A view beyond review: Challenging assumptions in Indigenous education development

Education for remote Indigenous students in Australias Northern Territory (NT) has long been characterized by policy failure. In recent years, the solution to this vexing policy problem has involved a deliberate, incremental shift towards mainstream educational approaches. This includes an increased focus on testing regimes and structured English literacy and numeracy programs, and has led to increased bureaucratic oversight, broad-based benchmarking of student achievement, and a problematic emphasis on statistical disparities between Indigenous and nonIndigenous student populations. In this paper we analyse the NT Governments latest review into Indigenous education - the A share in the future report - to challenge the normative social and cultural assumptions that permeate Indigenous educational discourses and pedagogic approaches. We argue that current notions about the way forward can lead to the development of poor policy and actually serve to thwart Indigenous educational aspirations.