The social issue of education similarly to health began with poor colonial assistance. Before the referendum, State Governments had total responsibilities for indigenous affairs so education differed across Australia, however despite the difference all State Policies communicated their belief that aboriginal people were inferior and therefore should receive minimal education (Telethon Kids Institution, online, 14.8/15). In the 19th century indigenous children either received education from church or charity run missions, which aimed to civilise them with prominent focus on teaching Christianity, or in aboriginal only schools on segregated reserves (Burridge, 2012, p.13). In 1939 a NSW Public Service Board inquiry realised major problems with …show more content…
In 1956 the first aboriginal teaching graduates began teaching in Government schools and in 1957 the Tranby Aboriginal College, the first of its kind in NSW, began to provide indigenous adults with education and training (Burridge, 2012, p.16). The referendum caused the first Commonwealth Aboriginal Secondary School Grants Scheme to start in 1969, it provided indigenous children with scholarships to stay in Primary School, the scholarship program was extended to secondary students in 1972 (Burridge, 2012,p.17). In 1989 the first National Aboriginal Education Policy (NAEP) was released, its aim was to co-ordinate responsibility for Indigenous education between various States through strategies that were linked to Federal funding (Burridge, 2012,p.17). It is understood that the referendum caused the Government to care about indigenous lives and therefore the indigenous population began having more opportunities in …show more content…
Australia has the highest differences in life expectancy and infant mortality between non-indigenous and indigenous people compared to New Zealand, Canada and the United States (Pascoe,2008,p.34). Indigenous people have a life expectancy 17 years less than non-indigenous people (Mackean,2009,p.18) and the infant mortality rate for aborigines is three times higher (Pascoe,2008,p.34). It is quite embarrassing that out of countries with similar colonial history, Australia is so far behind. On the slide you can see other upsetting statistics in indigenous health. Whilst indigenous people make up 2.5 percent of the nation (Creative Spirits – Aborignal Health,online,14/8/15) it seems they suffer the most health issues out of the total population. Damian Griffiths the Executive Officer of the First Peoples Disability Network said “The prevalence of disability amongst Indigenous Australians is significantly higher, approximately twice that of the non-Indigenous population.” And that “Disabled aboriginal people are among the most disadvantaged in Australia” These are upsetting but true facts and obviously action is needed. According to Creative Spirits, an indigenous website, 50 percent of indigenous people have some form of disability or long term health condition. It becomes apparent that this percentage would never be a reality for the non-indigenous population as serious action in
There have been many unanswered questions in Australia about Aboriginal history. One of these is which government policy towards indigenous people has had the largest impact on Indigenous Australians? Through research the Assimilation Policy had the largest impact upon Indigenous Australians and the three supporting arguments to prove this are the Aborigines losing their rights to freedom, Aboriginal children being removed from their families, and finally the loss of aboriginality.
What is the connection between official education policies and key events in Aboriginal Australian history? How have Aboriginal people responded to these policies?
It is well known that aboriginal youth located on and off reserve are more likely to drop out of school then non aboriginals and this happens for different reasons starting from health issues to poverty. “According to Labor Force Survey data, for 2007/2010, the dropout rate among First Natio...
This essay will discuss the Aboriginal Education policies in Victoria and Federally and how these policies impacted upon the children of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. This essay will further analyse the impact these past policies had on the Aboriginal and Torres strait Islanders’ families and children’s education and how current policies were put in place to assist indigenous students’ access to education. Further to this an analysis of how teachers can implement these changes in the curriculum and classroom.
In 1968 the Commonwealth Office of Aboriginal Affairs was established and acknowledged health as a major area for development and therefore started providing grants for health programs (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). The office was later named the Department of Aboriginal Affairs in 1972, and it began making direct grants to the new aboriginal medical services opening around the nation (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). In 1973 the Commonwealth Department of Health established an Aboriginal Health Branch in order to provide professional advice to the government (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). Throughout the next several years indigenous health was on the radar of importance in the Government, in 1981 the Commonwealth Government initiated a $50 million five year Aboriginal Public Health Improvement plan (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). Clearly more progress was achieved in the issue of health in the years after the referendum than those between colonisations and
There are significant health disparities that exist between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians. Being an Indigenous Australian means the person is and identifies as an Indigenous Australian, acknowledges their Indigenous heritage and is accepted as such in the community they live in (Daly, Speedy, & Jackson, 2010). Compared with Non-Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal people die at much younger ages, have more disability and experience a reduced quality of life because of ill health. This difference in health status is why Indigenous Australians health is often described as “Third World health in a First World nation” (Carson, Dunbar, Chenhall, & Bailie, 2007, p.xxi). Aboriginal health care in the present and future should encompass a holistic approach which includes social, emotional, spiritual and cultural wellbeing in order to be culturally suitable to improve Indigenous Health. There are three dimensions of health- physical, social and mental- that all interrelate to determine an individual’s overall health. If one of these dimensions is compromised, it affects how the other two dimensions function, and overall affects an individual’s health status. The social determinants of health are conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age which includes education, economics, social gradient, stress, early life, social inclusion, employment, transport, food, and social supports (Gruis, 2014). The social determinants that are specifically negatively impacting on Indigenous Australians health include poverty, social class, racism, education, employment, country/land and housing (Isaacs, 2014). If these social determinants inequalities are remedied, Indigenous Australians will have the same opportunities as Non-Ind...
