Critical approaches to inclusion in indigenous teacher education in Queensland: the case of RATEP

Abstract

[Abstract]: Inclusion is a key consideration in Learning Futures. It is a process of addressing a diversity of needs of all learners regardless of individual background. It can be achieved through increasing participation in learning across cultures and communities and thereby reducing the accounts of exclusion within and from education. This paper examines critical approaches to inclusion in Indigenous teacher education in Queensland, Australia. The benefits of culturally aware Indigenous teachers in school classrooms are explored as a means of addressing historically poor outcomes for Indigenous learners and overcoming the legacy of hostility towards schools as tools of white oppression. The empowerment of Indigenous teachers through critical approaches that challenge the status quo cultivates the development of diverse and inclusive teaching skills that are reflected through the employment of inclusive pedagogies. These inclusive pedagogies promote self-determination, which is central to the ultimate achievement of social justice and autonomy. The ultimate aim is to promote culturally sensitive inclusion of Indigenous learners into formal education. Critical theory helps challenge the status quo of Indigenous education and thereby provides a 'place' for alternative thinking and outcomes for the future.