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Australia in the Asian Century: Learning Some Lessons Peter Kell the Australian College of Educators

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Australia in the Asian Century: Learning Some Lessons Peter Kell the Australian College of Educators August 20141 Volume 13 Issue 4 The ACE forum for policy, research and practice in education Australia in Supporting Surviving the Asian English resistance to century: language languages Learning learners education some lessons 2 CONTENTS Languages: A hardy Australian 4 Perennial ABN 96 562 879 327 Published for the Australian College of Educators by Studio 131 Editor Paola Ghirelli [email protected] A way forward – Editorial assistance Content and Dr Julie Rimes (FACE) 16 & Dr Glenn Savage (MACE) Language Integrated Publications Committee Learning (CLIL) Advertising P: 03 9035 5473 F: 03 9341 6021 [email protected] ACE membership Gonski and the P: 03 9035 5473 F: 03 9341 6021 Abbott Government [email protected] 22 www.austcolled.com.au Australian College of Educators PO Box 73, Carlton VIC 3053 P: 03 9035 5473 F: 03 9341 6021 Publisher’s note © Copyright. No part of this publication 03 Editorial Stephen Dinham can be used or reproduced in any format without express permission in writing from Australia in the Asian century: Learning some lessons Peter Kell the Australian College of Educators. The 08 mention of a product or service, person or company in this publication, does not 10 Learning foreign languages - game changers Claudia Cicuttini indicate the publisher’s endorsement. The views expressed in this publication do not 13 Surviving resistance to languages education necessarily represent the opinion of the Angela Evangelinou-Yiannakis publisher, its agents, company officers or employees. 19 Supporting English language learners Anna Dabrowski 27 ACE Grassroots Membership Challenge 28 The challenges of teaching Chinese in a rural setting Patrick Chin-Dahler 30 Book review: Footprints of a twentieth century educator: Lawrie Shears Barry Jones 3 Language Education Australian College of Educators education and the need for an informed more appropriate, effective policy in this members and fellows should have and independent educational voice for the area, something that will both shape received a letter outlining the 2014 profession. and reflect the future development of Grassroots Membership Challenge. If you Australia and its relations with other For some time, for example, we have haven’t received a letter, please contact countries. had a working party led by Carl Stevens National Office. undertaking important work on the issue Anna Dabrowski provides us with The membership challenge is a key part of attracting high quality applicants to an analysis of the continued growth of the College’s strategic plan for the teaching. An experienced and committed in numbers of English as Additional next three years and is related to other group of members and fellows from Language (EAL) learners in Australian developments, including in the policy, across Australia has been researching schools and what this means for membership and awards areas. and formulating a College position on Australian policymakers and educators. what is a complex area. The work of this The challenge for each of us is a simple Angela Evangelinou-Yiannakis writes a working party fed directly into our recent yet important one. Can you identify rich case study of sustaining the teaching submission to Federal Education Minister an educator who would benefit from and learning of a European language Pyne’s Teacher Education Ministerial membership of the College and add value in a non-European educational setting Advisory Group (or TEMAG), and our or contribute to our work? Can you speak and how resistance was overcome to submission received a great deal of with them about the benefits of a College the introduction of a Greek language largely favourable attention in the press. membership and invite them to join program. A further interesting case with their professional colleagues from This edition of Professional Educator study, by Patrick Chin-Dahler (a first- across all sectors and levels of Australian represents many states and is largely year teacher), examines the challenges education? devoted to languages, supporting English faced in teaching Chinese in a regional or language learners and improving the rural setting. These case studies remind Strengthening our membership brings teaching of foreign languages are key us that while the learning of languages a number of powerful advantages. Our 03 Editorial Stephen Dinham areas of importance for Australian might be of importance to the future of membership is our greatest asset and education. However, after reading the the nation, the major benefit is to the drawing quality educators to the College 08 Australia in the Asian century: Learning some lessons Peter Kell articles contributed to this edition one learner. increases and renews that critical mass. can draw the inescapable conclusion that This enables us to increase our influence Peter Kell widens the focus to consider 10 Learning foreign languages - game changers Claudia Cicuttini Australia