Charting the "false maps" of Australian Aboriginal education: rethinking education policy from a general semantics perspective.

In 1770 British Captain James Cook's expedition landed in Australia. This event, and Australia's subsequent settlement as a British penal colony, signaled an end to long-established traditional ways of life--and ways of knowing--for Australia's Aboriginal peoples. British convicts, along with new immigrants settling in Australia as a result of persecution or poverty, "became the oppressors of the indigenous peoples who already occupied the land." (Young, 2001, p.20) The colonizers quickly developed the belief that Aboriginals were "the most wretched, primitive and miserable race on earth, with few if any redeeming qualities," and in desperate need of civilization. (Welch, 1988, p.203) This perceived savageness of the Aboriginal peoples further legitimatized colonial violence, exploitation, and abuse of the indigenous Australians. From the 19th century, Australia's governing policies developed from an ideological notion to the conviction that the white majority was inherently superior to the non-white minority. Accordingly, the government established laws and policies that reinforced the colonizers' belief "that civilization was something which could be taught, by force if necessary". (Biskup, 1968, p.448) This began a long history of discrimination that damaged and oppressed the Australian Aborigines, which in many ways persists to this day.

While postcolonial theory can help reveal divisions between colonizers and colonized, it offers little in the way of an actionable strategy that will improve cross-cultural communication and understanding. In this article, I analyze the Australian education system from a postcolonial perspective and illustrate how general semantics principles can illuminate alternative considerations and possibilities for Australian Aboriginal education.

A Brief History of Australian Aboriginal Education through a Postcolonial Lens

Traditional Aboriginal education dates back 30,000 to 40,000 years. Knowledge acquisition focused on an epistemology rooted in "harmony in interpersonal relationships [along with] learning through observation ... [and] was achieved through the telling of stories, the singing of songs, the modeling of skills, and the instilling of increased levels of responsibility." (Reynolds, 2002, p.18) Aboriginal education centered on "the living culture ... and functioned without such artifacts as school buildings and school texts." (Welch, 1988, p.207) With the colonization of Australia, the Eurocentric British settlers forced Aboriginals to adapt to British culture through systematic assimilationist practices. The British established an education system centered on the deliberate removal of Aboriginal culture and the substitution of Western history, stories, and ideology. In the course of this education, Aborigines lost their rights to self-determination and were taught to believe in their inherent inferiority.

Postcolonial discourse seeks to elucidate the circumstances surrounding the western, or "Occidental," domination and exploitation of the east, or "Orient." (Said, 1978, p.3) The European colonization of non-European countries and the subsequent effects created a sense of "us" versus "them," with "us" as superior and civilized and "them" as uncivilized and backward. (Said, 1978, p.7) The British colonizers viewed their actions as benefiting indigenous Australians because a "civilized" people could discern what was in the best interest of the Aborigines "better than they could possibly know themselves." (Said, 1978, p.35) This mind-set helped to establish a dichotomous society of haves and have-nots. One group enjoyed wealth and privilege, while the other became a subjugated, exploited, and marginalized people who had little, if any, autonomy, opportunity, education, or human rights.

By the nineteenth and through the mid-twentieth century, the Australian government issued educational policies that legitimatized an assimilationist curriculum and required numerous Aboriginal children to attend segregated state boarding schools where they would unlearn their native culture. Aboriginal students were forcibly separated from their families and housed in state-run residential schools, which offered them "another form of life that left them suspended between worlds." (Willinsky, 1998, p.94) Aboriginal traditions and customs were "regarded as an expired era, an eclipsed form of life" while assimilationist educational practices served to indoctrinate the wayward and uncultured Aboriginals. (Willinsky, 1998, p.95) In the residential schools, Aboriginal children were taught to read, write, do arithmetic, and follow Christianity; however, this education imparted a corollary lesson, and required educated Aboriginal children to fully accept their subjugated social position.

