Getting schools ready for Indigenous academic achievement: a meta-synthesis of the issues and challenges in Australian schools

ABSTRACT

The Australian governments’ centrepiece Indigenous strategy, the ‘Closing the Gap’ framework, established in 2008 to address systemic Indigenous disadvantage, is underpinned by the concept of ‘school readiness’, which expects Indigenous families to bring their children to school ready to learn. The education system commonly blames Indigenous culture as a contributing factor in explaining the ‘Gap’. In this paper, we reverse the mirror of ‘school readiness’, examining what is known about the readiness of the education system to meet the aspirations of Indigenous learners. Using a meta-synthesis methodological approach, this paper provides an overview of research about the issues and challenges facing Australian schools to be ready to respond to the educational needs of Indigenous children. Findings reveal that the lack of teacher, curriculum, pedagogical, school environment and culture readiness are the four key aspects to consider. We conclude by discussing the implications and gaps in the existing Indigenous education strategies.

KEYWORDS:

• School readiness
• Indigenous education
• Australia

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Peter J. Anderson

Peter J. Anderson is the inaugural Executive Director of the Carumba Institute and Professor of Education. He researches in the areas of organisational leadership, Indigenous peoples’ education, teacher and academic professional development

Sun Yee Yip

Sun Yee Yip is a Teaching Associate at the Faculty of Education, Monash University, Melbourne. Her research interest includes Indigenous education, cross-cultural teaching, teacher identity and emotion, and school leadership. Prior to teaching at the higher education level, she worked as a vice principal in a secondary school in Singapore.

Zane M. Diamond

Zane M. Diamond is a teacher educator and researches in the field of the wisdom studies in education. International and comparativist in approach, she researches pedagogies for embedding Indigenous and other ancient wisdom traditions in modern universities and schools, wise leadership and organizational change, and, an overarching study of system level transformation in education that leads to wellbeing in modern education systems.