2014 Newsletter

2nd Floor, Multicultural Centre, 180 London Circuit CANBERRA CITY ACT 2608 Postal Address: PO Box 1353 CIVIC SQUARE ACT 2601

Email: admin@actclsa.org.au

Website: www.actclsa.org.au

6230 5191

Front cover image- Canberra Vietnamese School performing at the National Conference

School Name Language

Abeltje, Dutch School Canberra Dutch

ACT German Language School Inc German

Alfalah Arabic

ANZ Maori Cultural School of Dreams Inc

Maori

At-Taqwa Language School Arabic

Australian Indonesian Language Schools Association

Indonesian

Australian School of Contemporary Chinese

Mandarin

Bangla Language and Cultural School Bangla

Canberra Cambodian School Khmer

Canberra Community Chinese School Mandarin

Canberra Finnish School Finnish

Canberra Hebrew School Hebrew

Canberra Hindi School Hindi

Canberra Islamic School Arabic

Canberra Japanese Supplementary High School

Japanese

Canberra Japanese Supplementary School

Japanese

Canberra Khalsa Panjabi School Panjabi

Canberra Korean School of Education Korean

Canberra School of Sri Lankan Language and Dance

Sinhala

Canberra Tamil School Tamil

Canberra Vietnamese School Vietnamese

Chennai Tamil School Tamil

CIC Community School Arabic

Civic Arabic School Arabic

CJC Japanese Language Kindergarten Japanese

Croatian Ethnic School ACT Inc Croatian

Dari Language School Dari

FCCCI Chinese School Mandarin

Filipino Language School of Canberra

(FLSC) Filipino

School Name Language

German Australian Playschool German

Grace Chinese School Cantonese

Hamro Pathshala (Nepali Language

School) Nepali

Italian Language School Italian

Kaw Lah Karen

Macedonian School 'St Kliment of Ohrid' Macedonian

Malayalam Vidhya Vedhi Malayalam

Mon Language and Cultural School Mon

Ositos Cool Spanish

PAFA - Pakistan Australia Friendship

Association Inc Urdu

Persian Language School Persian

Polish Language School in Phillip Polish

Samoan Language School Samoan

Scandinavian School in Canberra,

Swedish Section Swedish

Serbian School Serbian

Sri Lanka Dhamma Vihara Sinhala

Language School Sinhala

Sri Lanka Sinhala Language School in

Canberra Sinhala

St John the Baptist Russian Orthodox

Church School Russian

St Nicholas Greek Language School Greek

Telugu Badi Telugu

Tibetan Language School Tibetan

Tongan Language School Tongan

Playgroups Language

Australian Indonesian Language Schools

Association (AILSA) Indonesian

Canberra Bilingual Auslan English

Playgroup Auslan

Mandarin for Fun Mandarin

Spielwelt Association Playgroups German

A C T C o m m u n i t y L a n g u a g e S c h o o l s A s s o c i a t i o n 2 0 1 4

ACT Community Language Schools have made a significant

and ongoing contribution to multiculturalism in Canberra by

nurturing the many mother tongue languages spoken in the

community, and in doing so, maintaining our diverse cultural

heritage.

Last year over 40 community languages schools instructors

and teachers from over 33 languages attended the 11th

National Community Languages Schools Conference at

Rydges Lakeside Hotel London Circuit Canberra Saturday 12 October.

Delegates from throughout Australia will blend together in a tapestry of diversity around the

common goal of delivering strong linguistic and cultural maintenance programs to over 100 000

students in 71 languages.

The conference looked at strengthening relation with mainstreams schools, principal; and

school council associations and inter community activities. It also examined the role of

community language schools in the new proposed national languages curriculum. A range of

workshops leaded teachers and instructors in examining leading practices and classroom

teaching strategies.

Having such a great number of participants from so many backgrounds, gathered together,

committed and focussed, is again a reflection of how diversity is respected and used

practically for the benefit of Australia.

The conference was very successful and very good comments received by the different

participants. For example one of the participants has commented “Thank you so much for

inviting me to the wonderful conference. You spoke beautifully, the entertainment was great

and the speeches were very informative. I particularly liked the young woman who grew up in

Australia and the teacher who was using technology so well”.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the members of the ACT Community

Language Schools Association for helping to this achievement, advance multiculturalism and for

their contribution to a harmonious and prosperous ACT.

Javad Farrokh Mehr

President ACT Community Language Schools

President’s Message

May 2014

Javad Farrokh Mehr, President

This newsletter has been produced with assistance from the ACT Government under the Community Language Schools Program

The role of the committee is an important one and without their tireless efforts the

ACT Community Language Schools Association would not be able to adequately

support the schools. The committee is responsible for securing funding and

promoting the needs of our schools. It also gives us the opportunity to celebrate the

uniqueness of community language schools through the National Conference, Annual

Dinner and Languages Day.

From left to right: Fuxin Li, Irene Santos, Javad Mehr, Santosh Gupta, Loan Pham, Zhengfeng Li and Gloria Ross

Absent: Peter Pan, Roy Lonanathan and Hepi Mailei

Photo: Fuxin Li

Th

e C

om

mittee

I thank the ACT Community Language School Association (CLSA) for once again according me this opportunity write an article in their magazine.

As you know, I have had an interest in advancing bi-lingual education in the ACT for a long time, and on several occasions I have highlighted the various benefits that are associated with it.

Over the years I have had the benefit of having very engaging conversations with many like minded people in the ACT, who see the importance of bi-lingual education of schools in the ACT.

A lot has, and continues, to be said about the social, economic, educational and cultural benefits that a bi-lingual education presents. Apart from providing opportunities for students to become literate in more than one language, research continues to show that bi-lingual education also presents cognitive and cultural advantage to students; with the latter being particularly important to the ACT given our cultural diversity.

