The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Corporation has raised concerns over the distribution of a new product targeting primary schools across Australia which "whitewashes and erases the true experiences of colonisation in this country".
NATSIEC said the board game, "First Fleet – Will you survive?", was developed by the think-tank Institute for Public Affairs and is aimed at students as young as Year 4.
On Tuesday NATSIEC said the game has already been distributed to a number of primary schools, accompanied by teacher resources.
"These resources, which claim to align with the national curriculum, encourage teachers to use language that perpetuates the myth that Australia was 'discovered' by European explorers," NATSIEC said in a statement.
The Corporation noted that the game allows students to role-play as colonial powers racing to the "prize" of Port Jackson. In this process, the winning country decides which language will be spoken in Australia, "completely erasing the existence of over 500 First Nations dialects that were spoken prior to the arrival of the First Fleet".
NATSIEC observed that while the game details hardships faced by First Fleet convicts, it fails to make any mention of the experiences of First Nations peoples, or the violence and destruction caused by the arrival of colonialists.
NATSIEC chief executive Sharon Davis said the "simplistic glorification" of the First Fleet's journey and arrival as an 'amazing voyage' "completely disregards the violent invasion of Aboriginal lands and the ongoing harm our communities continue to face".
"First Nations children playing this game risk psychological harm, as it forces them to engage with a distorted version of history that erases our ancestors' strength and resistance, along with our collective pain," they said.
"It sends the harmful message that Aboriginal peoples' lived experiences do not matter."
NATSIEC noted that truth-telling is a national priority and stressed the importance of young people learning the full history of Australia.
The organisation welcomed the announcement last month by NSW Education Minister, Prue Car, that the new Years 7 to 10 History curriculum will explore the impact of missions and religious organisations on First Nations people's lives, as well as highlight how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people resisted and fought for their rights and freedoms.
Institute of Public Affairs executive director Scott Hargreaves told National Indigenous Times the board game "acknowledges Aboriginal inhabitants".
"It is an apolitical, factual exploration of an important time in our past and a way to encourage students to engage and learn the full picture of our history," he said.
"What is clear is our students need to learn more about the founding of New South Wales, and what became Australia, as well as those who were sent here on the First Fleet. The board game has been designed to enable students to learn more about an important part of Australia's history in an engaging manner.
"It does not purport to represent all perspectives, or the effects of colonisation on Indigenous Australians."
Mr Hargreaves said the game "does not promote any notion of rights or wrongs of the times", in reference to a period in which many Indigenous people were murdered, violently driven from their country, or forcibly separated from their families.
He said "the Indigenous perspective" is well represented in the National Curriculum, "as it should be".
"Appropriate curriculum materials are available, and we would expect teachers to also use these as appropriate," he said.
The think tank head said there has been "an overwhelmingly positive response from many teachers and parents to the First Fleet learning materials the IPA has developed".
