Course overview
This course aims to develop students' understanding of the knowledge, values and skills required to work effectively within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander contexts in a manner which is culturally accountable to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Communities. It will provide you with a foundation on which to consider the contemporary issues facing practitioners working with Aboriginal Peoples. Such issues include racism, lateral violence, intergenerational trauma, and the implications for practising positive effects of cultural traditions on family, values, roles and parenting; power and powerlessness; critical analysis of privilege and Whiteness; Positionality and Personal viewpoint and reflective practice; and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People's perspectives on historical and contemporary research and practice in psychology and counselling.
- Culture and First Nations people
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures - Pre-colonisation
- The foundations our current systems were built on, and the story of Psychology in Australia
- Historical patterns that continue to influence health and opportunity: The Stolen Generations
- Social Determinants of Health & Wellbeing in First Nations Communities
- Contemporary contexts: Racism and power in western belief systems
- Contemporary contexts: Aboriginal Perspectives on Social and Emotional Wellbeing
- Contextualising Knowledge: Culturally responsive approaches to contemporary concerns
- Reconciliation, Truth Telling and Healing
- Bringing it all together – where to from here?
Course learning outcomes
- Summarise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Communities perspectives and knowledges as they apply to history, culture, and the context of professional practice in psychology in Australia
- Review the complexity of cross-cultural understandings of the past and current wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Communities including global Indigenous healing practices
- Explain the ethical dimensions of research, reflective practice and the issues of accountability for professionals working in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander contexts
- Reflect on the impacts of colonisation, racism, whiteness and the role of privilege, positionality and personal viewpoint and power in the profession and as a practitioner, and the impact of these upon Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Communities
- Understand the impact of intergenerational trauma on individuals and communities and how Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander strengths are working towards improving community health and wellbeing