Evaluating the Bilingual Education Program in Warlpiri schools
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Samantha Disbray
Abstract
The Bilingual Education Program in the Northern Territory was established in 1973 to deliver an effective education to students in remote Indigenous schools. In 2008, the NT Government closed the Program, citing low student achievement in English literacy as its rationale. This chapter evaluates the program according to a wider set of criteria, with particular focus on the Warlpiri schools. It considers the training of local staff, community involvement in schools, the development of curriculum, and extensive literature and linguistic documentation. These criteria are not prominent in government evaluations, yet are identified in national and international literature as key to achieving student outcomes (UNESCO 2008a, 2008b; Silburn et al. 2011) and echo priorities expressed by Indigenous adults involved in education.
Abstract
The Bilingual Education Program in the Northern Territory was established in 1973 to deliver an effective education to students in remote Indigenous schools. In 2008, the NT Government closed the Program, citing low student achievement in English literacy as its rationale. This chapter evaluates the program according to a wider set of criteria, with particular focus on the Warlpiri schools. It considers the training of local staff, community involvement in schools, the development of curriculum, and extensive literature and linguistic documentation. These criteria are not prominent in government evaluations, yet are identified in national and international literature as key to achieving student outcomes (UNESCO 2008a, 2008b; Silburn et al. 2011) and echo priorities expressed by Indigenous adults involved in education.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Map of Australian languages refferred to in this book vii
- List of contributors xi
- Editors’ introduction 1
- Bibliography of Mary Laughren 15
- Evaluating the Bilingual Education Program in Warlpiri schools 25
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Part 1. Phonology
- Phonological aspects of Arandic baby talk 49
- Prestopping of nasals and laterals is only partly parallel 81
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Part 2. Morphology
- Liminal pronoun systems 99
- Verbs as spatial deixis markers in Jingulu 123
- The reconstruction of inflectional classes in morphology 153
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Part 3. Syntax
- Marking Definiteness or Specificity, not necessarily both 193
- Theory and experiment in parametric minimalism 217
- Serial verbs in Wambaya 263
- Nominals as adjuncts or arguments 283
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Part 4. Semantics
- The case of the invisible postman 319
- Manner and result 337
-
Part 5. Anthropological Linguistics
- Shifting relations 361
- Language index 383
- Subject index 385
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Map of Australian languages refferred to in this book vii
- List of contributors xi
- Editors’ introduction 1
- Bibliography of Mary Laughren 15
- Evaluating the Bilingual Education Program in Warlpiri schools 25
-
Part 1. Phonology
- Phonological aspects of Arandic baby talk 49
- Prestopping of nasals and laterals is only partly parallel 81
-
Part 2. Morphology
- Liminal pronoun systems 99
- Verbs as spatial deixis markers in Jingulu 123
- The reconstruction of inflectional classes in morphology 153
-
Part 3. Syntax
- Marking Definiteness or Specificity, not necessarily both 193
- Theory and experiment in parametric minimalism 217
- Serial verbs in Wambaya 263
- Nominals as adjuncts or arguments 283
-
Part 4. Semantics
- The case of the invisible postman 319
- Manner and result 337
-
Part 5. Anthropological Linguistics
- Shifting relations 361
- Language index 383
- Subject index 385
