Indigenous Education
Bonnyrigg High School's Aboriginal Education Officer's (AEO) role has continued as 5 days per week to assist Indigenous students. The AEO's role has also been as a point of contact for students, parents and local community members.
The commitment to Aboriginal Education within the school continued to be of primary importance, with our AEO attending a number of Professional Development workshops including South West Sydney Regional Aboriginal Education Conference, Prioritising Grammar in-service, Strengthening Community Engagement Forum and regular Aboriginal educator's network meetings.
The AECG has a close partnership with the Department of Education, and local Aboriginal communities. The AECG meets twice per term and these meetings allow Aboriginal people to have a voice in self determining their educational future which will impact on the future of Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal Education.
Our Aboriginal Education Officer is a regular participant in the school panels that are created to help decide on a number of staffing positions to be filled within the school.
During 2010, Bonnyrigg High School was very proud to have two of its Aboriginal students recognised for their hard work and effort by receiving awards in the 20th Annual South West Sydney Region Aboriginal Achievement Awards Ceremony.
Other areas of opportunity were presented to Indigenous students through Scholarships. The purpose of these scholarships is to provide financial support, so students can meet ongoing education expenses while the aim is to improve retention rates and increase the numbers of Indigenous youth who complete the HSC.
Some of this years NAIDOC celebrations were combined with Bonnyrigg Primary School. The Indigenous students enjoyed a day of cultural workshops, such as boomerang painting, boomerang throwing and cultural dance lessons. This was an enjoyable day which included local Elders and community members. The students from Bonnyrigg High were leaders for the day ensuring groups moved from each activity on to the next. They also cooked a sausage sizzle for the community. This developed leadership skills and pride in their culture, whilst strengthening the links with the local community.
During NAIDOC Week Bonnyrigg High school students were lucky to have another visit from Dunghatti Elder and AEA, Uncle Mick who came back to visit classrooms for the day, with his interesting tales and dilly bag of Artifacts. Students were amazed at Uncle Mick's stories and all students enjoyed the hands-on cultural lessons. Aboriginal students spoke at the whole school assembly on the meaning of NAIDOC. This was a successful day of promoting Aboriginal culture at a whole school level.
A welcoming circle was built in school grounds to form an ongoing relationship between Bonnyrigg High school and the local community and strengthen partnerships between the high school and local primary schools, local Elders and the AECG.
The significance of such a "Welcome Circle" on future generation will be immense. We used local river stones to form a "smoking circle' where local Elders will hold smoking ceremonies to welcome our new, year 7 students each year, it will also be held for other relevant ceremonies.
The AECG was consulted and Aunty Mae Robinson has given significant input on materials which were used in the design. Uncle Steve Williams performed a ceremony to cleanse the land before we begin the building of the Welcome Circle.
Uncle Steve performing a cleansing ceremony prior to the building of the Welcome Circle.
Bonnyrigg High School is pleased to be involved in a pilot program with Sydney South West Area Health Services. We have been working with Robby Bell, the Aboriginal Health Education Officer. During two periods per week, activities based around Aboriginal Health and Culture are presented to our Aboriginal Students.
Most of the activities are held in our outdoor classroom, near our Welcome Circle, and Robby is accompanied by various speakers who inform our students in the areas of health and culture. They incorporate other important issues such as mental health, drugs and alcohol, family and relationships, and Aboriginal history, kinship and traditions.
The group is at present enjoying sanding and painting their own didgeridoos and boomerangs which they will learn to play and keep at the end of the program.
Robby is well known through his work with the local men's group, and his own artwork. He is a great role model for our Aboriginal students and it is to our benefit that SSWAH has started this pilot program with Bonnyrigg High School.
Both Educational and Cultural programs undertaken in 2010 were designed to achieve a number of goals, including forging links with the local community as well as supporting the aims and targets set by both State and Federal Governments in terms of Aboriginal Education.
