Our Universities: Backing Australia's Future - Achieving Equitable and Appropriate Outcomes: Indigenous Australians in Higher Education

73 In spite of the significant improvements in Indigenous people accessing higher and vocational education, there is absolutely no place for complacency. Access need to be further improved and academic outcomes significantly raised. This section takes a closer look at Indigenous higher education strategies including the delivery of key support programmes. It raises for discussion a possible refocus of current strategies to strengthen outcomes and identifies areas where strategic activities could be improved.

a. seeking the advice of indigenous educators

74 Engaging the Indigenous community in the development of university Indigenous education policy and programmes is vital.

75 There are many success stories in Indigenous higher education and many examples of good practice. Indigenous educators have a practical knowledge of how Indigenous performance can be improved. However, it is not easy to convey that knowledge in a way that allows it to be translated into practical solutions. Within the complex environment of higher education, Indigenous voices are often not heard and, without formal communication mechanisms, they may be ignored. Policies designed to assist Indigenous students will have greater chance of success where they are informed by the valuable experience of Indigenous educators. They can play a crucial role not only in providing improved programme administration and on-campus support, but in acting as role models and mentors for Indigenous students.

76 How can governments and higher education institutions ensure that Indigenous educators and researchers contribute to the development of practical strategies to improve Indigenous higher education outcomes?

b. overcoming cultural isolation and prejudice

77 Indigenous units are the primary deliverers of Indigenous support in higher education and are often central to institutional Indigenous education strategies. How ‘comfortable’ Indigenous students feel amongst their non-Indigenous peers may depend on the extent to which Indigenous education strategies and Indigenous support/education units are embedded in mainstream university life.

78 A number of institutions strategically locate their Indigenous units centrally, actively work to incorporate Indigenous knowledge and practice into mainstream education, allocate operating grants to the teaching activities of Indigenous units and encourage all staff to take cross-cultural training opportunities.

79 The concept of ‘support’ can be interpreted very broadly. In terms of overcoming cultural isolation and prejudice, support includes the promotion of higher education to Indigenous school students, progression of Indigenous issues and knowledge across the broader institution and involvement in both mainstream and Indigenous-specific teaching. Funding for teaching activities by staff in Indigenous units is addressed in a submission to the Review by the Western Australia Indigenous Higher Education Units (University of Western Australia and Curtin University of Technology), which states:

80 The Koori Centre at The University of Sydney, sees the importance of the broader university population gaining an understanding of Indigenous issues:

82 In looking at ways forward, how best can universities support the activities of Indigenous units? Is there a need to strengthen the counselling and mentoring/support capacities of these units by increasing the number of Indigenous staff with counselling skills?

c. maximising the financial position of indigenous students

83 Given the extent of disadvantage faced by Indigenous people contemplating university and the relatively high number of Indigenous students who never achieve graduation, institutions and government agencies have a responsibility to ensure all students have a very clear understanding of their responsibilities when accepting financial support available to them.

84 Consideration might be given to strategies that target the capacity of students to remain both debt-free and on-track with their studies, so that their investment in HECS or financial loans is maximised. Institutions, for example, might revisit their processes for counselling students to ensure that they withdraw from their studies before the census date if there are strong indications that they are not fully committed to their studies. Consideration might also be given to highlighting practical information for students on what they should do if they are beginning to be overwhelmed by their study load or if they are contemplating withdrawing from their studies. A good example of this is the website article, Thinking of Dropping Out? produced by James Cook University (see http://www.jcu.edu.au/studying/services/equity/droppingout).

85 Only a few higher education institutions have a direct Centrelink presence, but this should increase under the new Centrelink-on-Campus initiative. It is expected that this initiative will be of enormous value in helping students fully to understand the implications of the student financial supplement loan scheme and to avoid other allowance overpayment. DEST has approached the AVCC requesting its assistance in promoting the Centrelink-on-Campus initiative across the sector.

86 How should governments and higher education institutions promote a full understanding of educational financial assistance and its related responsibilities to students?

d. effective support funding

87 Support is a crucial factor in achieving academic success by Indigenous higher education students. Bourke et al (1996) identify the major recommendation of students involved in their study as the need for expanded and improved support services for on and off campus students.

88 As mentioned earlier, the key Commonwealth intervention to assist higher education institutions to support their Indigenous students is Indigenous Support Funding (ISF). The sector has argued that the level of funding for the ISF is not related to total number of students. Thus, although one of the key objectives of the programme is to encourage an increase in the number of Indigenous students who access higher education, the outcomes of the ISF formula may result in less support per student being provided when national numbers of students are increasing. Conversely, an increase in per student funding can result when overall student numbers are declining.