Further to this we know that cultural transmission builds on the sense of identity, particularly for children and young people to whom English is a second language. This leads them to understand who they are, as well as giving them a sense of belonging- a crucial factor to building resilience into adulthood.

That is why the continued presence of the Community Language School Association (CLSA) in the ACT, and its continued close relationship with the ACT Government is paramount.

I would like to congratulate CLSA leadership for their hard work in achieving positive outcomes, not only for our multicultural community, but also for the ACT as whole.

Congratulations also for the successful National Community Language Schools Conference, which was held in October last year- the year of our centenary. I wish you well in 2014.

Ms Mary Porter AM MLA

The ACT Community Language Schools Association

(ACTCLSA) was hosted the 11th National Conference in

Canberra on 12 October 2013. In this conference Minster

for Education/ Multicultural Affairs, Executive Director

Australian Federation Community Language Schools,

Delegation from the States, Principals, teachers from

schools and about 150 guests were attending at this

conference.

The conference started with welcome to country by

Ngunnawal Elder, National anthem and cultural

performance by several member schools.

Student can be proud of their gift of languages,

The President ACTCLSA Mr Javad Mehr welcome everyone to attend at this conference Mr Mehr

said “I am very pleased to see so many people join us today from Canberra and States and

welcome all of you. ACT Community Language Schools is pleased to run the 11th National

Community Languages Schools Conference in a multilingual city. This year is 100 years

birthday of this city and I am sure so far you have a lot of fun this year in Canberra. The

celebration is still continued by today’s day with where you are watching special Floriade

with million flowers around the place. Also I thank you to Australian Federation

Community Language gave us this opportunity to run the eleventh national community

language conference in special year in Canberra after 7 years. I like also special thanks to

my colleagues committee members, admin officer Jacqui Dillon and MC Adrian Arul

helping for running this conference.

This conference will set strong policy positions and also give practical advice on how to be

effective teachers in the community languages schools setting and how to form and utilise

partnerships.

Canberra city is a multilingual city is one where different languages become part of the natural

development of the community as a whole. It is where a range of languages are spoken at home,

in public, in education and in the media, where a variety of languages are used, respected and

referred to in our daily lives.

According the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2006 14 per cent of the ACT’s population speaks different languages other than English at home.

Around two per cent of the population does not speak English. Approximately 170 languages are

used in the ACT.

The ACT Government is supporting activities which take place in languages other than English

through financial resources such as through ACT Government grant programs.

Within this context this pilot study aims to identify in

which students that are learning at home or community

language, through an accredited community languages

school can be supported by their mainstream school to

continue learning that language, rather than studying a

language that the mainstream school is providing.

In addition, the study of other languages adds to our

capacity to discover who we are, where we belong and

what we might become. Indeed, our common future will

depend on the degree to which we all become better world

citizens, creating unity within diversity.

11th National Community Language schools hosted by

the ACT Community Language Schools Association in

Canberra at Rydges Hotel.

Javad Mehr addresses conference

Tongan Language School performers

This afternoon a range of workshops will lead teachers and instructors in examining leading

practices and classroom teaching strategies.

I sincerely thank the teachers, school communities, families and our wonderful ethnic

communities for supporting students in developing their gift of languages.

Student can be proud of their gift of languages, and all that it will bring them and our world in the

years to come.

Thank you very much and have a good day.”

Minister: Community language schools from

across the country are together today

After finishing the president speech he asked Ms Joy Burch

Minister for Education/ for Multicultural Department to open

officially the conference.

Ms Joy Burch welcomes every one and said” Community Language

Schools play an important role in enhancing cultural diversity and

preserving the culture and heritage of languages across Australia.

Here in Canberra we are a strong supporter of community language schools, here in Canberra 45

language schools provide programs for 37+ languages with over 1800 students from preschool to

year 12.

A strong theme for this conference is partners in delivering language education in Australia, a very

vital concept and activity to ensure all Australians have access to the language that they desire;

whether it be their mother tongue or whether it be

another language, it is critical that we have

partnerships across our community and society that

facilitate that. The theme reflects the strong role

that community language schools play in language

and cultural maintenance to build meaningful

partnerships with students, families and

communities (and it could even be those most

difficult students that Javad made mention to as

well).

Now the conference will look at strengthening the relationships to mainstream schools, principals,

school councils as well as other community activities. The conference will also examine the role of

community language schools in the new proposed national languages curriculum. Here in the ACT

we are a strong supporter of the Community Language Schools Association and we will continue to

support the association and the schools to ensure that Canberra’s are encouraged to learn and to

treasure the language opportunities that we provide to them.

Now community language schools from across the country are together, you provide (and I was

quite impressed when I saw this) you deliver to over 100,000 students, over 70 languages and over

1,000 schools, imagine the network opportunities that - one you have here but the benefit that you

bring, the depth that you bring to our society. Now the benefits of language will be explored and I

think for all of you in this room you clearly understand, but as I have said many a time the

maintenance of mother tongue is so critical, it is the key that maintains your heritage but it is also

the key that will unlock opportunities for first, second and third generation Australians to maintain

that link to your country, to your heritage. It is deeply,

deeply important.

In closing I would like to say a very personal thank you to

each and every one of you for what you do because I’m

Aussie born and bred and I struggle with “Aussie, Aussie,

Aussie…Oi, Oi, Oi” at times but it is important that our

children no matter what state or city they live in, have an

opportunity for language. Whether it is linked to their

mother tongue, whether it is linked to educational

opportunities or their own personal development – you are

the anchor to that opportunity. So for that I thank you, for

what you all do because the community needs this

Minister Joy Burch addresses conference

Workshop with Education and Training Directorate representative

combined effort to remain a strong, respectful and inclusive

community; so for that thank you and enjoy the day.”

