Anma, Marpla and Ngapartji Ngapartji: Insights Into how to do Research Together in ‘Good Faith’

This paper is a reflection and discussion on doing decolonising research in the intercultural space. It flows from a larger PhD research study on pathways for Indigenous people from remote communities into teacher education. Academic research is steeped in western colonised traditions and behaviours. Conscious of this, it was important while undertaking the work toward this thesis to pay attention to the process of working together within the research. This came out of a desire to embody rather than observe cultural and ethical guidelines about doing research involving Indigenous people and knowledge systems. Through a series of interrupting tools used throughout the work, some key insights were captured that were significant in illustrating one process for collaborative decolonizing research. Three insights in particular stood out as guides for how to do decolonising research in the intercultural space. This paper will explain and discuss these three areas and their implications for working in what Verran (2013) calls ‘good faith’.