Shifting perspectives about Aboriginal health and history: using digital archives in an online role play

This paper describes the implementation of an online role-play that provides participants with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the socio-political context of public health on a Victorian Aboriginal settlement between the 1860's and the mid 1880's. A powerful innovation in the role-play is electronic access to primary historical sources that inform character development and interaction. Role-play provides strong instructional guidance complemented by exploration and discovery-based learning. Evaluation of the role-play indicated that students experienced the role-play as an efficient, effective and engaging way to learn about the subject matter. Overall, the role-play worked as a powerful learning vehicle to shift student perspectives on Aboriginal health and history.