Suchergebnisse

The Politics of Speech in Later Twentieth-Century Poetry: Local Tongues in Heaney, Brooks, Harrison, and Clifton argues that local speech became a central facet of English-language poetry in the second half of the twentieth century. It is based on a key observation about four major poets from both sides of the Atlantic: Seamus Heaney, Gwendolyn Brooks, Tony Harrison, and Lucille Clifton all respond to societal crises by arranging, reproducing, and reconceiving their particular versions of local speech in poetic form. The books overarching claim is that "local tongues" in poetry have the capacity to bridge aesthetic and sociopolitical realms because nonstandard local speech declares its distinction from the status quo and binds people who have been subordinated by hierarchical social conditions, while harnessing those versions of speech into poetic structures can actively counter the very hierarchies that would degrade those languages. The diverse local tongues of these four poets marshaled into the forms of poetry situate them at once in literary tradition, in local contexts, and in prevailing social constructs.

As Indigenous land and sea Ranger programs blossomed across Australia in recent years, it became obvious to both educators and Rangers that links between Ranger groups and schools might provide a new way to re-engage young people with education. The phrase Learning on Country has recently emerged in the Northern Territory to describe a program that takes students out of the classroom and onto 'country' and involves Rangers, teachers and community members in a collaborative approach to teaching and learning. The approach has been supported not only by several remote Indigenous communities, but also by a range of local, Territory and national government departments and agencies. While enthusiasm is high, various stakeholders do not always share perceptions of Learning on Country rationale, aims and outcomes. In this paper we explore these differences and draw on learning theory to suggest a pathway toward a deeper understanding of the enormous potential in Learning on Country. ; Copyright Information: The University of Melbourne. Publisher permission to deposit this version granted via email on 11/05/2015

This seminar will provide a perspective on the Intervention from one of the largest Indigenous townships in the NT through the eyes of two doctoral research scholars who were researching in the community as the Intervention broke. The paper analyses the initial reactions of both the people of the region and their local organisations, as well as detailing their interactions with the Northern Territory Emergency Response Taskforce and other government agencies during the first month of the Intervention. In so doing, we posit the local experience of the Intervention as a transformative and traumatic moment in the township's relationship with state and explore a deeper question around the nature of the intervention and its bearing upon the concept of state and local engagement in the post-Intervention period.

The educational and social disengagement of Indigenous youth in many remote communities in Northern Australia is well documented. A cursory reading of media reports and opinion pieces uncovers many who can be blamed: schools, parents, teachers, government, socialists, anthropologists, linguists and even film makers. Solutions offered are legion and range from conservative (eliminate bilingual programs, link welfare payments to school attendance, send children to boarding schools so they can escape their dysfunctional communities), to progressive (build true partnerships between communities and schools, develop an Indigenous teaching workforce, support bilingual programs), to common-sensical (equip schools with enough desks for every student, provide cross-cultural training for non-Indigenous teachers, invest in the development of curricula that fit the needs of Indigenous children). Yet all of these and most other solutions focus directly or indirectly on 'school'. In this exploratory paper I will shift focus away from 'school' and look for another place or another 'space' where learning and social re-engagement among young Indigenous people in remote Australia might be supported. Drawing on theories of 'third space' and 'hybridity', I will explore Indigenous land as 'tranformative space' where Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge, opportunities and responsiblities intersect and where young people might engage with meaningful practice.

"In February 2008 the Australian Prime Minister made an apology to the 'Stolen Generations' on behalf of the nation. Since then, we have witnessed the rapid implementation of a policy framework focused on 'Closing the gap' and an increasingly complex, managerial and technical approach to addressing undeniable Indigenous disadvantage. This approach has been endorsed by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG). As policy has become more monolithic and monopolistic, the state has become less sympathetic to the diversity and difference that is a feature of Indigenous societies, especially in remote Australia . In this chapter we want to problematise the notion that closing the gap in education will improve socioeconomic outcomes. In short, we question whether human capital theory that is so uncritically accepted as an elixir to socioeconomic disadvantage is applicable in all cross- or inter-cultural contexts, or in all territorial spaces ." - page 109

Education for remote Indigenous students in Australia's Northern Territory (NT) has long been characterized by policy failure. In recent years, the 'solution' to this vexing policy problem has involved a deliberate, incremental shift towards 'mainstream' educational approaches. This includes an increased focus on testing regimes and structured English literacy and numeracy programs, and has led to increased bureaucratic oversight, broad-based 'benchmarking' of student achievement, and a problematic emphasis on statistical disparities between Indigenous and nonIndigenous student populations. In this paper we analyse the NT Government's latest review into Indigenous education - the A share in the future report - to challenge the normative social and cultural assumptions that permeate Indigenous educational discourses and pedagogic approaches. We argue that current notions about 'the way forward' can lead to the development of poor policy and actually serve to thwart Indigenous educational aspirations.

Education for remote Indigenous students in Australia's Northern Territory (NT) has long been characterized by policy failure. In recent years, the 'solution' to this vexing policy problem has involved a deliberate, incremental shift towards 'mainstream' educational approaches. This includes an increased focus on testing regimes and structured English literacy and numeracy programs, and has led to increased bureaucratic oversight, broad-based 'benchmarking' of student achievement, and a problematic emphasis on statistical disparities between Indigenous and nonIndigenous student populations. In this paper we analyse the NT Government's latest review into Indigenous education - the A share in the future report - to challenge the normative social and cultural assumptions that permeate Indigenous educational discourses and pedagogic approaches. We argue that current notions about 'the way forward' can lead to the development of poor policy and actually serve to thwart Indigenous educational aspirations.

"On the 21st June, 2007 the Australian government announced a 'national emergency' response to protect Aboriginal Children in the Northern Territory. In so doing, they produced a raft of changes to key areas of social policy including bans on alcohol, pornography and sweeping changes to welfare, land tenure, education and health policy. The following report analyses a range of impacts, limitations and possibilities in key areas of the 'intervention'. The findings of the report are that the impacts and limitations of the Australian government's intervention are likely to adversely affect the socio-economic fabric of the Maningrida region. The research also suggests that many aspects are likely to have an adverse affect on the safety of children in the region. In particular, the report finds structural defects in proposed policy changes that are of major concern to BAC, its constituents and the wider Maningrida community ." - page iv

"The development of a Northern Territory outstation/homelands policy which meets the needs and aspirations of a dynamic and highly mobile population is extremely important. It is a complex and difficult task, but one which provides an important opportunity for outstations/homelands to be viewed as an integral component of the Northern Territory Government's vision for 'a framework for a sustainable future where development takes place within a context of land and sea conservation' as envisaged in the Northern Territory Parks and Conservation Masterplan 2005. An innovative outstation/homeland policy which solves the problem of government service delivery of Indigenous Australians' citizenship entitlements—so that it provides a choice for Indigenous Australians where they want to live and how they want to engage nationally and internationally in social, cultural and economic life—is urgently needed." - Introduction, page 1

A version of this Topical Issue was provided as a submission to the Australian Government's discussion paper Review of Caring for Our Country: Australia's Natural Resource Management Investment Initiative. This paper has a specific focus on lessons we have learnt from working with Indigenous peoples engaged in cultural and natural resource management projects in northern Australia and New South Wales. It is based on action research currently being undertaken under the five-year research project People on Country, Healthy Landscapes and Indigenous Economic Futures (PoC) and a related three-year project investigating the socioeconomic benefits of Aboriginal people being involved in the sustainable management of their country in NSW.