42

WHY ARE SO MANY ABORIGINAL CHILDREN NOT ACHIEVING AT SCHOOL ? ,^

*Jeff Guider

In 1988 the Aboriginal Education Policy Task Force called for broad equity between Aboriginal people and other Australians in access, participation, and outcomes at all stages of education. Aboriginals are not achieving a comparative level of success at school compared to non-Aboriginals. Symptomatic of problems in our schools are, the over representation of Aboriginals in lower classes, the high drop-out rate of Aboriginal children and their low participation rates in the senior years of high school. Somie 17% of Aboriginal youth continue their schooling to year 12 compared to 49% of all students (Department of Employment, Education and Training, 1988, p.7). The failure of Aboriginal children to achieve at school has been widely interpreted as an individual failure on the part of Aboriginal children. Poor attainment has been attributed to lower I.Q. and ability, inadequate home environments, and poor parenting and-not to the inadequacies of the education provided, to > prejudices Aboriginal children face or to the active resistance by Aboriginal people to the cultural destruct­ion implicit in many educational programs (McConnochie, -1982, p.20). An examination of the determinants of school success shows that Aboriginal children's cultural values, ' beliefs and practices and Australian schools are often in conflict. To improve the outcomes for Aboriginal children schools are required to assess whether or not they are. catering for the inherent needs and talents of individual Aboriginal children.

For many years it was believed that Aboriginals had less innate ability or intelligence than non-Aboriginals. A belief in the inferiority of Aboriginals as a race of people had long been supported by, imperialistic rhetoric about white racial supremacy, the failure of Aboriginals to adopt European work ethics,, and the numerous failed , attempts to educate Aboriginals (Kociumbas, 1988, p.147; McConnochie, 1982, pp.19-22). As late as 1961 the annual

* Jeff Guider wrote this paper whilst a student at . the University of Western Sydney. •*

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In assessing the validity of the below average ' scores Aboriginals have achieved in I.Q. tests, consider­ation has to be made for anomalies caused by cultural factors. Most intelligence tests are culturally biased and tend to favour students whose backgrounds are similar to those of the students who were the norm for the test (LeFrancois, 1989, p.214). Questions in white-middle class referenced tests such as the Stanford-Binet arid Wechsler Intelligence Scale usually concern abstract ideas and symbols and require a high degree of English language competence to be successfully answered. The questions often lack relevance to the life experiences' children from minority cultures encounter. McElwain's studies show that when Aboriginals iassimilate into the" European culture their performances in standard intelli­gence test's improve. He states".. .the relative average inferiority of performance on tests of the Aborigines is (roughly at least) proportional to the degree of lack of contact with European culture (i.e. language, skills, methods of thinking, and so on)" (1969, p.267). Because their life experiences are different most Aboriginals are at a disadvantage when they attempt standardised intelligence tests.

Aboriginals are also disadvantaged because I.Q. results are commonly used as an indicator, of a student's level of future academic success. Statistically there is ; high correlation i)etween a student's level of academic achievement and their I.Q. (LeFrancois, 1989, p.214).* As a consequence of their lower than average performances in I.Q. tests, teachers of Aboriginal students generally see them as Having less academic potential.

Teachers should be cautious in assessing Aborig­inal's potential on the basis of one-off intelligence tests. Conventional intelligence tests only measure the present level of a student's academic achievement and not their potential or innate cognitive capacity (LeFrancois, 1989, p.214). An individual's I.Q. is not fixed or unchanging and is highly amendable to modification by environmental interventions (Varider-Zanden and Pace, 1984, p.109). Psychologist R.B. Catteli (1971, cited in Vander Zanden and Pace, 1984) maintains that we have many basic, or 'fluid' abilities; such as general reasoning, mem&ry and attention span which are innate and not affected by

-.45

culture or experience. Cattell states however, that 'crystallized' abilities, such as general knowledge, vocabulary and language competence, are,highly influenced by culture, experience and education (p.106). Norm-referenced, culturally biased tests, which customarily assess 'crystallised' intelligence, give a false indication of Aboriginal students' -abilitiesi. Any veritabre assess­ment of Aboriginal students' intelligence'and academic potential must give consideration to how Aboriginal culture and life experiences influence cognitive development and how these influences can be different to the norm.

