Abstract:
The Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME) is a structured educational program that gives Indigenous high school students access to an innovative and supportive, mentoring based initiative. Students who complete the AIME program have been proven to finish school and transition into employment or university at the same rate as every Australian student (AIME, 2015). Research on AIME has shown that it is contributing to increasing retention rates in schools as well as improved further education rates (AIME 2014; Bodkin-Andrews et al. 2013; Harwood et al. 2013). In addition to this, large-scale evaluation research conducted in 2012 showed a significant positive impact upon mentees who participated in the program (Harwood et al, 2013). In this presentation, I will explore my current research, which seeks to understand how the learning environment within AIME classrooms is cultivating a unique and positive ‘vibe’. This vibe has been created, and felt, across the country. My PhD project aims to understand and define the characteristics of this vibe, and explore how it has been shaped and it’s impact on those who experience it. ReferencesAustralian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME). (2014). 2014 Annual Report. Accessed from http://www.aimementoring.com/about/reports/.Bodkin-Andrews, G., Harwood, V., McMahon, S., & Priestly, A. (2013). AIM(E) for completing school and University: Analysing the strength of the Australian indigenous mentoring experience. In R. Craven & J. Mooney (Eds.), Seeding successin Indigenous Australian Higher education: What research says? New York: Emerald Publishing.Harwood, V., Bodkin-Andrews, G., Clapham, K., O’Shea, S., Wright, J., Kervin, L.,& McMahon, S. (2013). Evaluation of the AIME outreach program. Wollongong: University of Wollongong.