INDIGENOUS EDUCATION: EFFECTIVE PRACTICE – MUTUAL LEARNING
Cairns, Australia
14 May -17 May 2007
Officials from Canada, Chile, Mexico, New Zealand, the United States of America, Australia and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) met in Cairns, Australia on 14 -15 May 2007 to share approaches that are improving the educational outcomes of Indigenous peoples. The Seminar provided government policy advisors and programme designers with further insights into how successful practices could be translated into other countries or contexts to support strong futures for Indigenous peoples across the world.
The Seminar demonstrated the growing recognition of the value of sharing and expanding our knowledge of what effective practice is occurring in these countries and finding ways to enhance our mutual learning. There was a significant Indigenous presence at the seminar and this was considered a critical success factor in both the proceedings and in any future actions.
The seminar examined a range of topics including:
- Early childhood education;
- Using data to drive performance;
- Higher education;
- Building student, parent and community demand for quality education and productive school community partnerships; and
- Language and culture.
It also considered effective practice in: family and community information strategies; improving student engagement and outcomes through sport; building student success with Aboriginal parents; grade level achievement; working with teachers and effective teacher training programs; and overcoming poverty to attain postsecondary degrees.
The seminar was followed by two days of visits to educational organizations and Indigenous communities in the Cairns region that showcased Indigenous education in an Australian context. The visits were arranged by the Queensland Department of Education, Training and the Arts.
Seminar outcome documents will progressively be added to the web page, the first being the draft communiqué PDF 
(38.0 KB) RTF 
(68.6 KB) developed at the seminar and presently being circulated for comment by Steering Group members and participants.