89 The issue of increased salary and operating expenses incurred by Indigenous units has also been raised. The Western Australian Indigenous Education Units (University of Western Australia and Curtin University of Technology) submits that:

90 The National Indigenous Higher Education Network Committee points out that the profile of many Indigenous units now incorporates course delivery and research focus along with providing student support (Submission 182).

91 An important issue raised during the 1998 review of the mechanism for allocating ISF was the lack of transparency of the use of ISF allocations by institutions. This concern was addressed to a limited extent by a new requirement for a general funding report on ISF allocations as part of institutional Indigenous education strategies. However, such reports are not sufficiently detailed to fully address the lack of transparency.

92 The formula through which ISF is shared amongst universities was changed in 1998 in consultation with the sector to give a greater focus on performance. To date it is not clear that this change has resulted in improved performance. This does not mean that universities and their Indigenous units are not providing useful support—it may indicate that they are too stretched to ensure that the support is fully effective, that there is a long lead-time for improved performance and/or that ISF is not being appropriately and effectively allocated within institutions.

93 How best can governments and higher education institutions work together to improve the effectiveness of government funded programmes?

e. overcoming early educational disadvantage

94 Enabling courses are a key feature of many institutions’ Indigenous education strategies. The HECS-free pathway takes away the fear of educational debt and ABSTUDY allowances are available to assist eligible students. A number of institutions report excellent outcomes with students gaining sufficient skills and self-confidence to continue to award courses or to move into employment.

95 However, analysis of enabling courses commissioned by DETYA in 1999, showed a disturbing lack of positive academic outcomes for enabling courses overall. The average progress rate for Indigenous students in bridging (enabling) courses in 1998 was 28 per cent compared with a progress rate for all Indigenous students of 64 per cent. Furthermore, only 17 per cent of Indigenous students who commenced bridging courses in 1996 transferred to award courses between 1997 and 1999 (this excludes students who transferred to an award course at another institution.) Nevertheless, data also showed that enabling students as a whole performed well if they transferred to award level study.

96 Given the severe educational disadvantage of enabling course students, it is argued that, for successful outcomes, enabling courses would need to incorporate high levels of support including close monitoring of results and student mentoring. Currently, planned enabling student load is included within each institution’s profile and does not receive a different level of funding from the award load. At present the Commonwealth does not monitor the level of operating resources each institution directs to its enabling courses. It has been suggested that the Commonwealth needs to ensure that they are appropriately supported.

97 A number of institutions report that the success of their enabling courses can partly be attributed to having in place a system of prior assessment of prospective students to ensure that only those considered as having a reasonable chance of success are admitted. To combat possible negative outcomes for unsuccessful students, some institutions have actively negotiated for local schools and TAFE colleges to conduct a course that forms a pathway to higher education, that is, a ‘pre-enabling’ course. Articulation between these pre-enabling and higher education enabling courses is then further supported across the sectors.

98 Another strategy that some institutions have found successful is to award a certificate of attainment to successful students that guarantees entry to award level courses. This certificate may be acknowledged by State and Territory tertiary admission agencies as a basis of admission to other courses at all universities.

99 It is possible that improved enabling course performance could be achieved through a funding formula that rewards course performance. Preferably, identified results would take into account the background, confidence and aspirations of enabling students, which could indicate student potential for success. Consideration might also be given to removing enabling allocations from operating grants and paying universities for their enabling students under contract.

100 In what ways can higher education institutions provide opportunities for educationally disadvantaged Indigenous people to undertake study successfully? How, and in what ways, should the range of pre-tertiary activities be increased to encourage school students to see the value of higher education and strengthen the pathways between the schools, vocational education and training and higher education?

f. encouraging retention at award level

101 It is likely that the recorded academic failure of too many students, which contributes to the low overall Indigenous progress rate, results from withdrawal from studies. It is useful to consider the possibilities inherent in a number of activities currently used within the sector to encourage students to remain in their studies.

102 Scholarships continue to be seen as a positive incentive, although the effectiveness of such awards would directly relate to their provision to students showing good previous performance and clear aspirations. Those aspirations may relate to career opportunities or to a desire to contribute to the improved well-being of family and home community. Government bodies, industrial and professional organisations and higher education institutions could consider funding scholarships for Indigenous students with these qualities.

