Program praised for getting kids back to school
A program in the Illawarra to provide and assist young Indigenous people to re-engage with education has been praised in a community report.
The Ngaramura Project is providing an exciting new pathway to assist young people to re-engage with education through a cultural learning framework.
Meaning “see the way” and run by the Coomaditchie United Aboriginal Corporation, the program involves a range of activities and programs supporting cultural teachings, academic learning and living and social skills in collaboration with participating local high schools and partnering organisations.
Alternative education service
Evidence has shown that Aboriginal high school students are suspended in numbers disproportionate to enrolment numbers.
Since 2018 the program has provided an alternative education service for Aboriginal young people suspended or risk of suspension from school in the Illawarra region of NSW.
Four key concepts underlie the program:
- Re-connecting with education though culture and identity
- Elders as holders of Indigenous cultural knowledge and history
- Culturally safe spaces for young people to learn and thrive
- Culture continuity through young people.
“There is clear evidence of the program’s positive impact on the young Aboriginal people, the authors of the evaluation report noted.
“Students reported experiencing school ‘differently’, more positively, after participation in Ngaramura.
“Parents and school staff witnessed a greater sense of pride, sense of belonging and self-worth, in students.
“School staff reported being able to build better relationships with students; while students appreciated that there were a team of people supporting them.”
Schools also reported increased retention of Indigenous students, increased school attendance, greater and a greater cooperation from students.
“I wouldn’t have been able to get through without them I don’t think – a student
The program operates from a community hall in the southern suburbs of Wollongong.
The Illawarra region has approximately 8,365 Aboriginal people, making up 2.8 per cent of the total Illawarra population
Re-engagement in education
Federal government figures have shown on average, Indigenous, students attend school four days a week in major cities and regional areas and there has been no improvements over the last five years.
The review of the program said negative incidents at school reduced, there was a re-engagement in education, training and employment and it improved social and emotional wellbeing of indigenous young people in the Illawarra.
The NIAA continues to fund the program and will provide resources to enable Coomaditchie to refine the model developed and to continue to deliver the program and support a proposed expansion into more schools.
