Yipirinya students in safe hands
ASCHOOL in Central Australia is leading the way towards a more cooperative future by showing how people from different backgrounds and language groups can work and learn together to create improved educational outcomes.
Yipirinya School in Alice Springs teaches four Indigenous languages, as well as English to more than 300 students.
Principal Gavin Morris said the distances some of the students travelled each morning was a testament to their love for the school.
“Our buses do 7500km a week and we pick up the kids from around the 17 town camps and further outstations, particularly to the north.
“We’re blending the two world systems together, two knowledge systems together to come up with a unique way to help our students stay in classrooms longer, to be more engaged with learning,” Mr Morris said.
“The school’s vision is and always has been about setting up a two-way school for Aboriginal town camp kids in a way that gets these kids to be leaders of Alice Springs in the future.”
Central Arrernte teacher and Elder Joyce Palmer has been at the school for the best part of a decade with her daughter and former student Sherry Lowah now working alongside her as a liaison co-ordinator.
“The kids love coming here every day. They feel at ease,” Ms Palmer said.
“All of the kids that come here, they all speak language.
“We got four languages here – Central Arrernte, Western Arrernte, Luritja and Warlpiri.
“It’s very important to keep our language and culture strong.”
With all the trouble going on in Central Australia and beyond, it’s encouraging to see how one school is making a positive difference in the lives of its students by guiding their teaching through the core principles of mutual respect, family, and connection to Country.
No doubt the students of Yipirinya School in Alice Springs are in safe hands.