Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander Unit Year 7 Date:

Lesson 2: Health related indigenous issues

In this lesson students will analyse statistics from
ABS surveys, along with videos and audio clips to
recognise health issues among the indigenous
population, identifying attributing factors.
Learning Focus:
Identify current trends and health related
issues among the indigenous population
Success Criteria:
I can describe factors that attribute to
indigenous health issues
VELS: Strands, Domain, Foci and Standard
Health and Physical Education:
In developing strategies to minimise harm and to protect their
own and others health, students consider health resources,
products and services, and the influences of the law, public
health programs, their conscience, community attitudes, and
religious beliefs. They begin to clarify a cohesive set of
personal values and how they could be used to improve their
health.
Location / Setting
lassroom
rganisation / Student !rou"s
!tudents to wor" in pairs
Classroom management strateg#
# $ormal classroom rules apply
# Hand up to spea"
# %ne person spea"s at a time
# &espect each other and property
# 'eep noise level low
$e# Voca%ular#
(boriginal
Torres !trait Islander

&aterials, 'esources and E(ui"ment
!tudent computers
'e)erences/Sources

http:))www.abs.gov.au)(*!!T(T!)abs+.nsf),oo"up)-./0./
1ain23eatures./1ar20/.40/
http:))youtu.be)5!6v7h88E-w40/
http:))www.healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au)health#facts)summary
40/
http:))www.youtube.com)watch9
v:$$'*;-s-'(g<feature:related
http:))www.abc.net.au)news)0//=#/-#0.)study#finds#poor#
indigenous#health#due#to#social).>56/./
I*T'DUCTI* + ,- minutes
Engagement, .arm U" /cti0ities
&/I* 1DY + 2- minutes
!uiding In(uir# and 3ractise
C*CLUSI* + ,-
S4aring, E5"laining and 'e0ie6ing In(uir#
Engage 7,- minutes8
Engage the class and introduce the topic play
the following ?ouTube clip over the pro7ector,
also ensuring the ,3 and ! have been copied
from the board:
http:))youtu.be)5!6v7h88E-w
3rom viewing the video, as" these @uestion to
generate class discussion:
.4# do #ou t4in9 /TSI are e5"eriencing a
4ealt4 ga":
;o6 can 6e <close t4e ga"=:
E5"lore 72- minutes8
Present the handout below to the students
A(B! C (ustralian !ocial Trends 0/..D
&ead through the handout as a class and answer the
attached @uestions in pairs.
E5"lain 7,- minutes8
onclude by going through answers as a class,
elaborating when needed.
(lso as" students to write an answer to the 'ey Euestion
of:
.4# is t4e li)e e5"ectanc# o) /TSI lo6er t4an t4at o)
ot4er /ustralians:
Finis4 6it4 >ournal entr# )or t4e lesson:
?toda# I learnt@A
'EFLECTI*:
.as t4e Learning Intention met:
READ THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS BELOW.
Australian Social Trens !ar "#$$
Source: %tt&'(())).a*s.+o,.au(AUSSTATS(a*s-.ns.(Loo/u&(0$#".#!ain1Features$#!ar1"#$$
LIFE E23ECTANC4 AT BIRTH
Since the late 1800s, life expectancy for Australian boys and girls has increased by over 30 years. During 1881-180, the average life
expectancy of a ne!born boy !as "#.$ years and that of a ne!born girl %0.8 years. &y $00#-$00, average life expectancy had risen to #.3
years for ne!born boys and 83. years for ne!born girls.
'ver the past 1$% years there have been changes in !hat Australians have died of, and the age at !hich they have died. (p until 13$,
infectious and parasitic diseases caused at least 10) of all deaths each year, !ith death rates fro* these diseases highest a*ong the very
young and very old. +*prove*ents in living conditions in the early $0th century, such as better !ater supplies, se!erage syste*s, food ,uality
and health education, led to overall lo!er death rates and longer life expectancy at all ages.
During the $0th century, degenerative diseases such as heart disease, stro-e and cancer replaced infectious and parasitic diseases as the *ain
cause of death of older people. .ot only had infection control *easures i*proved in *edical facilities, but public a!areness of the value of
preventative actions such as hand !ashing had gro!n. +ncreases in life expectancy at all ages in the second half of the $0th century have been
attributed to i*proving social conditions and advances in *edical technology such as *ass i**unisation and antibiotics.