To integrate Aborigines into society as unskilled workers, school curricula focused on "rudimentary skills ... in keeping with the lowly social class ... the colonized were to occupy." (Welch, 1988, p.207) The Aborigines were never "consulted as to the content of this curriculum, or whether they wanted schooling at all." (Welch, 1988, p.207) White colonizers held the racist view that Aborigines were an inferior race that could barely be educated. Further, this substandard race was "destined to die out, and would, at most, be only able to fulfill the most menial forms of employment." (Welch, 1988, p.210) As the idea that the Aborigines would eventually perish proved false, educating and inundating the Aborigines with civilization offered the hope that they would be "bleached out and ... simply be transformed into honorary whites, albeit at the bottom of the economic pyramid." (Welch, 1988, p.207) By the mid 1960s Aboriginal educational attainment was consistently lower that the Australian majority. When the assimilationist structure of schooling failed to achieve its goal, the residential schools closed, and the Australian government began to seek alternatives to current indigenous educational programming.

Rectifying Past Assimilationist Aboriginal Education: A Postcolonial View

Efforts to ameliorate the marginalization, omission, and subordination of the Aboriginal peoples in education are evidenced by The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Policy, 2004-2006. This policy identifies specific goals designed to improve Aboriginal education, which include involving Aborigines in curricular decision-making, providing equal access to education and participation, and making available equitable and appropriate educational outcomes. (ATSIC, 2004, p.17-18) Yet, in spite of these efforts, Aboriginal educational attainment remains well below that of their Australian counterparts. Moreover, the lofty goals of this policy have yet to produce "the same level of consultation with Aboriginal groups [because] several groups have rejected the policy as not being representative of their concerns." (Reynolds, 2002, p.20) The need for a curriculum that allows "the subaltern" or the "marginalized or disempowered" to contribute their ideas is imperative for Aborigines to become self-directed and self-sufficient (Young, 2001, p.354). In order to produce an equitable educational experience, Aboriginal curricula ought to be inclusive, multilingual, participatory, and culturally relevant, and operate with indigenous leadership.

Willinsky's (1998) suggests that, to rectify the inequities of postcolonial education, curriculum should identify "imperialism's influence on the teaching of history, geography, science, language, and literature in the hope that it will change the way [colonialism's] legacy works." (p.247) He further recommends the creation of a "critical space" in the curricula "that allows students to stand apart from this [postcolonial] representation of the world, to take issue with its inevitable and its readily avoidable limitations." (p. 155) Postcolonial theory offers a way to understand and analyze the complex relationship between the colonizer and the colonized; yet, general semantics can extend beyond understanding and analysis and provide teachers with the actual tools needed to develop appropriate and useful curricula.

Reconciling Past Assimilationist Aboriginal Education: A General Semantics Approach

Although similar in some ways to postcolonial theory, general semantics offers new insights for "un-learning indoctrinated psycho-linguistic structures and processes" that hinder Aboriginal education. (Brooks, 2005, p.65) Yet the uncertainty remains about how educators can meet the obligation of postcolonialism to create a "critical space" that fosters discourse to validate Aboriginal history, identity, and culture. It seems possible that by focusing on the identification of what some general semanticists have called "false maps" (e.g. Hayakawa, 1990; Johnson, 1996) along with teaching the multi-dimensional uses, meanings, and contextual variations of language, educators can help to reverse the deep-rooted miscommunications and failures of language between Aboriginals and their Australian counterparts. (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21)

Understanding and Identifying False Maps

Communication involves the "output" and "intake" of symbols (words, signs, pictures, etc.) (Hayakawa, 1962) However, symbols are not necessarily connected to any objective referent, but are instead subject to individual interpretation--what in general semantics is sometimes referred to as "mapping." It is common for people to confuse the symbol with the thing it represents, a phenomenon originally termed "unsanity" by Korzybski (1933) and later reiterated by Johnson (1996). People will in turn use these "false maps" to make decisions or judgments (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21). For example, people might incorrectly assume that children who wear Elmo t-shirts necessarily like Elmo, drivers of red sports cars crave speed; people who walk under ladders have bad luck, etc. These false maps do not necessarily represent the "territory" of reality (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21). A child wearing an Elmo t-shirt might not know Elmo, a person driving a red sports car might always follow the speed limit, and a person walking under a ladder might do so without incident. People who rely on false maps to perceive and analyze experiences, might commit numerous inaccuracies, errors, and poor judgments. (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21)

