Indigenous-Education-Review_DRAFT

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Review of Indigenous Education in the Northern Territory Bruce Wilson coherent and consistent. Each element contributes to effective outcomes and helps students understand why they are at school and what they gain from the experience, which in turn is likely to improve behaviour. Poor behaviours have a wide range of causes, some of which (as was noted above) are out of the control of schools, but everything a school does in its relationship with a student makes a difference. This report argues that behaviour is likely to be improved by consistent attendance, early orientation to the routines and expectations of schools, early literacy achievement, success in primary schooling, the delivery of a high quality secondary education and improving the quality of principals and teachers. Children who are comfortable in schools, who experience success and who see their education leading somewhere are more likely to engage with educational offerings and work within the social framework of the school. This is what engagement means: a focus on positive relationships and actions, which is the counterbalance to poor behaviour and loss of attachment to schooling. The review argues that addressing the range of improvements to engagement proposed in this report will be the main contributor to reducing behaviour issues in schools. Once these initiatives are in place, the Department and schools will have a better picture of the real level of behaviour problems. Even after this, however, there will remain behaviour and wellbeing problems among the Indigenous (and non‐Indigenous) student population. Some of these will be effectively addressed by a common approach to behaviour management, such as the SWPBS model. Others will require more specific interventions. These fall into several categories. Some are to do with physical health issues (notably hearing) that affect a child’s capacity to engage with education. Others involve social and emotional problems that are deeper seated or more serious than a school can effectively manage. Others arise from cognitive and intellectual difficulties that hamper effective engagement with learning. DRAFT In each of these areas there are existing initiatives in the Northern Territory. There is, for example, the work undertaken by the DoE Special Education Program Manager in developing online courses in Introduction to Special Education, Autistic Spectrum Disorders, Speech, language and communication needs, and managing behaviour. We have not reviewed the broad area of disability services or the provision of specialist expertise in these areas. These matters are whole‐system issues that impact on Indigenous education but are not specific to it. Review respondents have consistently argued that such services are provided less effectively outside the towns, that there is a shortage of specialists in these areas (notably counsellors and psychologists), and that there are significant numbers of undiagnosed cases (and even more who have not been effectively treated) in some or all of these areas. The hearing issue, however, is of a different order. A report of the Australian Governmentfunded Child Health Check Initiative and follow‐up audiology and ear, nose and throat (ENT) services found that between 2007 and 2011, almost 5000 children received audiology services and almost 4000 ENT services. About 66% of these children were diagnosed with a middle ear condition. Of those receiving audiology services, 53% had some kind of hearing loss and 33% had hearing impairment (AIHW, 2011: vii). The prevalence of chronic suppurative Otitis media (OM) among Indigenous Australians is among the highest in the world, while the World Health Organisation states that the incidence of perforation rates is the highest of all populations studied. As the report notes: 95
Review of Indigenous Education in the Northern Territory Bruce Wilson Research has found that Indigenous children with OM have lower phonological awareness, and poorer reading and spelling skills than Indigenous children without OM…This is especially a problem for children learning English as a second language (Ibid.: 2). The Now Hear program was designed specifically for the Northern Territory to support children with hearing loss. The program was run as a trial in six remote schools with a high proportion of children with conductive hearing loss in 2013. The aims of Now Hear are: to improve teacher and system capacity to provide effective learning opportunities to the large number of Indigenous students with Conductive Hearing Loss (CHL) in order to improve these students' learning outcomes (AIH, 2013). The Now Hear continuum is a tool that provides schools with a guide to maximise the learning environment for students with conductive hearing loss. The continuum addresses acoustics and amplification, classroom support, ear health, identification and management of hearing loss and program sustainability. This informs teachers about the elements required for students to access learning, participate in class and be successful learners. The tool can also be used as a school audit to help form the basis of an action plan with a built‐in evaluation capacity. The Disability Services unit of the department has seen excellent results with the Now Hear program and consequently recommends that schools use the Now Hear tools as part of their wellbeing framework wherever there are high levels of hearing issues among students. The department can provide training, support and advice on these strategies. Where schools are using Now Hear well, they have noted significant improvements. While there is a general reduction in central office services in many of the other areas referred to, the review does not have the capacity to address or resolve these issues, and they fall somewhat outside the terms of reference. Recommendations DRAFT 19. Work with the Behaviour Management Taskforce to develop and resource a wholesystem approach to wellbeing and behaviour management, including: a. mandating School Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) for bush schools and advising other schools to adopt it; b. requiring all schools to have a school‐wide approach to behaviour management and wellbeing including the establishment of a team, led by a member of the leadership group, with responsibility for behaviour, wellbeing and inclusion; c. developing a social and emotional overlay for SWPBS (taking account of trauma experienced by Indigenous students) for trial and evaluation in Central Australia prior to wider implementation; d. ensuring that schools collect and report data on behaviour and related issues and on the implementation of SWPBS; e. mandating the use of Now Hear in all bush schools and other schools with students experiencing hearing difficulty; and f. providing professional development programs, coaching and specialist support 96
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Indigenous-Education-Review_DRAFT

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