TY - JOUR AU - Lavery, Shane AU - Cain, Glenda Belle AU - Hampton, Patrick PY - 2018/07/20 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - Walk Beside me, Learn Together: A Service-Learning Immersion to a Remote Aboriginal School and Community JF - Australian and International Journal of Rural Education JA - AIJRE VL - 28 IS - 1 SE - JOURNAL PAPERS DO - 10.47381/aijre.v28i1.171 UR - https://journal.spera.asn.au/index.php/AIJRE/article/view/171 SP - 153-168 AB - <p>The aim of this study was to explore the potential of a service-learning immersion program to promote pre-service teachers' development of cultural competency in the area of Aboriginal education. That is, the research focused on ways the immersion program helped pre-service teachers (a) develop awareness of cultural implications in teaching in a remote school and (b) understand and respect Aboriginal people with a view to reconciliation. The program has operated since 2013 and occurs in a remote Aboriginal school and community in Western Australia.  The duration of the immersion is eight days and is open to early childhood, primary and secondary pre-service teachers. The underlying epistemology of the research is constructivist, specifically interpretivist in nature, with a symbolic interactionist lens. That is, the research attempts to 'give voice' to the participants through their own language.  Content analysis was the methodology used to explore the pre-service teachers' experiences and perceptions while undertaking their service-learning immersion.  Data collection methods included focus group interviews, participant journals and a questionnaire.These data were collected over a four-year span from 2014 to 2017. The findings indicate that the service-learning immersion has enabled pre-service teachers to explore their interests and passion to teach Aboriginal students in both rural and remote locations. </p> ER -