' Instead of attributing Abbriginal students'poor academic performance-to low intelligence> other factofs-that influence their .achievement must be examined. >; There are a number of social and psytihological reasons tha;t have been'expressed to explain the general failure of education for Aboriginals. Many of thie reasons relate to anthro^ pologicai'theories which highlight differences between traditional Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal values and' practices. Aboriginal students' classroom behaviour, motivation to learn, styles of learning, and pattern of school attehdarice can be linked'to traditional cultural influences. Also emerging are some contemporary Aboriginal community influences on school perfoririahee. -

Today it is inaccurate and misleading to talk about • Aboriginal students as a homogenous group who all share common and readily identifiable characteristics and who share a strong affinity to traditional beliefs and practices. The degree to which they are influenced by" traditional and contemporary culture and the degree to' which this will affect the students' school performances, will depend on the type of communities the students have lived in-and how they identify with the values and customs of those communities. Aboriginals live in a range of homes; traditional, rural, urban, outback, country and city. Never the less, regardless of where an Aboriginal student lives it is highly likely that the^student will identify with aspects of Aboriginal culture.' The Aboriginal Education Unit of the N.S.W. Directorate of Special Programs emphasises that.

46

Many Aboriginal ohildren display a . -, , . different outlook on. life from the. , : -.. ,;,

non-Aborigines around them, due to< a ,,, different but nonetheless rich cultural heritage....Programs should be designed . -in schools iio promote, feelings of self-esteem and'self-worth in ' ;- \ •' Aboriginal childj'en by. fostering their ., ,. ;

, cultural traits.- •• ^ . \ (1952r p.473'^

An Aboriginal student'sbehaviour at school can be influenced by the following cultural factors. Tradition­ally Aboriginals are not future orientated and devote little time-to planning for the future. Their concept . of time is dissimilar to Europeans. Work and activities are not bound up in small divisions of time. Time is lived as days and nights and as the,length of seasons. Saving is also traditionally not undertaken.< the produce of hunting and gathering is shared amongst kin and is rarely stored. Another factor is competition amongst individuals. Survival, depends upon the welfare oi. the whole tribe. Individual members of a tribe are disposed to group goals and co-operate rather than . compete. Additionally, work is part of on-going life, characterised by the necessities and eventualities of hunter-gathering,. Work is not confined to a routine portion of the day. The final factor is the acquisition of knowledge. Aboriginals learn survival skills through imitation and observation and then through trial and ' error. Knowledge of custom and ceremony is learnt through story telling and performance.. Governing life are 'Dreamtime' laws and customs which are unquestioned ;• (Gallache.r, 1969, pp.100-1). _

An analysis of these traditional cultural influences shows the obvious,, disparity between the values of our schools and the values an Aboriginal child may possess. What chance does the culturally different child have in a school that demands competition amongst individuals, that doesn't always allow the sharing of knowledge, that promotes the questioning of the way things are, that encourages rigid adherence to routine work and attendance and which teaches abstract concepts which have little relevance to the Aboriginal child's life experiences? It is unlikely that the Aboriginal

- m -

child would have any motivation to attend let alone strive to achieve.- ''"y':''-' \ ' ' •":'""' ''', :* • ••••;'•-••; •

The disparity between the values of schools and Aboriginal"students is also the basis of"a contemporary theory for a lack of school achievement by Abblfiginals, expressed by R. Folds' (1987). Folds claims that'Aborig­inal children's classroom behaviour and ultimate failure 'iW school ;cannot be explained simply in terms of cultural diffeferieces. Aboriginal children are purported to choose to reject, school. ;Their failure can be viewed as an act of political, resistance against schools which are seen as assimilatory agencies. Acts of resistance include ' absenteeism, failure to comply to demands, disrupting 'classes and a reluctance or refusal to complete work (Folds, 1987, pp.1-20). Folds'; resistance perspective highlights' the need to examine how and what is presented to Aboriginals in schools.

