Category Archives: Queensland

Lurleen Blackman with her grandchildren, recording in Nywaygi for a national Aboriginal language promotion project, with Michael Bromage (ABC Open). Photo credit: Faith Baisden.

Media Release

The Queensland Government’s discussion paper on the Development of a Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Early childhood, school education, training, tertiary education and employment action plan has been welcomed by Queensland Indigenous Languages Advisory Committee (QILAC).

Linguist and QILAC member Bridget Priman says she is pleased to see the Government initiating discussions toward a new approach to Indigenous Education from ‘crayon to workforce’.

The Discussion Paper acknowledges that though there has been much invested in indigenous education this investment has not yet shown significant changes in the situation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

Bridget believes that Indigenous languages are a key area that has been overlooked to date. “Research shows great links between the provision of high quality home language programs and educational participation and attainment for Aboriginal students.” she says.

These programs can be based in regions of language revitalization (where languages might not be spoken much in the community) as well as in areas where English is the second language.

“It doesn’t matter on the context.” says Bridget. “A good language program with appropriate community participation results in our students being more interested in school and doing much better in all their school subjects.’

QILAC is providing a detailed response to the Discussion Paper and is keen to be involved in the development of the proposed Action Plan.

Bridget believes that though language is not the only factor which effects our students participation in school but it is a key tool which should be used in any effort to ‘close the gap’.

“QILAC will work hard to ensure that our languages are not overlooked once again in planning for greatly improved outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.” She says.

A new year and a new logo for QILAC members, who met in Brisbane recently to work on the development of Language Induction Programs. The set of workshop guidelines will be used to help organisations and businesses identify any ways that language diversity could impact on the services they provide. The workshops will also help organisations create a tailored policy statement around recognition of traditional languages within their unique business environment.

Pictured with the new logo on display are QILAC members Leonora Adidi, Bridget Priman, Faith Baisden, Joy Bonner and Melinda Holden.

Phillip Brown
Language Coordinator
M: 0428 882 039
PH: 41307700
Fax: 41307777
Gidarjil Development Corporation.
PO Box 2773
BUNDABERG  QLD  4670

The Chair of an Aboriginal language group in north Queensland has warned urgent funding is needed before 80 per cent of Indigenous languages spoken in the far north Queensland region are lost. The North Queensland Regional Aboriginal Language Corporation (NQRALC) Chair, Troy Wyles-Whelan issued the warning to the standing committee for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs…

Read the full National Indigenous Times article.

By Lachlan Mackintosh for ABC Brisbane

There’s a lot to a language, it’s more than just a tool for communication, it’s a social identity.

So when a language disappears, how does it affect the culture attached to it?

The ‘Our Land, Our Languages’ report was released this week, it looked at the role of Indigenous languages in Australia and how they could help strengthen the Aboriginal identify and culture.

Dr Felicity Meakins, a Research Fellow in Linguistics at the University of Queensland, joined the program to talk about the topic.

Listen to the discussion.

By Kiri Ten Dolle for The Satellite

INDIGENOUS members of the community have welcomed the Federal Government’s recommendations to introduce bilingual education in schools to boost Aboriginal student attendance.

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, chaired by Federal Member for Blair Shayne Neumann, last week hand down its report Our Land Our Languages: Language Learning in Indigenous Communities.

The report found only 18 of an estimated 250 Aboriginal languages were still spoken and were in danger of being wiped out in the next decade.

It recommended the need to urgently ensure their survival by teaching students whose first language was indigenous in their mother tongue, and an alternative NAPLAN method of testing.

But Mr Neumann took it a step further, calling for an Indigenous Language Learning Centre at Ipswich.

He said he would also like to see an indigenous language degree on offer at universities or TAFE in addition to other foreign language degrees.

“There are 136,000 people in the Blair electorate and 5300 are indigenous, according to the latest census,” Mr Neumann said.

“At Riverview State School 25% of students are indigenous. Most Ipswich high schools have indigenous populations of 10 to 15%.

“This is a very significant report for at least one in 10 people in our district. If adopted by the government it will make a huge difference.

Read the full article

By Ross Kay for ABC Wide Bay.

The study of a language can lead to a new understanding of the world as you immerse yourself in a different culture. But what if you could do that in your own backyard?

That’s the invitation extended to the traditional owners in the Port Curtis and Coral coast region at the 2012 Immersion weekend.

The event will be held over three days at the Wyper Park Scout Camp in Bundaberg, and Phillip Brown, Central Queensland Language Centre co-ordinator says the weekend is designed to provoke discussion about local language groups, and to continue to build a framework for future education.

Read the full article.
Read the full article.

Today the Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs tabled its report on the inquiry into language learning in Indigenous communities entitled Our Land Our Languages.

The report, and summary document, can be downloaded and read on the House of Representatives Committee’s website.