Despite the lack of evidence in the field of animal-assisted interventions (AAI) with people from refugee or CALD backgrounds, QPASTT started introducing canine assisted interventions with a trained staff handler in early 2022, after over a year of preparatory work and consultation. QPASTT’s experience has shown that is important to have an understanding of cultural and religious views, and specific health needs to inform risk management planning. However it also highlights the importance of keeping a person-centred approach as clients and staff’ choice to engage with a therapy dog is a personal process that may not align with the predominant views in their cultural, family or religious backgrounds. When working with survivors of systemic oppression, violence and war, particular considerations must be fulfilled in utilising canine assisted interventions to ensure safety, choice and individual needs have been attended to.
The presentation will detail QPASTT experience, the risks that need to be considered and the benefits observed. Considering the presence of a therapy dog is growing in popularity and practice in schools, the learnings from the presentation are likely to inform the practice of professionals working with people from refugee backgrounds and considering or already utilizing animal assisted interventions.

The Self-Regulation Service (SRS) is a multidisciplinary team of Occupational Therapists, Psychologists, and Educators focused on capacity building of education staff in South Australian department schools and preschools to support student regulation in order to increase engagement and participation with learning. The Catalogue of Services includes a diverse array of professional learning sessions aimed at supporting student emotional literacy, sensory processing. All professional learning sessions are followed by coaching to support implementation/reflection.

A Two-Way learning approach blended the clinical and education expertise from our service with the cultural and community expertise of local Aboriginal leaders and educators to create culturally responsive adaptations of our current catalogue of services that are meaningful to Aboriginal learners.

At the core of the Two-Way learning process lay recognition of profound historical and ongoing trans-generational trauma within these communities, coupled with an understanding of the cultural appropriateness surrounding the communication of emotions and body cues. This paved the way for the development of culturally responsive workshops, informed by community insights and findings from national research reports on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and wellbeing while maintaining a strong clinical and educational evidence informed foundation.

Highlighting the holistic wellness paradigm of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals, sessions delved into the interconnectedness of spiritual, physical, emotional, familial, communal, and ancestral domains. This comprehensive understanding culminated in the development of training packages that addressed strategies for externalising emotions and body cues and linked energy levels, sensory processing, and the window of tolerance.

This presentation will focus on the process and resources used when developing these packages of professional learning and how schools tailored their teaching. To ensure cultural relevance, visuals such as local animals and energy meters were utilised, fostering consistency of language and strategies. This utilised both Aboriginal English and local languages, enhancing communication and understanding among students and educators alike with regards to regulation.

Participants will understand the process utilised by SRS, the importance of Two-Way learning and partnership with the local community to develop relevant, evidence-based, and culturally responsive professional learning for schools with large Aboriginal cohorts.

References:
Commonwealth of Australia 2017. National Strategic Framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ Mental Health and Social and Emotional Wellbeing. Canberra: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Keeping Our Kids Safe: Cultural Safety and the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations

The significant attainment gap for students living in statutory care in Victoria highlights the critical need to commit to evidence-based teaching approaches delivered through a trauma responsive lens. Progress and attainment data, combined with early leaver data for students living in Out-of-Home Care shines a light on the challenges facing our education system when it comes to improving learning outcomes for vulnerable students.

In 2022 The LOOKOUT Centre in SWVR in collaboration with Equal Education UK delivered a targeted literacy pilot to address the attainment gap for children in care, to support transition into secondary school and to highlight that with the right approach, our children and young people with a care experience can progress and attain alongside their peers in mainstream education.

This pilot, shaped by trauma responsive practice placed attachment within the school environment at the forefront, with the understanding that safe, trusting relationships based on unconditional positive regard drive improved learning outcomes for children and young people who have experienced complex trauma.

The cohort of students participating in the tuition pilot program is not large enough to make statistical conclusions, however data collated indicated that when tutors focussed on developing a rapport with students, learning outcomes improved.

Carers spoke about the positive impact the pilot had on the students they were caring for and noted a significant increase in confidence and engagement with school. Additionally, students involved in this pilot were moving into secondary school. An increase in confidence and literacy attainment proved one of the steps towards a smooth transition.

In 2024, the partnership continues to develop as we seek to address Closing the Gap Targets 3 and 4, through developing inclusive practices that champions co-design and promotes Aboriginal voice across the department’s programs and projects through Dhelk Wukang.

The LOOKOUT Centre SWVR have commenced a second teaching and learning pilot that reflects the learnings and successes of the first pilot, but aims to address the significant attainment gap for our indigenous students in their middle years of Primary School in the Wimmera South-West area.

Our belief is that by developing a collaborative relationship between community and schools, utilising trauma aware teaching and learning approaches and implementing evidence-based literacy interventions there will be a reduction in the disproportionate gap between our indigenous and non-indigenous students with a care experience as well as strengthened relationships between school and local community in the Wimmera South-West area of Victoria.