Bilingual Education Policy in Australia Assignment Sample

• Subject Name : Education

Bilingual Education Framework

Table of Contents

Introduction.

Discussion.

Conclusion.

References.

Introduction to Bilingual Education Policy in Australia

The aboriginal people of Australia are a disadvantaged subgroup that are trapped in a loop of disadvantage like schooling and social justice. According to a survey, the broad and constant literacy rate difference between the aboriginal and non-aboriginals’ students is considered to be created primarily due to remoteness, the most affected in the Northern Territories. The figures suggest that about 78.7% of Aboriginal students and 95.6% of non-Aboriginal students achieved the standard of literacy with 42.5% of Northern students (Niaa.gov.au,2020). This research would explain the reasons and the corrective steps to create a bilingual system for the development of Aboriginal education.Along with this, there are several reasons for low literacy rate in Northern Territory such as imperfect local economy, problem in English speaking, no career goal etc. This study aims to describe effectiveness of Australian bilingual framework to develop educational perspectives of students living in Norther territory.

Discussion on Bilingual Education Policy in Australia

• Explanation of the reasons behind low literacy rate

The causes behind this backwardness of literacy can be equally distributed among the home and school environment including individual factors but students are seen to blame the school whereas schools blame students and their home environment (Bianco & Slaughter, 2017). The reasons are tabulated below -

Table 1: Reasons behind low literacy rate

(Source: Bianco & Slaughter,2017)

• Evaluating the bilingual education framework

The current status of the framework in the Northern Territory is to use English in the mornings while native languages are recommended to be used in the afternoons. A table is given below to project all the frameworks of bilingual education in a better manner.

Table 2: Bilingual education policy framework

(Source: Dudin, Romanova &Anishchenko,2020)

• Effectiveness of the bilingual education for solving literacy related problems

The bilingual students can do any functions very strongly with better critical thinking skills. As the using two kinds of language at the same time, it improves their skills to operations like switching attention, working memory, inhabitation. It also helpful in other way that it helps to do better performance. The bilingual students are multi-tasking, problem solving in a better way (Freeman & Staley,2018).

This language makes the students biliterate and future sustainability as well as educational performances can be improved. The bilingual students have more option than other to choose their place of higher education. With help of this they have many more options to choose their institute, university where they want to go (Garvis, Harju-Luukkainen& Flynn,2018). More than 50% growth in student education can be possible after implementing proper bilingual framework in Northern territory schools of Australia. In addition, 20%-30% aboriginals’ students are also facilitated due to this framework and its proper execution (Niaa.gov.au, 2020).

One of the best advantages to know the bilingual language is it helps to make someone different than the others. In Present day most of the MNC companies are interested to recruit employees who are bilingual. There is a high demand of an employee who is known a spoken language than a potential employee.

The only thing of know bilingual language is not the education but also know different culture, another lifestyle of different people. In modern world communication is very much important. So, the children who can communicate in two different language gets a opportunity to Know different things.

The students who studies in a bilingual school meets students who comes from different background and culture. From there they taste the different culture and shows the scenario of the world around them. It makes them open minded.

• Comparison of other countries bilingual education framework

Table 3: Comparison of bilingual education framework

(Source: Lattimore, 2017)

[Refer to appendix 3]

• Pros and cons of bilingual education

Pros: One who have learned one language can easily learns the second language. The process of learning the first language helps in the learning of second one. It can make a child open minded than a normal human being. They learn many things from different cultures.Knowing of two language given a worker more options to get many more opportunities. It helps students in vocational training.One who know two languages, can adapt a third language very easily.It improves our working memory power (Liang, Li &Chik,2020). Students can easily catch new concepts. It also helps to reduce mental pressure. The bilingual education gives personal experiences that give knowledge which helps one to make decision and create a better life.

Cons: Many schools don’t offer bilingual education and many schools turns of it in the mid-way for which students lose their ability to speak in it.For one child learning two different bilingual language at the same time is not possible. Some school does it which makes a bad impression.Bilingual education is too much costly and for this reason many schools stops this education as they can’t afford it (Macqueen et al. 2019).Many times, students experience new culture and ignores the local culture and students focus may shift to learn the second language than his important skills.To teach bilingual language teachers should have fluency in both languages. But in maximum cases they don’t have it.Sometimes it creates an imaginary vision which distracts students from their local community.

• Personal suggestion

Always gives support the schools policies and decisions that they can give the native language education to their students.Provide schools all the essential resources, good quality materials. Focus on the ELLs programs.Give focus on students’ achievement by implementing various tests like grades, classroom performance, teacher recommendation.Use the ELLs program in the appropriate student population (Rahman, 2020). Give them assessment in English and their native language to upbring their knowledge.Measurement of progress is better than exams to show their all over growth and show performance in English exam.The marks what students get in English exam and regents should not use as to determine gradation or any decisions. Take proper care to translate languages. Students should have good education that they can use both language in examination.

Native languages like Chinese or Spanish Regents should count in accountability system.Improve schoolwide language policies to make language learning consistent.Teachers should have the proper knowledge about the exam skills in instruction (Phillips, Ritchie & Adair,2020). They should have the right to work for test preparation.The tested students’ languages and the languages of teachers in instruction should match with each other.