The Executive Director, Community language Australia:

Congratulated to the ACTCLSA

Mr Stafan Romaniw Executive Director, Community Languages

Australia welcome all and said” Minister Burch, thank you very

much for being here today and also for your support, we have

had your support for many years and we certainly appreciate

that. Welcome her Excellency. To Nic Manikis, Nic has been a

great friend to community languages, we have had our differences at times about where things

could go (or should go). But between Nic and also through the Education Department represented

by Leanne Wright I think we have come up with the right model and to both Nic and to the

department thank you for the fact that we have found a middle ground about where we think

community languages play, what role they play. Not just as an ethnic or

community based organisation but as an integral part of delivering

language policy in the state. The other issue is when we look at not just

delivering language policy but also social cohesion and social cohesion is

the outcome of integrated policy; and the integrated policy is that you are

an integral part of the policy. So I think between us having both Nic and

Leanne here and the minister and the association I think we have a great

mix.

So I thank you very much, members of the

AFESA council, just so you know who they are,

could I just ask you to please stand. (Stefan

named members) also Jacqui who is outside, Eva from NSW – we have 4

of the executive officers here today as well. To the presenters, the

presenters are here from different states and territories; and to the

school representatives and most importantly to you the teachers.

I don’t want to spend too much time but I do want to take this

opportunity to congratulate Javad, and Javad I know that you spoke

and people know you but could you please stand and could your

members of the executive also please stand. To Javad and the executive, these are the people that

took the risk 12 months ago and said we will have the 11th National Conference here and I want to

speak about the journey. The minister just mentioned that in 1857 was one of the first schools in

South Australia (where are the German school, could you just stand as well) what I have to say is

we had a brief conversation in the foyer and the school had 130 students when it started and now

has 230/250 aiming to 300. 1857 – 2013 and we are still here and each one of you and your

community can have an entry point into Australia and say this is where we were and this is where

we are today. While I am talking about the journey I want to talk about this; you know I run in the

morning and when I finish I feel tired but I feel good, and what you should feel today is good and

whatever other adjectives there is in terms of good. What other synonyms can we come up with?

(Answer from crowd)

Fantastic, you know why? Because part of the journey of the ACT was the restructure of where

community language schools were and about 7 or 8 years ago (or 9 years 1992) Community

Languages Australia organised a round table at Regatta Point and before we did that there were

some people in government, some

people in community and some people

in the department saying this is not

what community language is all about;

they are just community workers. No

they are not! And it took a long time to

convince government and others that

community language schools play an

integral part and today I’m not going to

say it’s a culmination but it is a

recognition. The minister today gave us

Conference report continued

Stefan Romaniw addresses conference

AFESA committee members and interstate CLA staff

Workshop with keynote speaker Lester Ford

MC Adrian Arulanandam, Keynote Speaker Lester Ford and Sound Technician Owen Marsh prepare

Workshops

Speakers

Delegates

Performers from ACT CLSA schools

recognition and Minister I like the word ‘anchor’. We are an anchor and you should feel

exceptionally proud of yourselves that in that journey today we have a conference here with about

150 people. In conclusion I would just like to say in terms of forums such as this, why is it important?

It is important because in the first instance we are not delivering only a community activity; you are

now part of the education debate, you are now part of the educational process, you are now

delivering language programs and these language programs are (or they need to be) quality

programs. Your presentation needs to be quality your students see you as an instructor or a teacher.

They don’t care what you did on the Friday night before, they don’t care what job you do during the

week. When you walk into this thing called a classroom you are the teacher, therefore what Javad

and the executive have put together today is a good opportunity to enhance our skills and to share

and there were some fantastic examples within the schools shown on stage so well done.”

The Conference finished at 4.00 pm

Conference photos courtesy of Fuxin Li

Speech by Deputy Chairperson of the Australian Federation of

Community Language Schools Association (AFESA) and president of

Ethnic Schools Association of WA Inc at the Annual Dinner 2013 at

the Australian National University

“We have over 1,000 Community Language Schools,

we represent over 70 languages it is quite

significant…”

“How pleasing it is to have seen such wonderful

participation today at the conference”

Mr Enzo Sirna Deputy Executive Director of the Community Language Schools in his speech at the annual dinner noted that today we have had such wonderful participation at the conference he said:

“Thank you very much to our distinguished guests, to Javad and his team, ladies and gentlemen.

Can I say first of all on behalf of Community Languages Australia; how pleasing it is to have seen such wonderful participation today at the conference, this wonderful dinner this evening and congratulations to Javad and your whole committee. I know what it is like organising a conference. I know that in Western Australia several years ago when we accepted the challenge of organising our first ever national conference there was 12 months of work leading up to make sure it was successful. It is not easy, so I know exactly what you have gone through to have it ticking over like clockwork and having a quality conference that I think everyone would have been pleased to attend and found constructive. It is really all merit to you and your team, so congratulations everyone.

And while the statistics are there that across Australia that within the community language program we have over 110,000 students, we have over 1,000 Community Language Schools, we represent over 70 languages it is quite significant. And today the Executive Director (of CLA) also mentioned that not only is it significant to think of the far reaching ramifications and benefits that we have through our communities across Australia, but it is also in the area of training that we are providing a lot of wonderful efforts and I heard that over the last 2 months we have had over 1,000 teachers that participated at either state or this national conference which is rare. It is a remarkable figure when you think of what you are getting; the instruction, the follow through and it was wonderful to hear Javad tonight looking at the extracurricular that is going into the work that is being done here in the ACT. And improving quality improves the footprint. It allows us to build on a foundation that is important for our languages.

