‘At last! We bin waitin long-time for em deadly books’ seminar at Huddersfield University

On Monday October 15th, Margaret was delighted to be invited to present a seminar entitled: ‘At last! We bin waitin long-time for em deadly books’ at Huddersfield University. She was introduced by Dr Cath Ellis, Head of Humanities, whose research has concentrated on the representation of Indigeneity in a variety of different texts and media, including literature, film, children’s literature, popular culture, advertising, mega events (eg world fairs and Olympic games) and museology.

The presentation was attended by undergraduate and postgraduate students studying language acquisition, bilingual education, English and Primary and Secondary education. Members of the public, with an interest in learning more about the HARs and the challenges facing Indigenous learners, also attended. The number of languages at the time of colonization and details of those still very much alive, surprised the attendees. The interactive audience was interested in learning more about Australian education, particularly in the Northern territory as well as hearing about the various programs in place which concentrate on lessening the gap between outcomes for Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. With the HARs spread out on the table, there was a strong focus on the background and history of the books and resources; the components of the books (such as the Aboriginal, communally held stories; the focus on phonics; moving learners from the known to the unknown; and the text moving from the lingua franca of the playground into Standard English via the stages of second language acquisition); and on how the Honey Ant Readers are engaging learners in reading.

Its important to share this information in order to promote academic and indeed wider public debate surrounding the issues, complexities and opportunities in Aboriginal education in Australia.