Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T06:44:01.042Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Academic self-concepts of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children from the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 January 2020

Jacob Prehn ,
Huw Peacock  and
Michael Andre Guerzoni
Jacob Prehn*
Affiliation:
Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor Aboriginal Research and Leadership, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 22, Sandy Bay, Tasmania7001, Australia
Huw Peacock
Affiliation:
Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor Aboriginal Research and Leadership, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 22, Sandy Bay, Tasmania7001, Australia
Michael Andre Guerzoni
Affiliation:
School of Social Sciences, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 22, Sandy Bay, Tasmania7001, Australia
*
Author for correspondence: Jacob Prehn, E-mail: Jacob.Prehn@utas.edu.au
Get access

Abstract

Self-concept is recognised as useful in facilitating understanding of the development of resilience, academic achievement and social and emotional maturity in children. This framework is valuable for studying minorities such as Indigenous children, for who a positive self-concept is a means of bolstering resilience and mitigating the inherited structural disadvantages of colonisation. This paper aims to understand the academic self-concept of Indigenous children in Australia through analysis of univariate, bivariate and multivariate data of Indigenous children aged 9.5–11 years from the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children Wave's 7 K Cohort. Results show overall positive levels of Indigenous children's self-perception at school. Further, factors such as level of relative isolation, teacher perception, peer relationships, feedback from mother and contact with community leaders and Elders is positively associated with Indigenous children's schooling mathematic and reading self-concepts. Ensuring that Indigenous students are supported by community, peers and parents, immersed in their culture and are recognised and supported by their teachers can alleviate the undesirable effects that structural inequalities may have on their academic self-concept.