And there is one thing that for us as a component not just at a national level as AFESA and the board, but at every state and territory level when we look at the role of community languages it is a significant role it is something that we must continue to foster, it is perhaps something that is still not understood in certain sectors but when you look at the benefits beyond just simply the teaching and I am going to give you 1 examples. A student who is now working in the UK who was an ex student and I ran into her most recently. She has just been made a member of the Queen’s Council in London and she said “the study of French for me was so important, I did not realise how important” but in what she is doing now in law, she has a very prominent role in the legal field and she is Vice President of an international body that meets regularly in Paris. She said just being able; I may still not be able to speak French fluently, but being able to read to be able to do my research in a target language has put me two steps ahead of a lot of other people in the legal fraternity when it comes to specific issues that she’s involved with. And that was very touching. Continued on next page

Mr Enzo Sirna photo by Fuxin Li

Don’t miss the next

Annual Dinner

September 2014

Annual Dinner 2013

Bollywood dance performance

Another well attended Annual Dinner

Vietnamese musicians

Annual Dinner Photos: by Fuxin Li

FCCCI Chinese Dancers Jeremy Hanson, leader of the opposition

cont...I would hope through what we are doing in promoting community language across 70 plus lan-guages, and to be able to also encompass the Aboriginal languages which in some cases are also getting very close to disappearing, we want to make sure we are able to maintain, we want to be able to make sure we are encouraging, we want to make sure that the political parties of all persuasions have a biparti-san approach which will embrace what we are on about. Because decisions made are going to be really very important for not only longevity, but for the benefits of our communities as a whole.

Congratulations Javad and thank you for allowing us the opportunity as the board of AFESA to be with you for this wonderful conference.

Special guests help with the raffle draw

Maya from ANZ Maori School Filipino Dance performance

The volunteer management committee of the ACT German Language School was kept very busy during 2013. Apart from being involved in regular events like the National Multicultural Festival and the traditional Oktoberfest (held in November!), the school introduced classes on Monday afternoons at the Turner Scout Hall, the home of the German Australian Playgroup and Pfadfinder German Scouts.

Our traditional Saturday-morning classes don't suit everybody, especially those involved in weekend sport, so there has always been interest in a weekday class. The difficulty has always been in determining which day of the week is best. However, Monday afternoon has proved an ideal time for German language classes - it suits young kids who stay on after German Australian Playgroup and also older kids who join the Scouts group afterwards. Adding extra classes has seen a jump in the number of children that we teach from around 35 to almost 60! Add to this more than 100 adults in classes during the week and there is plenty for our Children's Principal and Adult Coordinator to organise.

Like many Canberra language schools, representatives from the ACT German Language School were eager participants in the National Community Language Schools Conference held in Canberra last October. In addition to the valuable insights into teaching approaches, lobbying and promotion, the conference also provided a perfect opportunity to bring together representatives from the German Embassy and German schools in Australia (Canberra, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney). During a meeting following the conference, there was much discussion on teaching approaches, promotion, synergies and challenges. It is reassuring that many of the issues faced by our local Canberra school are similar throughout the country. Our meeting ended with a resolve to maintain contact and to meet again soon.

2013 at the ACT German Language School

Representatives from German language schools around Australia met following the National Community Language Schools Conference. From left to right, back row: Ron Hackney (President, ACT German Language School), Susanne Olberg (Head of Culture and Press Section, German Embassy, Canberra), Christina Robins-Figl (German Australian Playgroup, Canberra), Sarah Fell (Principal, ACT German Language School), Katrin Matthews (Adult Coordinator, ACT German Language School); front row: Katja Ezel (German School Sydney), Ulrike Glinzner (Principal, School for the German Language, Adelaide), Natalya Li (ACT German Language School), Alexander Murer (Principal, GECKOS German School, Melbourne).

The Canberra Vietnamese School is located at Merici College and is held every Saturday morning during the school from 9.30am – 12.00pm. There are eight classes from Kindy to Year 8 (year 7 and 8 is a composite class).

Last year, Canberra celebrated its Centenary year; the students in Canberra Vietnamese School participated in “the Wind Air Water Kite” event that was organised by the Belconnen Arts Centre. The students made a big kite with a map of Vietnam. They spent several weekends on Saturdays to draw, colour and mark on the kite. When it came to launch it on the day, it was proudly flying in the air over the water by the Lake

Ginninderra. Everyone who participated enjoyed being a part of this special event. It was a big achievement for the students, from concept to the development of the kite and whilst at the same time reinforcing a language through participation. A highly popular event among the students, parents and the community is the celebration of our mid-Autumn full Moon Festival. This event often occurs in September. For this year, our school will be celebrating the mid-Autumn Full Moon Festival on Saturday, September 13th, 2014 from 6:30 pm -10:00 pm at Dickson College. All members of the public are welcome. Admission to the event is free.

Canberra Vietnamese School

Abeltje, Dutch School Canberra Inc.

New course at FCCCI Chinese School

The Dutch school has undergone a great transformation in 2013. Mid-year, our travelling teacher who visited the children at their local school, left. We were left with enthusiastic parents, but -it seemed- no school or teachers. With a core group of parents we decided to do 'school' in a different way and in August 2013 Dutch School #2 was a fact: "Abeltje, Dutch School Canberra Inc."

Since then we meet weekly at the ACT Playgroup rooms in Cook. We spend 1.5 h a week with 3 teachers and 16 -22 students. The children are generally aged 4 - 10 yrs, and we teach in 3 language-level groups.

The motto of our school is "learning through play". Taking the "multi intelligences" way of learning as our foundation, we endeavour to teach our children about Dutch culture and history. But we also teach them to write and read in Dutch, following a Dutch curriculum.

For example, we had a 3-week theme about the Dutch painter Rembrandt in which we made puzzles picturing his paintings, we made our own paint and painted a huge 'Night Watch" together. We cooked & ate pancakes (that’s what people were eating in Rembrandt’s time) and Mr. Rembrandt himself (one of the teachers..) visited the school. The weekly theme is reinforced in several ways, so that it will appeal to each child in one way or another. Besides Rembrandt we also had themes like Amsterdam, Hugo Grotius and St. Nicholas, full of fun and educative activities. When they go on a trip to The Netherlands, our children are now asking

their parents to go and visit the places they have learned about at Dutch School!

