Engaging non‐indigenous students in indigenous history and “un‐history”: An approach for non‐indigenous teachers and a politics for the twenty‐first century

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the paper is to analyse non‐indigenous student resistance to indigenous history and to improve non‐indigenous students’ engagement with indigenous history.

Design/methodology

The paper, based on praxis, is a theoretical discussion of the reasons for non‐indigenous student resistance to indigenous history.

Findings

The paper argues that non‐indigenous imaginings of national self creates indigenous history into a “un‐history” (a history that could not be). The paper suggests non‐indigenous teachers of indigenous history may undertake a broader perspective to prepare students for indigenous history, including fostering a critical appreciation of histiography, Australian colonial art, literature and popular culture, to enable a critical understanding of the national imagining of Australians (as non‐indigenous) in order to enable engagement with indigenous history.

Research limitations/implications

The paper's focus and findings do not presume relevance to indigenous educators of indigenous history, as previous research has shown non‐indigenous students’ reactions to an indigenous educator may differ from an to a non‐indigenous educator.

Originality/value

The paper moves beyond discussions about content of indigenous history to issues of resistance and engagement found amongst non‐indigenous students with regard to indigenous history. The paper suggests a twenty‐first century political approach where there is non‐indigenous ownership of the shared history in (indigenous) Australia history, enabling indigenous history to move from the periphery to the centre of Australian colonial history.

Citation

O'Dowd, M. (2012), "Engaging non‐indigenous students in indigenous history and “un‐history”: An approach for non‐indigenous teachers and a politics for the twenty‐first century", History of Education Review, Vol. 41 No. 2, pp. 104-118. https://doi.org/10.1108/08198691211269539