Aboriginal Studies - Unit 4: Aboriginals in Sport

Week Content Achievement Standards

1
Customary sports and games of Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islander Peoples : AST5-1 describes the factors that
contribute to an Aboriginal
Indigenous games and activities have a rich history as they have been passed down through generations by person’s identity
Indigenous Australians. Many of the games and activities were recorded by explorers, government officials, settlers,
scientists and missionaries in the nineteenth century.

Activity 1: In small groups, use the Yulunga traditional Indigenous games website to select a customary sport or AST5-5 explains the importance
game of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. Research the game and prepare a short multimedia of families and communities to
presentation for your class that covers: Aboriginal Peoples

● the background or origins of the game

● the Nation of origin for the game (including a map)
● characteristics and features of the game including the rules. AST5-6 explains the importance
● Prepare and conduct a practical lesson to teach the other groups how to play the game of self-determination and
autonomy to all aspects of
Activity 2: Using the information and skills from the previous activity brainstorm ideas about the significance of Aboriginal Peoples’ participation
customary sports and games in Aboriginal culture, considering the following: nationally and internationally

● gender roles
● skill development for use outside of sport (for example, collaboration, leadership and teamwork)
● social skills development. AST5-7 assesses the significance
of the roles of Aboriginal Peoples
Activity 3: Complete a quick, write activity reflecting on the role of customary sports and games for Aboriginal locally, regionally, nationally and
Peoples and why they are important. internationally
 Activity 4: Marn Grook has been suggested as the origin of AFL. Compare and contrast MG to contemporary AFL. AST5-8 analyses the range of
relationships between Aboriginal
Peoples and non-Aboriginal
2 Significance of Sport:
peoples
Role of Sport in Australian Communities:

Students watch Digital classroom: Sport and Australia Culture (duration 5.04). Reflecting on what they have learned AST5-9 analyse the factors that
from the video, brainstorm the role of sport in contributing to: influence non-Aboriginal peoples’
range of perceptions of
● Australian communities
Aboriginal Peoples and cultures
● personal and community identities
● ways of life in Australia.

Students read a news article and create a mindmap that highlights the achievements of the little-known Indigenous AST5-10 identifies and applies
athletes that are featured. appropriate community
consultation protocols and
They then create a profile of a self-selected contemporary athlete. The profile should include the following details:
ethical research practices to
● date of birth gather, protect and interpret data
● their connections to Community and Country
● sports they play
● teams they have represented AST5-11 selects and uses a range
● the ways they reflect their Aboriginal identity through their sport, for example on field celebrations or of research techniques and
advocacy for Aboriginal rights technologies to locate, select,
● quotes from the sportsperson that reflect their identity organise and communicate
information and findings
3
History of Aboriginal Participation in Sport:

Create a storyboard to outline the history of Aboriginal participation in sport for example:

- 1868 Aboriginal cricket team tours England

- 1883 Bobby Kinnear wins the Stawell Gift race
- 1952 First Aboriginal player in first grade Ray Laurie, Balmain
- 1964 Michael Ah Matt and Francis Roberts represent Australia in the Olympics
- 1971 NSW Koori Knockout
- 1970 Evonne Goolagong tennis Number 1 player
- 1982 Commonwealth Games protested
- 1996 Atlanta Olympics Nova Peris wins gold in Hockey
- 2000 Sydney Olympics Cathy Freeman wins gold in 400m final

In pairs, choose one of the events from the timeline and complete additional research. You need to describe the
event or nature of involvement. Outline the impacts of the event or involvement for:

- the individuals involved

- Aboriginal communities.

4
Sport as an Avenue for Expression:

Create a personal profile of an individual Aboriginal sports person from the list below:

- Samantha Riley
- Greg Inglis
- Nicky Winmar
- Stacey Porter
 - Patrick Mills
- Cody Walker
- Mal Meninga
- Patrick Ryder
- Samantha Kerr

Your profile needs to include the following:

- date of birth
- their connections to Community and Country
- sports they play
- teams they have represented
- the ways they reflect their Aboriginal identity through their sport, for example on field celebrations or
advocacy for Aboriginal rights
- quotes from the sportsperson that reflect their identity.

You will be presenting these to the class and can format the profile any way you like.

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Assessment Prep:

Task: Write and present a speech (5 - 7 minutes in length) and create an accompanying visual presentation focusing
on an Aboriginal athlete of your choice.

