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Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 1
Local Aboriginal History Pathway 2 Level 5 - Languages Other Than English: Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools
Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 2
Establishing the Learning Environment ...................................................................................... 2
Victorian Essential Learning Standards ...................................................................................... 4
Teaching, Learning and Assessment Activities ......................................................................... 5
Activity 1: 60,000 years of Aboriginal Society................................................................................................ 5
Activity 2: Before European Colonisation ...................................................................................................... 6
Activity 3: The Impact of European Colonisation on Aboriginal Language and Culture ................................ 9
Activity 4: Language Reclamation ............................................................................................................... 10
Unit Resources............................................................................................................................ 13
Websites ...................................................................................................................................................... 13
Teacher resources ....................................................................................................................................... 13
Student resources ........................................................................................................................................ 13
Assessment ................................................................................................................................. 14
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 2
Introduction
Note: This unit has been developed specifically for students learning an Aboriginal Language, and should be taught in line with the protocols in the VELS Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools: Standards P-10 and Protocols. Aboriginal members of the Language team should play a central role in the delivery of these classes. In Local Aboriginal History students: learn about the great depth of Aboriginal history; how to greet and farewell people in Language; understand the connection between Language and culture are introduced to the impact of European colonisation; become acquainted with the Language and culture of kinship through a Victorian Aboriginal Language; and discover their role in the Language reclamation process. This unit also includes simple classroom instructions in Language. Reclamation Languages will be at different stages of revival and the availability of particular words will vary from Language to Language. Assessment This unit provides opportunities for students to demonstrate achievement of elements of Level 5 standards in Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools. Students are assessed on their ability to work with Languages Other Than English. For further information see the Assessment section.
Establishing the Learning Environment
The Language being reclaimed, rather than English, should be used wherever and whenever possible.
A Welcome to Country or Acknowledgement of Country, whichever is appropriate, should be made at the beginning of class.
It is strongly recommended that each student have their own portfolio and online file for this subject.
Cards/posters with Language words can be put around the room, with an appropriate picture/drawing. Laminated cards, both small and large, can be utilised in many activities.
Free teaching resources can be borrowed from the Languages and Multicultural Education Resource Centre (LMERC). Pictures could be sourced from the Koori Mail or similar Aboriginal publications.
Schools can invite parents and community members to participate in the lesson, and students could take their portfolio of work home to share with others, to aid the reclamation process in the community.
Victorian Aboriginal Language materials can be obtained by contacting the Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages, or by going to www.vaclang.org.au.
Each student could take home a sheet of paper with the new words from each lesson to share. Alternatively, a sound file containing the new words could be emailed to parents and community members, or given to each student on an MP3 player/recorder to take home.
Where available, an interactive whiteboard can store lessons for revision purposes.
Sharing information and resources with other schools teaching the same Language is encouraged. In cases where this involves a primary school and a secondary school, a mentoring program could be undertaken.
Information about Victorian Aboriginal Languages in school programs can be found on the Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Schools website.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural events should be celebrated throughout the
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 3
year. It would be valuable for the entire school to be involved in these celebrations.
It is suggested that the Language team liaise with the history teacher when delivering this unit to ensure a whole school approach.
