Developing strong relationships with Aboriginal students, families, and communities

Exell, Mike; Gower, Graeme

doi:10.4324/9780429263453-8

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…This approach avoids potential misunderstandings of Aboriginal ways of knowing, being and doing (Armour & Miller, 2021). Developing strong relationships with Aboriginal families and children enriches curriculum and pedagogy, and this, in turn, further strengthens relationships (Exell & Gower, 2021). Whilst the example above is of a chance encounter, reaching out to families by providing regular, intentional opportunities to connect can also assist in building relationships in ECEC settings and reduce the risk of missing opportunities to recognise and value the cultural knowledge held by Aboriginal families (Gapany et al, 2021).…”

Section: Findings and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Educator perspectives on embedding Acknowledgement to Country practices in early learning centres in Australia

Townley

Grace

Woodrow

et al. 2023

Australasian Journal of Early Childhood

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This article explores the practices of ‘Acknowledgement to Country’ in Australian early childhood education contexts. Acknowledgement is a process of seeking out and honouring local Aboriginal Country and knowledge and investing in local resources of language, art, stories, nature and songs. Twenty educators across six early learning centres participated in semi-structured interviews to explore the experience, processes and resources that supported the implementation of Acknowledgement practices. Acknowledgement practices were not limited to a daily protocol but embedded in each centre’s physical place and programming. Wanting to be respectful yet fearing offending Aboriginal people, most educators expressed feelings of uncertainty and under-confidence about what to do. Developing relationships with local Aboriginal people and identifying resources were also concerns. Acting from the heart with good intentions was regarded as a way forward together, with commitment, resources and a strong distributed pedagogical leadership culture, where educators felt supported to take small yet foundational steps.

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Section: Findings and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%