The core group has been amazed at how quickly we had the “new” school on the

go and are happy with the results so far! We're looking forward to another year

filled with good fun and challenging teaching.

The FCCCI Chinese School is trying new ways to inspire students to continue to develop their Mandarin skills. At a workshop for parents and teachers in November 2013, the school reported on a trial of a new series of text books written by Dr Ma Liping from Sitanfu Chinese School in the San Francisco Bay Area for children from Mandarin-speaking families.

The new series of textbooks focus more on reading than writing, allowing more vocabulary to be introduced and thus more interesting stories, riddles and songs to be read by the students. Another key component is that parents are expected to help students go over they have learned in class during the week.

The results of the pilot class using Book 1 in the series in 2013 have been remarkable in terms of students' Chinese proficiency and engagement with language learning. For example: One boy who had refused to speak Mandarin at home is now speaking and enjoys going to weekend school.

The students have learned over 300 words in one year and can write one third of the words.

The parents provided strong support to the trial class. They provided very positive feedback on the new textbook and teaching quality in a survey late last year. All the students and parents expressed strong interest of continuing with the learning in 2014 and future. Due to the success of the pilot class, the school decided to continue with the Book 2 for last year’s students. The school also opened a new Grade 1 in February 2014. There are 30 students are learning Ma Liping texbooks at the FCCCI Chinese School now. The school is planning to open two or three new classes next year to meet the increasing demand from the local Chinese community.

Aishwarya Shekhar: Chennai Tamil School Poem School School Chennai Tamil School Day Day School happens on every Saturday Language Language We learn Native Tamil Language Fun Fun Learning from our teachers is Fun Games Games We play traditional language games Work Work We do exciting homeworks Teachers Teachers They are real treasures Tamil Tamil Long live my mother-tongue Tamil Tamilian Tamilian We are proud Australian Tamilian

Stories from Chennai Tamil School

Ananth Ravi: I am hearing from TV all the time this word “pollution”. What is pollution – I asked my mum. She asked me to explain what you see when they say that word. I said lots of waste. She then explained – “maasu” (Tamil word for Pollution). I think a lot about Tamil these days. Why – all because of my Saturday’s Tamil classes. Thanks to my teachers. I kept asking and trying to learn more common Tamil words.

Pranati Saravanan: We go to Chennai Tamil School to learn and have fun, We share and care and include everyone. We look after others and help those in need, And give each other some helpful deeds. We respect our teachers and our peers, And support each other with a cheer. We learn Tamil and make some friends, So come to Chennai Tamil School- I highly recommend.

Sidharth Vasiraju: I really enjoy Tamizh School because I get to learn the Language in a fun way. We play games that involve Tamizh quizzes, Thamizh dumb charades, one word stories etc. I also enjoy the worksheets and book work. By going to the Tamizh school, I learn to interact with tamizh families and friends. I'm also learning to talk to people at India in my language.

Ananya Ravi : It was 6:15PM. Mum called us – ‘Ananya & Kaustubh… Time for slokhams’ (i.e. prayer time). I (Ananya) paused my mathematics home work. By then he (Ananth – my brother) was already running towards puja room. One who enters first gets ‘mudhal theertham’ (meaning First Spoon of holy water). Note we both compete for it every eve-ning. Half-way - he was asking. “What does it mean ‘Sitram Siru kaley’...” (a Tirupavai verse). I glared at him. Good Q – he is a clever boy. I kept thinking – ‘Sitram Siru’ means smallest, ‘Kalaey’ must be early morning’. Of course, dad was helping here and there. Finally there comes full meaningful statement from my mouth.. I am so proud – I can explain some literature in my own terms. Who else to thank in seeding Tamil touch on us – other than Mrs Gayathri (my beloved teacher). Yes – We learn lots of popular poets’ work in our school. Several words are used and re-used within poems. Hearing them repetitively and Learning in my school – gives me lots of confidence. I thank my school for giving such a wonderful opportunity to learn my roots.

The ASLBA school is offering Sinhala Language and Buddhism classes for children from pre-school to school-leaving (year 10)age. The aim of the school is to educate children about the teachings of Buddha and Buddhist culture which helps them to live a wholesome life. It also encourages the children to develop the Sinhala Language skills in speaking, reading and writing. Buddhism is taught in English. The classes are conducted on Saturdays

from 2.30 pm to 5.45 pm except during ACT school holidays. At present there are about 100 students enrolled and four classes are conducted to cater for the needs of various age groups. Resident monks and parents serve as volunteer teachers to teach Sinhala Language and Buddhism to the children.

A concert event is organised at the end of every year where children showcase their talents gained through the year. Every child gets the opportunity to participate on a stage play or a dance item during this event. At the conclusion of the concert children are awarded certificates for attendance and participation.

School Activities

The school has launched many successful projects regularly to elicit greater student involvement in language learning, religious and cultural activities. All students have opportunities to

participate in the regular cultural activities such as New Year Celebrations, religious activities of the temple such as Katina program, Sill programs, Vesak (May) and Poson (June) full-moon day celebrations.

Furthermore as an active member of the ACT Community Schools Associations, our school students actively participate in multicultural festivals and functions organised by the ACT Community Language

Schools Association.

The school’s curriculum is not limited to the fostering of sound religious and cultural values but also to develop and mould the students’ life and social skills. The annual concert and other events in ACT (Multicultural Festival) provide a welcome opportunity to our students to showcase their skills and talents acquired during the school year by participating in visual and performing arts as drama, singing and dancing.

Children’s Magazine (Lama Kalamba)

Our school produces a children’s magazine called ‘Lama Kalamba’ annually. The magazine is a part of the school’s learning activities, where students can publish their letters, stories, poems, drawings etc. The main objective of the magazine is to encourage children to write in Sinhala Language. This magazine is distributed free of charge to all the students. The ‘Lama Kalamba’ Magazine is published every year with the aim to develop children’s research and writing skills about Sri Lankan culture and Buddhism.

