Promoting reconciliation

St Margaret’s Vision for Reconciliation

‘Our vision for reconciliation is an Australia that embraces unity between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and other Australians, and a national culture that represents equality and equity, historical acceptance of our shared history and removal of negative race relations. By establishing a better understanding and respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, we will support reconciliation and develop an enriched appreciation of Australia’s cultural heritage and move towards the maturity of our community and Australia as a nation based on mutual respect and trust.’

students support the Indigenous Literacy Foundation during Book Week. Part of St Margaret’s celebration of National Reconciliation Week includes Floral Day – a themed free dress day – which sees students dressing in bright floral colours and our Indigenous students leading the school through traditional dance on Circular Drive.

Each year, our students participate in Prayer Space – Dadirri. ‘Dadirri’, an Aboriginal word meaning ‘inner deep listening and quiet still awareness and waiting’, is the guiding principle of our Prayer Space experiences. Practising the Aboriginal meditative ritual ‘Dadirri’, students have the opportunity to contemplate, think, reflect and pray in a quiet and still way. During National Reconciliation Week in 2021, Pre-Prep to Year 6 students participated in a Reconciliation themed Prayer Space - Dadirri, which gave them the chance to gain greater awareness of and connect deeply with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and history. St Margaret’s is also a partner school of Yalari, and together we are dedicated to creating a brighter future for Indigenous children through education. We currently have 19 Yalari students from regional, rural and remote communities on boarding scholarships, and over the 11 years we have been associated with Yalari, 20 Indigenous students have graduated from St Margaret’s.

Additionally, we have launched an original publication titled Gidhal – a collection of stories and artworks from St Margaret’s First Nations families and communities. The project was spearheaded by English teachers Margot Shave and Noel Peinke in 2019, after they received an Innovation Award at the school to help fund the project. After a year’s work, the magazine was launched late 2020 and was the recipient of an Educator Award for Innovation and Excellence in Education.

Since its release, it has been incorporated into the school curriculum in the primary school and throughout Year 10 Religious and Values Education (RVE). Local Aboriginal Elder Lesley Williams was invited to the school during NAIDOC Week to work with the Pre-Preps, sharing Aboriginal stories. She also ran a workshop with Year 10 History students, involving a yarning circle, focused on her book, Not just Black and White, the story of growing up on the Cherbourg Aboriginal Mission. A second project is now underway – Elder Stories – which follows a similar goal to Gidhal. It aims to represent the diverse Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, communities and culture of our 20 First Nations students by leaning into the stories of the girls’ elders. Elders in all communities, but particularly those of First Nations families, can be the repository of unique stories, experiences and insights into the history and connection to country. As part of the project, the students worked with Aboriginal artist Nikita Jarmin during NAIDOC Week in 2021 to celebrate the role of art in storytelling. In the threehour workshop, the girls learnt about Ms Jarmin’s experiences as an artist and were encouraged to reflect on a time when they were on country with family for their own artwork.

In addition to this incursion, the girls also attended an excursion to the Queensland Museum and State Library to learn ways to research family history and visit the Deadly Threads exhibit within Kuril Dhagun, the Aboriginal Education Centre in the State Library. The visit to the Museum saw the St Margaret’s Torres Strait Islander girls incorporated in a new exhibit, Torres Strait Island – What lies ahead for Zenadth Kes? After working with exhibit curator Rhianna Patrick on Gidhal, these nine students were invited to answer a question, ‘How are you fulfilling the hopes and dreams that your Akas and Athes (Grandfathers and Grandmothers) have for you?’ The girls all wrote their response earlier in the term and these were replicated on a wall of the exhibit with their names.

Year 9 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student Charli Jones said, ’I am very grateful for being a part of the Zenadth Kes art exhibition as it represents my home and will help educate my people as well as nonIndigenous Australians.’

Students are now preparing their submissions for Elder Stories by interviewing family members and seeking permission to reproduce artworks ahead of the magazine’s publication for this year’s Reconciliation Week at the end of May. Our boarding community celebrates cultural identities and the annual ‘See my difference, See my worth’ festival pays homage to the vibrant cultural diversity of the boarding house. Through the sharing of cuisine, music, dance, stories and other cultural traditions, this festival provides an opportunity for our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander boarding students to cultivate a shared pride for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island cultures, contributions, identities and histories within our residential community. In the classroom, St Margaret’s is committed to integrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures into the curriculum. Curriculum documents have been or are being audited to assess the extent to which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and contributions have been embedded and we will strive to identify opportunities that will allow for stronger representation of this content in our curriculum. The RAP committee is chaired by Dean of Academics Caitlin McCluskey and includes local Aboriginal Elder Lesley Williams, Old Girl Jaz DeBusch (‘15), St Margaret’s staff Sue Trevor,

Margot Shave, Lesa Fowler, Rev’d Jazz Dow, Belinda Knowles

and Kylie Briggs, and student representatives. Sofia Nona, a student member of the RAP committee, said: ‘I am truly honoured to be part of the St Margaret’s Reconciliation Action Plan. As a young Indigenous girl, I am so proud to be able to educate people about my culture and learn about others as well.’

McCluskey said: ‘The journey of reconciliation and the school’s Reconciliation Action Plan are far from complete; however, through the school’s Reconciliation Action Plan and the RAP committee, we will continue to take action to increase our community’s knowledge and pride in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures and strengthen relationships with our local Indigenous communities. ‘Our vision and its underpinning commitments are our guiding principles to unite and energise our school community to have reconciliation live in the hearts, minds and actions as we move forward, creating a school community strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.’