Aboriginal Nation: A strong Kimberley tertiary education narrative

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Kurz

The paper examines whether Australian universities understand how historical discourses continue to shape higher education. Triggered by an empirical study in Western Australia’s Kimberley (2018–2019), it applies critical text analysis to past and recent policies. The research highlights how “problem” vocabulary endures, reinforcing deficit discourse and “gap language,” especially in remote Aboriginal tertiary education. It argues that strengths-based “Aboriginal nation” narratives support culturally secure engagement and socio-political transformation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Policy history and enduring deficit discourse

Recommendations and strengths-based alternatives

Aboriginal Nation: A strong Kimberley tertiary education narrative Sandra Wooltorton1, John Guenther2, Judith Wilks1 and Anna Dwyer1 1 Nulungu Research Institute, The University of Notre Dame Australia, PO Box 2287, Broome, Western Australia, 6725, Australia, email: [sandra.wooltorton@nd.edu.au](sandra.wooltorton@nd.edu.au) 2 Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, Darwin, Northern Territory, 0810, Australia Our past shapes our present. However, do Australian universities understand the ways historical discourses continue to shape them? Provoked by the findings of our empirical study implemented in Western Australia’s Kimberley region in 2018-2019, we conducted a critical text analysis of recent and past policies to seek historical explanation. As a research team, we noted a demand on behalf of Aboriginal activists to shift from the discourse of “ problem” to “nationhood” during the first launch of the Aboriginal flag at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in 1972. However, in our study we observed the“ problem” vocabulary lives on, impacting remote Aboriginal tertiary education through its deficit discourse and “gap language”. In this paper, we show how the future for remote Aboriginal tertiary education sits within our everyday narratives and explanations. The imperative is to recognise Aboriginal knowledges, strengths, contribution and experience; the alternative is to remain trapped by the deficit discourses of a colonial era. A strengths-based discourse acknowledges that Aboriginal people living in remote communities have the capacity, knowledge and know-how to engage with tertiary education in culturally secure ways. Remote Aboriginal tertiary education could show the way to genuine socio-political transformation in Australia; and the Kimberley could lead this process. Keywords: tertiary education, red dirt thinking, Aboriginal education, remote, Aboriginal nation Introduction The statistical gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians in health, education, employment and economic outcomes is widely publicised (for instance, Commonwealth of Australia, 2020) . While across Australia statistics in Aboriginal 1 tertiary outcomes are improving (Universities Australia, 2019), the story for remote Aboriginal communities is different. The research findings discussed in this paper lead to a number of recommendations that echo those of related studies going back 30 years (see, for instance, Aboriginal Education Policy Task Force, 1988) . This prompted and motivated us to seek a deeper explanation for this enduring lack of change, despite the findings and recommendations of many studies over nearly four decades. Education is a determinant of social and emotional wellbeing, and of health (Dudgeon et al., 2016) . It facilitates employment and active citizenship in community and beyond, and has the capacity to transform people’s lives (Guenther, Bat, et al., 2017) . Yet, over time, education has colluded with forces producing marginalisation of Aboriginal people and resulting low socioeconomic outcomes (Haebich, 1 Use of the words “Aboriginal” and “Indigenous” is interchangeable in this paper in response to Kimberley application (the former) or reference cited. In this paper, we also cite “native problem” in relation to references from Australian history. 2000), as is evidenced by the discourse of “the gap”(Commonwealth of Australia, 2020). It is likely the impact is more evident in remote areas. The 1988 Report of the Aboriginal Education Policy Task Force, known as the Hughes report, marked a turning point in policy, giving new impetus towards calls for self-determination and equity in Indigenous higher education (Street et al., 2018) . It recommended each higher education institution“acknowledge the validity of Aboriginal culture and present Aboriginal communities and cultures in a positive manner in all teaching and research activities”(Aboriginal Education Policy Task Force, 1988, p. 40) . T

FAQs

What question does the paper investigate about Australian universities?

It asks whether Australian universities understand how historical discourses continue to shape them, particularly through educational policy and language.

What did the Kimberley study (2018–2019) prompt the authors to do?

The authors used critical text analysis of recent and past policies to seek a historical explanation for ongoing lack of change.

How does the paper describe the impact of “problem” and “gap language” on remote Aboriginal tertiary education?

It argues that the vocabulary persists and affects remote tertiary education through deficit discourse, reinforcing “gap language” rather than strengths-based approaches.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Kurz