The National Education Agreement states that school should

“promote the social inclusion and reduce the educational disadvantage of

children, especially Indigenous children.” Yet in New South Wales the rate of
suspension of Aboriginal students continues to increase.

- Council of Australian Governments, 2009

The focus of this report will be the impacts of disciplinary practices on behaviour,
wellbeing and the social inclusion of Indigenous students within schools. The historical
experiences in which Indigenous people experienced shaped the deficit perceptions in which
people undertake either consciously or subconsciously. Indigenous communities have
historically been subjected to discriminatory acts such as massacres, the infamous Stolen
Generation and being displaced from their families, communities and country (Australian Law
Reform Commission, 2010). These injustices that Indigenous Australians faced contributed to the
deficit perspective of Indigenous students that limits their capacity for achievements, as well as
the educational disparities in areas such as attendance, suspension rates and academic
performance between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. The report will examine the
impact of different disciplinary practices on the behaviour, wellbeing and inclusion of Indigenous
students and discuss the implementation of the Stronger Smarter philosophy and approach
within the schooling system and in the classroom to relieve the past injustices, deficit thinking
and close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students by targeting all the
Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) (Department of Education &
Communities, 2013). The Stronger Smarter approach entails strategies of high expectation,
promoting a positive self of cultural and personal identity, and creating safe spaces for dialogue
between all parties to engage all students and not just Indigenous students.

Statistically, there is a significant difference between Indigenous and non-Indigenous

student in terms of behaviour, wellbeing and inclusion, and this may be due to the practices in
which teacher engage in either consciously or subconsciously. In the Closing the Gap report
(Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, 2019), the attendance in secondary school of
Indigenous students has been significantly lower by approximately 14% in comparison to their
non-Indigenous peers since 2014 to 2018, and gap between these two groups widens the further
remote the areas are. The suspension rates of Indigenous students with NSW has also been on the
rise (Council of Australian Governments, 2009). Increased the gap in attendance and rate of
suspensions for Indigenous students is a result of different disciplinary practices negatively
impacting Indigenous students’ wellbeing and identity. Teachers whom are not Indigenous may
bring external beliefs and assumptions, in particular perceived deficit about Indigenous peoples
into the classroom and the standards of high expectations for Indigenous students to be lowered
to “mainstream expectations” due to deficit thinking (Riley & Ungerleider, 2012). These
perceptions are shaped by the historical culture of Australia, conditioning low expectations of
Indigenous students from factors such as external situation plays a role in their capabilities to
learn in comparison to their non-Indigenous peers, having views that Indigenous students are
disadvantaged and in deficit positions, and consequently leads to the possibility that students
accept negative stereotypes as a part of their cultural identity (Stronger Smarter Institute, 2014).
As a result, teachers may simplify content for Indigenous students due to the deficit thinking as
they are perceived to be lacking skills for higher-order and critical thinking, lapsing into direct
instruction. This may also be a result of teachers feeling inadequate in their ability to integrate
Indigenous culture into their curriculum due to a lack of knowledge and communication with the
local community (Yunkaporta & McGinty, 2009). These practices causes Indigenous students to
feel alienated due to the lack of acknowledgement and misunderstanding of Indigenous culture,
setting up these students for failure as it impacts the behaviour, wellbeing and inclusion in a
negative manner leading to disengagement, misbehaviour, deteriorated wellbeing, decreased
attendance and increasing levels of exclusion and suspensions (Beresford, 2012). Thus, it is
important for teachers to promote and develop self-concept during adolescence through their
language and culture, encouraging a sense of belonging to school whilst respecting a strong sense
of Indigenous identity to empower students and combat deficit thinking (Whitley, Rawana, Pye &
Brownlee, 2010).

