Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

5 minutes – Introduction
10 minutes – Part A: Between Two Languages
15 minutes – Part B: Learning Language
10 minutes – Part C: Language in Australia
30 minutes – Part D: Language as Power
10 minutes – Reflection

Introduction

Step 1.

Play the following video for students:

Arrernte Language and Culture (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mcVT7HL4i8)

Note: This video contains images and the voice of a deceased person, and may be inappropriate to play in some circumstances.

Distribute the Student Worksheet and invite students to complete the following questions as a Think Pair Share activity:

What was the main message of the video?
Why do you think the young people in the video were so interested in learning the Arrernte language?
All the people in the video were speaking in English. Why do you think that is and what do you think it means?
Do you speak the language of your ancestors? Is it something you think much about?

Think Pair Share
THINK PAIR SHARE is a collaborative learning strategy in which students work together to solve a problem or answer a question.
THINK - Students independently think about an issue or question or question and record their thoughts.
PAIR - Students work in pairs to discuss their ideas and record new thoughts.
SHARE - Students share their thoughts with the whole group or with other pairs to reach consensus.

Part A: Between Two Languages

Step 1.

Explain to students that they will be watching a clip from In My Blood It Runs, where they will hear the Arrernte language being spoken. Dujuan and his Nana Carol go back and forth between using English and Arrernte words. This is quite common in bilingual communities.

Note: We recommend that you teach one or both of the introductory lessons (Identity and Diverse Perspectives) before teaching this one. However; if students aren't aware of the film, or need a reminder, now is a good time to discuss the film context with them. You can refer to the teacher content information in this lesson for more information.

Step 2.

Before viewing the clip, invite students to reflect, as a class, on a situation where they have noticed two languages being used in this way.

Step 3.

Ask the students to guess why Dujuan might speak some words in Arrernte and others in English. Do they know which language he is most fluent in? Do they know why this might be?

Step 4.

Play the following clip from In My Blood It Runs for students without interrupting:

In My Blood It Runs (documentary) - 'Use your healing powers' (clip 03) (https://vimeo.com/437698042/bc26b85286) Closer Productions, 2019.

Step 5.

Hand out the Student Worksheet and play the clip again, and this time, invite students to write particular phrases or words that stand out from each of the languages used (it’s okay if they don’t get the spelling right for this activity):

English words and phrases that stood out	Arrernte words and phrases that stood out
	Arrethe (bush medicine) Ngangkere (healing powers)

If you do have any students who are happy discussing their experience with languages other than English, invite them to share their experiences, and how they relate to this scene in the film. Do they move back and forwards between both languages at home? Do they speak to specific people in one language more than another? Were there moments in the scene that they identified with or related to?

Step 6.

Invite students to form small groups and discuss which words they noticed were spoken in Arrernte. They should consider whether these words have special cultural significance. Invite students (where relevant/appropriate) to share examples of words they use from other languages that have cultural significance and therefore aren’t usually spoken in English.

Note: It’s important to remember here that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students do not necessarily speak a language other than English (nor other students) and it shouldn’t be assumed or expected that they do. They might speak a dialect of English, such as Aboriginal English, or they may feel ashamed of not knowing their language, or they might know parts of the language that are not appropriate to share in a classroom environment. Language is always a complex and heavily political thing: it’s worth taking the time to think critically about the students in your class and how best to deliver this portion of the lesson to cater for their individual needs. At the same time, it’s empowering to provide opportunities for students to bring their own languages into the classroom in a safe way.

Step 7.

Open up a discussion for volunteers to talk about their experience in the classroom during that activity. Did they enjoy the opportunity to share their language with their peers? Was it a validating experience for them? If not, why was that and how can we work as a class to make each other feel more safe?

Part B: Learning Language

Step 1.

Show students the following clips from In My Blood It Runs:

In My Blood it Runs (documentary) - 'That was for white people, not Aboriginals' (clip 04) (https://vimeo.com/437699203/20ac3d9b6a) Closer Productions, 2019.

In My Blood it Runs (documentary) - 'I need them to speak their language' (clip 06) (https://vimeo.com/437698954/725c9d9db4) Closer Productions, 2019.

Note: Students should have already seen the first clip, when they completed In My Blood It Runs - Diverse Perspectives - English - Years 9 & 10. (If you haven’t completed that lesson, we strongly recommend you do it before watching the entire film.) Remind students that, as noted in the ‘Diverse Perspectives’ lesson, the teacher in the first clip is putting forward a European-centric view on history.

Step 2.

Invite students, in pairs, to compare the two different lessons that take place. They can complete this table and the following questions using the Student Worksheet.

	Lesson 1	Lesson 2
Who is teaching?
Where/when are they learning?
What is being taught
How it is being taught
What is Dujuan’s reaction to the lesson?

What similarities do you notice between the two lessons?
What differences do you notice?
Which lesson did Dujuan appear to enjoy more? Why do you think that is?
What is the film suggesting about the way in which the two different languages are taught?

Part C: Language in Australia

Step 1.

Display the language map from this website for all students to see:

https://aiatsis.gov.au/explore/articles/aiatsis-map-indigenous-australia

Explain that the map is an attempt to represent all the language and nation groups of the First Nations peoples of Australia.

Invite students to briefly discuss what they see and their reactions. For students seeing this map for the first time, they may be taken aback by the sheer diversity of languages spoken on the continent before the arrival of Europeans.

Step 2.

Explain to students that speaking First Nations languages was banned (particularly in the missions) up until the 1970s (source), and in many areas even today multilingual or bilingual schools have essentially been dismantled (as explored here). As a result, many of these languages have become dormant or have reduced fluency. Even today, most schools conduct classes in English, with only a small amount of time allocated to allow for other languages (even in schools with high Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations). This means that many children, like Dujuan, are having to learn their traditional language outside of school time.