103 Mentoring is practised in many forms across the higher education sector. With a focus on achieving academic success, a productive scheme could be one in which committed higher education staff, with a sound academic record in research and teaching, are prepared to mentor an Indigenous student over the period of their award studies.

104 A further encouragement for students with high potential may be to increase opportunities for international exchange. Many universities have arrangements with overseas institutions, which enable students to undertake 12 months of their degree abroad. Indigenous students often lack the confidence to apply for such exchange positions and may consider the living costs a barrier. Institutions with such schemes could consider actively promoting them to worthy Indigenous students together with the provision of an appropriate living allowance.

g. increasing indigenous professionals

105 Discussion of improving higher education outcomes should not be seen in isolation from the broader goals for the well-being of Indigenous communities. Indigenous professionals in health, education, architecture, building, law and business not only contribute to the improved well-being of the community through their professional knowledge and skill but also contribute to the corporate wealth of the community. Students must be encouraged, therefore, to enter and succeed in studies in mainstream professional courses.

106 Indigenous students are graduating into the professions but more encouragement is needed (table 7). The greatest proportion of Indigenous award course completions in 2000, were in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences followed by Education and Health. The comparatively low proportions of Indigenous completions in Business, Architecture, Building and Engineering suggest that there may be some deficit in the promotion of opportunities for success in these fields or some other barriers may be preventing Indigenous students from successfully participating in them.

table 7. proportions of award course completions by broad field of study, 2000

field of study	indigenous %	domestic %
agriculture, animal husbandry	1.3	1.6
architecture, building	1.1	2.1
arts, humanities, social sciences	34.0	23.3
business, administration, economics	11.9	23.6
education	21.8	14.4
engineering, surveying	0.9	4.9
health	20.4	13.3
law, legal studies	5.5	5.3
science	5.7	14.8
veterinary science	0.0	0.3

107 A number of professional bodies are working with individual institutions, Indigenous communities and the Commonwealth to encourage Indigenous people into their professions, through the provision of scholarships, cadetships and work experience. For example, the Australian Medical Association provides annual scholarships through its Indigenous Peoples’ Medical Scholarship Trust Fund; the Law Council of Australia co-administers with the Commonwealth the John Koowarta Scholarship to assist Indigenous law students with their studies; the Australian National University manages the Commonwealth and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals funded Neville Bonner Memorial Scholarship which supports an Indigenous Australian undertaking honours in political science or related field annually; and BHP Billiton together with the Commonwealth Government and Melbourne Business School have established a scholarship to support an Indigenous person studying for a Master of Business Administration. A number of government, industry and charitable organisations support ‘Engineering Aid’ which sponsors an engineering summer school with the support of the University of New South Wales for Indigenous Year 10-12 students and offers scholarships to assist them complete their schooling and higher education engineering studies. The University of New South Wales has secured work experience opportunities through cadetship programmes with a number of law firms and has established a mentor programme in partnership with the NSW Young Lawyers Association. The National Indigenous Cadetship Programme administered by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations currently supports 222 Indigenous undergraduate students in cadetships with 148 employers. Some 40 per cent of these employers are in private enterprise and the remainder are government agencies.

108 Consideration could be given to forming further partnerships between the Commonwealth, higher education institutions and professional organisations to offer HECS exempt places, cadetships, and/or scholarships in professional fields for Indigenous students who have shown commitment and good performance.

109 Consideration could also be given to promotional campaigns that use Indigenous ‘champions’ from identified professions who work within Indigenous communities. Such campaigns could highlight the importance of Indigenous professionals to the overall well-being of the Indigenous community as well as the capacity of Indigenous people to achieve in related fields of study.

110 How can institutions achieve an increase in successful participation by Indigenous people in mainstream education courses leading to professional qualifications?

h. new courses and pathways

111 For many Indigenous people, higher education is challenging, whether they are studying on campus or externally. In part, this may relate to the unfamiliarity many feel with an education system that often shows little acknowledgement of Indigenous issues and knowledge and a course structure and pedagogy that may ignore Indigenous ways of learning.

112 There are moves at some institutions to provide discrete modules of study at undergraduate level that suit the study pattern and educational aspirations of many Indigenous students. For example, at Edith Cowan University, the Indigenous unit’s first degree course has multiple certificated exit points at the completion of each year of study—University Diploma, Associate Degree and Degree.

