasks are sequenced to allow feedback and progressive development of knowledge and understanding of the content. By completing Task 1 the pre-service teacher will have the opportunity to consider the concept of identity, heritage and culture. Task 2 builds on the ideas explored in task 1 through collaborative learning. Pre-service teachers will explore their ‘Aboriginal Identity’ and present their understandings in a culturally safe environment. In Task 3 will further explore conceptions of ‘Aboriginal Identity’ in society. 

Minimum Achievement Standards

The assessment tasks for this unit are designed to demonstrate achievement of each learning outcome.

In order to pass this unit, students are required to complete all required assessment tasks as per the Assessment Policy and gain an overall pass mark.

Electronic Submission, Marking and Return

Assessment task submission and return of marked assessment will be done through Turnitin on LEO. Tasks will be marked and returned three weeks after the assessment is completed.

Overview of assessments

Assessment Task 1:

Online Discussion 1:

1.      Read NSWAECG, (2011) ‘Aboriginality and Identity: Perspectives, Practices and Policies’

2.      Reflect on your own personal feelings about the issues raised. Write a personal reflection which stories your journey as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person. This is not a description of what you have read.

The following questions may help

• What does the paper say that identity is?
• What is the relationship between identity and culture?
• What is Aboriginal identity?
• Is Aboriginal identity important in Aboriginal education today?
• How do I relate to my Aboriginality?
• What is my personal identity?

3.      Collate all reflections and the issues raised in the online discussion and add a new discussion post about your reflections

4.      Reflect and comment on at least 2 other student’s entries.

Online Discussion 2:

Read either i) Dodson, M., (1994) The Wentworth Lecture. The end in the beginning: Re (de) finding Aboriginality’ in Australian Aboriginal Studies, 1994, vol.1 OR ii) Peters-Little, F., (2000) ‘The Community Game. Aboriginal Self-Definition at the Local Level’, in AIATSIS Research Discussion Paper, 2000, no.10

1.  Reflect on your own personal feelings about the issues raised in your chosen paper. Write a personal reflection which stories your journey as an Aboriginal person. This is not a description of what you have read.

    The following questions may help:

• What does the paper say that identity is?
• What is the relationship between identity and culture?
• What is Aboriginal identity?
• Is Aboriginal identity important in Aboriginal education today?
• How do I relate to my Aboriginality?
• What is my personal identity?

2. Collate your reflections and the issues raised in the online discussion and add a new discussion post about your reflections

3. Reflect and comment on at least 2 other students’ entries.

Representative texts and references

Required text(s)

Australian Curriculum https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) www.acara.edu.au

Recommended references

Battiste, M., & Henderson, J. Y. (2000). Protecting Indigenous knowledge and heritage: A global challenge. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada: Purich.

Bird Rose, D. (1996). Nourishing terrains. Australian Aboriginal views of landscape and wilderness. Canberra, ACT: Australian Heritage Commission.

Blair, N. (2015). Aboriginal Education: More than adding perspectives. In Noelene L. Weatherby-Fell (Ed). Learning to Teach in the Secondary School. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp.189-208.

Grossman M. (Ed) (2003). Blacklines: Contemporary critical writing by Indigenous Australians. Carlton, Vic: Melbourne University Press

Hampton, R., & Toombs, M. (2013). Indigenous Australians and health: The wombat in the room. South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

Heiss, A. (2012). Am I black enough for you? North Sydney, NSW: Random House Books.

Heiss, A., & Minter, P (Eds) (2008). Macquarie PEN anthology of Aboriginal literature. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen and Unwin.

King, T. (2003). The truth about stories. A native narrative. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Moreton-Robinson, A. (2000). Talkin' up to the white woman: Indigenous women and feminism. St Lucia, Qld: University of Queensland Press.

Taylor, K. (Ed). for Neidjie, B. (1998). Story about feeling. Broome, WA: Magabala Books

Oxenham, D. (1999). A dialogue on Indigenous identity: Warts ‘n’ all. Perth, WA: Curtin University.