Overview

This unit focuses on contemporary and historical Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, identity, languages, histories, status, challenges, contributions and perspectives. The unit enables pre-service teachers to synthesise perspectives about Indigenous education and how these can enhance Western education practices. An additional aim is to plan and develop authentic curriculum and pedagogy for teaching Indigenous children and analyse how Indigenous teaching and learning practices can benefit all children. This knowledge and understanding contributes to graduates' cultural competence and promotes culturally inclusive teaching practices based on sensitive and informed relationships.

Teaching periods
Location
Start and end dates
Last self-enrolment date
Census date
Last withdraw without fail date
Results released date
Teaching Period 3
Location
Online
Start and end dates
04-November-2024
09-February-2025
Last self-enrolment date
17-November-2024
Census date
29-November-2024
Last withdraw without fail date
27-December-2024
Results released date
04-March-2025
Teaching Period 1
Location
Online
Start and end dates
10-March-2025
08-June-2025
Last self-enrolment date
23-March-2025
Census date
04-April-2025
Last withdraw without fail date
02-May-2025
Results released date
Teaching Period 2
Location
Online
Start and end dates
07-July-2025
05-October-2025
Last self-enrolment date
20-July-2025
Census date
01-August-2025
Last withdraw without fail date
22-August-2025
Results released date
Semester 2
Location
Hawthorn
Start and end dates
04-August-2025
02-November-2025
Last self-enrolment date
17-August-2025
Census date
31-August-2025
Last withdraw without fail date
19-September-2025
Results released date
09-December-2025
Teaching Period 3
Location
Online
Start and end dates
03-November-2025
08-February-2026
Last self-enrolment date
16-November-2025
Census date
28-November-2025
Last withdraw without fail date
02-January-2026
Results released date

Learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:

  • Discuss and critique Australian Indigenous education and perspectives
  • Assess the impact of historical and contemporary events and issues on current educational contexts for Indigenous people
  • Identify how Indigenous education and perspectives align with teachers’ professional role as advocates for children and their families
  • Reflect on their own attitudes and values in relation to Indigenous people and how these may affect their teaching and professional relationships
  • Recognise the continuous contributions of Indigenous people in Australian society
  • Plan authentic learning experiences that enable all children to learn about Indigenous people and perspectives

Teaching methods

Hawthorn

Type Hours per week Number of weeks Total (number of hours)
Live Online
Lecture
1.00  12 weeks  12
On-campus
Class
3.00  8 weeks  24
Specified Activities
Various
4.00  12 weeks  48
Unspecified Activities
Various
5.50  12 weeks  66
TOTAL     150

Swinburne Online

Type Hours per week Number of weeks Total (number of hours)
Online
Directed Online Learning and Independent Learning
12.50 12 weeks 150
TOTAL150

Assessment

Type Task Weighting ULO's
Essay Individual  40%  1,2 
Portfolio Individual  40%  6
Research Assignment Individual  20%  3,4

Content

  • History and culture of Australia's first nation Aboriginal people
  • The positioning of Indigenous and traditional education systems within the nation state
  • The impact of colonization and issues related to the retaining and maintaining of Indigenous and traditional knowledge through education
  • The role of international organisations in protecting, preserving and maintaining Indigenous and traditional education systems
  • Current and past contributions of Indigenous people
  • Contemporary contexts for Indigenous people
  • Reconciliation and its implications for teachers
  • Anti-Bias Curriculum
  • Integrating authentic Indigenous studies in the curriculum
  • Indigenous perspectives and pedagogy in and implications for teaching not only Indigenous children but all children
  • Roles of teachers in supporting reconciliation in a post-apology Australia.
 

Graduate Attributes

  • Communication Skills
  • GA1: Verbal communication
  • GA2: Communicating using different media
  • Teamwork Skills
  • GA3: Collaboration and negotiation
  • GA4: Teamwork roles and processes
  • Digital Literacies
  • GA5: Information literacy

Study resources

Reading materials

A list of reading materials and/or required textbooks will be available in the Unit Outline on Canvas.