Probably the. most extensive and enlightening study of the social and psychological .reasons effec ting Aboriginal school performance was conducted by Professor B. Watts (1981> cited in Muir, 1984, pp.30-52) -and Muir 1983, PP.19T27), Watts developed three groupings of factors which she felt determined the Aboriginal child',s level of school success, and which/helped to explain the historical failure of education for Aboriginals. The three groupings, the children's characteristics, the learning situation (school, class), and the environments, beyond the school, -were also seen as interdependent variables (Muir, 1984,^ p.31). Each)of Watts' groupings yield numerous indicators of discord between Aboriginal students and .their schools.

Aboriginal children often don't succeed at,.school because their social and emotional well-being is under t h r e a t . • -/;, '•;.;•;. •• • ^ ^ ' , .• ; . :

> The child functions in the classroom as a total -person^ bringing with him all the results of his previous learnings

• . and eoyperienoes which have shaped his , . • - emotional^ physical and intellectual

being: his self-identification and his • ,; .-; influential friends 3 his concept of . : ' ,

• himself and his level of adj'ustmentj his,; - motives3. values and aspirationsy his . ' ,

- 48 -

attitudes to and peraeptibns of scfioolj _,;, learning and the world about him^ his

, ,. health and nutritional status'and his .:. \. sensory functioning^ his. level of cognitive . ,, /functioning J his preferred ways of .knowing. ;. '_

and learning and his competence in. language _ ' , " .... , usage. ... . \- . '. .-... [' ' .-. •..-•' '

y- ' CWatts> 1983, p,20) • J

• Schools-that give'little or no recognition to ; ; Aboriginal culture and= to preferred ways, of lear iiing are ^ likely to be seen as irrelevant> alien and threatening to Aboriginar'chirdren. 'Emotionally the children could feel insecure arid unmotivated. Motivation is ah important factor in school success.

Unless a child's motives are aroused his intelligence lies fallowj the full

' utilisation of his abilities demands that he. sees a purpose in their use. In turn3 intetligenoe grows as it is used. The'

" • unmotivated pupil learns poorly3 leading 'often to a false judgement by the teacher ' • '•that'he 'lacks ability. - •'• • •'•

_ - > ; ' (Watts, 1983, p^23)- ' -"""

The type of learning situation Aboriginal students encounter 'depends upon the type of schools they attend and the teachers they interact with. Schools need to • examine their curriculums to see if they are receptivfe to the needs of Aboriginal people. Curriculums will only facilitate learning if they are culturally appropriate in content, and method. It is the view of Aboriginal people that the education^presented to them is still inappropriate. Schools must develop,"...an educational-theory and pedagogy that takes into account Aboriginal epistemology" (National Aboriginal Education Committee, 1985, p.4). The role of teachers is aisc) critical in determining the educational outcomes for Aboriginal students. The teacher's values arid attitudes, knowledge of Aboriginality, pedagogical style and competence, and expectations of Aboriginal students, will all influence the classroom learning situatiori.' Often Aboriginal students are taught by inexperienced, uninformed and sometimes^" hostile, non-Aboriginal teachers. "It is difficult for

- 49

teachers to foster the.learning, of children whom they do not understand...,!'(ibid, p.35). ,:; -:

'The-third influencing factor, the envirgnments beyond the school, includes the Aboriginal community and the individual students' homes. Aboriginals are; the poorest idehtifiabie sectgr of the Australian community (Directorate of Special Programs, 1982, p.49), and suffer accompanying problems of poor housing, poor health, inadequate food and clothing, and stress.; Many Aboriginal, homes are-education- • ally impoverished and lack reading, writing.-and reference materialSo.), Aboriginal parents, are .likely to,have had .. unfavourable experiences when they attended school and may not have the skills, knowledge or .willingness to assist in . their children's education. There is a high percentage of . unemployment amongst Aboriginal people. With no money and an impoverished future,', many Aboriginal people feel power­less and suffer poor physical and mental health. The Aboriginal child, loyal to .their family and community, could easily be led to believe that this is Aboriginal man's place in society and,that education will not change his or her;destiny, ;. :• 1 . . :!

