News

National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is upon us (27 May to 3 June), and this year’s theme, Bridging Now to Next, calls on all Australians to step forward together, to look ahead and continue the push forward as past lessons guide us.

This year marks the fifth Narragunnawali Awards and a decade of Narragunnawali: Reconciliation in Education. The awards recognise schools and early learning services implementing outstanding reconciliation initiatives. Applications for 2025 are now open!

Introducing the newest member of Reconciliation Australia’s Narragunnawali team! PJ is a non-Indigenous teacher librarian with over 30 years experience in education, teaching from early years through to university. Based on Kaurna Country, PJ has been involved in the development of Reconciliation Action Plans (RAPs) in a variety of educational settings.

Explore how Magabala Books, Australia’s leading First Nations publishing house, supports educators in embedding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives across curriculum planning. Discover resources like Always Was, Always Will Be by Aunty Fay Muir and Sue Lawson, and learn how to utilise Narragunnawali resources such as the Curriculum Audits and Evaluating Resources Guide to enrich teaching practices

Register for one of our facilitated online workshops. Designed for teachers, educators, school and service leaders, and RAP Working Group members, these workshops will support you to champion reconciliation in your communities and develop the knowledge, strategies and tools to foster inclusive and culturally responsive learning environments, with a strong emphasis on RAP development. 

RAP Actions provide educators with structured guidance, professional learning and curriculum resources to meaningfully embed reconciliation in schools and early learning services.

In Australia, since 1999, the International for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD) has been referred to as Harmony Day – and now Harmony Week . To mark the 60th anniversary of IDERD, the Australian Human Rights Commission have developed a schools’ fact sheet, lesson plan and general info-sheets in multiple languages about the day – which falls on 21 March – to demonstrate how the idea of 'harmony' hides structural and systemic racism.

2024 has been another big year for supporting reconciliation and contributing to positive change. The Narragunnawali team is proud of the meaningful work that schools and early learning services are doing to advance reconciliation across the country. As we approach 2025, we reflect on the year that’s been and prepare for new initiatives within the reconciliation in education community of practice.

The Narragunnawali Evaluating Resources Guide helps educators select respectful, appropriate and accurate resources when teaching about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, cultures and histories.

Magabala Books, with support from Reconciliation Australia, recently released a new book for young readers titled Always Was, Always Will Be by Aunty Fay Muir and Sue Lawson.

Discover how NIYEC’S School Exclusion Project report and Dream Summit are driving change in education for First Nations youth. Learn about the history and impact of school exclusion practices and the solutions First Nations youth are championing for a fair and inclusive future.

We’re excited to feature Culture is Life’s education resources, a comprehensive collection designed to support young people to deepen their connection to culture, Country and community. These resources contribute to global knowledge and positively impact the health and wellbeing of this and future generations.

The National Reconciliation Week (NRW) 2024 theme, Now, More than Ever, emphasised the urgent need to tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation in education and across the nation. Take a look at our snapshot of some of the Inspiring NRW conversations and contributions that took place within education.

New professional learning opportunities and more! We’re always updating features, functions and resources on the Narragunnawali Platform to best support our community of practice. 

We checked in with Sue Caldicott, Director of the Narragunnawali Awards 2023 Early Learning Service category winner, Stirling District Kindergarten.