<div dir="ltr"><br clear="all"><h1>Please Premier, don't cut foreign language targets</h1><strong class="">Opinion</strong><div class="">
By
<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/rachelle--cole/40562">
<span>Rachelle Cole</span>
</a>
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<p class="">
Posted
<span class=""><span class="">yesterday at 9:46pm</span><span class=""></span></span>
</p>
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<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-13/stafford-state-school-students-naplan/6849924">
<img src="http://www.abc.net.au/news/image/6675302-3x2-340x227.jpg" alt="Children in a classroom" title="Stafford State School students NAPLAN" height="227" width="340">
</a><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-13/stafford-state-school-students-naplan/6849924" class=""><strong>
Photo:</strong>
Foreign language learning in schools helps students develop a global perspective. <span class="">(AAP: Dan Peled)</span>
</a></div>
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<p class=""><strong><em>The decision by the Victorian Government
to dump foreign language targets in public schools is short-sighted and
doesn't take into account how vital these programs are in the 21st
century, writes Rachelle Cole.</em></strong></p><p>Until last week,
Victoria was leading Australia with ambitious targets to increase the
number of students studying a foreign language.</p><p>Unfortunately, <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/the-language-dilemma-andrews-dumps-ambitious-target-for-schools-20151002-gk056l.html" target="_self" title="">the Government just dumped these targets</a>,
taking the view that quality is more important than quantity. While
quality is important and needs to be addressed, this is not a good
enough reason to dump the target.</p><p>The reality is that the targets
are working to increase the number of students studying foreign
languages and this is equipping a more diverse range of students, not
just those at privileged schools, with the skills and outlook needed to
be successful in an increasingly globally connected Australia. With this
decision, Victoria risks following <a href="https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/24592129/schools-cut-foreign-languages/" target="_self" title="">Western
Australia, which, after taking a similar decision in 2010, has
experienced a 27 per cent decline in the number of schools teaching
languages</a>.</p><p>Acknowledging the serious decline of languages
education in schools and the need for Australia to better develop and
harness its linguistic resources, the previous Victorian government
introduced a target to have every student from prep to year 10 study a
second language by 2025.</p><p>As a step towards this goal, all
government schools were required to begin by offering languages to preps
by 2015. While some schools are still not offering programs, or have
applied for exemptions, <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/the-language-dilemma-andrews-dumps-ambitious-target-for-schools-20151002-gk056l.html" target="_self" title="">government figures show a significant increase</a>.
The targets have provided the impetus that many primary (and secondary)
schools needed to begin developing second language programs.</p><p>The
targets are especially important for schools that serve disadvantaged
communities. In many of these schools, poor overall results and
competing priorities meant that they previously had chosen to focus on
the basics of literacy and numeracy, failing to offer language subjects.
In response to government policy, many schools have introduced
languages.</p><p>These mandated targets are helping school communities
to see language programs as a core part of the curriculum. They are
realising that not only do languages provide students with the skills to
access new cultures, social networks and markets, but, as the research
suggests, they can help build students' literacy skills.</p><p>Not long before dumping the targets for language programs, Premier Daniel Andrews was quoted as saying: "<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/the-language-dilemma-andrews-dumps-ambitious-target-for-schools-20151002-gk056l.html">So while language certainly helps, cultural awareness ... has probably never been more important.</a>"</p><p>Andrews
is right to say that culture is important. However, his comment fails
to understand that language and culture are inexorably intertwined and
thus language programs are the best way to teach students about other
cultures. Learning languages helps kids "see culture" more clearly.
Students do not just learn the languages of France, Indonesia or China
in classrooms, they learn the basic skills to understand what culture
is, they learn about their own culture and they learn the skills to
engage with people from different cultures.</p><p>In addition to these
important intercultural skills, language learning helps students develop
a global perspective. As they engage with issues affecting our region,
and participate in exchange programs they develop a sense of the
opportunities that are available beyond Australia's borders and as a
consequence are more likely to take advantage of these in the future.
This is particularly important for students from low socioeconomic
backgrounds, who may not otherwise be exposed to these ideas at home.</p><p>Victoria
is not the only state to abandon policy commitments in relation to
second languages in schools. While previously requiring that languages
be taught in primary school, in 2010, the Western Australia Government
changed this policy to give schools more room to focus on literacy and
numeracy. The results speak for themselves. <a href="https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/24592129/schools-cut-foreign-languages/">Department figures revealed that 135 of the state's 516 primary schools had dropped the languages programs by 2013.</a> Thankfully, other states including Queensland and NSW are developing new policies that involve mandated targets. <a href="http://education.qld.gov.au/curriculum/framework/p-12/globalschools.html" target="_self" title="">Queensland, for example, has recently developed a new "global schools" policy</a>,
which requires that students learn a language from years 5-8, which it
hopes will reverse the decline and elevate the status of the subject.</p><p>With
the recent news of Australia's accession to the Trans-Pacific
Partnership, and an increasing emphasis on trade and investment with
Asia, intercultural understanding and a global outlook are just the 21st
century skills that we need all Australians to possess. Our school
students today, whether they are doctors, lawyers, hospitality workers
or electricians, will have to work with people from other cultures or in
other countries, and we need them to be equipped with the skills and
mindset to do so successfully.</p><p>The Government's inability or
unwillingness to address issues of quality shouldn't be used as an
excuse to abandon a policy that is critically important to giving all
our students, not just those that are privileged, access to
opportunities in 21st<sup> </sup>century Australia.</p><p><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/rachelle--cole/40562" target="_self" title=""><em>Rachelle Cole</em></a><em>
is an Indonesian teacher at a secondary school in Melbourne and an
alumnus of the Teach for Australia program. She is the co-founder of the
Australia Indonesia Youth Association Ltd.</em></p><p><em><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-13/cole-please-premier-dont-cut-foreign-language-targets/6849722">http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-13/cole-please-premier-dont-cut-foreign-language-targets/6849722</a><br></em></p><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/" target="_blank">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
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