Historically education programs and policies have done little to .address the lack of equality.of opportunity and outcomes for Aboriginals in;schools. Predominantly Aboriginals have been expected to modify their behaviour, va,lues and..skills ,and become acceptable to white society, .in the late I960's an attempt was made to address the failure of assimilatory education by introducing deficit and compensatory programs. It is clear that the problem in Aboriginal education was perceived as beting Aboriginals themselves and not the type of instruction they were receiving. As McConnochie (1982) writes, "Indeed the phrase "the Aboriginal prpblem" locates the source of the difficulty in the Aboriginal group. To the extent that the Aboriginal group differs from the mainstream white society it is considered to be deficient" (p;27)i ,. McConnochie adds that solutions to Aboriginal education problems have orientated towards changing the child through remedial, compensatory and enrichment programs (p.28). ; , These types of programs not only fail, to view the school as "the likely source of problems,.but they .also fail to recognise and.use the abilities,of Aboriginal children.

50 -

Aboriginal children possess many skills and knowledge which are devalued in our education system. Notfed Aboriginal writer M. Valadian (1985) claims that recent school programs have not been based on utilising the talents and giftedness of Aboriginals. She suggests that the range of knowledge and skills that children had to acquire in a traditional community by the age of four or five alludes to giftedness and talent constituting the norm amongst the children,. Valadian supports her claim by comparing the multitude of skills the children had acquired at an early age compared to the skills of non-Aboriginals of the same age. The abilities the children acquired are quite extensive and certainly refute suggestions that Aboriginal children are less intelligent and capable as non-Aboriginals. The list includes:

; - a wide range of practical skills; ' - a high sense of mathematical ability based

on a knowledge of kinship; - a sense or precision;

• - a wide range of subject learning areas -nature studies, survival skills, the ability to entertain themselves in a safe and relatively mature manner;

- a knowledge oif songs, dance and drama; - ba.sic cooking skills; - elementary homecrafts such as weaving; - a knowledge of weaponry and of ceremonial life;

' - the ability to memorise a wide range of relationships;

- a knowledge of natural elements and their relationship to food supplies (what food was available at certain times of the year);

- personal safety. ' • (Valadian, 1985, p.37)

Although not all children develop traditional skills now, Valadian adds,"...there should be a recognition of inherent talent in Aboriginal children as the basis for educational programs in -traditional, urban, and rural schools" (p.38).

.Author E.J. Braggett (1985) expresses the opinion that in Australia the prevailing attitude on giftedness is that it pertains to academic achievement. He feeTs that many talents possessed by children from cultures other than

-• 51 -

the while monoculture are often not in accord with schools' definitions, of talent and may not be noticed. Aboriginal children have many talents which he thinks are not given recognition. Aboriginal children have high memory skills, excel in visual-spatial ability, are persistent, and exhibit high internal motivation when interes.ted. Teachers may also fail to develop tbe potential talent Aboriginal children may possess in popular music, special forms of dance, group skills, aft, performing skills, social leadership-, humour and witty language. Throughout Australia excellence can be seen in the _tfacking skills of children from the north of South Australia, in !the.social and co-op.erativ,e.skills of Islander students, arid in the photographic skills and athletic qualities of urban Aboriginal children (Braggett," 1985, pp.3-4). , , ,,