113 Interest is also shown in courses delivered in ways that enable Indigenous people to remain in their communities while they study. Multi-mode enrolment (otherwise known as mixed or block mode enrolment, which combines external study with residential blocks of tuition on campus), for example, is seen as particularly useful for people already working in fields such as teaching or health, who wish to receive or upgrade qualifications. It is also ideal for people with family and community responsibilities who live at a distance from a higher education institution campus. The Koori Centre at The University of Sydney:

114 At some institutions, course content is being designed to more specifically meet the needs of Indigenous communities and ‘Indigenous-specific’ courses are being sought by Indigenous students as a more meaningful pathway into higher education.

115 Unfortunately, the cost of designing special courses or delivering courses by alternative modes can be prohibitive. An institution may be hesitant to support such courses, given the time and work necessary for the design to meet the needs of the community and gain its support and to build up sufficient student load to cover teaching costs. Additional support costs may be needed where such courses are run externally and there remains the possibility of low progress and completion rates. Furthermore, it is possible that such courses might never have a student load sufficiently robust to draw enough funds to fully support the high costs of delivery in very remote areas.

116 In the past, a number of institutions have successfully sought funds to design and pilot new Indigenous courses, particularly at the bridging level. The only available source of funds for such courses to date, has been the Higher Education Innovation Programme (HEIP) which aims to seed-fund innovative initiatives across the sector. However, the availability of HEIP is highly competitive and competing priorities often preclude funding of what may otherwise have proved worthwhile initiatives. It may be possible for the Government to identify a funding source and earmark identified funds for seeding the design and initial delivery of courses to be directed specifically at Indigenous students or Indigenous communities.

117 In 2001 the national retention rate for Indigenous students studying through multi-mode enrolment, at 69 per cent, was higher than the retention rates of Indigenous students studying externally (51 per cent) or internally (64 per cent). Given these data, consideration might be given to further analysis of this method of delivery and its possible effectiveness in improving student outcomes, together with the major Commonwealth programmes that support it, such as IESIP Away-from-base (AFB) and the Aboriginal Tutorial Assistance Scheme. Several Indigenous educators have suggested that the original base funding of AFB is somewhat inflexible and consideration needs to be given to periodically updating it to account for changing travel expenses.

118 There is a call for improved pathways to higher education from VET, which remains more attractive to Indigenous people than higher education, although many VET students may not be in a recognised field of study. Clair Andersen, Interim Chairperson of the Australian Indigenous Training Council, highlights this call:

119 Education contributes significantly to the well-being of Indigenous communities, particularly when Indigenous community members can undertake courses that improve their qualifications in crucial areas such as health and education. The many barriers to providing education at all levels in the more isolated communities are well known. Indigenous educators suggest that opportunities for young people in communities to receive wages under the Community Development Employment Project (CDEP), encourages them to leave school early, work under CDEP and not proceed to tertiary studies. Within this framework, it could be argued that the provision of higher education to remote communities should be integrated with the overall needs of the community. For example, delivery of professional courses at the tertiary level (that is, both higher education and vocational education and training) that meet the specific needs of the community could be integrated with delivery at school level.

120 Would improving national recognition of accredited VET courses as prior qualifications for entry into higher education increase the participation of Indigenous Australians in higher education? How best can governments and higher education institutions support the ‘non-traditional’ design and delivery of courses so that Indigenous individuals’ and communities’ particular needs are more appropriately met?

i. opening more opportunities for indigenous researchers

121 The number of Indigenous students undertaking research degrees between 1991 and 2001 has increased markedly (table 8). In 2001, Indigenous students studying for their master’s by research comprised 1.2 per cent of domestic students at that level but those taking their doctorate by research comprised only 0.45 per cent of domestic students at that level. Since 1995, 42 Indigenous students have completed a doctorate by research and 34 a master’s by research.

table 8. indigenous students in higher research degrees, 1990 to 2001

level of course	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001
students in doctorate by research	9	5	23	33	47	64	68	72	92	101	96	113
students in master’s by research	11	15	42	43	47	48	55	76	80	81	81	102
total	20	20	65	76	94	112	123	148	172	182	177	215

122 The government-funded Indigenous Higher Education Centres and the Indigenous On-Line Network initiatives were designed to seed improvements at this level of study. It has been argued that it may be worth considering the possibility of building on the infrastructure that has been put in place through this programme. Six Centres were established and the directors of these Centres gained a wealth of understanding of the challenges faced by Indigenous researchers and possible ways to address these.