The implementation of the Stronger Smarter approach and philosophy within school
systems and classroom teaching is a way in which teachers can promote belonging, empower
students through cultural identity, relieve past injustices and close the gap between Indigenous
and non-Indigenous students. The high expectation of Indigenous students is the core ideas that
the Stronger Smarter approach incorporates into their philosophy; it is important for
Mathematics teachers to have high expectations for their students in order to assist students in
gaining academic success. Within a high expectation learning environment, being different is
valued, prior knowledge and experiences brought into the classroom are respected, and content
is culturally responsive and appropriate to students learning needs (Stronger Smarter Institute,
2014). Due to the history of Australia, there has been a cultivation of low expectations of
performance and behaviour, and that underperformance is normal for Indigenous students and
these expectations also lead to disengagement, low attendance and high suspensions rates (Riley
& Ungerleider, 2012). A cycle of underperformance occurs as teachers perceive Indigenous
students as poorly behaved students who find content difficult, thus teachers will simplify content
ignoring students’ background knowledge, culture and personal experiences, resulting in the
limiting of academic growth for Indigenous Australian students and essentially failing to meet
their needs (Sarra, 2007). In order to implement high expectations, it first starts with the teacher
understanding the personal assumptions in which they may carry throughout their practice
either consciously or subconsciously. Through the engagement of self-reflection of their practice
and engaging in challenging conversations, teachers allow themselves to challenge possible
deficit thinking that may be occurring. Teachers should be able to ask themselves, what personal
assumptions do I have of Indigenous students, why the homework they set is of lower standards
and question themselves, students and the parents as to why a student may have low attendance
(Stronger Smarter Institute, 2014). These reflective questions increases the standards at which
teacher can deliver content and provides a reflection of the deficit thinking in which teacher may
carry into the classroom impacting their teaching practices that may disable student success, and
how to adjust their pedagogical practice to become more valuable for Indigenous student through
complex and rich activities and thinking (NSW Department of Education and Training, 2006).

The Stronger Smarter approach addresses the APST standards 1.4, 2.4, 6 and 7 in which
incorporates “strategies for teaching Indigenous students”, “promote reconciliation between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians”, and teachers engage in professional learning with
students, staff, parents, and the community (Department of Education & Communities, 2013).
With regards to the stage 4 outcomes in Mathematics NSW syllabus, teachers should create safe
places for dialogue between students, teachers, parents and the local community to create a
curriculum that is relevant to the local Indigenous community. Through dialogue, Indigenous
communities were able to share their knowledge of lomandra in which it can be used for basket
weaving and making damper, and with this knowledge, mathematics teacher able to authentically
integrate Indigenous culture into their classroom. An example of this would be acknowledgement
of land for the local Indigenous community, then introducing lomandra as a native species of flora
in which local Indigenous communities used for water, basket weaving and making damper for
nourishment. Within the topic of Ratios and Rates, students will be able to physically interact with
lomandra as a stimulus and communicate mathematical ideas using metalanguage through
lomandra as a demonstration of knowledge (MA4-1WM and MA4-2WM). Through the act of
weaving, students connect with each other, discussing the mathematical relationships between
the length of the lomandra and the surface area of a potential basket in which students will weave
(MA4-7NA and MA4-3WM). The use of collaborative learning will promote a sense of belonging
between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students within the classroom and incorporating
Indigenous knowledge into the Mathematics curriculum will allow Indigenous students to feel
that their culture is validated within a classroom setting. Another way of promoting a sense of
cultural identity and belonging is allowing students and parents to communicate in a language
they are comfortable with and is not foreign (Department of Education, Employment and
Workplace Relations, 2011). This strategy can be incorporated in the classroom by asking
Indigenous and non-Indigenous students to inform the class of words or expressions relating to
the topic at hand in their preferred language such as big versus mari in the Darug language whilst
describing their weavings (MA4-1WM). The employment of language in the classroom
acknowledges that English can be a foreign language to students, respects students and
strengthen Indigenous identity (Board of Studies, 2008). The safe spaces for dialogue are
important for teachers as they engage in professional learning specifically for Indigenous
students, learning about how displaying student works to let student voice be heard, promoting
a positive identity in school and engaging in positive interactions with students and parents
within and outside of the school setting (NSW Department of Education and Training, 2006). The
use of dialogue between students, teachers, parents and the local community allows teachers to
be informed of Indigenous practices, and with genuine knowledge of culture, teachers become
more confident in integrating Indigenous culture into their cross-curriculum programs.

Through open dialogue between students, teachers, parents/carers and the local
Indigenous community, teachers are able to gain new knowledge as well as engage in challenging
conversations. Teachers should enter the space of dialogue with an open mindset, attitude and a
willingness to change pedagogical practices as their practices and expectations may be challenged
(Yunkaporta &McGinty, 2009). Critical reflection allows perceptions to be challenges and the
conversations define what high expectation is for all parties involved. In order to define what high
expectation is, teachers should guide the conversation into areas of concern such as poor
behaviour, low attendance, experiences of racism and ways to celebrate cultural identity and
diversity for Indigenous students (Stronger Smarter Institute, 2014). Positive interactions with
all participants in the dialogue is key in becoming equals through the formation of trust,
connectivity and optimism. The strengthening of conversation allows teachers, parents and
Indigenous communities to develop deep understanding and learning of culture and finding
authentic ways to engage students in learning the curriculum (NSW Department of Education,
2017). Trust, safety and power can be built through conversational circles in which participants
can safely express their experiences, feelings and beliefs without being dismissed. The
challenging conversation should be framed in a relational manner when building a culture for
Indigenous students to thrive, as it is through collaboration of all participants together that the
gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students will be able to close, enhance students’
academic successes and co-create solutions to these problems (Stronger Smarter Institute, 2014).

