Gary Ferteis


Melina Johnson, Shiralee Davies and
teacher Tahnee Rossiter

“This is the first generation of Indigenous children who are really getting a good crack at education,” says Gary Ferteis, a teacher at Kununurra District High School in the Kimberley.

“Their grandparents got hardly any education and their parents were basically told to shut up and listen.”

“These days the kids are encouraged to participate; the process is far more interactive. What we are trying to encourage, along with motivation and self-discipline, is a desire to learn.”

“Only recently,” Gary continues, “have we begun to fulfil the aims and expectations of Indigenous children. And one of the ways we’re doing that is with the ‘Follow the Dream’ programme.”

Gary is standing in the middle of a bright, airy, ultra-modern classroom equipped with more than a dozen computers, its glass partitions plastered with colourful posters telling stories from such diverse sources as Edward Lear, Indigenous American tribes, William Shakespeare – and Aboriginal peoples in the Kimberley.

About 15 Indigenous students are either quietly studying at tables scattered about the room or working on the computers.

Like ‘Gumala Mirnuwarni’ in the Pilbara and ‘Partnerships for Success’ in Carnarvon, ‘Follow The Dream’ is targeted at Indigenous children to help them complete their homework after school and to encourage them in their studies.

“One of the programme’s aims is to persuade these kids that education holds a future; that it can mean advanced employment opportunities or the chance to go to university,” Gary explains.

“About 20 kids are currently involved in the programme, most of who turn up four afternoons a week to complete their homework assignments and do some research on the net. Some of them don’t have a home environment that allows them to do much study. It’s much easier for them to work here.”

There’s no doubt it’s a good place to study. Gary’s classroom is situated in a state-of-the-art Performing Arts Centre located at the rear of the High School campus. The centre boasts a large auditorium with advanced staging and lighting facilities for dramatic performance along with a number of spacious, modern classrooms like Gary’s.

Gary is enthusiastic about ‘Follow the Dream’. “You build up a close relationship with the kids and their families,” he says. “The whole reason for being a teacher is you want to see kids improve and to make a difference and ‘Follow the Dream’ can do that.”