Indigenous People Stereotype Analysis

There are many stereotypes that are used to label indigenous people in the media. These representations can be positive or negative but both have an adverse effect on the way that we see the Indigenous community. By accepting any stereotype we reduce an entire community down to an inanimate object, which clouds our vision when looking at an individual person (Forrest, 2015b). Most Aboriginal people do not fit the stereotype that has been offered (Rodriguez, 2004), By believing these stereotypes a person would get the wrong idea about a person far more often than they would get the right one. In order to be a fair educator the first thing that I will have to do is forget everything that I think I know about a group or community and go in with an open mind. By doing this I will be able to better understand the community and interact more freely with the people there.
An individual’s personal background carries a big influence on the way that they learn. Aboriginal students are disadvantaged in the current schooling system as it differs so much from what they
Lynette Rodriguez recalls when she was a child she dropped out of school early because she believed that she was not clever enough to do anything academic with her life (Rodriguez, 2004). Identity is something that is created by people and effected by society. Currently some aspects of an individual’s perceived identity are corrupted due to negative stereotypes. Through strong leadership individuals can re-educate themselves to rebuild a stronger image of themselves (Oxenham et al., 1999). This is very important to remember when educating children because a negative self-image has a strong influence on academic enthusiasm. By building up a strong self-image an educator can make sure that children are able to reach their full