Keywords

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islanderacademic abilityEldersparentsself-conceptteachers
Type
Research Article
Information
The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education , Volume 50 , Issue 1 , August 2021 , pp. 186 - 195
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Allison, PD (1999) Multiple Regression: A Primer. Newbury Park: Pine Forge Press.Google Scholar
Anderson, I, Lyons, JG, Luke, JN and Reich, HS (2017) Health determinants and educational outcomes for indigenous children. In Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (eds), Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong. London: Springer, pp. 259–285.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arens, AK, Bodkin-Andrews, G, Craven, R and Teung, A (2014) Self-concept of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian students: competence and affect components and relations to achievement. Learning and Individual Differences 32, 93–103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Australian Department of Health and Ageing (2013) National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Plan 2013–2023. Canberra: Australian Department of Health and Ageing.Google Scholar
Beck, U (2002) Individualization: Institutionalized Individualism and its Social and Political Consequences, Vol. 13, London: Sage.Google Scholar
Biddle, N (2014) Developing a Behavioural Model of School Attendance: Policy Implications for Indigenous Children and Youth. Canberra: Australian National University, Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research.Google Scholar
Bodkin-Andrews, G, O'Rourke, V and Craven, R (2010a) The utility of general self-esteem and domain-specific self-concepts: their influence on Indigenous and non-Indigenous students’ educational outcomes. Australian Journal of Education 54, 277–306.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bodkin-Andrews, G, Dillon, A and Craven, R (2010b) Bangawarra'gumada—strengthening the spirit: casual modelling of academic self-concept and patterns of disengagement for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian students. Australian Journal of Indigenous Education 39, 24–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bodkin-Andrews, GH, Seaton, M, Nelson, GF, Craven, R and Yeung, AS (2010c) Questioning the general self-esteem vaccine: general self-esteem, racial discrimination, and standardised achievement across Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools 20, 1–21.Google Scholar
Bodkin-Andrews, G, Whittaker, A, Cooper, E, Parada, RH, Denson, N and Bansel, P (2017) Moving beyond essentialism: Aboriginal parental perceptions of school bullying and school engagement. In Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (eds), Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong. London: Springer, pp. 153–178.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cerny, BA and Kaiser, HF (1977) A study of a measure of sampling adequacy for factor-analytic correlation matrices. Multivariate Behavioral Research 12, 43–47.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cliff, N (1988) The eigenvalues-greater-than-one rule and the reliability of components. Psychological Bulletin 103, 276.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Corder, GW and Foreman, DI (2014) Nonparametric Statistics: A Step-by-Step Approach. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Craven, R and Marsh, HW (2005) Dreaming futures: an empirical analysis of Indigenous Australian students’ aspirations, self-concepts, and realities. In Marsh, H, Craven, RG and McInerney, DM (eds), New Frontiers for Self Research. Greenwich: IAP, pp. 211–232.Google Scholar
Craven, RG and Marsh, HW (2008) The centrality of the self-concept construct for psychological wellbeing and unlocking human potential: implications for child and educational psychologists. Educational and Child Psychology 25, 104–118.Google Scholar
De Bortoli, L and Thomson, S (2010) Contextual Factors that Influence the Achievement of Australia's Indigenous Students: Results from PISA 2000–2006. Camberwell: Australian Council for Educational Research.Google Scholar
Department of Social Services (2018) Footprints in Time—The Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children (LSIC). Canberra: Australian Government. Available at https://www.dss.gov.au/about-the-department/publications-articles/research-publications/longitudinal-data-initiatives/footprints-in-time-the-longitudinal-study-of-indigenous-children-lsic#1.Google Scholar
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (2015) Remote School Attendance Strategy: Interim Progress Report. Canberra: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Avaliable at https://www.niaa.gov.au/sites/default/files/publications/remote-school-attendance-strategy-interim-progress-report.pdf.Google Scholar
Dockery, AM (2010) Culture and wellbeing: the case of Indigenous Australians. Social Indicators Research 99, 315–332.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dudgeon, P, Milroy, H and Walker, R (2014a) Working Together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mental Health and Wellbeing Principles and Practice. Canberra: Australian Government.Google Scholar
Dudgeon, P, Wright, M, Paradies, Y, Garvey, D and Walker, I (2014b) Aboriginal social, cultural and historical contexts. In Working Together Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mental Health and Wellbeing Principles and Practice. Canberra: Commonwealth Department of Health, pp. 3–24.Google Scholar
Dunstan, L, Hewitt, B and Tomaszewski, W (2017) Indigenous children's affective engagement with school: the influence of socio-structural, subjective and relational factors. Australian Journal of Education 61, 250–269.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Durey, A (2010) Reducing racism in Aboriginal health care in Australia: where does cultural education fit? Australian And New Zealand Journal of Public Health 34(Suppl. 1), S87–S92.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Frawley, J, Ober, R, Olcay, M and Smith, J (2017) Indigenous Achievement in Higher Education and the Role of Self-Efficacy: Rippling Stories of Success. Perth: Curtin University.Google Scholar
Gee, GD, Dudgeon, P, Schultz, C, Hart, A and Kelly, K (2014) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social and Emotional Wellbeing. In Dudgeon, P, Milroy, P and Walker, R (eds), Working Together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mental Health and Wellbeing Principles and Practice. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.Google Scholar
Gobo, G (2004) Sampling representativeness and generalisability. Qualitative Research Practice, 435–456.Google Scholar
Gore, J, Patfield, S, Holmes, K, Lloyd, A, Gruppetta, M, Weaver, N and Fray, L (2017) When higher education is possible but not desirable: widening participation and the aspirations of Australian Indigenous school students. Australian Journal of Education 61, 164–183.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Habibis, D, Taylor, P, Walter, M and Elder, C (2016) Repositioning the racial gaze: Aboriginal perspectives on race, race relations and governance. Social Inclusion 4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrison, N and Greenfield, M (2011) Relationship to place: positioning Aboriginal knowledge and perspectives in classroom pedagogies. Critical Studies in Education 52, 65–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Henk, WA and Melnick, SA (1995) The Reader Self-Perception Scale (RSPS): a new tool for measuring how children feel about themselves as readers. The Reading Teacher 48, 470–482.Google Scholar