Finally, the Aboriginal Education team will continue to facilitate both Educational and Cultural awareness programs in 2011.
The commitment to Aboriginal Education within the school continued to be of primary importance, with our AEO attending a number of Professional Development workshops including South West Sydney Regional Aboriginal Education Conference, Prioritising Grammar in-service, Strengthening Community Engagement Forum and regular Aboriginal educator's network meetings.
The AECG has a close partnership with the Department of Education, and local Aboriginal communities. The AECG meets twice per term and these meetings allow Aboriginal people to have a voice in self determining their educational future which will impact on the future of Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal Education.
Our Aboriginal Education Officer is a regular participant in the school panels that are created to help decide on a number of staffing positions to be filled within the school.
During 2010, Bonnyrigg High School was very proud to have two of its Aboriginal students recognised for their hard work and effort by receiving awards in the 20th Annual South West Sydney Region Aboriginal Achievement Awards Ceremony.
Other areas of opportunity were presented to Indigenous students through Scholarships. The purpose of these scholarships is to provide financial support, so students can meet ongoing education expenses while the aim is to improve retention rates and increase the numbers of Indigenous youth who complete the HSC.
Some of this years NAIDOC celebrations were combined with Bonnyrigg Primary School. The Indigenous students enjoyed a day of cultural workshops, such as boomerang painting, boomerang throwing and cultural dance lessons. This was an enjoyable day which included local Elders and community members. The students from Bonnyrigg High were leaders for the day ensuring groups moved from each activity on to the next. They also cooked a sausage sizzle for the community. This developed leadership skills and pride in their culture, whilst strengthening the links with the local community.
During NAIDOC Week Bonnyrigg High school students were lucky to have another visit from Dunghatti Elder and AEA, Uncle Mick who came back to visit classrooms for the day, with his interesting tales and dilly bag of Artifacts. Students were amazed at Uncle Mick's stories and all students enjoyed the hands-on cultural lessons. Aboriginal students spoke at the whole school assembly on the meaning of NAIDOC. This was a successful day of promoting Aboriginal culture at a whole school level.
A welcoming circle was built in school grounds to form an ongoing relationship between Bonnyrigg High school and the local community and strengthen partnerships between the high school and local primary schools, local Elders and the AECG.
The significance of such a "Welcome Circle" on future generation will be immense. We used local river stones to form a "smoking circle' where local Elders will hold smoking ceremonies to welcome our new, year 7 students each year, it will also be held for other relevant ceremonies.
The AECG was consulted and Aunty Mae Robinson has given significant input on materials which were used in the design. Uncle Steve Williams performed a ceremony to cleanse the land before we begin the building of the Welcome Circle.
Uncle Steve performing a cleansing ceremony prior to the building of the Welcome Circle.
Bonnyrigg High School is pleased to be involved in a pilot program with Sydney South West Area Health Services. We have been working with Robby Bell, the Aboriginal Health Education Officer. During two periods per week, activities based around Aboriginal Health and Culture are presented to our Aboriginal Students.
Most of the activities are held in our outdoor classroom, near our Welcome Circle, and Robby is accompanied by various speakers who inform our students in the areas of health and culture. They incorporate other important issues such as mental health, drugs and alcohol, family and relationships, and Aboriginal history, kinship and traditions.
The group is at present enjoying sanding and painting their own didgeridoos and boomerangs which they will learn to play and keep at the end of the program.
Robby is well known through his work with the local men's group, and his own artwork. He is a great role model for our Aboriginal students and it is to our benefit that SSWAH has started this pilot program with Bonnyrigg High School.
Both Educational and Cultural programs undertaken in 2010 were designed to achieve a number of goals, including forging links with the local community as well as supporting the aims and targets set by both State and Federal Governments in terms of Aboriginal Education.
Finally, the Aboriginal Education team will continue to facilitate both Educational and Cultural awareness programs in 2011.
