Otitis media (middle ear infection) is one of the most common childhood diseases all over the world and is very prevalent in many indigenous populations including Australian Aborigines. When children have otitis media they often have a hearing loss that can range from slight to moderately severe. This hearing loss is often hard to identify and can come and go. The problem often starts in infancy and can continue for years; hearing returns to normal in some children but some have permanent hearing loss. Even a mild hearing loss in early childhood can seriously affect communication development and learning. This can make it very difficult for children to succeed in the classroom — even when they no longer have active otitis media or hearing loss.

Tiwi educators (Tungatalum, 1991; Pilakui, 1991; Tipiloura, 1992; Tiparui, 1992; Munkara, 1992; Orsto, 1993) have raised issues of concern regarding educational operations, curriculum design and the educational structure of community education. These educators are writing in a context vastly different to their grandparents and parents, where a number of critical events have influenced, and are still influencing the social, political, spiritual and economical lives of Tiwi community members. Through their analysis of the current educational system they have isolated a number of issues and have suggested alternatives to the current structure. Language and culture appear as the greatest concern to these educators and the maintenance of both emerge as a priority. They also state that community education programs do not adequately address the importance of Tiwi culture as the foundation of education, and the powerful role that community members and Tiwi teachers should play in determining the direction of education. From Tiwi educators' collective concerns, an alternative model has been constructed and salient issues are discussed. The model is certainly not seen as an answer to Tiwi educators' collective concerns, but it presents an alternative to the current Muruntawi dominated system.

The over-riding objective of an Aboriginal Education Policy should be to achieve equity between Aboriginal people and other Australians in participation at all stages of education by the turn of the century. Education opportunities must be available to Aboriginal people regardless of where they live and in a manner that is appropriate to the diverse cultural and social situations in which they live. It is therefore essential to ensure access for Aboriginal children and adults to school and tertiary education, to ensure that Aboriginal communities are able to influence the way in which education is provided, and to ensure that it reflects their social and cultural values (Hughes Report, 1987: 17).

Koorie High School is a Government school. It is not the school's real name but it is the name I will be using for this article.

Koorie High School is an innercity comprehensive high school from Years 7-12 in Sydney. It has a total population of 344 students, 186 at the Intensive English Unit on a different site and 158 in the mainstream high school campus. Fifty-five percent of the 158 students are Aboriginal. There are also 32 students in the Back-To-School Program, an annex of the main high school. All of these students are Aboriginal. I will mainly be referring to the main high school and no reference will be made to the Intensive English Unit as they are not part of this study.

Since colonisation, Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders have been compartmentalised by white society in many facets in their lives. This paper focuses on education, detailing problems faced by Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders. Participation of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders in formal education (including post-compulsory) has been very low compared to other Australians, thus upward social mobility has not dramatically changed. In both health and welfare, Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders are still highly disadvantaged in society (Keen, 1988). The current federal government proclaims itself the champion of social justice and equity, yet these issues remain at the forefront of indigenous problems. Major questions have to be asked about how Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders consider the relevance of schooling, the way they learn, how they are taughtandby whom. Moreover, what is an appropriate mix of cultural preservation and education and training to ‘fit in’ with a capitalistic society? Is this the same for all indigenous groups in Australia, considering the diverse range of urban and rural groups?