Henricsson, L and Rydell, A-M (2004) Elementary school children with behavior problems: teacher-child relations and self-perception: a prospective study. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly 50, 111–138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kickett-Tucker, CS (2009) Moorn (black)? Djardak (white)? How come I don't fit in Mum? Exploring the racial identity of Australian Aboriginal children and youth. Health Sociology Review 18, 119–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kickett-Tucker, C and Coffin, J (2011) Aboriginal self-concept and racial identity: practical solutions for teachers. In Two Way Teaching and Learning. Camberwell: ACER Press, pp. 155–172.Google Scholar
Ladwig, JG and Luke, A (2014) Does improving school level attendance lead to improved school level achievement? An empirical study of indigenous educational policy in Australia. The Australian Educational Researcher 41, 171–194.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lohoar, S, Butera, N and Kennedy, E (2014) Strengths of Australian Aboriginal Cultural Practices in Family Life and Child Rearing. Melbourne: Australian Institute of Family Studies.Google Scholar
Louth, S and Jamieson-Proctor, R (2018) Inclusion and engagement through traditional Indigenous games: enhancing physical self-efficacy. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 1–15.Google Scholar
Marsh, HW and Craven, RG (2006) Reciprocal effects of self-concept and performance from a multidimensional perspective: beyond seductive pleasure and unidimensional perspectives. Perspectives on Psychological Science 1, 133–163.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Marsh, HW and O'Mara, A (2008) Reciprocal effects between academic self-concept, self-esteem, achievement, and attainment over seven adolescent years: unidimensional and multidimensional perspectives of self-concept. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 34, 542–552.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Marsh, H, Yeung, A and Craven, R (2018) Competence self-perceptions. In Elliot, A, Dweck, C and Yeager, D (eds), Handbook of Competence and Motivation: Theory and Application, 2nd Edn. New York: The Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Martin, KL (2017) Culture and identity: LSIC parents’ beliefs and values and raising young Indigenous children in the twenty-first century. In Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (eds), Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong. London: Springer, pp. 79–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mooney, H (2012) Māori social work views and practices of rapport building with Rangatahi Māori. Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work Review 24, 49–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mooney, J, Seaton, M, Kaur, G, Marsh, HW and Yeung, AS (2016) Cultural perspectives on Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian students’ school motivation and engagement. Contemporary Educational Psychology 47, 11–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moreton-Robinson, AM, Singh, D, Kolopenuk, J, Robinson, A and Walter, M (2012) Learning the Lessons? Pre-Service Teacher Preparation for Teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Students. Brisbane: Queensland Univeristy of Technology. Available from https://www.yourstoryourjourney.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/learning-the-lessons-pre-service-teacher-preparation-for-teaching-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-studentsfb0e8891b1e86477b58fff00006709da.pdf.Google Scholar
Parente, A, Craven, RG, Munns, G and Marder, K (2003) Indigenous student's aspirations: an in-depth analysis of Indigenous students’ career aspirations and factors that impact on their formulation. NZARE AARE.Google Scholar
Pedersen, A and Walker, I (2000) Urban Aboriginal-Australian and Anglo-Australian children: in-group preference, self-concept, and teachers’ academic evaluations. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology 10, 183–197.3.0.CO;2-L>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Priest, N, Paradies, Y, Stewart, P and Luke, J (2011) Racism and health among urban Aboriginal young people. BMC Public Health 11, 568.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Purdie, N and McCrindle, A (2004) Measurement of self-concept among Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian students. Australian Journal of Psychology 56, 50–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Silburn, SR, Zubrick, SR, Lawrence, DM, Mitrou, FG, DeMaio, JA, Blair, E, Cox, A, Dalby, RB, Griffin, JA and Pearson, G (2006) The intergenerational effects of forced separation on the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal children and young people. Family Matters, 10.Google Scholar
Snedecor, GW and Cochran, WG (1989) Statistical Methods, 8th Edn, Ames: Iowa state University Press.Google Scholar
Stronger Smarter Institute (2014) High-expectations relationships: a foundation for quality learning environments in all Australian schools. Stronger Smarter Institute: Limited Position Paper.Google Scholar
Tavakol, M and Dennick, R (2011) Making sense of Cronbach's alpha. International Journal of Medical Education 2, 53.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Trudgett, M, Page, S, Bodkin-Andrews, G, Franklin, C and Whittaker, A (2017) Another brick in the wall? Parent perceptions of school educational experiences of Indigenous Australian children. In Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (eds), Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong. London: Springer, pp. 233–258.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walter, M and Andersen, C (2013) Indigenous statistics: A quantitative research methodology. Walnut Creek: Left Coast Press.Google Scholar
Walter, M (2017) Doing Indigenous family. In Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (eds), Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong. London: Springer, pp. 123–152.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walter, M, Dodson, M and Barnes, S (2017a) Introducing the longitudinal study of Indigenous children. In Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (eds), Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong. London: Springer, pp. 15–40.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walter, M, Martin, KL and Bodkin-Andrews, G (2017b) Indigenous Children Growing Up Strong: A Longitudinal Study of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Families. London: Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitley, J (2014) Supporting educational success for Aboriginal students: identifying key influences. McGill Journal of Education 49, 155–181.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitley, J, Rawana, E and Brownlee, K (2014) A comparison of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students on the inter-related dimensions of self-concept, strengths and achievement. Brock Education 23, 24–46.Google Scholar
Wilkes, E, Gray, D, Casey, W, Stearne, A and Dadd, L (2014) Harmful substance use and mental health. In Dudgeon, P, Milroy, H and Walker, R (eds), Working together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mental Health and Wellbeing Principles and Practice, 2nd Edn. Canberra: Department of The Prime Minister and Cabinet, pp. 125–146.Google Scholar
Yeung, AS (2005) Reconsidering the measurement of student self-concept: use and misuse in a Chinese context. New Frontiers for Self Research 2, 233–256.Google Scholar
Yeung, AS, Craven, R and Ali, J (2013) Self-concepts and educational outcomes of Indigenous Australian students in urban and rural school settings. School Psychology International 34, 405–427.CrossRefGoogle Scholar