The Know Your Country campaign supports the Federal Opposition’s announcement of plans to employ First Nations Educators across 60 primary schools to teach language and share knowledge of local cultures across the curriculum.
“Learning a local First Nations’ language is a great way for primary school students to connect with and learn from traditional owners. This approach will help build stronger and more in-depth knowledge for kids about local ecosystems of the country on which their schools are located. There are also great educational benefits for improved learning outcomes for all children when a second language is learnt,” said Dr Scott Winch, co-chair of the Know Your Country campaign.
The new policy, launched today by the Shadow Education Minister, Tanya Plibersek and Shadow Assistant Education Minister Graham Perrett, is a key ask of the Know Your Country campaign which calls for all political parties to support First Nations Cultural Educators in every primary school. This decision has no doubt been influenced by our advocacy and lobbying – together we can ensure all political parties at the Federal, State and Territory Government levels, keep working to improve the quality of education for all children about First Nations peoples, cultures and languages by involving local First Nations communities.
“While we welcome this announcement however, First Nations peoples need to be employed and valued within every school across our nation. The employment of First Nations Educators is an imperative step towards reconciliation and a shared future for all Australians,” said Brooke Cuthbertson, who co-chairs the Know Your Country coalition.
“It’s incredibly powerful for young people to learn about the history and language of this land. It is also vital for authentic learning of language, culture and perspective of the world’s oldest living civilisation, that all Australian primary school children be able to learn directly from local First Nations people,” she said.
In this, the first year of UNESCO’s International Decade of Indigenous Languages, this policy highlights to First Nations people, that our cultures and languages are recognised and valued by the education system. It’s also an extremely important policy for addressing the Closing Gap target 16: Cultures and languages are strong, supported and flourishing.
It’s pleasing that First Nations people will be supported and properly remunerated to share their language with school students. For the policy to work, schools would need to be made culturally ready, and First Nations educators feel supported and safe.
The Know Your Country campaign’s approach would reach well beyond the classroom as children became better versed in the richness of the Indigenous culture, languages and people of the First Nations Country on which they live. A big thanks to the everyday Australians, Teachers, Principals, Organisations and Ambassadors that have allied with the campaign… This shows that together we can put pressure on those with the power to change the system, to make it more inclusive.
