Indigenous Training And Development Project: Using technology innovatively for low literacy learners
Indigenous Training And Development Project: Using technology innovatively for low literacy learners Conference Paper
17th NCVER No Frills Conference
- Author(s): Tayler, C, Guenther, J
- Published: 2008
Abstract: There is a lot of evidence in the literature to show that Indigenous learners are not fully recognized for their skills and knowledge. Mainstream approaches to teaching vocational courses rely on English language text based resources. For many Indigenous learners these ways of learning are not appropriate. This paper is based on the author's experiences and reflections of several years of children services training. That experience has led to a realisation that for Indigenous learners more culturally appropriate approaches were necessary for successful learning outcomes. After searching for a better tool for teaching and assessment, the author found 'etools' were being used in Indigenous contexts and had been successful, and began to explore their potential to support Indigenous learners. An opportunity arose to develop a set of her own customised teaching and learning 'etools' using multimedia, with funding from a Communities for Children project based in Palmerston and Tiwi Islands in the Northern Territory. This project is about supporting Indigenous students, or potential Indigenous students, interested in working in childcare centres in those locations to undertake a Certificate III in Children Services. Together with an application developer, an electronic resource was developed to help teach Indigenous students in culturally appropriate ways. The tools are being used for both the delivery and assessment of the Certificate III in Children Services. The paper will report on my learnings about this project: what works and why. It is based on a critical evaluation conducted with the support of the Communities for Children local evaluation team at Charles Darwin University. The presentation will also demonstrate the use of the 'etools'.
- Urls: http://www.voced.edu.au/content/ngv36947, https://vital.voced.edu.au/vital/access/services/Download/ngv:36947/SOURCE2
- Publisher Location: University of Tasmania, Newnham Campus, Launceston
- Keywords: No Frills Conference, Case study, Cultural factor, Educational technology, Indigenous education