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1.  Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS). (2022). Guide to evaluating and selecting education resources (the Guide). https://aiatsis.gov.au/sites/default/files/research_pub/AIATSIS%20Guide%20to%20evaluating%20and%20selecting%20education%20resources.pdf

2.  Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2018). Assessment criteria for Graduate Teacher Standards 1.4 & 2.4: Supporting the Accreditation of initial teacher education programs in Australia: Standards and Procedures. AITSL.  Melbourne.

3. Department of Education and Training, & Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority. (DET & VCAA). (2016). Victorian early years learning and development framework: For all children from birth to eight years.
https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/childhood/providers/edcare/veyldframework.pdf

4. Coleman, E.B. (2016). Aboriginal Art, Identity and Appropriation (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315263526

5.  Evans, C. (2012). Your professional experience and becoming professional about working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and communities. In K. Price (Ed.), Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education: An Introduction for the Teaching Profession (pp. 52-63). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139519403.004

6. Hu-Au, E and Lee, J, J. (2017). Virtual reality in education: a tool for learning in the experience age. International Journal of Innovation in Education. 4:4, 215-226. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJIIE.2017.091481.-

7.  Mills, K, A., and Doyle, K. (2019). Visual arts: a multimodal language for Indigenous education. Language and Education. 33:6, 521-543. DOI: 10.1080/09500782.2019.1635618

8. National Film and Sound Archive of Australia. (2021). Carriberrie Teachers’ Guide. National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

9. Perso, T., & Hayward, C. (2015). Teaching indigenous students : Cultural awareness and classroom strategies for improving learning outcomes. Taylor & Francis Group.

10. Ryan, T. J. (2022). Keniny Kaadadijiny: Restoring and developing dance for Noongar Boodjar. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/2602

11. Salmon, M., Doery, K., Dance, P., Chapman, J., Gilbert, R., Williams, R., & Lovett, R. (2018). Defining the indefinable: Descriptors of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ cultures and their links to health and wellbeing.

12. Shay, M., & Oliver, R. (Eds.). (2021). Indigenous education in australia : Learning and teaching for deadly futures. Taylor & Francis Group.

13. Victorian curriculum and assessment authority (VCAA). (n.d.). VEYLDF ILLUSTRATIVE MAPS. https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/curriculum/earlyyears/veyldf/veyldf-illustrative-maps/Pages/Index.aspx

14. Yunkaporta, T. (2012). 8 ways Aboriginal Pedagogy from Western NSW. NSW Dept. Education and Training.

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Resource 4: Gambay Language Map - https://gambay.com.au/ 

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Resource 4: Gambay Language Map - https://gambay.com.au/ 

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The Gambay Language Map provides an interactive map of Australia, highlighting varying language groups throughout the country. Whilst exploring the location of these language groups, you can visually search or write a specific language group into the search bar. Each language is accompanied by at least one attached video about the language.

Gambay means “together” in the Butchulla language of the Hervey Bay region in Queensland. Gambay was created by First Languages Australia in consultation with regional language centres around Australia. Faith Baisden, a Yugambeh woman, is the producer and director of the map and the project is supported through the Australian Government’s Indigenous Languages and Arts Program. The resource asks for custodians of the language groups presented in the map to reach out if it needs updating or is not properly representing of their language.

To understand the knowledges being taught, children and teachers must first understand where the knowledge comes from, students must also become aware that each way of knowing can derive from a different culture, country, or language.

The resource provides further teacher notes on how to utilise and implement the map respectfully and appropriately. It also requests teachers to consider reaching out to their local community and First Nations families to avoid assumption and offense. The teaching notes provide links to different domains within the Australian Curriculum which could then be linked to the early years learning framework through VEYLDF illustrative maps (VCAA, n.d.).

This resource links to Focus Area 2.4 of the AITSL (2018) standards through promoting understanding and respect between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians. It also links to Focus Area 1.4 as a strong knowledge of country and language is linked to the wellbeing of an individual (Salmon, Doery, Dance, Chapman, Gilbert, Williams, and Lovett, 2018).  This resource aligns with the theme of identity through using the map to establish connections between countries, language, and culture. Language is a critical part of any person’s identity, it’s their way to communicate, to pass knowledge, and to share ideas and stories (Perso and Hayward, 2015).

Using the map together, children and educators can explore the many diverse cultures and languages, Australia holds. Alongside their current inquiry or project, children can see its relation to the land and to what group of people its stories belong to, allowing students to gain more awareness of a particular culture, deepening their appreciation and their understanding.

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Japingka is an online gallery filled with ethically sourced artworks, created by supported and empowered First Nations artists. The site acknowledges Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation as the owners of the traditional land on which they operate. Japingka Gallery’s education resources were developed with the intention to help meet the need to bring aboriginal perspectives into the classroom for services who may not have the means or resources to have the opportunity to have an authentic experience led by an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person.

Art and corresponding lesson plans can be discovered through different subcategories such as region, language, style, or artist – making this visual art collection easy to navigate, ensuring teachers are confident in using the appropriate knowledge corresponding to the correct art.

First Nations persons use visual arts to communicate and pass on ways of knowing, such as, mapping vital resources, detailing the dreaming, and describing customs and traditions Mills and Doyle (2019).  Introducing this way of knowing allows children to explore other ways to share knowledge, develop an appreciation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and potentially discover their own strengths through different mediums of learning.

Identity can be explored through this resource as Aboriginal Australians use art to express their stories, their identity, and their connection to country (Perso and Hayward, 2015). People may be able to identify a person’s country based on their art style as stories are shared through different art styles, representing different cultures, countries, and language groups. Art is connected deeply to a person’s identity and “continuation” of their culture (Coleman, 2016).

