Kylie Farmerpresident@afmlta.asn.au

Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers’ Associations

Australian Curriculum: Impact & Relevance for

teachers of Languages in NSW

• To provide leadership, representation, advocacy and support for quality teaching and learning of languages.

This is achieved through implementation of our strategic plan which identifies 4 key areas:

• Member Services• Leadership, Representation & Advocacy• Research & Professional Practice• Governance & Operations

AFMLTA Vision

• Recognize and encourage outstanding contributions to the field of language education

– Medal for Outstanding Service to Language Teaching

– Certificate of Merit– Nomination forms

available now from AFMLTA website

– Nominations due 1 May

Member Services

• Provide a digital space as a repository for key information– afmlta.asn.au

Member Services

• Provide timely information to members on issues– News In Brief newsletter

distributed to MLTAs each term

– Teachers@afmlta.asn.au

email list– Facebook– Twitter @afmlta

Member Services

• Maintain a high profile for the AFMLTA as the peak Professional Teaching Association for languages educators

• AFMLTA consults to and engages with national organisations such as: – AAAE– ACARA– AEF– AITSL– Australian Government– ESA– Federal Department of

Education & Training

Leadership, Representation & Advocacy

• Develop policy and professional agendas based on the needs of the Languages profession and be able to respond to pressing issues (state, national, language- specific) for the language profession in a timely fashion

– Recently AFMLTA presented a submission to the Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group (TEMAG)

– We were very pleased to see one of the key recommendations was that all primary trained teachers graduate with one specialisation –maths, science or Languages

Leadership, Representation & Advocacy

• Support Languages as a key learning area identified in the Melbourne Declaration and the Australian Curriculum

- AFMLTA is represented on the ACARA Advisory Group and National Panel for Languages and has actively supported the development of the AC:L since the work began in 2009

Leadership, Representation & Advocacy

• Promote the use of the AFMLTA Professional Standards for guiding professional practice for Languages teachers

- AFMLTA has recently developed a document which aligns the AITSL and AFMLTA standards.

- These are available from the Standards section on the AFMLTA website afmlta.asn.au

Research and Professional Practice

• Facilitate a biennial national conference

Research and Professional Practice

• Publish Babel as the academic journal of Languages Educators in Australia

Research and Professional Practice

• Support Languages educators in working within their local state and national contexts and in using the relevant guiding policies and documents

• Work with state MLTAs to facilitate professional learning

Research and Professional Practice

• 550+ teachers registered nationally

• Teachers involved in a national conversation around AC:L to develop an understanding of the curriculum and inform how teachers may begin to plan for and trial in languages classrooms

March workshops• 13th Darwin: 25• 14th Adelaide: 92• 14th Brisbane: 103• 14th Canberra: 85• 14th Melbourne: 30• 14th Perth: 103• 21st Sydney: 47• 21st Townsville: 50 • 28th Hobart: 28

Australian Curriculum: Languages UpdateLanguage Update

ChineseFrenchIndonesianItalian

Currently available on:http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/languages/preamble

ArabicGermanHindiJapaneseModern GreekSpanishVietnamese

Pdf versions currently available on: http://acara.edu.au/curriculum/learning_areas/languages.htmlExpecting interactive versions to be available at end of March on: http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/languages/preamble

HindiTurkish

Currently under developmentTo be published December 2015

AuslanClassical Languages

Currently under developmentTo be published December 2016

Framework for Aboriginal Languages and Torres Strait Islander Languages is currently under development

Relevant curriculum and school authorities in each state and territory make decisions about the implementation of the Australian Curriculum in their schools

Source: http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/foundation_-_year_10.html(Accessed 22 January 2015)

Australian Curriculum:LanguagesImplementation

• 2016– Queensland– South Australia

• 2017– Victoria

• 2018– Western Australia

• Planning implementation but timing undecided– Tasmania– Australian Capital

Territory– Northern Territory

• Undecided– New South Wales

Implementation Planning

• Students of Languages will benefit from:– access to the world-class curriculum developed by ACARA

through a more sophisticated approach to the learning of Languages

– opportunities which will open up during national collaboration

– access to a rich range of supporting resources for learning– improved mobility opportunities for students and their

families when changing schools around Australia.

Relevance - students

Source: http://mltav.asn.au/images/stories/MLTAV_Position_Paper_July_2014_Australian_Curriculumv2.pdf

• Teachers of Languages will also benefit through :– opportunities for national collaboration– working with a more sophisticated approach to the

teaching of Languages – Increased availability of a rich range of resources– Professional learning which will take on a new dimension,

as for the first time teachers of Languages will be able to engage in conversations with their interstate counterparts based on a common curriculum framework

Relevance - teachers

Source: http://mltav.asn.au/images/stories/MLTAV_Position_Paper_July_2014_Australian_Curriculumv2.pdf

• The process of curriculum renewal involved in the development of the AC:Languages has engaged Languages professionals in rich conversations concerning learning and teaching over several years, conversations which are aimed at improving Languages education in Australia.

• Through this process, there is already a strong sense of ownership of the new curricula amongst Languages teachers.

How are you engaging with the development of the AC:L?

Teacher Engagement

Source: http://mltav.asn.au/images/stories/MLTAV_Position_Paper_July_2014_Australian_Curriculumv2.pdf

• The AC: Languages moves beyond ‘communicative’ methodology as the underpinning framework, in presenting a more complex view of communication.

• This understanding of language interaction involves, for example the moulding of identity through reciprocal, inter-and intraculturally-complex and dynamic communication.

• The Sub-Strands of the AC:Languages exemplifies this approach.

- Socialising, Informing, Creating, Translating, Reflecting- Systems of Language, Language Variation & Change

Role of Language & Culture, • How much of a shift in practice does this approach represent for

you personally?

Impact

• AC for Languages is delivering language-specific curricula which is significant as it recognises that Languages, whilst sharing common elements, are very individual in nature.

• How do you anticipate this might impact on your language teaching?

Impact

• Languages taught which won’t have a language-specific curricula developed by ACARA– Perhaps can be addressed through a framework based on

the Australian Curriculum: Languages for Roman and Non-Roman languages similar to the way in which a framework for Classical Languages is currently being developed by ACARA.

Impact

• Engage with the ACARA materials to inform your understanding of the curriculum

• Participate in the national conversation with languages colleagues

• Advocate to authorities, through organisations such as MLTANSW, to voice your position about the implementation of Australian Curriculum: Languages in NSW

How can you have an impact?

• Ensure you keep up to date and connected by being a member of MLTANSW as this provides you with a voice and membership benefits at the state and national level.

• Thank you for the opportunity to be part of your conference and to connect with you and the great work being done by MLTANSW for language teachers in New South Wales.

Membership Counts!