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 4
Victorian Essential Learning Standards
Local Aboriginal History provides opportunities to observe students against the Standards (p55) as detailed below:
Strand Domain Dimension Standards at Pathway 2 Level 5
Discipline-based learning
Languages Other Than English
Communicating in a language other than English
At Pathway 2 Level 5, students:
Participate in greetings
Respond to instructions and visual clues
Begin to explain the issues for translation between languages
Demonstrate reclamation skills through various strategies including direct learning from the Language team and investigation of dictionaries and wordlists
Research and document the Language being studied through personal interview and other strategies including the use of ICT
Discipline-based learning
Languages Other Than English
Intercultural knowledge and language awareness
At Pathway 2 Level 5, students:
Identify Aboriginal Languages in their region
Appreciate the roles of language in maintaining culture, identity and knowledge
Explain how the Language and culture help promote the sustainable care of the environment
Develop knowledge of protocols and skills of working ethically with each other and with Aboriginal communities
Demonstrate knowledge of the richness of vocabulary concerned with family ties and country in Aboriginal Languages
Understand the importance of maintaining the cultural values, beliefs and knowledge associated with the chosen Language by comparing and contrasting various ways of life including their own
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the impact on and involvement of Aboriginal peoples in the history of Australia from the time of colonisation onwards
Demonstrate an awareness of Language revival and maintenance efforts and can discuss the importance of this process
Demonstrate understanding of local stories contained in oral passages … by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through the production of responses in oral, artistic and literary forms
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 5
Teaching, Learning and Assessment Activities
Note: This unit has been developed specifically for students learning an Aboriginal Language, and should be taught in line with the protocols in the VELS document. This unit focuses on the longevity of Aboriginal Culture and life prior to European colonisation, the use of appropriate greetings and farewells, and the ability to follow classroom instructions in Language. The sample Language used in this unit is Wergaia, with words in standardised spelling from the Aboriginal Languages of Victoria Resource Portal. Communities will have their own spelling system for their Language, and this should be used in the Language program. Available words will vary from Language to Language. The activities below are suggestions only. Teachers should choose those activities that are suitable for their students.
Activity 1: 60,000 years of Aboriginal Society
Overview Activities Sample Language (Wergaia)
Comments
Welcome to Country
Invite a senior Traditional Owner, as appropriate, to give a Welcome to Country and to speak about the history of Aboriginal people in the area. Alternatively, ask a community member to make an Acknowledgement of Country, and to speak about the history of Aboriginal people in the area.
It is important to motivate students to see their link with the past and the oral Language tradition. Only Traditional Owners can give a Welcome to Country. All other people make an Acknowledgement of Country.
Greetings
Practise greetings:
Greet the students in Language
Students return the teacher’s greeting
Students greet any guests in Language
Students greet each other in Language
Greeting (formal): Dalkaiangarr? Greeting (informal): Dalk
This greeting routine should be used every day.
The oldest civilisation on Earth
Discuss why Aboriginal society is the oldest civilisation on earth.
Students try to visualise the long history of Aboriginal culture in relation to their prospective lifetimes. For example, students could create a
The timeline can be created online or manually.
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timeline, allowing about 2cms per thousand years, and place themselves as a dot in the 21st century.
Investigate some ancient civilisations such as the Egyptians and Romans and compare their longevity to that of Aboriginal culture.
Egyptians = approximately 5000 years Romans = approximately 2000 years
Survival techniques Discuss the types of community knowledge and wisdom that allowed survival in the different environments found in Australia, particularly in the local area.
For example, the use of fire to maintain the environment, ways of finding water, cultivation of yams, and reading the environment for sustainability
Farewells
Practise farewells:
Farewell the students in Language
Students return the teacher’s farewell
Students farewell any guests in Language
Students farewell each other in Language
Formal farewell: Nyakinyanuna Informal farewell: Nyakiny’
This farewell routine should be used every day.
Activity 2: Before European Colonisation
Overview Activities Sample Language (Wergaia)
Comments
Greeting routine as in Activity 1.
Revise instructional words in Language
These words should be used in the classroom on a daily basis.
Teach commands using the imperative form of the verb.
This approach
Quiet!:Gurrungaiwat! (plural), Gurrungai! (singular)
Sit!: Ngengakaty! (plural), Ngengak! (singular)
Stand!:Dyarrikiwat! (plural), Dyarriki! (singular)
Verbs in Aboriginal Languages typically have different endings for tense, eg, past, present and future; and for person, eg, I, you, we (including you), we (not including you), two of us, we all. Click the links below for more
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utilises total physical response (TPR).(See page 11.)
Say! (transitive)Giyakaty! (plural), Giyak! (singular)
Speak! (intransitive): Wurrekiwat! (plural), Wurreki! (singular)
Come on!:Wartiwat! (plural), Warti! (singular)
information on number; and/or inclusivity. Choose the most appropriate forms for the classroom. Extension: Work with the PE teacher to allow students to practise using these terms in a game situation.
Aboriginal kinship as an enduring social system
Discuss kinship terms
Invite a community member to talk about Aboriginal kinship systems as a means of survival.
