'Bringing Them Home' Report and the Apology

Active learning works well for this topic because it involves complex, emotionally charged history and policy that students need to process through discussion, collaboration, and critical analysis. When students engage with primary sources, debate perspectives, and construct timelines, they move beyond abstract facts to understand human impacts and political processes.

• Year 12
• Modern History
• 4 activities
• 35 min–50 min

Learning Objectives

1. Analyze the primary findings and recommendations of the 'Bringing Them Home' report.
2. Evaluate the historical context and impact of the 2008 National Apology to the Stolen Generations.
3. Critique the ongoing challenges and successes in achieving reconciliation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
4. Synthesize information from primary and secondary sources to construct an argument about the report's significance.
5. Compare the stated intentions of assimilation policies with their documented outcomes for Indigenous children and families.

Jigsaw

⏱ 50 min·Small Groups

Jigsaw: Report Recommendations

Assign small groups to study one key recommendation from the report, such as reparations or apologies. Groups prepare summaries and evidence of outcomes. Regroup into mixed 'teaching' teams where experts share, then discuss overall impact on reconciliation.

Prepare & details

Assess the significance of the 'Bringing Them Home' report in raising national awareness.

Facilitation Tip: In Jigsaw Expert Groups, assign each group one recommendation from the report so students focus on specific evidence before synthesizing the full picture.

Setup: Flexible seating for regrouping

Materials: Expert group reading packets, Note-taking template, Summary graphic organizer

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

Philosophical Chairs

⏱ 45 min·Small Groups

Carousel Rotation: Apology Sources

Set up stations with Rudd's speech excerpts, Indigenous responses, media clippings, and policy documents. Small groups spend 8 minutes per station noting symbolic vs practical elements. Conclude with whole-class synthesis of significance.

Prepare & details

Analyze the symbolic and practical importance of the 2008 National Apology.

Facilitation Tip: For Carousel Rotation, place apology sources at stations so students move between documents, noting patterns and contradictions in language and tone.

Setup: Room divided into two sides with clear center line

Materials: Provocative statement card, Evidence cards (optional), Movement tracking sheet

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Formal Debate

⏱ 40 min·Pairs

Formal Debate: Reconciliation Progress

Pairs prepare arguments for and against the Apology's effectiveness using report data and current stats. Debate in whole class with timed rebuttals. Vote and reflect on evidence gaps.

Prepare & details

Critique the ongoing challenges in achieving full reconciliation for the Stolen Generations.

Facilitation Tip: During Structured Debate, provide students with a clear rubric that rewards evidence-based reasoning over rhetorical flourish to keep discussions focused.

Setup: Two teams facing each other, audience seating for the rest

Materials: Debate proposition card, Research brief for each side, Judging rubric for audience, Timer

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Decision-Making

Philosophical Chairs

⏱ 35 min·Small Groups

Interactive Timeline: From Inquiry to Apology

Small groups research and plot events on a class timeline, adding quotes, images, and 'what if' branches for unheeded recommendations. Present to class for critique.

Prepare & details

Assess the significance of the 'Bringing Them Home' report in raising national awareness.

Facilitation Tip: Use the Interactive Timeline to have students physically place key events on a classroom wall timeline, which helps them visualize gaps and causality.

Setup: Room divided into two sides with clear center line

Materials: Provocative statement card, Evidence cards (optional), Movement tracking sheet

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Teaching This Topic

Teachers should approach this topic with sensitivity to trauma and avoid reducing it to a linear narrative of progress. Use primary sources to humanize the experience while maintaining academic rigor. Research shows that when students engage with multiple perspectives—including government responses and survivor testimonies—they develop critical thinking about reconciliation. Avoid oversimplifying the apology as a solution; frame it as one step in an ongoing process.

What to Expect

Successful learning looks like students accurately interpreting primary sources, distinguishing between symbolic acts and substantive change, and connecting historical injustices to contemporary issues. They should articulate how policy choices reflect or fail to reflect the needs of affected communities.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Jigsaw Expert Groups, watch for statements that assume the 2008 Apology fully addressed Stolen Generations injustices.

What to Teach Instead

After groups share their recommendations, ask them to evaluate which ones were implemented and which were not, using Rudd’s speech as evidence to contrast symbolic language with policy gaps.

Common Misconception

During Structured Debate, watch for claims that the 'Bringing Them Home' report immediately led to the Apology.

What to Teach Instead

Provide students with a decade timeline of political responses to the report and have them cite specific events, such as Howard’s rejection, to build causal reasoning.

Common Misconception

During Carousel Rotation, watch for assertions that Stolen Generations impacts ended decades ago.

What to Teach Instead

Ask students to find contemporary data or testimonies in the sources, then have them link these to long-term effects discussed in the report’s findings.

Assessment Ideas

Discussion Prompt

After Jigsaw Expert Groups, facilitate a class discussion where students cite evidence from their assigned recommendations to evaluate how effectively they have been addressed since 1997.

Exit Ticket

During Carousel Rotation, ask students to write on an index card: 'One key finding from the 'Bringing Them Home' report that surprised me is...' and 'One question I still have about the National Apology or reconciliation is...'

Quick Check

After the Interactive Timeline, present students with three short statements related to the Stolen Generations or the Apology and ask them to identify each as 'Fact,' 'Opinion,' or 'Interpretation,' justifying their choice for one statement.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge early finishers to research an international example of reparations or truth-telling and compare it to Australia’s approach.
• Scaffolding for struggling students: Provide sentence starters for debates like, 'One example of progress is... but a limitation is...' to structure their thinking.
• Deeper exploration: Have students interview a local Indigenous community member or elder (if appropriate) about contemporary impacts and record their findings in a short report.

Key Vocabulary

Stolen Generations	Refers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were forcibly removed from their families and communities by government agencies and church missions under policies of assimilation.
Bringing Them Home Report	The 1997 report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families, which documented the history and impact of forced removals and made recommendations for redress.
National Apology	The formal apology made by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in the Australian Parliament on 13 February 2008 to the Stolen Generations, acknowledging the wrongs of past government policies.
Reconciliation	The process of building better relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, aiming to address past injustices and create a more equitable future.
Assimilation Policy	A government policy aimed at absorbing Indigenous populations into the dominant culture, often involving the suppression of Indigenous languages, cultures, and family structures.