Research Library
The MilbaDjunga (Smart Money) Programme
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Description of the programme
MilbaDjunga is a consumer and financial literacy programme which provides an interactive website for teachers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATI) students. The programme consists of resources for teachers and interactive online learning components for students.
The programme aimed to improve the consumer and financial literacy skills of ATI students in school year levels 5-8. Unit 1 was targeted towards primary school students and aimed at developing understanding of money, role of banks in society, budgets, credit and savings. Unit 2 was targeted towards secondary school students and introduced the concepts of obtaining money through work or microenterprise.
The programme was delivered in 17 schools in Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia reaching 615 students, 347 of whom were ATI.
The study
The study reports on the use of MilbaDjunga and the learning outcomes for students from six schools across Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia that used the programme in 2010 or 2011.
The study explores the context to the development of the programme, and efforts to increase levels of financial inclusion in ATI communities. It provides an in-depth focus on Gunbalanya, a remote ATI community in the Northern Territory to highlight the challenges for the development of the financial capabilities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders living in remote communities.
Qualitative methods were used, specifically in-depth interviews with 38 students and 6 teachers. Programme stakeholders were also consulted.
Key findings
- Students learned the concepts of budgeting, saving and needs vs. wants, and reported learning to set goals.
- Students reported increased confidence with money.
- Students reported increased organisation skills and confidence in meeting goals.
- There was increased interaction between parents and children due to practical programme elements (e.g. paying bills and buying groceries).
Other benefits included positive impacts on class attendance and behaviour however, these benefits usually ceased with the programme.
One of the main factors attributed to success was the enthusiasm of teachers, their ownership of the programme and resources available to them.
The programme was more successful in urban areas, compared to remote locations. Low levels of school attendance, health challenges and reduced opportunities made programme delivery difficult in many areas. Many of the concepts did not transfer well to students with parents involved in the Northern Territory Emergency Response, income management initiative.
Points to consider
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders face extreme challenges in working towards financial inclusion, especially those living in remote communities.
- The efforts to help address the gap between ATI and non-ATI Australians in levels of economic participation and financial capabilities are multi-faceted, long-term and need to be targeted at all age groups.
- There are strict principles that guide the research with ATI populations as they are a vulnerable and over-researched group. Low levels of literacy and other cultural factors often make the use of standard research instruments such as surveys inappropriate. This informed the use of the case study methodology in this research.
- Numbers are small and findings should be interpreted with caution.