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Essay Assignment.

Encouraging and maintaining social justice within a classroom, is one of the most important things a
teacher should practice. As a beginning teacher I am determined to develop my teaching pedagogy to
one that largely includes social justice and harmony within my classroom. It is of utmost importance that
a teacher is able to create and sustain an ethical atmosphere within the classroom and amongst the
students to achieve respect and to promote inclusive attitudes and behaviour. To assist in achieving this,
teaching Reconciliation can be utilised to promote equity. Within this essay the definition of social justice
will be analysed in order to then identify the impact Reconciliation can have on students. Furthermore,
the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership’s standards will be addressed and linked to
the learning outcomes of Indigenous Australian students.

Before social justice can be taught a teacher must have an understanding of what defines the term. Social
justice is considered to be the belief that you should treat each person in accordance to his or her
capacities, as well as ‘allowing all individuals to occupy the position or station to which they are entitled’
(Braham 1981, p. 9) with no discrimination. From an education perspective, social justice is both a ‘goal
and a process’ (Mthethwa-Sommers 2014, p.10). Referring to social justice as a process is exactly how a
teacher should view it as ultimately schools need to ‘serve as sites for social amelioration in which social
justice is practiced and cultivated’ (Mthethwa-Sommers 2014, p.10). Additionally, referring to social
justice as a goal is just as important, the eventual and achievable goal of social justice can be described as
the ‘equal participation of all groups in a society that is mutually shaped to meet their needs… in which
distribution of resources is equitable and all members are physically and psychologically safe and secure’
(Mthethwa-Sommers 2014, p.10). Social justice is of paramount importance within the school community
and especially amongst students. Without social justice students can be the recipients of consequences
such as discrimination, isolation and bullying.

As a beginning teacher it is crucial that I start thinking of ways in which I can achieve and retain social
justice within my own classroom and school community. I believe one of, if not the most effective
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method of achieving social justice is to teach Reconciliation. As the Kaurna people are traditional owners
of the lands and waters where the city of Adelaide has been built (Flinders University 2015), it is
respectful and crucial to recognise Indigenous students and to understand their background of cultural
history. Teaching with a Reconciliation based pedagogy is about ‘…unity and respect between Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islanders and non- Indigenous Australians. It is about respect for Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander heritage and valuing justice and equity for all Australians.’ (Australian Government 2015).
Creating an environment where all students feel equal and entitled to the same education no matter of
their cultural backgrounds is something which I inspire to accomplish, by doing this students are
prevented from becoming isolated and segregated in accordance to their cultural differences.

Teaching with a Reconciliation based pedagogy is both beneficial for students and teachers for a
multitude of reasons, the most important being for social justice and equity within education and the
community. In accordance with the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) under
the subheading of ‘Strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students’ it is emphasised
that teachers must ‘demonstrate broad knowledge and understanding of the impact of culture, cultural
identity and linguistic background on the education of students from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
backgrounds’ (AITSL 2014a). Familiarizing students with Australia’s history and the unfair treatment of
Indigenous Australian’s is a starting point to ‘raising awareness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
issues, culture and disadvantage among the wider community’ (Flinders University 2015, p. 24), and is a
great starting point to comply with AITSL’s teaching standards and to begin thinking about Reconciliation.

Teaching Reconciliation for equity and social justice is not about making students who do not come from
an Indigenous heritage feel guilty or responsible for the mistreatment of Indigenous and Torres Strait
Islander peoples through Australia’s history, but rather to recognise, respect and celebrate differences. It
is a chance for teachers to ‘demonstrate broad knowledge of, understanding of respect for Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and languages’ (AITSL 2014a) to promote Reconciliation between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Reconciliation is about embracing the roots of Australian
culture and championing anti-racism. Teachers need to be mindful of the teaching standards provided by
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AITSL, and also be familiar with the Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) that AITSL also provides to
accomplish this. RAP is a programme that has been specifically developed to assist in ‘improving
opportunities and outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people through excellent
teaching and school leadership’ (AITSL 2014b).