False maps can "exacerbate social phenomena such as racism, sexism, stereotyping, and prejudice." (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21; Brooks, 2005, p.69) However, if educators study and apply general semantics principles, they might teach "with greater respect and compassion" and generate new ways of instruction and thinking in schools. (Brooks, 2005, p.69) Willinsky (1998) pointed out that "schools have offered students little help in fathoming why [the] difference in race, culture, and nation is so closely woven into the fabric of society." (p.5) He also acknowledged the need to scrutinize what "schooling has underwritten and who it has denied." (p. 16) In response to this appeal, educators can incorporate critical skills into the curricula that highlight the inaccurate and habitual ways of thinking that perpetuate white hegemony over the Aboriginals and help students explore, examine, and understand their (and other people's) false maps. (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21)

Understanding and Identifying Multi-dimensional Uses, Meanings, and Contextual Variations

As a further obstacle to communication, people often mistakenly believe that words have only one connotation, because they maintain a single perspective. (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21) Yet, the meanings of words change depending on the context in which they are spoken, to whom they are spoken, and at what time they are spoken. It is critical to consider the context of words to understand the communication. Often, the context reveals "meanings so clearly that we do not even have to say what we mean in order to be understood." (Hayakawa, 1990, p.40) By taking into account the unique backgrounds and perspectives of speakers and listeners and the circumstances of the utterances, one can improve understanding and communication. Hayakawa (1990) comments that the need for taking into consideration the context of a word or conversation becomes paramount "when it comes to very big subjects, [because] the range of contexts to be examined--verbal, social, and historical--may become very large indeed." (p.41)

We make maps, false or accurate, when we name and categorize objects. (ibid., p.21) This "individual object or event ... of course, has no name and belongs to no class until we put it in one." (ibid., p. 122) Classification is useful and inevitable, but can also be detrimental when it "suits the convenience of those making the classification." (ibid., p.124) Consequently, as society begins to recognize and function within the paradigms of their classifications, it becomes easy to "regard as 'true' those systems of classification that produce the desired results" (ibid., p.126). General semantics provides a framework for questioning these perceived truths. An educator who uses general semantics can identify bias in language and recognize the tendency for these biases to manipulate actions and responses.

Willinsky (1998) emphasizes the importance of placing the English language in a historical context and teaching how "it marks the flow of power through history." (p.211) Additionally, Said (1978) writes "that texts exist in contexts, that there is such a thing as intertextuality, that the pressures of conventions, predecessors, and rhetorical styles" impact thought. (p. 13) The concern for context in general semantics highlights the importance of attuning education to its historical background and attending to the limitations and problems of multi-dimensional words, meanings, and contextual variations.

Misunderstandings can arise when one fails to see the broader context and subtle differences in meaning. For example, in the "critical space" of Australian education, it is crucial for participating groups to understand that people perceive different connotations and denotations for words. It becomes imperative, then, for educators to readily discuss and identify the differences in the meaning of words from a historical, contextual, and multi-dimensional perspective. In the case of Aboriginal education (or in any educational system), it is important to recognize the arbitrary nature of classifications and consider the ramifications of altering long-established categorization systems. Hayakawa (1990) offers the example of the subjective assignment of race, as in the historical belief in parts of the United States that an individual is "black" if they possess "one drop of black blood." Hayakawa suggests that it is just as reasonable to call "white" those having "one drop of white blood." (p.123) By challenging their classification systems, individuals can better understand the explicit and implicit biases in their thoughts and language.

