(2007). The Role of Cultural and Spiritual Expressions in Affirming a Sense of Self, Place, and Purpose among Young Urban, Indigenous Australians. International Journal of Children's Spirituality, v12 n3 p277-288 Dec. This article sets out to discuss the impact that urban living has had on the lives of young Indigenous people. It will seek to discover some of the problems that occur when there is a meeting of two cultures, in this case the Indigenous culture of Australian Aboriginal people and the mainstream culture that has been derived largely from west European traditions which, in turn, was born out of Western Christian perspectives. As well, it will explore the challenges faced by minority groups who live in pluralist contexts when they attempt to hand on their ways to their young people, in particular, the difficulties faced by urban Indigenous Australians who try to ensure that their young people will develop knowledge about their cultural and spiritual heritage. Finally it will examine how the rights of young Indigenous people need to be protected so that they can continue to develop their particular identity and at the same time take their place with pride and integrity in the pluralist… [Direct]
(2010). Identifying Key Elements of Community-Based ESD: ESD-J's Projects to Collect ESD in Practice in Japan and Asia. Online Submission, Global Environmental Research v14 p137-146. Since its establishment in 2003, the Japan Council on the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD-J) has paid close attention to informal learning processes in community-based efforts to promote local sustainable development. ESD-J carried out two projects to collect information on and visualise community-based ESD practice: the "Asia Good ESD Practice Project (AGEPP)" (2006-2008), covering the Asian region, and the "ESD x Biodiversity Project" (2009-2011) at the national level. This article presents key elements of community-based ESD, derived from the observed cases of ESD in practice documented through these two projects. (Contains 9 figures, 1 box, and 3 online resources.)… [PDF]
(2008). Indigenous Child Care–Leading the Way. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, v33 n1 p56-60 Mar. We believe that the Australian early childhood sector is not performing well. The incidence of poor outcomes for children is increasing, and we believe that current service delivery is not capable of addressing this. We argue that, as a sector, there is an abundance of evidence of the kinds of programs and initiatives that could address our national concerns, and review some of that evidence. We also point out that there is considerable knowledge in Australia, based on Australian programmes and experience, that can be used to build a different early childhood sector with the potential to significantly impact on growing disadvantage. We conclude with the principles or themes around which such initiatives should be developed and a call to advocate for the development of such services. Appropriate services supporting all of our young children, their families and their communities, have the potential to make a huge impact on our society, and we can no longer hide from our… [Direct]
(2008). Re-Framing Mainstream Assessment: Colleges Use Native Philosophies of Growth and Reflection. Tribal College Journal of American Indian Higher Education, v19 n4 p18-22 Sum. Speaking at faculty orientation before Dine College's Cultural Center in August 2004, the late Robert Roessel, a founder of Navajo Community College, described hopes that tribal leaders of the 1950s and 1960s had envisioned for tribal colleges. Designing programs of higher learning that work from and advance Native knowledge remains a core challenge at the 37 institutions that now constitute the tribal college movement. In this article, the authors argue that assessment, despite its linkages to mainstream structures and ideologies, offers important opportunities for accomplishing the objectives of the founders of tribal colleges. They report on work both provisional and incomplete in which they have been involved as tribal college insiders, consultants, and consultant-evaluators for outside agencies. To the extent that assessment is framed by Native philosophies of growth and reflection, they believe that tribal college educators may appropriate normative processes so as to promote… [Direct]
(2007). Struggles over Labour Power: The Case of Fort McMurray. Journal of Education and Work, v20 n5 p379-396 Nov. This article argues that partnerships for vocational education and training (VET) reflect contradictions within capitalism and labour power, and therefore should be analysed within the broader context of industrial and workplace relations. Therefore, in contrast to a consensual model, we posit an understanding of social partnerships as sites of struggle and negotiation. Our analysis of interview data suggests tensions between employers, educators and unions over who can deliver training and how training is to be delivered and regulated. These tensions have implications for access to apprenticeship opportunities and for how apprenticeship operates. We argue that a greater understanding of the social, political and economic contexts in which work experience programs operate is needed to move beyond partnerships that seek to produce appropriately skilled labour. (Contains 9 notes.)… [Direct]
(2011). Closing the School Completion Gap for Indigenous Students. Resource Sheet No. 6. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare School completion rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are well below the rates for non-Indigenous students. The target of halving the gap by 2020 in Year 12 (or equivalent) attainment rates between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students is a major national challenge. This paper discusses the causes of low completion rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and provides strategies for improving their retention rates. (Contains 2 figures.) [This paper was produced for the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse.]… [PDF]
(2011). Ministry of Education 2010/11 Annual Service Plan Report. British Columbia Ministry of Education This report outlines the Ministry of Education's achievements during the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011. It reflects the Ministry's progress over the past year; in particular their efforts to expand early learning programs, introduce flexibility in their education system through personalized learning, and inspire life-long learning for British Columbia families. This Annual Service Plan Report provides data and discusses the results related to the measures in the Ministry of Education "2010/11-2012/13 Service Plan."… [PDF]
(2007). Returning to Selective Fishing through Indigenous Fisheries Knowledge: The Example of K'moda, Gitxaala Territory. American Indian Quarterly, v31 n3 p441-464 Sum. The historical abundance of salmon along the west coast of North America has been significantly reduced during the last two centuries of industrial harvest. The life histories of many twentieth-century fisheries have been depressingly similar: initial coexistence with indigenous fisheries; emergence of large-scale industrial expansion followed by resource collapse; introduction of limited restrictions on fishing effort, which become increasingly severe, making it hard for fishing communities to survive and to reproduce themselves. Yet for nearly two millennia prior to the industrial extraction of salmon, indigenous peoples maintained active harvests of salmon, which are estimated to have been at or near median industrial harvests during the twentieth century. Part of the explanation for salmon stock collapses in the twentieth century resides in the different methodologies used by the indigenous and industrial fisheries. In this paper the authors argue that a reintroduction of… [Direct]