Students take notes on maintaining Aboriginal cultural practices
Students create a
diagram showing how Aboriginal kinship systems work, labeling each person with the appropriate Language word.
Father: Mam Mother: Bap Older brother: Wawi Younger brother: Guti Older sister: Dyatyi Younger sister: Gutu Mother’s mother: Mim Father’s mother: Gukwan Mother’s father: Ngapa Father’s father: Gugurn Mother’s sister: Bap Father’s sister: Ngaluk Mother’s brother: Dyarrmbap Father’s brother: Mam Cousin: Merrp
Some links for background material:
Indigenous Australia
Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and their Communities
Aboriginal Kinship
Kinship with diagram
Record ideas
Students create a presentation outlining how Aboriginal people survived for such a long time in the local area. They should incorporate images with appropriate labels.
Students create their own online dictionary of Language words learned, which
Vegetable food: Banyim Meat food: Yauwirr To cook: Baka or Bawa To hunt: Wamunga To collect (Gather): Marta Camp: Laarr My camp: Larrek To sleep: Gumba or Durra or Wepa I sleep: gumban To eat: Dyaka or Dunga I eat: Dyakan Water: Gadyin To drink: Gupa I drink: Gupan
Students’ personal dictionaries can be a simple spreadsheet, or a multimedia dictionary database such as Miromaa.
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 8
should be regularly revised.
Using images, the teacher asks the class to name items featured in their presentations.
What is this: Nyanya? This is: Ginga…. Here is: Gimba…
Aboriginal stories and their role in sustaining Aboriginal culture.
Find a local Creation or Dreaming story that illustrates how the stories are used for social cohesion. Invite a community member to tell a story.
Each group will have their own Creation and Dreaming stories that may be suitable for this activity. Click here for some virtual story books from Aboriginal communities to give you some ideas.
Aboriginal community leaders
Discuss an Aboriginal leader of historical importance, eg, Barak, William Cooper, Sir Douglas Nicholls, and their contribution to contemporary Australia.
Students research an Aboriginal leader and produce an electronic presentation to be used as a resource
Famous Indigenous Australians See the Victorian Indigenous Honour Roll
Farewell routine as in Activity 1.
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 9
Activity 3: The Impact of European Colonisation on Aboriginal Language and Culture
Overview Activities Sample Language
Comments
Greeting routine as in Activity 1.
Language use
Students add new words to their personal dictionary.
Choose an appropriate verb and teach the class a simple conjugation illustrating tense.
Ask students to create new sentences using this verb with other nouns.
Dance, Corroboree: Warripa To dance: Wirrwa To sing: Gikila or warrung-warrungila Aboriginal man: wutyu or guli or bang White man: Ngumadyik Aboriginal woman: Laiurruk White woman: Wadyim-gurrk The man sang: Gikilin wutyu The man sings: Gikila wutyu The man will sing: Gikiliny wutyu The woman sang: Gikilin laiurruk The woman sings: Gikila laiurruk The woman will sing: Gikiliny laiurruk
Language and Culture
Discuss the inherent relationship between Language and culture
Students make a list of differences between early Aboriginal and European cultures
Discuss how these cultural differences can affect communication
Australia Day Council of NSW Student Resources British-Aboriginal Relations 1788-1820 See Interviews with Aboriginal Community Leaders
Contact between Aboriginal and European people
Students research the attitudes of the early European settlers to Aboriginal people, and the attitudes of Aboriginal people to the European settlers and record their
See 1869 Aboriginal Protection Act and 1886 ‘Half-Caste’ Act See Little Red Yellow Black Site from the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 10
findings
Look at the places where Europeans settled both locally and around Australia, and the effect this had on Aboriginal Languages and cultures:
o compare the
number of Languages from pre- and post- European colonisation
o ask where Languages are strong
Show a video depicting the treatment of Aboriginal people, eg, Rabbit Proof Fence, Lousy Little Sixpence
Students create an electronic presentation showing the impact of European colonisation on Aboriginal Languages and cultures, to be used as a resource
Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) See European Discovery and the Colonisation of Australia from the Australian Government For some historical European records of Aboriginal Languages and cultural practices, see the electronic publications listed at http://alv.vcaa.vic.edu.au/historical-books Rabbit-Proof Fence Lousy Little Sixpence
Farewell routine as in Activity 1.
