Leading and choosing to make a difference for Indigenous students in one of the largest secondary schools in Queensland: an administrator's story

Abstract

This paper reports on the progress made on enrolment, retention, participation and achievement of Indigenous students in a very large urban secondary school in Queensland from 1994-2002. Within the context of the school community, this paper presents some data on the levels of progress in Indigenous student outcomes made by the school over time; juxtaposes the results of two studies conducted in the school by researchers at the School of Indigenous Australian Studies (SIAS), James Cook University, and explains what the school has done since; and discusses a new research project currently in progress by me, as practitioner researcher, including a literature review on the achievement of Indigenous student outcomes. Finally, this paper comments on the challenges of being a non-Indigenous administrator leading a program for Indigenous education.