Wyndham change-maker program
The Commissioner for Children and Young People worked collaboratively with the Wyndham Youth Aboriginal Corporation to develop and deliver a culturally inclusive training program focused on Aboriginal community research.
The key purpose was to provide Aboriginal young people with the opportunity to develop skills that enable Aboriginal children and young people to be given a voice and be heard whilst creating opportunities for future employment.
Overview
"Wyndham Youth Aboriginal Corporation supported by the Commissioner for Children and Young People offered us the chance to put in an application to complete their change-maker program. The program matters to us because we want to make sure every child in Wyndham has a positive leader in their life – and we think we could be that role." Program participant
A group of Aboriginal young people, one non-Aboriginal young person and mentors participated in the three-day Aboriginal community research training program. The program was part of the Wyndham change-maker youth leadership program developed and delivered by the Wyndham Youth Aboriginal Corporation.
The training program involved:
- Two days online Aboriginal community research training developed and delivered as five modules by Ninti One. The modules provided insight into designing and conducting research and analysing data in a culturally appropriate way.
- One day designing and implementing their own consultation processes around the question: What do Wyndham youth want?
Implementation
Wyndham Youth Aboriginal Corporation (WYAC) and the Commissioner for Children and Young People worked together to develop a program that was culturally secure, locally appropriate as well as being directed and endorsed by the Wyndham Aboriginal Community.
In collaboration with Ninti One, WYAC and the Commissioner's team developed the learning materials and designed an implementation process that was both culturally appropriate and COVID-19 safe.
Wyndham youth completed an intensive community research training program supported locally by staff from from WYAC and the Commissioner's office. This training enabled them to have a stronger voice for Wyndham children and young people, through the gathering of quantitative and qualitative evidence.
The Wyndham Youth Advisory Group meet on a regular basis to continue to develop their leadership skills through the Wyndham change-makers program, and progress the youth agenda with service providers in the Wyndham community.
Process
Step 1: Engagement (self-determination)
Identify a local organisation that has a strong commitment to:
- genuine engagement with the Aboriginal community, including the willingness to speak with Elders and to follow their lead at all times
- providing children and young people with a voice
- being flexible, supportive and culturally appropriate.
Step 2: Valuing others
- As a partnership, design a program that delivers against the vision of the Elders and Aboriginal Community.
- Use a transparent process for selecting participants, including encouraging and supporting potential applicants.
- Identify funding to pay young people for their participation.
Step 3: Training program (upskilling for employment)
Five modules delivered to young people online by culturally sensitive researchers and supported locally by a qualified teacher (Commissioner for Children and Young People staff member) and local content expert (WYAC):
- Introduction to research
- Research design
- Collecting data
- Analysing data
- Good practice in research.
Total time online learning: 10-15 hours
Four practical sessions facilitated by qualified teacher (Commissioner for Children and Young People staff member) and local content expert (WYAC):
- Preparing a research/consultation design brief
- Presenting the results of a survey
- Preparing a mixed method of consultation – What do the youth of Wyndham want?
- Collecting data using mixed methods of consultation including quantitative (survey) and qualitative (mind map, tree of knowledge and river of change) methods.
Total time: 10-15 hours
Data analysis and report writing (5-10 hours)
Step 4: Opportunities (voice of children and young people)
Look for real opportunities for young people to utilise their newly acquired skillset. Ensure they are supported as they learn through doing.
Project outcomes
The Aboriginal Leadership Cross-Cultural Solutions program provided a valuable opportunity for young people develop their confidence and leadership capacity.
Through the program, the students discussed and developed their ideas on the:
- biggest concerns in their communities
- opportunities they would like to see for young people in their communities
- importance of roles models
- the role of young people, services and community members to address the issues of concern.
Read more on the ideas developed by the students here.
Students completed an evaluation following each session to share what they had learnt and what they gained from participating in the program. The quotes from students below highlight some of their key learnings and feedback.
“I have learnt that Aboriginal people feel very, very strongly about their culture and the problems that affect their young very negatively.”
“I have learned that we must work together and that our voices have to be listened to and that we must set high expectations and rise to meet them.”
“[I learnt] that we have a right to be heard and there a lot of issues in our community that we can help get heard.”
“There needs to be Aboriginal led and run organisations to make change and empower our mob and give knowledge to grassroot mobs.”
“Meeting people at the Forum was a great opportunity; adults really listened to what we had to say, our views on what we want for the future.”
“The thing I liked most about today is how my words were listened to and acknowledged.”
“[I enjoyed] Going to the forum to meet Aboriginal leaders from around Australia and having the honour to listen to what they had to say.”
“I enjoyed the fact that people who contribute to the community took time out of their [day] to listen to what we had to say.”
“It was an amazing opportunity and helped with my leadership skills and confidence and I think more people should have that chance.”
The feedback from students demonstrates how important it is for young people to be given the opportunity to share their views and ideas and create solutions to the issues they identify as important in their community. The program presents a model other agencies or groups could use to develop young community leaders.
Next steps
August-December 2020
Complete youth consultations and develop a Wyndham Youth Strategic Plan.
This plan will help map out what the priorities are for youth in Wyndham and assess current and proposed youth programs/projects against those priorities.
2021
Continue regular monthly training with WYAC and look for employment opportunities to conduct community consultations for census, research organisations, and agencies. This will ensure local information is protected and used for the right reasons to make positive change for the Wyndham Aboriginal Community as well as giving a strong voice to our children and young people.