Conclusion on Bilingual Education Policy in Australia

The importance of bilingual education can be deduced from this article along with the reasons behind low literacy rate among the aboriginals of Australia and how to reduce this illiteracy. The reasons behind this backdrop are - prioritizing traditional culture over western culture, schools and colleges in remote locations which increases the chances of school dropouts and less attendance. Large scale research is needed for betterment of the communities although continuation of this research requires time and there are ethical issues like the traditions of the Aboriginals cannot be ignored. Education policies should be well examined by the Government before liberating them to the students so that school drop-outs are decreased. Personal interests of the students need to be triggered by welcoming opportunities in both western and native language.

References for Bilingual Education Policy in Australia

Bianco, J. L., & Slaughter, Y. (2017). Bilingual Education in Australia. Bilingual and Multilingual Education, 347. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Angel_Lin/publication/306924987_Extending_Understandings_of_Bilingual_and_Multilingual_Education/links/5e7907044585158bd501a7c0/Extending-Understandings-of-Bilingual-and-Multilingual-Education.pdf#page=351

Dudin, M. N., Romanova, Y. A., &Anishchenko, A. N. (2020). The Model of Bilingual Education as a Platform for Harmonizing the Interests of the Multi Faith Environment in Business Schools and Universities. European Journal of Contemporary Education, 9(2), 301-312. Retrieved from: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1262609.pdf

Freeman, L. A., & Staley, B. (2018). The positioning of Aboriginal students and their languages within Australia’s education system: A human rights perspective. International journal of speech-language pathology, 20(1), 174-181. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/17549507.2018.1406003

Garvis, S., Harju-Luukkainen, H., & Flynn, T. (2018). A Descriptive Study of Early Childhood Education Steering Documents in Finland, Sweden and Australia around Language Immersion Programmes. Asia-Pacific Journal of Research in Early Childhood Education. Retrieved from: https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/299690/pecera_v12n3_01.pdf?sequence=1

Lattimore, S. (2017). A comparative analysis of indigenous bilingual education policy and practice in Australia and Peru. Retrieved from: https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/143270/3/Lattimore%20Thesis%202017.pdf

Liang, L., Li, H., &Chik, A. (2020). Two Countries, One Policy: A Comparative Synthesis of Early Childhood English Language Education in China and Australia. Children and Youth Services Review, 105386. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Luyao_Liang2/publication/343936751_Two_Countries_One_Policy_A_Comparative_Synthesis_of_Early_Childhood_English_Language_Education_in_China_and_Australia/links/5f4ef689a6fdcc9879c0196a/Two-Countries-One-Policy-A-Comparative-Synthesis-of-Early-Childhood-English-Language-Education-in-China-and-Australia.pdf

Macqueen, S., Knoch, U., Wigglesworth, G., Nordlinger, R., Singer, R., McNamara, T., & Brickle, R. (2019). The impact of national standardized literacy and numeracy testing on children and teaching staff in remote Australian Indigenous communities. Language Testing, 36(2), 265-287. Retrieved from: https://minerva-access.unimelb.edu.au/bitstream/handle/11343/217031/Revised%20version.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Phillips, L. G., Ritchie, J., & Adair, J. K. (2020). Young children’s citizenship membership and participation: comparing discourses in early childhood curricula of Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 50(4), 592-614. Retrieved from: https://openaccess.wgtn.ac.nz/articles/journal_contribution/Young_children_s_citizenship_membership_and_participation_comparing_discourses_in_early_childhood_curricula_of_Australia_New_Zealand_and_the_United_States/12519974/files/23254838.pdf

Rahman, F. (2020). Bilingual Education vs English-only Approach at Australia’s Northern Territory Schools. REiLA: Journal of Research and Innovation in Language, 2(1). Retrieved from: https://journal.unilak.ac.id/index.php/REILA/article/download/3854/2099

Renganathan, S., &Kral, I. (2018). Exploring language and education policies for the indigenous minorities in Australia and Malaysia. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 20(1), 138-156. Retrieved from: https://ijme-journal.org/index.php/ijme/article/download/1530/1211

Street, C., Smith, J. A., Robertson, K., Motlap, S., Ludwig, W., Gillan, K., & Guenther, J. (2018). A historical overview of responses to Indigenous higher education policy in the NT: Progress or procrastination?. Australian Universities' Review, The, 60(2), 38. Retrieved from: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1188995.pdf

Van Gelderen, B. (2017). 'Growing our own': A'two way', place-based approach to Indigenous initial teacher education in remote Northern Territory. Australian and International Journal of Rural Education, 27(1), 14. Retrieved from: http://journal.spera.asn.au/index.php/AIJRE/article/download/81/96

Websites

Acara.edu.au, (2012). National Report on Schooling in Australia 2012. Retrieved from: https://www.acara.edu.au/reporting/national-report-on-schooling-in-australia/national-report-on-schooling-in-australia-2012/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-education/7-4-literacy-and-numeracy. [Retrieved on: 20.09.2020]

Niaa.gov.au, (2020). SCHOOL ATTENDANCE TARGET | LITERACY & NUMERACY TARGET | YEAR 12 ATTAINMENT TARGET. Retrieved from: https://www.niaa.gov.au/sites/default/files/reports/closing-the-gap-2019/education.html. [Retrieved on: 20.09.2020]

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