Story of Our Rights and Freedoms - The Struggle for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Rights and Freedoms

In this Finding Out lesson, students will read, watch, and analyse historical sources relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights and freedoms. They will use visible thinking routines and scaffolded discussions to interpret and analyse each source. Students will engage in a Socratic Seminar to discuss the influence of Charles Perkins on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ struggle for rights and freedoms, then deepen their historical understanding through independent research. Students will make connections between the National Apology to the Stolen Generations, progress in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ struggle for rights and freedoms and reconciliation in Australia. They will research the events that prompted the apology, and communicate their understanding in an extended text. Students will reflect on their learning in this lesson by writing a paragraph explaining their understanding of the role that they play in ensuring that the rights and freedoms of others are not denied.

Essential questions:

• What are some of the historical events in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ struggle for rights and freedoms?
• Who is Charles Perkins and what role has he played in the movement for Indigenous rights?
• What is the National Apology to the Stolen Generations and how is it related to reconciliation in Australia?