Bejai is among a group of Indigenous students from Wauchope High School on the New South Wales mid-north coast, part of a unique program that teaches cultural education at local primary schools.

For Bejai, the Birpai Buddies program enables him to nurture pride and love of country in his younger peers, like his grandparents fostered within him.

"I was taught a lot of traditional things and I want to pass it on," Bejai said.

"It makes me feel like I'm a part of something that's actually worth doing."

Birpai Buddies was hatched by a group of passionate educators, who saw a need for cultural education to be interwoven into everyday school life.  

The program involves several Wauchope High students attending Beechwood and Huntingdon primary schools on alternating weeks to facilitate different cultural activities. 

About 20% of Wauchope High School's students are Indigenous, according to the school's latest annual report.

Wauchope High's Aboriginal education officer (AEO) Samantha McKinnon said the large number of Indigenous students at her school, and at others across the region, was one of the reasons she wanted to help embed a permanent program.

In 2021, Ms McKinnon teamed up with nearby Beechwood Primary School to develop a cross-school pilot program.

The aim was to help smaller outlying primary schools, with fewer opportunities for cultural education, while developing her students' leadership skills at the same time.

"Our community elders, or language and cultural arts experts, are spread quite thin across our area, so for schools to be able to engage specialists consistently wasn't always achievable", Ms McKinnon said.

"We can't be everywhere, but together we can grow everyone."

Beechwood Public School's AEO Toni Corrigan, a proud Gan Akani woman, said she had watched her students and the older kids develop a strong cultural identity since implementing Birpai Buddies.

"We have a lot of children who weren't 100 per cent sure what being Aboriginal meant and weren't connected to culture or community, and they are now starting to connect with all of those things," she said.

A love of culture and country continues to play out in the school yard at Beechwood.

Wiradjuri girl Lucy Williams is among a group of primary students playing a game in Gathang language with 13-year-old Birpai, Dunghutti and Worimi student Laylah McKinnon.

From learning language to playing traditional games like foxtail throwing, Lucy said she loved learning from students like Laylah. 

"I look up to Laylah and the high school kids because they do it in a much more fun way and explain it better," Lucy said.

"I want to be a leader when I go to high school so everyone can look up to me." 

Sharing her culture and seeing it embraced by Lucy and other primary students fills Laylah with confidence that the passing on of cultural knowledge will continue. 

"It makes me feel good when I show little kids what I know," Laylah said.

"I think when they enjoy it they will share it and pass it on to others."

Beechwood Primary principal Sam Small (Above) said he wanted to nurture the pride in culture that the Birpai Buddies program had imbibed within its students.

"They're really proud to be Aboriginal and that's our job as public educators," he said.

Mr Small said there were further plans to consult with parents to better inform the school's cultural program and include the broader Aboriginal community, as part of its Reconciliation Action Plan.

Original Story By | Wiriya Sati