Buddha Dhamma (Buddhsit Teaching) and Sinhala Language

School of the Australia Sri Lanka Buddhist Association Canberra

Ositos Cool started operations as an incorporated association on the 26 of June 2013. Since then the school has grown from 4 to 30 enrolled students. Currently there are three classes that take place on Friday afternoons. This is a fantastic achievement that reflects the hard work, passion and professionalism that the dedicated teachers have applied to this project. For so many years the Latin-American community did not have a school where their kids could learn and practise Spanish. The school has filled a void and the community has as a result really supported and gotten behind this initiative.

The school also teaches Spanish to kids from non-Spanish speaking backgrounds on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at different childcares in the Canberra area. This is important to the association because its charter mandates the promotion and awareness of the Spanish language among all sectors of society. Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world and there are many people interested in learning it as a second language.

The philosophy of the school is to make learning Spanish fun. So the school usually brings special guests every term to teach the kids something different such as dancing, music or cultural traditions. Also, following the lead of the German, French and Chinese we have also set up a Spanish speaking scout group called Pioneros which translates as “Pioneers”. The kids finish the Spanish lessons on Friday afternoons and then start the scouts group at the same location where they can continue the learning experience outside the classroom.

The school has great plans and hopes for the future. Above all it wants to establish itself and have some continuity for the next few years. The school is therefore very grateful for all the support and encouragement received from other more experienced language schools, the ACT government and the ACT Community Language Association.

Ositos Cool (Spanish Speakers Association Inc)

We continued to carry out excellent education in the Persian language and culture during 2013 and beginning of this year. Our aim is not only to teach the Persian language but also to foster the Persian culture and participate in traditional Persian celebrations and special occasions. The major celebration each year is Now Rooz (new year 21 March). Persian is a very old language, and linguists have names for three different versions of Persian that were used in three different times. Old Persian was spoken in the first Persian empire, under the Achaemenid kings, including Cyrus and Darius the Great. This first empire started in the 6th century BC and continued until Alexander the Great conquered it. A second Persian empire, the Sassanian kings, ruled from the 2nd century AD until the conquest by the Muslim Arabs in the 7th Century, and Middle Persian, or Pahlavi, was spoken by them. The current Persian language, New or Modern Persian,

was first written down in the 9th century during the Samanid empire, which was the first Muslim Persian kingdom, and was based in Central Asia. The earliest writers of New Persian included poets like Rudaki, and Ferdowsi, who wrote an epic called the Shahname, translated as the Book of Kings in English. It is a very long poem, which has myths and historical stories from before the Arabs conquered Persia. Many of the other famous writers in the Persian language were poets too, such as Saadi, Hafez, Rumi, and many more. Up until today, the Persian language was a very important one for literature. After Arabic, it was the second most used language for writing in Muslim countries, especially in the East.

Persian

Farsi

Persian

Language

School

This year has witnessed several interesting changes within the levels by which students are organised, as our oldest level, level 3, has grown one year older and several new young members from level 2 have jumped on board.

Similarly, level 2 has had a few other new members from level 1, which is an interesting transition as you see them still not accustomed to the discipline and style of a more structured and focused classroom environment.

Level 1 stays the same, with fresh new faces who are getting a new taste for classroom experiences or who feel this is the right class for them.

This unforeseen change has created new challenges for us. The first of these challenges is having a wider age range in the classes, which makes it challenging to find a pace that is stimulating for the older group and manageable for the younger group in the range.

The second of the challenges is that they familiar with the new tools and games introduced last year and the school management is now faced with finding a different creative solution to tackle this challenge.

Lastly, the third challenge remains in finding means to motivate students as they become less in touch with the purpose of their learning, especially that Arabic is not the mother tongue for most of the students, and even if it was, the avenues for practice are limited, and motivation is essential for progress.

In order to tackle this interesting set of challenges, which were mostly a concern for levels 2 and 3, teachers at CIC community school held brainstorming sessions with the students. These brain storming sessions focused on two questions.

The first question said: "If you could speak a language different than English and other than your mother tongue, and you met someone who only knew how to speak that language, what would you like to say to them". Students then started being creative with their answers, and each level had different responses.

The responses were collected and the teachers intend to break down the topics into learnable modules, that are to be played in pairs as a card game. New equipment was purchased in order to produce these cards in a larger scale. The first set of cards has been produced and is awaiting a trial in the coming weeks with good results so far.

The second question was: "If you could learn about anything you wanted here, what would that be?". Students provided a wide range of topics they were curious about. Some of these topics where for an older range, while others were more targeted to a female or male audience. However, the students were promised that topics suitable for the class will be taught and there will be an alternation between what

the girls choose and what the boys choose. The intention behind this was to stimulate their interest and intrigue while also throwing in some Arabic while doing this.

The anticipated plan of action is to have students play the cards while simultaneously learning isolated components of Arabic sentence structure, which will be followed by the topic of interest, as if connecting the two together so that the learning is simple, and enjoyable while associated with another topic of interest.

Our findings on this approach will be clearer towards the

end of the year as we await them with anticipation.

A new approach at CIC community school

Canberra Community Chinese School was established in 1981 under the name East Asian Art

Society Chinese School. The school is the oldest Chinese Language School in Canberra providing

Chinese language classes catering for children and young adults. The school is incorporated as a

non-profit community organisation where the parents fully participate in the running of the school.

The new school name reflects the changing environment.

Classes are held in normal classrooms to provide a safe and secure environment for children from

the age of 4 to14. The children are taught to read and write simple Chinese characters based on

the Pinyin system. The teacher to student ratio is low to ensure the interaction in the classroom.

English is used as the teaching medium so that communication can be maintained. Therefore it is

most suitable for children coming from a non-Chinese speaking background.

