Community Colleges Australia (CCA) has acknowledged and celebrated NAIDOC Week, which ran this year from 7 to 14 July (pictured: this year’s NAIDOC Week logo).
NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia each July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC is celebrated not only in Indigenous communities, but by Australians from all walks of life. (NAIDOC originally stood for “National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee”.)
“Engagement with Indigenous communities and learners is an essential part of what our members do. It is crucial to understand and celebrate Indigenous perspectives and the important role that First Nations people have brought and continue to bring to Australian history and life,” said Dr Don Perlgut, CEO of CCA.
“As a peak organisation representing Australia’s not-for-profit adult and community education (ACE) providers, we note how our sector over-performs – in comparison to other types of providers – in engaging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners in accredited vocational education and training. Our sector has also developed a number of unique approaches to working with Indigenous learners,” said Dr Perlgut.
“CCA is currently developing tools, connections and guidelines for NSW ACE providers that will assist them to work effectively with Indigenous Australians, in order to improve education, training, employment and general community well-being outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples,” said Dr Perlgut.
The NAIDOC Week website includes teaching ideas and resources, which support teachers in addressing The Australian Curriculum: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Culture cross-curriculum priority. The content can be used across multiple learning areas and stages/grades from Foundational Studies to Year 12, and may be relevant for VET and university students.
(Image below: the 2019 NAIDOC Week poster. See posters for previous years back to 1972.)
