Historical factors affecting Education Aboriginal society: The exclusion years left their mark by creating a group of people, who can only be described as culturally disadvantaged, that is, the traditional lifestyle was destroyed and the lack of education denied them a transition into the dominant culture. Government policies were slow to respond and even today, with an “English only” approach to education for Aborigines, there is the creation of an atmosphere of alienation, particularly for traditionally orientated groups. In the areas of language differences, student teachers should be made aware of Aboriginal cultures and culture differences, particularly in the areas of language and language structures. The Australian ideal in education is equality, if we are to reach this goal, then it’s important for the education system to recognize, accept and teach culture diversification.
Improving teacher qualifications: A further contributor to improving the quality of education has been a focus on improving the quality and qualifications of teachers. While 1960s and 1970s saw a shortage of teachers, which too often resulted in putting any adult in front of a class, this was also a time which saw stronger moves towards building teacher registration and increased minimum qualifications for teachers. There was a strong support for the improvement of teacher status and expertise by insisting on minimum levels of qualifications and upgrading of existing qualifications. While many primary teachers had only one or two years training, this moved to three years and, in the late 1980s, the suggested baseline became four year qualifications for all teachers. The pressure to increase teacher qualification has many advantages: 1. It is seen to increase the knowledge base of teachers at a time when the ‘knowledge-based economy’ and the ‘information age’ are seen prominent characteristics of the current era. This is then to benefit the students, who have access to teachers who have greater knowledge in a wider range of areas than previously. 2. Teachers who have significant areas of knowledge about which they are passionate, and better levels of pedagogical content knowledge, are most likely to contribute to their students’ capacities to produce knowledge themselves.
Reference:* House of Representatives Standing Committee on Employment Education and Training (1999) Youth employment: a working solution, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.* Mendelson, Michael. 2008. “Improving Education on Reserve: A First Nations Education Authority Act.” Ottawa: Caledon Institute of Social Policy. * The Report of the Review of Aboriginal Education- https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/reviews/aboriginaledu/report/aer2003_04.pdf