Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory | Other
Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory
Reviews
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25.01.2022 "... from the moment the Indigenous educator began teaching in her native tongue of Pitjantjatjara, the students’ engagement increased significantly. Children who had been distracted not long before were now avidly following along, asking and responding to questions, laughing, and later, energetically recounting stories to each other. It was a beautiful interaction to observe..." So many reasons why bilingual education is a great idea and this article provides a great overview
25.01.2022 Not To Lose You My Language "You only learn to read once. Once a child can learn to read their own language and can write it properly and can speak English, then we'll try and teach the child to read English as well" Extraordinary look at remote education in the 1970s when bilingual education was being developed and embraced. This 25-minute doco looks at programs set up in Yuendemu and Milingimbi.
24.01.2022 In Haiti, there is a growing movement to educate Haitian children in Haitian Creole rather than French. Professor Michel De Graff explains (in Haitian Creole): "When children learn in a language that they are not comfortable in, the level of effort they use to understand the language takes away all the energy that they need to understand the concepts. If kids learn maths in a language they don't know, they use more energy to grasp the language than to understand the maths. We create roadblocks against the children when we teach them in a language they don't speak."
24.01.2022 Wadeye is celebrating 40 years of their literature production centre, vital to their Murrinh Patha/English bilingual program. Congratulations!
20.01.2022 Well done to Ngukurr students doing great literacy work in Kriol
20.01.2022 Well deserved recognition for a brilliant bilingual educator
15.01.2022 Excellent intro article about why Yolu words are spelled their own way
14.01.2022 New agreement brings bilingual curriculum to Groote Eylandt, affirming the place of Anindilyakwa in the island’s education system http://newsroom.nt.gov.au/mediaRelease/33537
14.01.2022 Meigim Kriol Strongbala is a project from Ngukurr that started last year with the aim of strengthening the place of Kriol. They are creating educational resources in Kriol and developing and supporting Kriol language programs in classrooms with Kriol-speaking kids. Their website hosts Kriol related news, info, links and resources and the site is fully bilingual - use the 'English' and 'Kriol' buttons to switch between the two versions. You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram too https://meigimkriolstrongbala.org.au/rop/
14.01.2022 An international perspective: Linguist Michel DeGraff is from Haiti, where the national language is French but the population speaks Kreyol - a French-based creole. DeGraff is working to introduce Kreyol-based education in his home country. In this great interview, he describes issues with French-medium education in Haiti. Does it sound like issues we find in the NT too? "In the school, the children are being taught from day one to mimic. As they learn to read, they learn to parrot, to mimic, because they can read sentences by sounding out words, without understanding what the words mean. So what it does to them, it teaches them you go to school not to learn, you go to school to become a parrot".
13.01.2022 To stay safe from Covid, Territorians are best off hearing health messages in their first language, like this message from Groote
12.01.2022 Good coverage of how education featured (or didn’t) in the NT Election. Pleased to see that bilingual education and using first language is now accepted in principal by pretty much everyone (just need more funding and policy guts behind the sentiment) Also - our own FB page starring in the article! https://mobile.abc.net.au//nt-what-are-the-parti/12546116
08.01.2022 Here is Australian history being made: the first full parliamentary speech given in an Indigenous language. Well done to all involved
07.01.2022 If you’re in Darwin on November 20 get along to the screening of this great doco on Bilingual Education plus discussion panel https://ntl.nt.gov.au//curators-cut-not-lose-you-my-langua
06.01.2022 Did you see the documentary In My Blood It Runs on ABC last night? Highly recommended viewing and you can still catch it on iView. "Our young people are never asked about the type of education they would like or asked if they feel culturally safe in [their] learning environment. We really have to think critically about how we educate, what we teach, and how we teach it." says Hayley McQuire from National Indigenous Youth Education Coalition Jane Vadiveloo from Children's Gro...und also sees firsthand how Indigenous children struggle to learn in a Western education system. "A big challenge they face is a system that doesn't speak their language or culture, and doesn't see their strengths," she said. "[The system] sees them through a deficit lens rather than a lens of cultural strength, resilience and knowledge."
04.01.2022 A community education program in Ngukurr has worked with a major publisher and today they are releasing a Kriol version of the popular NT picture book Too Many Cheeky Dogs - first time a major publisher has translated an existing English text into an Indigenous language for commercial publication https://meigimkriolstrongbala.org.au//bigismob-jigiwan-do/
04.01.2022 Did you know? The cartoon Little J and Big Cuz is available in a bunch of different Aboriginal languages. Follow the link and click on Series 1 and 2 "in-language" and you can find episodes in languages with many speakers in the NT like Arrernte, Pitjantjatjara, Warlpiri and Djambarrpuyngu. Which language will be added next!
03.01.2022 Garma Festival spotlights decline in NT bilingual teachers
02.01.2022 Job Opportunity! NT Ed Department is looking for a linguist for a short-term position (3.5 months) based in Nhulunbuy. The job supports bilingual education and Indigenous Language and Culture programs in the region. Full info at the NT Jobs website - https://jobs.nt.gov.au and search for Vacancy Number 019165. Applications close May 25.
01.01.2022 Impressive progress at the highest level of government. Now let's make sure it flows like floodwater to our classrooms.
