• Philemon Chigeza
• Curriculum Leadership

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14 February 2011The author takes two Year 9 science classes, composed entirely of Torres Strait Islander students, at a school in Far North Queensland. In 2007 and 2008 he introduced elements of Indigenous language and culture into the classes, and conducted a study measuring their impact on students' science learning. These resources include storytelling, ceremony, songs and ritual, as well as the diversity of their languages and dialects through which the students communicate and share knowledge. The article describes some ways in which these students' multiple strengths were brought to bear during four learning activities based around the concepts of energy and force.

Within the Australian education community there is widespread agreement that Indigenous perspectives should be incorporated in the curriculum. For example, in April 2008 the Queensland Studies Authority issued a statement acknowledging the importance of understanding, maintaining and promoting the diverse Indigenous languages, and calling for schools and communities to recognise and value local Indigenous knowledge systems (QSA 2008).

The author takes two Year 9 science classes, composed entirely of Torres Strait Islander students, at a school in Far North Queensland. In 2007 and 2008 he introduced elements of Indigenous language and culture into the classes, and conducted a study measuring their impact on students' science learning. The study was reported in a paper presented at the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in Education Conference last November. The present articles summarises sections of that paper.