Queensland born scholar and former Charles Darwin University (CDU) student, Dr Andrew Cameron, believes there is no one way to achieve success through study, but he does have some ideas.
The Doctor of Philosophy who recently completed his PhD thesis, Public Policy on Formal Education for Indigenous Australians in the Northern Territory, holds the quality of teaching and support facilities at CDU in high regard.
“I chose my course initially to record the perspective and values I had developed during my career in public education in PNG and the NT, and subsequently to develop a balanced factual record,” Dr Cameron said.
“The campus and teaching at CDU are something which will always remain fond and valued memories,” he said.
“The quality of academic supervision was first rate, and so was the support provided for me by the research unit and the library. In fact the CDU library staff still help me.”
When asked as to whether he had any words of wisdom for future students, Dr Cameron felt that it is imperative for students to take responsibility for their studies right from the outset.
“Establish study routines and adhere to them, keep a sense of humour and most importantly do not neglect your life outside study and work.”
Dr Cameron’s PhD study examined the ultimate failure of policy in the second half of the twentieth century to realise appropriate educational outcomes for most Indigenous Territorians. The premise was that cultural difference, between the public service providers and their Indigenous clients, was primarily responsible for that failure. The study applied policy theory and analysis to a succession of educational policy regimes in the Territory, locating these regimes in their historical context. Similarities and differences in other countries with indigenous minorities and history of Western colonisation were also examined. Some ideas potentially useful in the NT were noted.
Visit the Alumni website.