To conclude, the different disciplinary practices that teachers have been implementing
in the past are disabling Indigenous students’ success in schools as they are not able to reach their
full potential due to low expectations. The low expectations of Indigenous students lead to poor
behaviour, low attendance rates and increasing suspensions. These low expectations and deficit
thinking are inherently the result of the suffering and tragedies that Indigenous Australians
experienced and are still experiencing to this day. Thus, it is important for teachers to implement
practices that promote Indigenous identity within the school to challenge the past perceptions.
This can be achieved through the high expectation philosophy distributed by the Stronger
Smarter Institute (2014). In order to achieve high expectations, teachers should engage in self
reflection to understand their personal assumptions of Indigenous students, create dialogue
between teachers, students, parents, and Indigenous communities, and engage in challenging
conversations to combat deficit thinking and create solutions to promote student success. The
implementation of the Stronger Smarter approach and philosophy is key to closing the gap
between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students.

References
Australian Law Reform Commission, (2010). Changing policies towards Aboriginal
people. Retrieved from https://www.alrc.gov.au/publication/recognition-of-aboriginal-
customary-laws-alrc-report-31/3-aboriginal-societies-the-experience-of-contact/changing-
policies-towards-aboriginal-people/

Beresford, Q. (2012). Separate and unequal: An outline of Aboriginal education 1900-

1996. In Q. Beresford, G. Partington & G. Gower (Ed.) Reform and resistance in Aboriginal
education (pp. 85-119). Crawley, WA: UWA Publishing

Board of Studies, (2008). Working with Aboriginal communities: A guide to community

consultation and protocols. Retrieved from https://ab-ed.nesa.nsw.edu.au/files/working-with-
aboriginal-communities.pdf

Council of Australian Governments, (2009). National education agreement. Retrieved

from http://www.federalfinancialrelations.gov.au/content/npa/national_agreements/national-
education-agreement.pdf

Department of Education & Communities, (2013). Capability framework: Teaching

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander EAL/D learners. Retrieved from
https://indigenousportal.eq.edu.au/SiteCollectionDocuments/eald-capability-framework.pdf

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, (2011). Successful

practice: Improving outcomes for Indigenous students. Retrieved from
http://www.whatworks.edu.au/upload/1300931817872_file_SuccessPrac2.pdf
 Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, (2019). Closing the Gap. Retrieved from
https://ctgreport.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/files/ctg-report-2019.pdf?a=1

NSW Department of Education, (2017). Annual report. Retrieved from

https://education.nsw.gov.au/about-us/strategies-and-
reports/media/documents/Annual_Report_2017_Full.pdf

NSW Department of Education and Training, (2006). School is for me: Pathways to
student engagement. Retrieved from http://danhaesler.com/wp-
content/uploads/2015/03/School-is-For-Me-Pathways-to-Student-Engagement.pdf

Riley, T., & Ungerleider, C. (2012). Self-fulfilling prophecy: How teachers’ attributions,
expectations, and stereotypes influence the learning opportunities afforded Aboriginal
students. Canadian Journal of Education, 35(2), 303-333.

Sarra, C. (2003). Young and black and deadly: Strategies for improving outcomes for
Indigenous students. Australian College of Educators.

Sarra, C. (2007). Stronger, Smarter, Sarra. Teacher: The National Education Magazine,
(Mar 2007), 32.

Stronger Smarter Institute, (2014). High-expectations relationships: A foundation for

quality learning environments in all Australian schools. Retrieved from
http://strongersmarter.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/SSI-HER-Position-Paper-Final-
lowres.pdf

Whitley, J., Rawana, E., Pye, M., & Brownlee, K. (2010). Are strengths the solution? An
exploration of the relationships among teacher-rated strengths, classroom behaviour, and
academic achievement of young students. McGill Journal of Education, 45(3), 495-510.

Yunkaporta, T., & McGinty, S. (2009). Reclaiming Aboriginal knowledge at the cultural
interface. The Australian Educational Researcher, 36(2), 55-72.