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders have some of the worst health outcomes in comparison to any other indigenous community in the world (AIHW, 2011). According to United Nations official Anand Grover, Aboriginal health conditions are even worse than some Third World countries (Arup & Sharp, 2009), which is astonishing, considering Australia is one of the worlds wealthiest countries. Thoroughly identifying the causes and analysing every aspect behind poor health of indigenous Australians, and Australian health in general, is near impossible due to the complexity and abundant layers of this issue. Even within the category of social determinants, it is hard to distinguish just one factor, due to so many which interrelate and correspond with each other. The aim of this essay is to firstly identify and analyse components of the social determinants of health that impact the wellbeing of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders, and demonstrate how they overlap with each other. By analysing the inequalities in health of Aboriginal and non-indigenous Australians, positive health interventions will then be addressed. Racism and the consequences it has on Indigenous health and wellbeing will be discussed, followed by an analysis of how and why social class and status is considered a determining factor when studying the health of the Aboriginal population. The issue relating ...
The Aboriginal Education and Training Policy`s (AETP) (NSW DET 2008) main goal is that “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students will match or better the outcomes of the broader student population” (1.1.2) and includes an explicit focus on developing cultural competencies (NSW DET 2008, p.6). Establishing ‘learning partnerships’ and relationships with Aboriginal communities, including Aboriginal content within the curriculum (NSW BOS 2008, p. 2), and engagement are advocated as necessary elements to achieve this edict. Racism has been proven to be an extremely detreimental factor on all fronts, especially within the education context. To address this intolerance the Anti-Racism Policy (ARP, 2005) is committed to eradicating all forms
According to Australian indigenous website, healthinfoNet, in 2010-2012 life expectancy of indigenous people were 69 years which is 11 years less than the 80 years expected for the non- indigenous men and women. Moreover, the life expectancy for native women was 73 years, during 2010-2012, which is 9.5 years less than the expectation of 83 years for non-Indigenous women. The reason for decreased health can be due to deficiencies in water supply, sanitation and lack of proper medical services.
The education of Aboriginal people is a challenge that has been a concern for many years and is still an issue. However, it remains the best way young people can climb out of poverty. With the colonialization and the oppression of Aboriginals, there have been many lasting side effects that continue to be affecting the Aboriginal youth today. “While retention and graduation rates have improved among urban Aboriginal population, an educational gap still remains between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal youth in urban settings” (Donovan, 127). Many suffer from a diminished self-worth, as they do not feel valued and feel inferior to their classmates. In this essay I am going to outline the reasons Aboriginals are struggling, discuss what is being done
0.8% of the overall Federal health expenditure in 2009 which was spent on Aboriginal health. The overall wellbeing of an individual is more than just being free from disease. It is about their social, emotional, spiritual, physiological as well as the physical prosperity. Indigenous health issues are all around us, but we don’t recognise because it doesn’t affect us, but this issue is a concern to Indigenous Australia and also to modern day Catholics in Australia The statistics relating to Indigenous health is inexcusable, life expectancy is at an all time low, higher hospilatisation for avoidable diseases, alerting rates of deaths from diabetes and kidney disease. This issue is bigger than we all think, for example 13% of Indigenous homes
(Australian Institute of Family Studies, 2016). As a Pre-Service Teacher specialising in Early Childhood Education, it is imperative to understand how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities were treated in the past and the impact that this may have on Indigenous families in the
In conclusion the colonisation of Australia and the adoption of discriminatory policies eroded Aboriginal culture and tradition affecting their sense of well-being and thus deteriorated their health. Today these policies are reflected in the social determinants of health as socio-economic disadvantages. They continue to impact contemporary Aboriginal people. In order to improve Aboriginal health outcomes; the impacts of these policies need to be overturned. This can be done by assisting them with improving their socio-economic status in the light of their needs and traditions.
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have been the first nations, which represented the whole Australian population, for centuries. However, the continuous European colonization has severely affected these peoples and, over the decades, their unique values and cultures, which enriched the life of Australian nation and communities, were not respected and discriminated by numerous restrictive policies. As a result, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have turned into the voiceless minority of the Australian population. Fortunately, in recent years, these issues became the concern of the Australian government, promoting a slight improvement in the well being of native Australians. Nowadays, there are numerous social work
Poor living conditions are a major health determinant throughout the indigenous population. Most Indigenous Australians are known to live in rural parts of Australia which are commonly not close to major cities and services. People living in these areas generally have poorer health than others living in the cities and other parts of Australia. These individuals do not have as much access to health services and good quality housing. In 2006 roughly 14% of indigenous households in Australia were overcrowded unlike 5% of other households (AIHW, 2009a). Overcrowded and poor quality houses are commonly associated with poor physical and mental health between the people living in them. The indigenous are n...