Power and authority in school and community: Interactions between non-Indigenous teachers and Indigenous teacher assistants in remote Australian schools

Traditionally, education for Indigenous peoples within the Australian context has had a highly Eurocentric flavour (Matthews et al. 2005; Rothbaum et al. 2000). As such, many Indigenous people who form part of this education system have found themselves in positions where communication has lacked cultural understandings and clarity, leaving them with undefined roles of minimal cultural significance. This has contributed to a sense of disempowerment for those Indigenous people who otherwise hold positions of power, respect and value within their own communities (Zajda et al. 2008b).