123 The original objectives of the Centres programme were very broad, leading to each Centre having a somewhat different focus. Each, however, has had the opportunity to develop and deliver research courses incorporating Indigenous perspectives within undergraduate degrees and higher degrees and to encourage students to progress from undergraduate degrees to further study. Links established between the Centres and their Indigenous communities will also have encouraged a greater community understanding of the benefits of research and the importance of ‘Indigenous ownership’ of community knowledge. It is likely that this good work has been largely restricted to the confines of the host institution, with little opportunity to influence and assist other higher education institutions which would also like to have a research focus in their Indigenous unit. One factor that may impede an increase in number of Indigenous researchers is a dearth of Indigenous supervisors and of non-Indigenous supervisors with an understanding of Indigenous ways of knowing and doing. It has been suggested that one solution to this issue may lie in the credentialing of Indigenous co supervisors. These people would not themselves have the required academic qualifications, but they would have appropriate Indigenous knowledge so that they could work with mainstream non-Indigenous supervisors to assist the supervisory processes.

124 For many Indigenous postgraduate research students, a sense of isolation is a barrier to successful and fully optimised research outcomes. This is not just because the students are located in remote regions where communities may have a limited understanding of what such work and study entails, but also because there are so few of them. This makes it hard for many to keep in regular contact with peers, to share their feelings of frustration as they reach an impasse in their understanding of complex theory and to discuss problems such as how to successfully apply for research grants or publish papers. The annual Indigenous Researchers Forum goes some way to meeting these needs. While the Forum is a low budget event, lack of finance can still be a barrier to attendance. Another organisation with potential to support new Indigenous researchers is the National Indigenous Postgraduate Association Aboriginal Corporation. It is also possible that the Indigenous On-Line Network has further capacity, given improved technology in isolated areas, to open communication pathways for students, researchers and their communities.

125 The majority of Indigenous postgraduate students are mature age, with community and family responsibilities calling on their time and emotional and financial resources. Financial support may be available to them through the Australian Postgraduate Award Scheme or the Research Training Scheme. Australian Postgraduate Awards provide a stipend over an identified number of years for students studying for a master’s or doctorate by research. The Research Training Scheme provides an entitlement for students studying at these levels to a HECS-exempt place for an identified period of time. Funds are provided to universities based on a formula, which reflects the institution’s research performance. In 2001, the Indigenous load supported through Australian Postgraduate Awards was 99 EFTSU and through the Research Training Scheme was 35 EFTSU. Higher education institutions may wish to revisit their selection processes for Australian Postgraduate Awards and the Research Training Scheme to determine whether Indigenous students are competitive. The National Indigenous Postgraduate Association Aboriginal Corporation, has called for the establishment of a category of Australian Postgraduate Awards for Indigenous Australians. It has also raised some concerns in relation to the Research Training Scheme:

126 Another useful method of providing financial support to Indigenous research students is the award of cadetships for postgraduate students within government, professional bodies and within the higher education sector. It may be possible for governments, industry and higher education institutions to find further opportunities to support Indigenous research students through such paid activities as tutoring and guest lecturing. Support for Indigenous staff may be provided to improve their qualifications through such benefits as increased study leave. In 2001, there were 96 Indigenous academic staff in the sector with bachelor degrees as their highest qualification. With appropriate support, many of these people might be encouraged to improve their qualifications through a higher research degree.

127 Herbert et al (1996) question the narrow perspective of western epistemology, which is seen by some Indigenous people as a barrier to the success of Indigenous researchers. The Western Australia Indigenous Higher Education Units (University of Western Australia and Curtin University of Technology) supports this line of discussion:

128 The Australian Research Council (ARC) is aware that the question of appropriate research paradigms and methodologies is hotly debated amongst many Indigenous researchers. Assessments of applications for ARC grants are based on expert peer assessment, with assessors selected on a case-by-case basis with expertise in both the fields of research and Indigenous research, as appropriate.

129 How can governments and higher education institutions assist the work of Indigenous research organisations so that they can be strong networks of support for their members? How best can governments, higher education institutions and professional bodies work together to support increased numbers of Indigenous research students to graduate and find professional employment?

some possible responses

130 A number of possible options have been raised in relation to the issues covered in this paper. While not an exhaustive list, a number of key questions have been included for consideration and discussion:

Higher Education Review Process

Achieving Equitable and Appropriate Outcomes: Indigenous Australians in Higher Education

6. practical ways to move forward