The Focus Area 1.4 of the AITSL (2018) standards can be accomplished with this resource as it provides a hands-on visual approach that aligns with four of the 8 Aboriginal ways of learning pedagogy (Yunkaporta, 2012). Although lesson plans are mainly aimed towards primary and secondary school aged children, some lesson plans (directed at foundation level students) could be modified to meet the early years curriculum.

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Wingaru Bubs is a subscription based digital resource hub created to provide a range of programs to help early childhood educators embed the Aboriginal perspective into their curriculum. The site is “proudly Aboriginal owned and operated” and contains learning guides, digital resources and printable resources that align with the national quality framework and are created and produced by First Nations persons.

First Created in 2020 and continuously updated, the program is very adaptable to meet all groups of children’s needs and service requirements. Indigenous perspectives being embedded into the program by Indigenous Australians ensures cultural responsiveness and authentic meaningful learning (Department of Education and Training, & Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority [DET & VCAA], 2016). The site also offers consultation support to provide for educators in an emergent program that follows children’s evolving interests by providing support and ranging experiences.

The Wingaru program acknowledges the traditional owners of Gadigal Land and use Darug language used by this Aboriginal group throughout their page, as well as their name “Wingaru”. Because the program is created by Aboriginal persons from Gadigal Land (in Sydney), educators should consider the knowledge being shared may not align with the thinking of the country your educational service is on, however, the owners consult with other First Nations persons to develop the resources, therefore, may offer different ways of knowing from other countries besides their own.

The resource has a strong mission to close the gap and create a “fairer Australia” through truthful education that will foster appreciation, understanding and help develop genuine reconciliation. Wingaru supports the theme of reciprocity with its large focus on using education as the tool to empower ‘tomorrows leaders in today’s classrooms’. By creating the tools and permitting access to First Nations knowledge, Non-Indigenous Australians are empowered to build on sustainable learning that fosters reconciliation. The more knowledge teachers possess on the subject, the more equip they are to create a learning environment that meets the needs of indigenous communities (Evans, 2012).

Wingaru for Bubs directly promotes Focus Area 2.4 of the AITSL (2018) standards with its focus on reconciliation through education, as well as Focus Area 1.4 with its resources enabling educators to develop culturally responsive learning environments and make informed decisions in regard to program planning (Victorian curriculum and assessment authority [VCAA], n.d.).

With its diverse and abundant resources that cater to online and offline learning, there is little limit to what Educators can implement when introducing these experiences into their program.

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Carriberrie is an online virtual experience celebrating Indigenous Australian contemporary as well as traditional song and dance. There is a Warning of deceased persons and Acknowledgement of Country on the menu screen of the immersive experience. Diverse groups perform both historic/traditional and contemporary dances in the film, ensuring holistic representation of both an ancient and modern Australia.

The immersive experience was launched during NAIDOC week 2020 and does not reflect all First Nations experiences and cultures, it does, however, possess a respectable geographic mix presenting nine different culture groups from around Australia. Teachers in Victoria should be aware and mention to their students that the groups shown within the experience are not from Victoria and that Victorian groups would have their own dances and songs expressed within their cultures.

The director of the project, Dominic Allen, does not identify as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person, but, to “preserve integrity of indigenous cultures and stories”, the project ensured First Nations people were acknowledged, recognised, and extensively consulted with throughout its creation and production.

An immersive interactive visual experience is what children need to fully engage and feel apart of their learning. This unique experience provides children the opportunity to not just sit and watch a video. Instead, they are exploring, engaging, and seeing stories unfold in different places and time. Hu-Au and Lee (2017) found that immersive hands-on tools for learning can improve challenges teachers face with the “experience age” who are often disengaged or uninterested in conventional ways of formal schooling. The Aboriginal 8 Ways Pedagogy (Yunkaporta, 2012) also supports non-verbal and non-linear storytelling that this innovative experience can offer.

The Carriberrie resource promotes Focus Area 2.4 of the AITSL (2018) standards by providing insight into First Nations persons different ways of knowing and exposure to different ways of passing on that knowledge to others. The experience also provides learning in an innovative way that brings hands-on visual learning to the classroom, supporting focus area 1.4 (AITSL, 2018).
This experience connects to the theme of identity and country. David Gulpilil, a Yolngu man (National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, 2021), acknowledges dance as “the first language of our people”, summarising the connection between storytelling through movement to cultural identity. Ryan (2022) supports this idea when he describes the powerful connection to country Indigenous Australians create and feel when dancing.

There is a teacher’s guide (National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, 2021) on how to elaborate the experience further with students. With links to more resources, lesson plans, background information on the experience and potential inquiry questions to gage children’s knowledge, scaffold their ideas and foster critical thinking. Teachers should take advantage of this additional resource to expand children’s understanding of their experience and create the potential to take the experience beyond a sensorial exploration into an inquiry-based project.

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Using the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL, 2018) standards, 8 ways of learning (Yunkaporta, 2012), and guides to the ethical evaluation of resources from both Shay and Oliver (2021), and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS, 2022), I believe that the following resources will assist teachers in creating culturally responsive environments that introduce authentic First Nations knowledge. These resources would most likely support classrooms that have not yet established reciprocal relationships with their local Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander communities but understand the necessity to embed first Nations perspectives in their curriculums to foster reconciliation through education.

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I acknowledge the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin nation as Traditional Custodians of the land on which I learn and grow and pay my respects to their Elders past and present. I extend that respect to any Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons using this page.

WARNING: the following resources and their associated links may contain images or voices of deceased persons.