Conclusion

The complexities of Aboriginal history, British colonization, and existing hegemony challenge efforts to overcome the consistent failure of Aboriginal education. For Aboriginal curricula to be effective, Aborigines must freely participate in developing and implementing it, which "will demand a far higher level of responsiveness to individual communities than has been forthcoming from architects of bicultural programs." (Folds, 1987, p.457) Even with the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Policy, the reforms continue to be imposed upon Aboriginal people and have yet to generate "widespread, significant Aboriginal control in culturally vital areas, particularly the curriculum." (Folds, 1987, p.453) This rejection of Aboriginal self-determination reinforces Memmi's (1965) claim that "it is in the colonized's own interest that [the Aboriginals] be excluded from management functions, and that those heavy responsibilities be reserved for the colonizer." (p.82) Aborigines are "aware that schooling has served to reproduce the culture and values of the dominant society." (Folds, 1987, p.456-457) However, if educators apply general semantics principles to the construction and execution of Australian curricula, they can reveal problematic biases inherent in language, analyze the inaccuracies of false maps, and seek to better understand individual contextual confusions. (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21)

Applying general semantics principles to the ponderous postcolonial discourse of Aboriginal education will allow educators to better understand and use the complexities of language, context, and meaning to heighten learning. Only effective and unambiguous bicultural communication will enable the Aborigines to "speak" and insist on an end to the destructiveness of hegemony. Through dialogue grounded in general semantics principles, the Australian educational structure can begin to reject their false maps and acknowledge the need for greater understanding and inclusion. (Hayakawa, 1990, p.21)

REFERENCES

1. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission Board of Commissioners. (2004). Education policy statement. Australia: Author.

2. Biskup, P. (1968). White-Aboriginal relations in Western Australia: An Overview. Comparative Studies in Society and History, 10(4), 447-457.

3. Brooks, J.S. (2005). You can never step in the same revolution twice: General semantics in historical context. Midwest Philosophy of Education Society: Proceedings of Midwest Philosophy of Education Society. Bloomington, Indiana: Authorhouse.

4. Folds, R. (1987). The social relationships of tribal aboriginal schooling in Australia. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 8(4), 447-460.

5. Hayakawa, S.I. (1990). Language in thought and action. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College Publishers.

6. Hayakawa, S. I. (1962). How to attend a conference. In S.I. Hayakawa (ed.), The use and misuse of language, pp.70-78. Greenwich, CT: Fawcett Publications.

7. Johnson, W. (1996). People in quandaries. Concord, CA: International Society for General Semantics.

8. Korzybski, A. (1933). Science and Sanity: An introduction to Non-Aristotelian Systems and General Semantics. Englewood, NJ: International Non-Aristotelian Library/Institute of General Semantics.

9. Memmi, A. (1965). The colonizer and the colonized. Boston: Beacon Press.

10. Reynolds, R.J. (2002). The search for relevance and identity: The education and socialization of Australian Aboriginal students. International Education, 31(2), 18-32.

11. Said, E.W. (1978). Orientalism. New York: Vintage Books.

12. Welch, A.R. (1988). Aboriginal education as internal colonialism: The schooling of an indigenous minority in Australia. Comparative Education, 24(2), 203-215.

13, Willinsky, J. (1998). Learning to divide the world: Education at empire's end. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.

14. Young, Robert J.C. (2001). Postcolonialism: An historical introduction. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

An eccentric philosophy professor gave a one question final exam after a semester dealing with a broad array of topics. The class was already seated and ready to go when the Prof picked up his chair, plopped it on his desk, and wrote on the board, "Using everything we have learned this semester, prove that this chair does not exist." Fingers flew, erasers erased, blue books were filled in furious fashion. Some students wrote over 30 pages in one hour attempting to refute the existence of the chair. One member of the class however, was up and finished in less than a minute. Weeks later when the grades were posted, the rest of the group wondered how he could have gotten an A when he had barely written anything at all. What did he write, they asked?

"What chair?"

* Melanie C. Brooks is a doctoral student in Sociocultural International Development Education Studies at Florida State University. Her research interests include international education, library science and sociocultural dynamics of schools.