Step 3.

Invite students to form a pair with someone they don’t usually work with. Provide each pair with a set of dominoes or pack of cards (or part thereof).

Invite pairs to work together to create a visual metaphor of how they perceive the loss of language might be experienced across generations. Some students may wish to share their work with others. Allow students to do this at their discretion.

Step 4.

Invite the pairs to create a second visual metaphor, but this time of what it would be like if traditional language learning was supported through all angles of the community (from families and schools through to government).

Part D: Language as Power

In this part, students explore how language can also be a form of power, and a source of inclusion or exclusion for different people.

Step 1.

Display the following two texts on the board at the same time:

Article 14, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP):

"States shall, in conjunction with indigenous peoples, take effective measures, in order for indigenous individuals, particularly children, including those living outside their communities, to have access, when possible, to an education in their own culture and provided in their own language."

This has been reworded (by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) in the Australian Community Guide for the same document (source):

"We have the right to teach and learn in our own languages and in a way that is culturally appropriate.
Governments should work with us to help those of us who are living away from their communities to learn culture and language.
The right to education is especially important for children."

Step 2.

Invite students to explain the similarities and differences between the two texts (as a class). They might consider:

Has the text changed meaning through the rewording?
What are the potential benefits of this text being reworded?
What might the rewording (or the Community Guide overall) symbolise to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples?

Step 3.

Ask students, in pairs, to list some other key documents or writings relevant to Australian public life. These might include the Constitution, the National Anthem, Australian laws, identity documents or qualification documents.

Step 4.

Invite each pair to write one of their found documents on an online collaborative document or up on the board. As you go around the room, each pair should try to share a new one. Continue cycling around the room until students run out of new answers.

Step 5.

Assign each pair two documents for them to research. They should make notes on the following:

What language or languages are these documents written in?
Is the language from a particular era or style? (e.g. academic, legal jargon, informal, slang, lengthy (long sentences), sporadic - only used for quotations or specific words)
Who is the intended audience of the document?
Can you imagine any other audiences that might use the document?
Do you feel that the language used meets the needs of all of the document's possible audience types?

Differentiate this task by being selective about which type of document you assign to which pair. For example, lower literacy students will fare better with more visual texts, such as driver's licences and passports.

Step 6.

Invite pairs to team up with one or two other pairs and share their results. They should discuss the following and report back to the class:

Is there one dominant language in Australia, or are there several?
Did you see any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages represented in any of the documents? If so, used in what way?
Do you feel that the language used these documents is inclusive of a range of audiences, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, or do you feel that it privileges a particular kind of audience?
How might you change the language used in any of these documents?

Step 7.

Invite students to consider where they see or hear Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages being used in their local communities. Are there signs up in parks, by the side of the road when you enter the region, or is language used at any community events? Invite students to consider how the presence or absence of these languages might impact upon Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members.

Reflection

Invite students to complete the following activities on their Student Worksheets:

List three words that have meaning to you.
Write a meaningful sentence for each word, that you feel highlights the value of your special word.
Now try to write sentences again, capture the same meaning and energy, without using your special words.
Was it difficult or easy? Can you imagine life without these words? If you can, what does that life look like? How are you able to make meaning without your special words?
Write a paragraph about why you think it is important to some people to preserve their language.

Differentiated Learning

Extension -

Individual: Research the National Indigenous Youth Education Coalition (NIYEC) and write a journalistic article on them. Explore the positive work they are doing, community attitudes that might be helping or hindering their work, and your view on how the Australian education system can better empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in and out of the classroom.
Whole class: Depending on your time allotment and circumstances, this could be an opportunity to segue into a larger research project around the First Nations languages of the Land your school is on. You could reach out to your Aboriginal Education Consultative Group, local Aboriginal Education Officer, or similar community-level organisation to explore the best way to approach this further work. There are also guiding resources available under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Languages and Build Relationships with Community RAP Action pages on Reconciliation Australia’s Narragunnawali platform.

Provisions for Learning Support -

Between Parts A and B you might like to explore the concept of ‘loan words’ with students who may have difficulty understanding the connection between English and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages:

Part A-2: Can I Borrow Your Language? (optional)

Step 1.

Share this definition from the Collins Dictionary with students:

A ‘loan word’ is “a word adopted, often with some modification of its form, from one language into another” (source).

Step 2.

Invite students to call out a few examples of loan words.

Invite students to form pairs, then display the words in the first column. Invite them to identify which language each of these words originated from. You could do this as a game or competitive task.

If students need support, you could also display the list of languages (on the right) in a scrambled order.

Kindergarten	German
Mayonnaise	French
Karaoke	Japanese
Balaclava	Russian
Falsetto	Italian
Ketchup*	Chinese

*Ketchup comes from the Chinese word kôe-chiap, meaning the brine of pickled fish. They originally made ketchup from pickled fish and spices.

Step 3.

Working in the same pairs or groups, invite students to list as many words as they can in five minutes that come from an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander language, and have been adapted and/or integrated into English.

They can use place names, flora and fauna or anything else they can think of. For example:

‘Kangaroo’ comes from the Guugu Yimidhirr word gangurru
‘Wombat’ comes from the Dharug word wambad, and ‘wallaby’ from the Dharug wollabi
‘Kookaburra’ comes from the Wiradjuri word guuguubarra
‘Billabong’ probably comes from the Wiradjuri word bilabar
'Canberra' is a Ngunnawal word that means meeting place.

At the end of the allotted time, students can share their words.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching practice today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

In My Blood It Runs - Speaking Power

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