Canberra Community Chinese School

堪培拉社区中文学校

Towards the end of 2013 marked

the first year of Dari Language

School (DLS). Dari is one of the

official languages spoken widely

in Afghanistan, a country enriched

with culture and history. DLS aims

to teach and reinforce the mother

tongue (Dari) onto our children so they may not forget their

culture and origination. In addition, DLS intends to enhance the younger generation’s

cognitive development, multi-linguistic ability as well as their cultural and background

understanding. DLS is not restricted to those with the mother tongue of Dari, it suits anyone

who wishes to gain new skills and learn another language as

we start teaching from the bottom up for the promise of a

strong foundation.

Classes are synced with normal school terms and run on

Saturdays from 11am to 1pm

at Macgregor primary

school. Currently we have

around 10 students and two

class levels, grades one and two, which are equivalent to the

respective school grades in Afghanistan. DLS is the first of

its kind in Canberra; we hope to establish a strong

foundation to ensure a prosperous future.

Officially registered in Canberra in 28 November 2003 and officially opened the classes in 1 February 2004 in Canberra, the Australian School of Contemporary Chinese (ASCC), incorporated as the Standard Chinese School of Australia (SCSA) Inc, is an accredited and registered

Specialist Education Provider by the Board of Senior Secondary School (BSSS) in the Australian Capital Territory in Australia on 21 December 2007. The school is supported by China Hanban Confucius Institute Headquarter in Beijing and is the pioneer school in Australia and New Zealand welcomed the first International Volunteer

Chinese Language Teacher Ms Jiangna Liu sent by China Hanban (Confucius Headquarters in Beijing) to Australia and New Zealand region on 25 August 2007. The school was also awarded as one of the 55 Model Chinese Schools in the world by Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs of the State Council of China on 20 October 2009 in Chengdu China.

The School started operation of Chinese classes at Lake Ginninderra College in the Belconnen district on 1 February 2004 now extended into 4 Campuses including Melrose High School and Canberra College in Woden in Februray 2006, Griffin Centre in Civic in May 2008 and Gungahlin College in February 2011 and new office at 63/28 Mort Street, Braddon, ACT 2614. It has a group of more than 50 experienced educators, scholars, teachers and administrators to participate in planning and teaching different levels to cater for students

from Pre-school to Year 12 (T-Course). Currently there are five venues including campuses in Gungahlin, Belconnen, Woden and offices in

Civic and Braddon, which operate classes from school-aged students to adults.

The teaching staffs are carefully selected from an extensive list of applicants. All probationary, relief and regular teachers must be trained before teaching in the classrooms. All are required to have years of teaching experience gained in their home countries and districts, with relevant qualifications. Most are

native Mandarin speakers.

The School organises continuous pre-service and in-service staff training through the year under ACTCLSA and DET as well. Each year, the school either sends teachers back to the higher institutions in China or to attend the touring training lectures organised by Hanban or Qianban in Australia. In 2009, ASCC welcomed senior delegation form Hanban, Qiaoban, People's

Education Press (PEP) and Higher Education Press (HEP) to train its staffs. All the teachers attended various PD sessions on 6 December 2009 to update the knowledge and methodology for improving the quality of teaching in 2010. The lecturing group of Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs of the State Council of China conducted training in Canberra in December 2011.

Australian School of Contemporary Chinese (ASCC)

2013 ASCC Chinese Camp

ASCC Group at the Parade, National Multicultural Festival 2014

ASCC Reading Group at the 10th Anniversary Celebration

ACT CLSA President watches Chinese Caligraphy at the 2013 Chinese Camp

Chinese Caligraphy at the 2013 Chinese Camp

Kite Making at the 2013 Chinese Camp

Performance Group at the 10th Anniversary Celebration 2013

Opening Ceremony of 2013 Canberra Chinese Camp in ASCC 2013

2xx radio training completed

St John the

Baptist

Russian

Church school

activities

Hindi is a national language of India. India’s national Hindi Divas is celebrated every year on the 14th of September. Hindi was adopted as the official language of India by the Indian Constituent Assembly on September 14, 1949. Hindi is the main language of the Indian cinema known as The Bollywood.

Hindi is in top five most spoken languages in the world along with Mandarin, Spanish, English and Arabic. Hindi is widely spoken in many countries; some of them are Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Canada, Germany, Fiji, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, United Kingdom and United States.

The school students performed in the Diwali Mela (an Indian festival of Lights and Sweets similar to Christmas) held on 19 October 2013 in the Albert Hall, Canberra City. Santosh Gupta organised a Tongue Twister competition for the all the children attending the Diwali Mela (Fete).

Canberra Hindi School celebrated Hindi Divas Utsav (Hindi Day function) on 21 September 2013 in the Vedanta Hall of the Vishnu-Shiva temple in Mawson. The teachers and students from Australian National University, Narrabundah College and University of Canberra participated in the Utsav. The program included Hindi songs sung by school students and other Hindi lovers; Hindi poetry by a few Canberra poets; and Hindi Riddles and Tongue Twisters competitions for the children. The Deputy High Commissioner of India S. K. Datta and Santosh Gupta from the Hindi Samaj of Canberra Inc. spoke on the occasion highlighting the need of Hindi, cultural values and ways to promote in Canberra. Dr Peter Friedlander, ANU, spoke of his

Canberra Hindi School

Joining the

Boundless Choir

The Hellenic (Greek) language is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, Western Asia Minor, Southern Italy and the Aegean, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet, which was the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Coptic and many other writing systems.

The Greek language holds an important place in the histories of Europe, the more loosely defined Western world, and Christianity; the canon of ancient Greek literature includes works of monumental importance and influence for the future Western canon, such as the epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey. Greek was also the language in which many of the foundational texts of Western philosophy, such as the Platonic dialogues and the works of Aristotle, were composed; the New Testament of the Christian Bible was written in Koiné Greek. Together with the Latin texts and traditions of the Roman world, the study of the Greek texts and society of antiquity constitutes the discipline of classics.

