Utyerre Apanpe First Nations Education Forum in Alice Springs calls on government to ‘get rid of NAPLAN’

A group of First Nations educators have gathered in the Red Centre with a simple message for government: “Get rid of NAPLAN”. Find out why they want the test gone.

CLP Braitling MLA Josh Burgoyne receives the MK Turner report from Shirley Turner at the Desert Knowledge Precinct, Alice Springs, Friday, August 30. Picture: Gera Kazakov

A national education collective says “it’s time to get rid of NAPLAN” – and replace it with a First Nations education system to serve beside “mainstream” learning.

The group of 90 educators and senior leaders gathered in Mparntwe/Alice Springs at the Desert Knowledge Precinct on Friday for the sixth Utyerre Apanpe First Nations Education Forum.

A Utyerre Apanpe First Nations Education Forum spokesperson said they wanted to see First Nations kids grow up with an education system that “honours their culture and identity”.

The spokesperson said the current system kept First Nations people “in the cycle of trauma”, and it was “time to get rid of NAPLAN and for our children to be assessed by our standards”.

Gamilaraay woman Stephanie Armstrong was one of the more than 90 First Nations educators. Picture: Gera Kazakov

They called on federal Education Minister Jason Clare to implement all six recommendations of the MK Turner Report.

The report was published in 2023 and calls for a new curriculum, an independent First Nations governance body to oversee the new system, and a national network of First Nations languages among its requests.

“We are not talking about reform of the mainstream system – we want to re-establish our own systems of education and for these to be recognised and supported across the country,” they said.

“It will take courage and a sustained commitment over a number of decades.

“If the government is committed to cultural safety and cultural curriculum, then it is time they gave real control to us, and it is time they provided the funding so that we can run, control, deliver, and set the curriculum and standards for our children.”

More than 90 First Nations educators and senior leaders from across Australia gathered at the Desert Knowledge Precinct, Alice Springs, Friday, August 30. Picture: Childrens Ground

Braitling MLA Josh Burgoyne attended the conference and said moving forward “there will be a lot changes to ensure that there are improvements throughout our community”.

“We might not always agree, but I think being here and listening to what you have to say; receiving this report, is the first step,” he said.

“This is the beginning, and I’m sure over a long period of time, there will be many more conversations had between yourselves, between the Northern Territory Government and also federal government.”

When last month’s NAPLAN results highlighted a steep learning gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous children at a national level, Mr Clare said the implications were “bloody serious”.

“I don’t want us to live in a country where your chances in life depends on who your parents are, where you live or the colour of your skin,” he said.

“What the results show is it’s one in 10 kids who are below what we used to call the minimum standard.

“But it’s one in three kids from poor families, it’s one in three kids from the bush and it’s one in three Indigenous kids.”

Originally published as Utyerre Apanpe First Nations Education Forum in Alice Springs calls on government to ‘get rid of NAPLAN’