Appropriate Terminology

An assembly of education experts examining methods intended to combat racial discrimination convened by UNESCO in 1968, revealed that certain words could provoke an adverse reaction towards any target group. The following terms (on the left) were identified as contributing to a negative association or a deficit view.

Inappropriate	Appropriate
tribe, tribal	group, clan, language group, family group
primitive, uncivilised, savage, pagan	civilised, society
underdeveloped, backward	no substitution
vernacular	language
race	group, people
native, bushmen	Aboriginal people, Torres Strait Islanders
nomadic	had purposeful movement patterns

The use of inappropriate terms in the text can act as a warning to you that the attitudes being expressed are likely to be problematic, or that your students may take a negative meaning from the material, regardless of what the author and you intended.

While it is recognised that documents of a historical nature should not be altered, an examination of terminology and content is necessary, to ensure that racist, ethnocentric and stereotypical views are not reinforced or perpetuated.  Students should be encouraged to critically analyse inappropriate terminology.