By Natasha Fujimoto
Community is everything at the Greater Shepparton Secondary College, and this holds specific resonance for the school’s 250 Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander students and educators.
During NAIDOC celebrations last week, the focus was on community building through cultural learning and traditional activities, complementing the ongoing commitment and progress within the school to incorporate an Indigenous voice as an advisory on teaching First Nations culture and history.
How and what Indigenous students are taught at GSSC, now include Indigenous community input, as a result of the recent signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the college and the Local Aboriginal Education Consultative Group.
With the intent of taking advantage of every pivotal opportunity forwarded by the MOU and in the spirit of collaborative and co-operative change, the Ngarri Ngarri (teaching, learning) team of Koorie educators led the way in facilitating an engaging NAIDOC program for the entire school.
NAIDOC program events included: guest speakers from The First Peoples Assembly of Victoria and the Korin Gamadji Institute (and extension of the Richmond football club), weaving, making damper, playing traditional games and incorporating a First Nation’s playlist for bell time music.
For Senior Koorie Education Advisor, Larissa Falla, “The NAIDOC week celebrations at GSSC provided an opportunity for the whole school community to grow their knowledge, understanding and appreciation of the diverse cultures of Australia’s First Nation’s people.”