Greek was a widely spoken lingua franca in the Mediterranean world and beyond during classical antiquity, and would eventually become the official parlance of the Byzantine Empire. In its modern form, it is the official language of Greece and Cyprus and one of the 23 official languages of the European Union. The language is spoken by at least 13 million people today in Greece, Cyprus, and diaspora communities in numerous parts of the world.

Greek roots are often used to coin new words for other languages, especially in the sciences and

medicine; Greek and Latin are the predominant sources of the international scientific vocabulary.

Over fifty thousand English words are derived from the Greek language.

The Hellenic (Greek) Language

The Learning Filipino Together (LFT), a not-for-profit community organization that operates the Filipino Language School of Canberra, conducted an adaptation of the typical Trivia Nights staged in many parts of Australia. Called the ‘Tribyang Pinoy Challenge’, the 3-hour event with participants numbering to 80, covered topics on Philippine history, movies and music, national artists, heroes, celebrities, landmarks, food and riddles. The youngest students from the school also showcased their ability to master and sing Filipino children’s songs.

For more

information on

learning Greek

contact St Nicholas

Greek Language

School of Canberra

Greek independence day (25th of March) celebrations at the Greek church and the Australian - Hellenic memorial

Malayalam Vidhya Vedhi (MVV) has been in operation since the fourth term of 2012. In 2013 we completed our first full year of operation and what a year it has

been! Here is a visual glance at 2013:

Classes underway

Classes feature a combination of traditional teaching as well as interactive activities that help to keep the younger students engaged.

Onam celebration

Onam is the biggest festival in the Indian state of Kerala. Onam Festival falls during the Malayali month of Chingam (Aug - Sep) and marks the homecoming of legendary King Mahabali. Carnival of Onam lasts for ten days and brings out the best of Kerala culture and tradition. Intricately decorated Pookalam (flower arrangement, see photo below), a delicious Onasadya (feast, see photo below), and breathtaking dances are some of the most remarkable features of Onam.

MVV Onam celebrations were held at the Weston Creek Community Centre with a beautiful Pookalam and a fabulous lunch cooked by the parents and volunteers.

Christmas celebrations

The end of the 2013 school year was celebrated with a Christmas BBQ at Weston Park – the highlights was the beautiful MVV cake and carol singing – thanks to the parents who organised this!

As you can see from these images, 2013 was a very successful and fun year; and we are looking forward to 2014 even more.

To tell you a little bit about MVV: we currently have 40 students attending classes across Canberra. We run a class on the Northside (Gunghalin Library) and two on the Southside (Weston Creek Community Centre). The classes are run on Sundays from 2.00 to 3.00pm, and generally follows the ACT school term. We cater for students of all ages (at the moment the youngest student is five years old and we have a number of adult students as well) and all levels of learning (ranges from those who cannot speak, write or read Malayalam to those who can speak, write or read a little).

We have a group of very committed teachers and stand-by teachers who are doing a wonderful job of teaching the students and keeping them interested and engaged in the classroom. To quote some of the students and parents talking about their teachers/MVV classes:

Students:

“I love my teacher – she is so friendly and knows her stuff”

“My teacher is so good, especially with the naughty kids”

“I love the way my teacher makes the one hour go so fast and we have so much fun”

“Now my Amma has stopped complaining about me not wanting to learn Malayalam. I even watch Malayalam movies now”

Parents:

“My son hassles me all morning on Sundays wanting to know if it is time to go to Malayalam classes”

“This is one of the few things that my daughter doesn’t complain about and gets ready on time”

“I didn’t think my kids would continue with Malayalam classes, but they love it and I am so happy”

In addition to the teachers, the wonderful parents and volunteers play a critical role in making sure that

the school runs well. The support and encouragement from the broader Malayalee community has also

been critical to the success of the school.

Malayalam Vidhya Vedhi

Would you like to share your

school news?

Email your story and some

pictures to us at

admin@actclsa.org.au

2014 Dates to Remember

National Conference

Brisbane

September

Annual Dinner

Objectives of the Association

The ACT Community Language Schools Association (ACTCLSA) is a non-profit organisation, providing a forum where Community Language Schools can come together to share experiences and information.

Our main objectives are:

To promote understanding and mutual respect among Ethnic Communities

To promote the teaching of languages, history and culture of ethnic communities

To co-ordinate and promote inter-ethnic school social and cultural activities

To promote the concept of multicultural education and provide language programmes for all students with in the ACT

General Information on Schools

The ACT CLSA is the umbrella body for around 40 member Ethnic Schools in the ACT which provide out of hours language classes known as Community Language Classes for all school aged children interested in learning languages often not provided in main stream schooling.

Languages offered include: Arabic, Auslan, Bangla, Cantonese, Chinese (Mandarin), Croatian, Dari, Dutch, Filipino, Finnish, Greek, German, Hebrew, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Karen, Khmer, Korean, Macedonian, Malayalam, Maori, Mon, Nepali, Persian, Polish, Punjabi, Russian, Samoan, Serbian, Sinhalese, Spanish, Swedish, Tamil, Telugu, Tibetan, Tongan, Urdu and Vietnamese.

Alfalah

Dari Language School

Civic Arabic School

German Australian Playschool

Telugu Badi

We welcome the following playgroups We welcome the following new schools

Spielwelt Association Playgroups

Australian Indonesian Language Schools Association Playgroup

Mandarin for Fun

Pictures from the Nepalese

Language School (Hamro

Pathashala). These photos

were taken at the 2nd

Anniversary celebration of

the school.

We would like to thank the following sponsors of the 11th National Community Language Schools Conference

Nim Osbourne, McGrath Real Estate

Photography team—Australian School of Contemporary Chinese