There is a need in Australia to rethink the premise that Aboriginals are failing in our schools. Our schools are a failure for Aboriginals. . Aboriginal students*are as intelligent and as capable as^their peers yet we do "not allow them to enjoy comparative success. We.have to discontinue current educational practices that fail to meet the individual Aboriginal child's cognitive, social and physical needs and, embark oh "a program,of truly multicultural instruction which both recognises.: and actiyeiy utilises the. Aboriginal child' s skills and knowledge. - Aboriginal parents must be encouraged to bring to schools their wealth of ideas, their feelings and values so as to enrich our schools and help them,to see a purpose in what our schools offer. As a society we need to value our Aboriginal culture and assist in providing not only educational parity, but equality of, employment opportunity,, political representation and social recognition. Australia's banner as the-"Clever Country" has not yet been earned and we will not develop^^s a nation to pur. fullest social and economic potential whilst we devalue and ignore the enormous richness of our indigenous people.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barlow, A. (1990). Equality or equity?: education for Aborigines and Torres Strait Islander futures. The Aboriginal Child at School, 18 (4), pp.19-35.

Braggett, E.J. ( 1985). Education of Gifted and,Talented Chirdren from Populations with Special Needs.' Canberra Publishing arid Printing Company, Canberra.

- 52 -

Depaftment of Employment, Education and Training., (1988). Report of the Aboriginal Education Policy Task Force. Australian Government Publishing Service,

, Canberra.

Directorate of Special Programs, N.S.W. Department of^ Education., (1982). Strategies for Teaching Aboriginal Children. Government Printer, N.S.W.

Duncan, A.T., (1969). Motivation for achievement in an industrialised society. In S. Dunn and CM. Tatz (Eds.) , Aborigines and Education (pp.106-7). Sun Books, Melbourne.

Folds, R. (1987). Whitefella School. Allen and Unwin, Sydney.

Gallacher, J.D., (1969). Some problems facing the educator in a programme of social change. In S. Dunn and CM. Tatz (Eds.), Aborigines and Education (pp. 100-1). Sun Books, Melbourne

Kociumbas, J., (1988). The best years? In V. Burgmann and J. Lee (Eds.), Making a Life: A People's History of Australia Since 1788 (pp.147-151). McPhee Cribble, Victoria., ,. .

LeFrancois, G.R., (1988) Psychology for Teaching. Wadsworth, Melbourne.

McConnochie, K.R., (1982). Aborigines and Australian education: historical perspectives. In J. Sherwood (Ed.), Aboriginal Education: Issues and/Innovations (pp.17-31). Creative Research, Perth.

Mc Elwain, D.W., (1969). Some aspects of the cognitive ability of Aboriginal children. In S. Dunn and C M. Tatz (Eds.) Aborigines and Education (pp.266-7). Sun Books, Melbourne.

Muir, D.M., (1984). Determinants of school success: part 2, The Aboriginal Child at School, 12 (1), pp.30-52

Muir, D.M., (1983). Determinants of school success,: part 1, The Aboriginal Child at School, 11 (1), pp.19-27.

53

National Aboriginal Education Committee., (1985). Philosophy, Aims, and Policy Guidelines for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education. Australian Government Publishing, Canberra.

Valadian, M., (1985). Promotion of Aboriginal giftedness: strategies for change. In. E.J. Braggett (Ed.) Education of Gifted and Talented Children from Populations with Special Needs. Canberra Publishing and Printing Company, Canberra.

Vander Zanden, J.W. and Pace, A.J., (1984). Educational Psychology in Theory and Practice. Random House, New York.

Walker, K., (1969). Aborigines: assets or liabilities. In S. Dunn and CM. Tatz (Eds.) Aborigines and Education (pp. 106-7). Sun Books, Melbourne

WALMAJARRl - ENGLISH DICTIONARY

with English Finder List

Compiled by Eirlys Richards and Joyce Hudson

Based on information provided by members of many Walmajarri Communities

(Mankajakura cover design, from painting by Peter Skipper, Walmajarri speaker) .

The Summer Institute of Linguistics (Australian Aborigines and Islanders Branch) is pleased to announce the publication of the Walmajarri -English Dictionary. Walmajarri, including i ts dialects, is the language of some 1300 people from LaGrange (south of Broome) to Halls Creek in the Kimberley area of Western Australia. The dictionary is to be launched at Fitzroy Crossing on 8 February 1991.

Price $20.00 plus postage Bookseller SIL C/- Post Office Berrimah NT 0828 Australia