/he past t!o decades have seen further increases in life expectancy. /hese increases have been partly due to lo!er infant *ortality, fe!er
young people dying in *otor vehicle accidents, and fe!er older *en dying fro* heart disease. /he reduction in deaths fro* heart disease has
been lin-ed to *edical advances and behavioural changes such as i*prove*ents in diet and less s*o-ing.
LIFE E23ECTANC4 AT BIRTH
Source0 A&S Australian 1istorical 2opulation Statistics $008 3cat. no. 310%.0.4%.00156 A&S Deaths, Australia, $00 3cat. no. 330$.05
Gener i..erences
+n Australia, as in *ost other countries, life expectancy at birth has generally been greater for girls than boys. Since the late 1800s, Australia7s
life expectancy gender gap has been !idest 3at about seven years5 in the 1#0s and early 180s. /he !idening gap !as largely due to a
significant decline in heart disease, stro-e and respiratory disease deaths a*ong !o*en co*bined !ith rising *ale death rates fro* circulatory
disease and chronic bronchitis, and a greater increase in the lung cancer death rate a*ong *ales than a*ong fe*ales bet!een 1%0 and
184. Since then, the gender gap in life expectancy at birth has narro!ed to around five years. /his narro!ing has been attributed to a decline
in *otor vehicle accident deaths a*ong young *en, a decline in ischae*ic heart disease a*ong older *en, and an increase in lung cancer
a*ong older !o*en.
ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER LIFE E23ECTANC4
8hile Australians can generally expect to live a relatively long life, there are differences bet!een population groups !ithin Australian society. +n
particular, life expectancy at birth for Aboriginal and /orres Strait +slander 3+ndigenous5 Australians is considerably lo!er than it is for other
Australians. 9sti*ates of life expectancy at birth for +ndigenous Australians are co**only used as a *easure for assessing +ndigenous
population health and disadvantage.
&ased on age-specific death rates prevailing during $00%-0#, life expectancy at birth for +ndigenous *ales is esti*ated to be 4#.$ years, !hich
is 11.% years less than life expectancy at birth for non-+ndigenous *ales 3#8.# years5. :ife expectancy at birth for +ndigenous fe*ales is
esti*ated to be #$. years, !hich is .# years less than life expectancy at birth for non-+ndigenous fe*ales 38$.4 years5. /he gap bet!een
+ndigenous and non-+ndigenous life expectancy for *ales is !ider in the .orthern /erritory 31".$ years5 and 8estern Australia 31".0 years5. +t is
also !ider bet!een +ndigenous and non-+ndigenous fe*ales in these t!o ;urisdictions 31$.% years in 8estern Australia and 11. years in the
.orthern /erritory5.
:ife expectancy at birth for +ndigenous *ales is esti*ated to be higher in .e! South 8ales 34. years5 than it is in the .orthern /erritory 341.%
years5. Si*ilarly, life expectancy at birth for +ndigenous fe*ales is also esti*ated to be higher in .e! South 8ales 3#%.0 years5 than in the
.orthern /erritory 34.$ years5.
Source0 A&S 9xperi*ental :ife /ables for Aboriginal and /orres Strait +slander Australians, $00%-$00# 3cat. no. 330$.0.%%.0035
2lot the life expectancy $00%-$00# data for +ndigenous *ales and +ndigenous fe*ales on the graph on the previous page. :abel it.
8hat do you observe<
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Figure 3. Proportions (%) of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people reporting diabetes as a long-term
health condition, by age-group (years) 2!-2"
Source: ABS, 2006 [12]
8hat observations can you *a-e fro* the above graph of diabetes in +ndigenous co*pared to non-+ndigenous people in Australia<
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8atch the follo!ing >ou/ube and listen to the A&? report.
Improving Aboriginal Health in Australia
http://www.youtube.com/watchv!""#$%&s&#Ag'feature!related ( min )* secs.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/)++,-+&-)(/study-finds-poor-indigenous-health-due-to-social/(*./+(+ 0audio1 2 mins
(se the infor*ation fro* this !or-sheet and the above sources and also other internet sites to list reasons !hy the health of +ndigenous people
is poorer than that of non-+ndigenous people and their life-expectancy shorter.
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