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First Nations in Education

Keywords

You might try using a combination of these keywords to help you get started with your search for relevant literature.  

The following search terms have been tested in a range of search tools, including Education databases and Google Scholar, and are helpful for structuring a search approach.

These keywords are useful for locating literature on a range of topics such as integrating Indigenous perspectives in the curriculum.

Where to search

Lists of potential keywords organised by theme/concept
Curriculum First Nations Schools Decolonisation

Culturally responsive pedagogy

Cultural competency

Embedding Indigenous knowledge

Indigenous curriculum

Culturally relevant education

Cultural awareness

Cultural gap

Indigenous Peoples

Aboriginal Australians

Indigenous Australians

Torres Strait Islanders

Maori education

Indigenous Canadians

Native American education

Education 

Students

Teachers 

classrooms

High school

Secondary school

Primary school

Elementary school

Middle school

Non-colonial

Western paradigm

Eurocentrism 

cognitive imperialism

anti-colonial

Finding Journal Articles

These keywords and phrases can be used with databases or Google Scholar to help you to find journal articles. The search terms have been grouped into research/topic areas.

Culturally responsive pedagogy:

  • culturally responsive pedagog*
  • cultural competency
  • cultural gap
  • school
  • Indigenous education
  • Aboriginal education
  • primary school
  • elementary school
  • secondary school
  • high school
  • curriculum

To focus your search you might try combining keywords, e.g.

("cultural competency" OR "culturally responsive pedagog*") AND ("Primary school" OR “elementary school” OR "secondary school" OR "high school") AND (Indigenous OR Aboriginal) AND curriculum

Note: The use of the * is a truncation symbol that will find multiple words in most databases, e.g. pedagogy or pedagogies.

Indigenising the curriculum:

  • Indigenous knowledge
  • Aboriginal knowledge
  • First Nations
  • Aboriginal Australians
  • Torres Strait Islander
  • Indigenising or Indigenizing
  • Aboriginal education
  • Indigenous curriculum
  • curriculum

To focus your search you might try combining keywords, e.g. (Indigenous or Aboriginal or First Nations) AND (knowledge OR histories OR curriculum) AND Australia

Decolonising the curriculum:

  • decolon* (decolonise, decolonisation)
  • curriculum
  • Indigenous peoples
  • First Nations
  • Aboriginal Australians
  • Torres Strait Islanders

To focus your search you might try combining keywords, e.g. Decolonisation AND curriculum AND (teach* OR school*) AND (Indigenous peoples OR First Nations) AND Australia

Note: The use of the * is a truncation symbol that will find multiple words in most databases, e.g. decolonise or decolonisation.

Research Protocols


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