(2007). "Neoliberal Spatial Technologies": On the Practices of Educational Policy Change. Critical Studies in Education, v48 n2 p179-195 Sep. This paper explores the spatial dimensions of neoliberalism, in relation to educational policy change in the inner-city of Sydney, Australia. It offers a response to Peck and Tickell's challenge that studies of neoliberalism are often undertaken as discrete macro- or micro-analyses without attention to the links between, and across, these scales. The paper posits the notion of "neoliberal spatial technologies," a bricolage of neoliberalism, governmentality and relational space, to contribute to cross-scalar understandings of neoliberalism in relation to inner-city educational policy change. An adumbrated analysis is presented of the practices surrounding the outcome of educational policy change in inner-Sydney. The paper concludes that these practices, drawing on discourses of neoliberalism and relational space, constitute particular students as possible neoliberal educational subjects. (Contains 7 notes.)… [Direct]
(2009). Cultural Transformation for Inclusion, What Is Needed?: A South African Perspective. School Psychology International, v30 n6 p644-666. Internationally, a move towards inclusive education has been adopted as the preferred model in most education systems. Yet there are still many jurisdictions that find that they simply do not have the resources necessary to embark on such a major development as inclusion. A critical issue in many such regions has been the difficulty in reforming traditional cultures that act as almost impassable barriers to change. This is further problematic when much of the rhetoric about embracing inclusion has posited the idea that schools can transform their culture by simply changing their own practices. This article considers the viability of schools being able to adopt an inclusive culture by themselves without a well developed support system and with very limited resources. An eco-systemic research approach is employed to examine the cultural barriers to inclusion that exist within ten schools across one regional district in South Africa. It is argued that for inclusion to become a reality… [Direct]
(2007). Australian Vocational Education and Training: Research Messages, 2006. National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) Research messages 2006 is a collection of key messages from research projects published or completed by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) in 2006. It covers work undertaken by both NCVER and external researchers through the following programs: (1) National Vocational Education and Training Research Evaluation Program; (2) National Vocational Education and Training Statistical Program; (3) National Adult Literacy and Numeracy Program; (4) NCVER Core Research Program; and (5) NCVER consultancy work. The summaries are clustered under five broad themes used by NCVER to organise all of its vocational education and training (VET) research and analysis: (1) Industry and employers; (2) Students and individuals; (3) Teaching and learning; (4) VET system; and (5) VET in context. Twenty-nine pieces of work are included, and each summary provides details of how to access the full research reports. [Support for this publication was provided by the Australian… [PDF]
(2010). Against the Odds: Influences on the Post-School Success of "Low Performers". National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) The link between academic achievement and labour market outcomes is well established. But how well does a student's achievement in a test predict their later success in life? This study examines this question, with "success" considered to encompass satisfaction with life together with the extent to which young people are fully occupied with education, employment or a combination of these. Low performers in mathematics in the 2003 Programme for International Student Assessment were the focus. The study found that "low performing" status has little impact on future success. Further, students who saw the value of mathematics for their future success were more likely to achieve this success. (Contains 9 tables, 5 figures and 13 footnotes.)… [PDF]
(2009). VET in Schools, 2007: Terms and Definitions. Support Document. National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) This document covers the data terms used in the "VET in Schools, 2007" report. The primary purpose of this document is to help users of the report understand the specific data terms used in it. Terms that appear in the report are listed in alphabetical order with the following information provided for each: (1) Definition: a brief explanation of the term; (2) Classification categories: defined categories that apply to each term are listed, where applicable; and (3) Source: a description of the source of this information, including details of any calculations or derivations. [Funding for this document was provided through the Australian Department of Education, Science and Training. This document was produced as an added resource for the report "VET in Schools, 2007." For the main report, see ED507234.]… [PDF]
(2008). Effect of an Argumentation-Based Course on Teachers' Disposition towards a Science-Indigenous Knowledge Curriculum. International Journal of Environmental and Science Education, v3 n4 p159-177 Oct. With the increased global awareness of the negative impact of scientific, technological and industrial activities on the environment and copious examples of sustainable practices existing in many an indigenous community, the new South African science curriculum statement has called on science teachers to integrate school science with the Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS). In response to this call, this study used an Argumentation-Based course (A-B course) to enhance teachers' understanding of the Nature of Science (NOS) and IKS and their ability to integrate science and IKS in their classrooms. Nine teachers participated in the course over a six-month period. Using questionnaires and interviews, the teachers' conceptions of, and awareness about the NOS and IKS were assessed before and after the course. Altogether, five of the teachers were interviewed and three of them completed a delayed questionnaire nearly two years after the course. After participating in the course, the… [PDF]
(2008). Educating for Anti-Racism: Producing and Reproducing Race and Power in a University Classroom. Race, Ethnicity and Education, v11 n2 p155-166 Jul. In this paper I explore some of the issues associated with teaching about race, culture, and ethnicity in a psychology program. These curriculum initiatives are part of a broader agenda of raising awareness about racialised oppression and exclusion and contributing to the development of ways of researching and practicing psychology that are transformative and culturally sensitive. I overview the broader context and describe our subject and the guiding principles. This is followed by a description and analysis of two events in the classroom that illustrate the ways in which students differentially respond to the challenges posed by writings that challenge taken-for-granted understandings of race. Part of the analysis shows that students can often engage in the reproduction of oppressive practices and invest in whiteness. It is suggested that more than single semester subjects are required to promote and support the development of critical capacities for anti-racism practice…. [Direct]