Australia’s Forgotten Children
- Details
- Category: Books
- Hits: 2031
Bartholomew, Robert E. (2012).
Australia’s Forgotten Children: The Corrupt State of Education in the Northern Territory. A Case Study of Educational Apartheid at an Aboriginal Pretend School.
Pukekohe, New Zealand, 220 pp. ISBN 978-0-473-21447-0
The only book of its kind on the subject, this seminal study documents institutionalized racism by the Northern Territory Education Department which waited months to remove asbestos from an Indigenous school, knowing full-well that children were reported to be playing with it – despite urgent pleas by health authorities – and how they covered it up and misled the Ombudsman.
Also documented is how the Department fabricated claims about Immigration documentation to get rid of ‘troublesome’ teachers, and how CEO Gary Barnes gave false information to the Justice Department. It is shown how the Department maintains lower standards of health, safety and education for Indigenous students than they do for ‘white’ students.
Also documented is how the Department punishes teachers who attempt to raise these standards by closing ranks and sabotaging their careers. Using over 1,200 Freedom of Information Act documents, it is proven that the Department used a secret blacklist to get rid of teachers who challenged the system. Also documented is how the Department misrepresents attendance, animal abuse, violence among students, general educational neglect, and the complacent role of Charles Darwin University.