Indigenous Education (Targeted Assistance) Act 2000

This Act allows the Minister to make an agreement with an education provider or other person or body authorising the making of payments.

For an agreement with an education provider, the payments may be for recurrent expenditure of the provider in those years, for ABSTUDY approved courses run by the provider in those years or for particular projects.

For an agreement with another person or body, the payments may be for particular projects.

The payments under an agreement must be for advancing the objects of this Act.

The amount of the payments must be specified in the agreement or worked out in accordance with the agreement.

If there is a breach of a condition in an agreement, the Minister may require an amount to be repaid to the Commonwealth. If the amount is not repaid, other payments under the agreement may be reduced or the Commonwealth may recover an amount as a debt.

is provided through a mixture of distance education and either or both of the following:

residential education;

face‑to‑face education; and

is provided at a higher education provider or a vocational education and training institution; and

is approved as a mixed mode away‑from‑base course under the ABSTUDY Scheme.

publicising this Act, its objects and how it achieves those objects;

monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of this Act in advancing its objects;

monitoring or evaluating the effectiveness of an agreement made under this Act in advancing the objects of this Act.

a State or Territory; or

a university or other institution providing post‑secondary education; or

a person or body conducting, or associated with, an educational system or educational institution; or

a person qualified to carry out research, or give advice, about education.

a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia; or

a descendant of the Indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.

If there is only one such party, references in this Act to each other party, or to one of the other parties, are taken to be references to that party.

is a registered training organisation (within the meaning of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011); and

provides VET courses (within the meaning of that Act); and

is not conducted for profit.

arrangements for the adequate preparation of Indigenous children for primary and later schooling through preschool education; and

arrangements enabling Indigenous children to attain, through compulsory primary and secondary education, commensurate skills and standards of skills as those attained by other Australian children; and

arrangements enabling Indigenous secondary students to attain the same rate of successful completion of Year 12, or its equivalents, as that attained by other Australian secondary students; and

arrangements enabling Indigenous students participating in post‑secondary education to attain the same graduation rates as those attained by other students so participating; and

developing programs to support the maintenance and continued use of the languages of Indigenous people; and

the provision of community education services to enable Indigenous people to manage the development of their communities; and

arrangements enabling Indigenous students to attain better literacy and numeracy skills, and to attain better attendance outcomes, through access to priority Commonwealth education initiatives and strategic projects; and

arrangements for education that will enable Indigenous adults with limited or no educational experience to attain proficiency in numeracy, the English language and life skills; and

education enabling Indigenous students to appreciate the history, culture and identity of Indigenous people; and

education enabling all Australian students to understand and appreciate the traditional and contemporary culture of Indigenous people.

that Indigenous children who are below primary school age enjoy equality with other Australian children of that age in their access to preschool education; and

that all Indigenous children have local access to compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and

that Indigenous people have equitable access to other secondary and post‑secondary education.

the participation of Indigenous children in preschool education for a period similar to that during which other Australian children participate in that education; and

that all Indigenous children participate in compulsory primary and secondary schooling; and

that the rate of participation of Indigenous people in other secondary and post‑secondary education is equivalent to that of other Australians.

the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous parents and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of preschool, primary and secondary education for Indigenous children; and

the establishment of effective arrangements for the participation of Indigenous students and other Indigenous people in decisions concerning the planning, delivery and evaluation of post‑school education to Indigenous people; and

an increase in the number of Indigenous people who are employed or otherwise involved in education:

as administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers; and

as special teachers of the culture, history, contemporary society and languages of Indigenous people;

the provision of education and training to develop the skills of Indigenous people that are relevant to their participation in the making of decisions concerning education; and

the development of arrangements to secure independent advice from communities of Indigenous people concerning educational decisions to be taken at local, regional, State and Territory, and national levels.

the development of curricula that are suited to:

the education of Indigenous students; and

the training of professional educators (including administrators, teachers, teaching assistants, researchers, student services officers, curriculum advisers and community liaison officers) who are involved in the education of Indigenous students; and

the development of teaching methods and techniques that are suited to the learning styles of Indigenous students; and

the promotion of research to devise innovative methods to deliver education services to Indigenous students; and

the promotion of research to devise methods to eliminate barriers to educational attainment encountered by Indigenous students; and

the conduct of pilot studies to test the effectiveness of the methods referred to in paragraphs (c) and (d).

The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with an education provider that does one or more of the following:

authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for its recurrent expenditure in one or more specified funding years that is for the purpose of advancing the objects of this Act;

authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider for one or more specified ABSTUDY approved courses that are run by the provider in one or more specified funding years;

authorises the making of one or more payments to the provider, or to another person or body, for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.

The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for recurrent expenditure for each funding year covered by the agreement must be:

specified in the agreement; or

worked out in accordance with the agreement.

The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each ABSTUDY approved course covered by the agreement must be:

specified in the agreement; or

worked out in accordance with the agreement.

The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:

specified in the agreement; or

worked out in accordance with the agreement.

The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, publish details of any agreement made under this section.

The Minister may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, make an agreement with a person or body (including an education provider) authorising the making of one or more payments to the person or body for one or more specified projects whose purpose is to advance the objects of this Act.

The amount or amounts of the one or more payments for each project covered by the agreement must be:

specified in the agreement; or

worked out in accordance with the agreement.

The Minister must not make an agreement under section 10 unless the agreement specifies the following commitments by each other party:

a commitment to advance the objects of this Act;

a commitment to achieve the performance targets.

The agreement may also specify other commitments.