Lesley Walker remembers a time when male Aboriginal students at her school would walk past her in the playground without casting so much as a sideways glance.

“When I first got these boys from primary school they’d just pass me and that was it,” said Mrs Walker, an Aboriginal education assistant at Gorokan High School.

But now the same boys, who were nervous and shy upon entering Year 7, are outgoing ambassadors for their school – and seasoned performers – as part of the highly sought after Gorokan High Didgeridoo Group.

The group of Year 10 and 11 boys is regularly invited to perform at community events throughout the Hunter and Central Coast region and last year performed at Star Struck, the Nanga Mai awards and the Schools Spectacular. Each week the boys perform during the school’s formal assembly.

Gorokan High deputy principal Kim Whealey, who teaches the boys for one period a week how to play the didgeridoo and the necessary skill of circular breathing, said the formation of the group aims to improve student engagement and encourage among the boys a greater cultural understanding and pride.

“Retention rates have improved because they are directly involved in something special and also they feel such a welcoming environment at the school,” Mr Whealey said.

“Their self-esteem has increased immensely, they’ve built up their selfconfidence and in regard to behaviour they are particularly well-behaved kids.”

The group now produces its own compositions and acts as mentor to a junior didgeridoo group established at the school. The leadership qualities have been developed to such an extent that members of the didgeridoo group have worked with Year 5 and 6 students to set up similar groups in surrounding primary schools.

“We’ve now got this culture going through from partner primary schools to here where our kids are mentoring, and we’ve got a cycle going which we didn’t have two to three years ago,” Mr Whealey said.

Year 10 student Luke C, who last year won a Nanga Mai award for outstanding achievement in performing, creativity and visual arts, said: “It’s good to know we’re passing on Aboriginal culture to the next generation.

“We’re the next leaders for Aboriginal people so we want to make sure our culture is being passed on and the younger kids have knowledge of it.”

Fellow Year 10 student and group member, Layne B, said the boys in the group now had greater self-confidence to ask for help with their classroom learning.

“Before we would only ask Mrs Walker or Mr Whealey, but now we are more confident to ask all our teachers for help with things like maths and English,” Layne said.

Mr Whealey said future plans involve replicating the success of the didgeridoo group with the establishment of an Aboriginal girls dance group.

“We’re hoping for a similar pattern,” he said.