This Copyright Agency initiative provides dedicated resources to support the teaching of Australian books in schools.
Jenny Ryan from Reading Australia talks us through the aims of this initiative and how they work to support teachers around Australia.
What is Reading Australia, and what does it offer?
Reading Australia is a Copyright Agency initiative to encourage and support the teaching and reading of Australian literature in schools.
Launched in 2013, Reading Australia has grown considerably, with resources added every year to our online platform. There are currently nearly 300 freely available teaching resources for Australian fiction, poetry, plays, non-fiction and graphic novels, covering Foundation to Senior Secondary. These are curriculum mapped units of work written for teachers, by teachers, ready to be taught in full or adapted to students’ needs. They include curriculum codes, sample classroom and assessment activities, and links to other relevant online resources to assist with teaching and engaging students.
The titles on Reading Australia are selected by Australian literature and literacy experts, teachers and teacher librarians, First Nations writing representatives, and diverse sector representatives.
Teachers can register for a free account to bookmark their favourite resources and make notes for future reference. We issue a newsletter every six weeks highlighting the latest resources and other opportunities for students and teachers.
With all genres and periods of Australia’s literary history covered, teachers can find a wide range of Australian stories suitable for primary and secondary students, original online resources, and insightful essays on the Reading Australia website.
Why is it important to teach Australian texts in schools?
We believe that every society needs to tell its own stories, and the best way we can achieve this is to provide quality and insightful resources to support English and literacy teachers in bringing Australia’s rich and unique literature into classrooms.
Reading Australia champions Australia’s rich literary history and presents thoughtful, stimulating, challenging and sometimes provocative literary works. These reflect the stories we tell as a nation and connect teachers with diverse and robust voices. While we do not always share or endorse the views of titles on Reading Australia, we believe these works should be available for all Australian readers and students.
What are some of the challenges facing Australian teachers at the moment? What are the opportunities?
We often hear from teachers that managing their workload is a constant challenge. Introducing new material requires time, which is why so many teachers find themselves sticking to the classics and the ‘tried-and-tested’ titles. By providing curriculum-mapped resources for more contemporary literature, Reading Australia aims to help make lesson planning less of a chore.
As teachers are encouraged to introduce students to more work by First Nations writers, this presents a valuable opportunity to bring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices into the classroom. However, many non-Indigenous teachers still do not feel well equipped (or lack the confidence) to teach these texts. Reading Australia has 80 teaching resources for books by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers, written and/or reviewed by First Nations educators, to help teachers and students deeply engage with these texts. These have been compiled in our catalogue of First Nations texts for the classroom, alongside fiction and non-fiction recommendations from 23 Australian publishers.
Find out more about Reading Australia and explore their range of teaching resources via their website: readingaustralia.com.au