Boarding and Australia's First Peoples: Understanding How Residential Schooling Shapes Lives

This book explores the complex lived experience of First Nations students in predominantly non-Indigenous schools in Australia, challenging narrow measures of educational success and shedding light on the enduring impact of boarding schools. Through personal accounts and scholarly analysis, it highlights the benefits and challenges of education for First Nations students and encourages collaborative approaches to Indigenous education programs.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 345 pages
Publication date: 05 February 2023
Publisher: Springer Verlag, Singapore

This captivating book delves deep into the intricate and multifaceted realm of being a First Nations student in predominantly non-Indigenous schools in Australia. Constructed upon the firsthand accounts of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander alumni from diverse corners of the nation, scholarly analysis is intricately intertwined with personal narratives and introspections. The outcome is a comprehensive and longitudinal examination of the enduring ramifications of years spent in boarding schools, challenging narrow and purely empirical metrics currently employed to define educational success.

Throughout the settler-colonial era, boarding schools have served as tools of repression and assimilation, playing a protracted and contentious role. In Canada and North America, the full extent of the human tragedy associated with residential schools is still being uncovered. In contrast, in contemporary Australia, boarding schools are portrayed as beacons of opportunity and hope; sanctuaries of empowerment and, in the best cases, cultural restoration.

In this remarkable work, young individuals, interviewed over a span of seven years, candidly reflect on the intended and unintended consequences boarding has had on their own lives. They share their experiences of anticipated and unexpectedly profound outcomes. They speak to the long-term benefits of education and to the intergenerational impact of education policies.

This book serves as a valuable resource for practitioners and policymakers, empowering them to critically assess the institutional frameworks, policies, and cultural assumptions that shape the environments in which they operate. By doing so, it aims to enhance the well-being of First Nations students and their families. It fosters innovative and collaborative approaches to Indigenous education programs, fostering a more inclusive and equitable educational landscape.

Weight: 569g
Dimension: 235 x 155 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9789811660115
Edition number: 1st ed. 2021