Creating a Future to Be Proud of Through Teacher Workforce Development

Abstract

Australia does not have an exemplary track record regarding Indigenous Australians’ human rights and treatment. Moving forward past the colonial mechanisms since 1788 has proven difficult. Decolonizing practices in education include embedding Indigenous ways of learning. It is essential to include decolonizing practices in teacher education to allow preservice teachers, most of whom are non-Indigenous, to learn about the barriers that persist for Indigenous students and how to eliminate them. Although Indigenous people have been resilient in the face of adversity for so long, their resilience may be wearing thin, with circumstances and systems continuing to result in environments of social exclusion and inequity. This chapter examines a strength-based approach to educational practice and teacher education by exploring Indigenous resilience, standpoint theory, and cultural strength as tools to understand educational issues differently and consider how Indigenous voices and Indigenous decision-making might change systems. The movement of decolonization through initial teacher education includes using cultural responsiveness and a transformative learning style to create a better-informed workforce of teachers capable of ensuring a promising future for all Australians.KeywordsDecolonizingIndigenousEducationPedagogiesStrength-basedTeaching practiceTeaching workforce