The speech and presentation should address the following points:

- identify the successes of the athlete at a local, national and international level.
- describe the significance of these successes.
- Has the athlete raised the profile of their sport in the wider community? If so, how?
- describe the status and reputation of the athlete in their chosen sport.
 - explore the range of media commentary (find examples and explain if it is positive or negative) about the
athlete, are they shown in a positive light or a negative light?
- describe and explain any controversies in their career.
- identify and describe any work the athlete does within the Aboriginal community to promote positive life
outcomes for Aboriginal Peoples.
- make a judgement about the athlete as a role model for other Aboriginal Peoples and non-Aboriginal people.

6
Oral Presentations Due

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Sport, racism and stereotyping

● Define institutionalised racism. How is this different to personal racism?

● Watch ‘Australian Dream’ and work through questions:
1. Who is Adam Goodes? What do you know about him?
2. Why does Adam Goodes feel a sense of belonging to the Sydney Swans Football Club? What
emotions do you feel when Adam's mum shares her story about being a part of the Stolen
Generations? How do you think her story would have affected Adam as an Aboriginal person?
3. What did you learn about Adam Goodes? Since doing his diploma on Indigenous studies and going on
his personal journey about who he is as an Indigenous person, Adam says he has decided to call out
anything derogatory or racist that's said about him and his Aboriginality. Discuss why you think
Adam's studies changed him as a person and his stand on calling out racism. What do you think
influenced Adam's decision to end his career when he did? What do you think are Adam Goodes's
strengths and personality traits?
 ● Create a multimedia presentation to examine and explain the issue of sport, racism and stereotyping by
investigating the Adam Goodes booing controversy in 2015. The presentation must:
- outline the events of the controversy
- evaluate the AFL’s response to these incidents, both in the immediate aftermath and following the
release of the Australian Dream film. Screening guide here; here; education resources here))
- identify if Goodes’ experience is an example of personal or institutionalised racism
- Describe the response of a range of commentators at the time for example:
➢ Stan Grant
➢ Alan Jones (duration 0:40)
➢ Andrew Bolt
➢ Nigel Scullion
➢ Waleed Aly (duration 1:48)
➢ Sam Newman
- Discuss the impact of this controversy on Adam Goodes and other Aboriginal athletes.

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Sport, racism and stereotyping

Research and Discuss:

Standing up to racism can be very difficult. Having consistent policies and the right support structures in place helps
people to stand up. Adam Goodes stood up to racism at a time when the necessary support structures were not in
place.
1. What could you do to stand up to racism and help stop it at your school or in wider society?
2. Tracey Holmes says, "People think because it's casual and because it happens everywhere and because we
do it in our backyard barbecues and because it happens in the schoolyard and because it happens at work,
it's just a joke." Is racism a joke to the person it's being said to or about? Discuss casual racism and why it is
still prevalent in society today. How can we stop casual racism in Australia?
 3. Do you know what institutional racism is? Discuss how we can put a stop to institutional racism. Refer to this
speech to help you with your discussion.
4. Investigate Rule 35 of the AFL's Vilification Framework. Do you think the AFL enforced this rule enough
during what happened to Adam Goodes? What would you add to Rule 35 to make it more relevant to today –
considering it was written before social media and the way the media portrayed Adam Goodes? How would
you rewrite Rule 35 to prevent any future vilification of footballers, umpires, officials or supporters attending
football games?
5. Recently, a statue of Nicky Winmar's iconic stand against racism was unveiled in WA. What impact do you
think this statue will have on future generations of Australians?
6. Does your school have a Reconciliation Action Plan? Identify some actions you can do at your school to
strengthen your school's respect, relationships and opportunities for reconciliation. Encourage each other to
have the courage to call out racism and to educate people about the effect their words can have.

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Effects of Racism on Individuals and Communities:

Participation and discrimination in sport and Aboriginal Health and racism outline some of the impact of racism in
sport on the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal Peoples. Complete the table below, identifying the physical and
mental health impacts that can be associated with racism by individuals.

Physical health impacts Mental health impacts

 Activity: Write a TEEL paragraph explaining how racism impacts on Aboriginal communities.

Gender Issues in Sport for Aboriginal People

● Read the article Sport can be an important part of Aboriginal culture for women – but many barriers remain.
Identify the barriers to Aboriginal women’s participation in sport
● Research strategies, programs and opportunities for Aboriginal women to participate in sport. Do these
programs offer opportunities to overcome or address racism?
● Create a poster (you may wish to use Canva for this) to promote sport among Aboriginal women. Research
the AFL Womens (AFLW) and the “Making her mark” program. Identify and analyse the role of these
programs as a means of addressing gender issues in Aboriginal communities. Your poster should include
information on the benefits of sport including health, identity and gender equity.

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Catch up