The main purpose of RAP is to ‘focus on raising awareness of, and engaging with, reconciliation by
building an environment based on mutual respect and trust between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples and other Australians’ (AITSL 2014b, p.3). As a beginning teacher RAP is highly useful to help
develop my ethical pedagogy I wish to teach, providing myself with the right attitude to strive to improve
the learning outcomes for Indigenous students. Alongside such programmes as RAP, is the organisation
Reconciliation South Australia. This organisation in particular provides teachers with education packs full
of useful activities and ideas to help educate students on Reconciliation to achieve social justice and
ultimately, to help the outcomes for Indigenous students (Reconciliation South Australia b).

With the help of Reconciliation South Australia, I have come to realise some excellent strategies to
implement whilst teaching. Teaching through inquiry approaches and celebrating our shared history
through activities appropriate to the year level being taught, is fundamentally the beginning point for
both students and teachers to become familiar with Indigenous students cultural backgrounds
(Reconciliation South Australia b). Additionally, activities such as making an Indigenous garden, incursions
with visiting Indigenous elders performing traditional dances or dream time stories, helping students
design their own Indigenous paintings, acknowledging the traditional owners of the land and raising the
Indigenous flag are all encouraging ways to incorporate the Indigenous culture into the school community
(Reconciliation South Australia b). All of these activities come down to creating equity and social justice
between all students. If Indigenous students do not feel comfortable and equal to their classmates, they
are at risk of becoming undetermined to perform at their full capabilities. Celebrating and respecting the
Indigenous culture is a way of creating an inclusive and equitable environment for all students. Taking a
look back on AITSL, such activities assist teachers in understanding and responding to the different
‘linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds’ (AITSL 2014a) of their students and
accommodating their needs. Being mindful of Indigenous students linguistic backgrounds and being
aware that English may be a student’s second language is one way to ensure a classroom is
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accommodating, giving students who need it extra help to ensure they have equal opportunities
eliminating barriers (Reconciliation South Australia b).

Through implementing a Reconciliation based pedagogy in the classroom with high emphasis on social
justice and equity, all students are able to participate in school equally. Achieving an equal level of
confidence amongst students and recognising both the strengths and weaknesses of all students, to then
accommodate them is something which I aspire to do as a teacher. Recognising the influencing factors
that affect my student’s abilities and acknowledging their backgrounds cultures and beliefs, is something
which I believe is crucial to a student’s success. All classrooms should show social justice and have a high
level of respect for an inclusive and positive atmosphere, to ensure the learning outcomes of all students
are at the best they can be. Through striving to abide by AITSL’s Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander
teaching standards I hope to provide an encouraging and promising education to Indigenous students, to
intern improve learning outcomes and create further encouragement to their schooling achievements. As
a pre-service teacher, it is my duty to be aware of the disadvantages Indigenous students may experience
and act upon them appropriately to improve their learning outcomes.

Word count: 1,377

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Essay Assignment reference list:

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership 2014a, Australian Professional Standards for
Teachers, viewed 17 October 2015, < http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-
teachers/standards/list>

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership 2014b, Reconciliation Action Plan 2014-2015,
viewed 24 October 2015, < http://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/national-policies-
resources/aitsl_reconciliation_action_plan.pdf>

Australian Government 2015, Reconciliation, Australian Government, 4 June 2015, viewed 18 October
2015, < http://www.australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/reconciliation>

Flinders University 2015, Acknowledgement to country, Viewed 20 October 2015,

< http://www.flinders.edu.au/oise/acknowledgement-to-country.cfm>.

L. Braham, R 1981, Social Justice, Martinus Nijhoff Publishing, London.

Mthethwa-Sommers, S 2014, Narrative of Social Justice Educators Standing Firm, Springer Cham
Heidelberg, London.

Reconciliation South Australia a, What is Reconciliation?, Reconciliation South Australia, viewed 18

October 2015 < http://www.reconciliationsa.org.au/reconciliation>

Reconciliation South Australia b, Education Packs, Reconciliation South Australia, viewed 18 October 2015
< http://www.reconciliationsa.org.au/reconciliation>

Schulz, S 2015, Week 6: Reconciliation Pedagogies, PowerPoint slides, Flinders University, Adelaide.