Cultural competence in Indigenous Australian social work: What’s needed in preparing human service practitioners to work effectively with Indigenous Australian people?

Social work as a profession has a negative history working with Indigenous people in Australia. The history of child removals ‘based on race’ is a practice sorely acknowledged by the discipline who, in the past contributed to removals. It did this through enacting the government policies of colonisation including Segregation, Protection and Assimilation. However, it appears not much has changed in Australia with Indigenous child removal rates at levels much higher than for non-Indigenous children, along with higher rates of out-of-home care. In considering the impact of child removals on the continuation of Indigenous kinship, cultures and community values, this paper examines research into the educational experiences of practitioners, in preparing for work in Indigenous social work contexts. It discusses the impacts of colonialism on Indigenous peoples, contemporary approaches to the education of practitioners in the human services, and the current focus on developing cultural competencies for effective practice in Indigenous contexts. The findings presented are based on a qualitative Masters Research project at the University of South Australia, conducted and lead by Indigenous researchers. The findings will inform future directions for educating human service professionals with recommendations for curriculum design, pedagogy and delivery.