Indigenous Education Coordinator Scott Gale

Indigenous Education Coordinator

Scott Gale

Our First Nation’s histories, cultures and perspectives hold such a significant

influence over the identity of Australia today. It, therefore, makes sense that these should make up a significant part of our education of young Australians.

As Indigenous Education Coordinator here at Toowoomba Grammar School, I am proud to be supporting our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students while promoting respect for one of the richest and oldest living cultures in the world. My responsibilities here at TGS are twofold: the first is to support our Indigenous students from an academic, cultural and pastoral standpoint to ensure they are given the absolute best chance to fulfil their potential and create generational growth; the second is to build the cultural awareness of staff, students and the wider TGS community. Both responsibilities work together to create a learning environment that acknowledges and respects the past but also promotes us moving together as a nation.

I am a proud Aboriginal man myself; my people are the Wiradjuri mob from around central NSW. I grew up jumping from town to town down in country NSW, before moving up to Brisbane and into an Indigenous Education Program similar to the one we are building here at TGS.

It was during my time within this program that I learned the most about my history and culture and grew a passion for learning more. Over the years, this passion has transitioned into helping spread awareness and assisting others in a similar position to where I was ten years ago.

Over the coming months, the School will make a formal commitment to reconciliation by creating a Reconciliation Action Plan. This Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) will act as a framework for this commitment, outlining key actions and deliverables based on relationships, respect and opportunities in the classroom, around the School, and with the community. This process will start with an invitation to all staff here at TGS to be part of the working group for the RAP.

Earlier this term, a group of Indigenous students from TGS visited the Gummingurru cultural site in Toowoomba to participate in a smoking ceremony, take a tour and investigate Indigenous plant uses for foods, medicines and weapons before having a go at string-making and basket-weaving. There will be more opportunities for our students to participate in similar activities that explore Indigenous history and culture over the coming months.

A significant week on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander calendar is National Reconciliation Week, from 26 May to 3 June. The theme for the week was “Be Brave, Make Change”. During the week, PCG lessons at TGS were dedicated to participation in reconciliation activities, which was really well received by all the boys.

If anyone in the TGS community would like to learn more about Reconciliation Week or our plans for Indigenous education and awareness at TGS, please don’t hesitate to come and say hello.

It is my hope that as a school, we can work together to give all students, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, the opportunity to lead, influence and succeed within their chosen pathways and create generational growth for all Australians.