has yet to get the teaching and and engagement in Australian education the bigger picture of Australia’s place learning of languages right. for the betterment of the profession. and role in the ‘Asian Century’ and the 13 Surviving resistance to languages education We have a national shortage of foreign adequacy of current responses to this Recently we called for members and Angela Evangelinou-Yiannakis language teachers yet we see on a challenge. fellows to nominate for membership of a regular basis—usually around elections new education policy committee, policy There is also a powerful opinion piece on 19 Supporting English language learners Anna Dabrowski —calls for greater take-up of foreign being a key aspect of our strategic plan. the Gonski Review of School Funding and language study by students in Australian We have been gratified with the response its aftermath by Ken Boston, a member 27 ACE Grassroots Membership Challenge schools. Claudia Cicuttini examines the from members and fellows who have of the Gonski review committee, former deficiencies of responses in this area agreed to serve on the committee for the ACE President and Director General of 28 The challenges of teaching Chinese in a rural setting and the need for a more sophisticated coming two years under the leadership of Education in South Australia and New approach to address foreign language Patrick Chin-Dahler Ian Keese. South Wales, amongst other high-level education. appointments. The work of the committee will be 30 Book review: Footprints of a twentieth century educator: Joseph Lo Bianco adds to our supported by Maren Klein in the new Professor Stephen Dinham OAM PhD Lawrie Shears Barry Jones understanding in this area through position of Policy Officer. Our work in examination of the language debates (FACE) FACEA FAIM the education policy space is vital, given going back to the 1970s. He too calls for National President current developments in Australian 4 OPINION OPINION 5 Languages: A hardy Australian Perennial JOSEPH LO BIANCO Bottom of form golden age to which they wish to return the aims seem modest: ‘All primary is usually called: ‘before 1968’ or ‘during school students will be exposed to at In some ways languages resemble the 1960s’, when almost half of all least one language before starting high garden plants we call hardy perennials, students took final exams in languages, school’. The minister is promising to surviving harsh winters, growing on and public policies to promote, cajole, increase, improve, extend and deepen exposed ground, or disappearing only to fund, and incentivise language study language study, all the verbs that such spring into life with green shoots when were unheard of. But ‘before 1968’ there policies deploy, with action extending to the snow melts or the frost thaws. was no golden age. It is true that after retraining of bilingual primary generalists Perhaps the botanical metaphor applies 1967-8, when most states removed into specialist language teachers, and more to language debates, rather than language requirements for tertiary collaboration between mainstream languages. Every few years, after decline access, enrolments plummeted from schools and ‘community language and neglect, a new bout of political approximately 45 per cent of students colleges to meet the needs of the 350,000 commitments and media reports matriculating with a second language NSW students who speak a second featuring smiling children learning to around 12 per cent. But that was 45 language at home’. High school students Chinese characters or German verbs per cent of an already highly-selective will be required to complete the current emerges, tied to laments about the and unrepresentative proportion of all requirement of 100 hours of language failings of public education (Lo Bianco students. ‘Before 1968’ education differed study in one continuous year, preferably and Aliani, 2013). fundamentally from today’s scene that it Year 7, and links to vocational content in could almost describe another country, hospitality, retail and tourism subjects is Sadly, such ‘debates’ have produced lacking the ideals of universal school encouraged. reports rather than improvement: no completion, based on principles of equity fewer than 67 declarations of policy and access, essentially achievements of since the early 1970s, but precious little later decades. sustained, evidence-based and effective It isn’t just action. Improvement is urgently required It isn’t just schooling in Australia that at all levels concerning the extent, has changed; it is Australia itself. Today schooling in Australia quality and delivery of second language the languages we speak in our homes which has changed, education, but also to our national and want to learn in our schools, and understanding of its essential purposes. the reasons for doing so, are also it is Australia itself. Rarely taken into consideration is the unrecognisably different. In 2014 we Today the languages Australia of languages, incredibly, which teach and examine 15 times the number lies alongside the Australia of language then offered, in primary, secondary we speak in our homes, policy making.
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