Activity 4: Language Reclamation
Overview Activities Sample Language
Comments
Greeting routine as in Activity 1.
Language activity
Adapt or create terminology for use when talking to or about various class participants. For example, one group uses guli ‘people’ when referring to students.
Class sit down!: Ngengakaty guli!
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These words can be used when giving classroom instructions.
Ask students to address participants using these words.
What is Language Reclamation
Invite a community member or Language worker to discuss Language reclamation and the roles of the various people in the Language Team, and that of the students in the reclamation program
Make a recording of the discussion for use later in the program
You could invite Language team members, VACL, etc to participate in the discussion
See the Aboriginal Language and Cultures Language revival tab
See the VACL website
See Indigenous Languages and Emotions
Language Revitalisation
Protocols for Language Reclamation
Students brainstorm ideas to support the reclamation of the Language they are studying and prepare a presentation of their ideas for the community.
Students make their presentation to members of the Community, allowing the community to sanction or reject the various tasks presented. Use Language where possible
At the end of the year, students return to members of the Community and present a report and their resources
Language Maintenance strategies and resources
Local community’s protocols for Language reclamation
Understanding that this is a
Students research online for Language
See the Hans Rausing
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 12
global phenomenon
reclamation and revitalisation in other parts of Australia and in other countries
Endangered Languages Project
See the Foundation for Endangered Languages
Farewell routine as in Activity 1.
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Unit Resources
Websites
At the time of publication the URLs (website addresses) cited were checked for accuracy and appropriateness of content. However, due to the transient nature of material placed on the Internet, their continuing accuracy cannot be verified. Teachers are strongly advised to prepare their own indexes of sites that are suitable and applicable to this unit of work, and to check these addresses prior to allowing student access. For information on the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development’s Principles of Learning and Teaching (PoLT) follow this link.
Teacher resources
A comprehensive list of teacher resources is available under the resources tab on the Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools website. This site provides links to other states’ Language programs, and to a wide range of resources.
Student resources
A comprehensive list of student resources is available under the resources tab on the Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools website. This site provides links to other states’ Language programs, and to a wide range of resources.
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 14
Assessment
The Victorian Essential Learning Standards support a combination of assessment practices:
Assessment of learning (summative)
Assessment for learning (formative)
Assessment as learning (ongoing) Further information on these can be found at: http://www.education.vic.gov.au/studentlearning/assessment/preptoyear10/ Additional information is provided on the Languages Other Than English domain page. Although Aboriginal Languages are included in the Roman alphabetical languages category, the standards specific to Aboriginal Languages can be found in the VELS Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools: standards P-10 and protocols. When assessing student achievement, assessment criteria can be developed from relevant standards and associated tasks or activities. The table below shows a range of assessment criteria, tools and strategies applicable to this unit. Teachers could choose to use some or all of these or use the unit to assess other standards.
Standards Standards Evidence
Aboriginal Languages, Cultures and Reclamation in Victorian Schools
At Pathway 2 Level 5, students:
Participate in greetings
Respond to instructions and visual clues
Begin to explain the issues for translation between languages
Demonstrate reclamation skills through various strategies including direct learning from the Language team
Research and document the Language being studied through personal interview and other strategies including the use of ICT
Identify Aboriginal Languages in their region
Appreciate the roles of language in maintaining culture, identity and knowledge
Explain how the Language and culture help promote the sustainable care of the
Teacher observations and records of students’ skills in:
Using greetings and farewells (all activities)
Instructional words (activity 2)
Cultural differences (activity 3)
Reclamation ideas (activity 4)
Aboriginal kinship (activity 1), survival (activity 2), recording words learned (activity 2)
History of the area (activity 1), Kinship (activity 2)
Kinship (activity 2), Aboriginal community leaders (activity 2), Language and culture (activity 3)
Survival techniques (activity 1)
Local Aboriginal History – Victorian Essential Learning Standards – Level 5 Sample Unit © VCAA 2012 Page 15
environment
Develop knowledge of protocols and skills of working ethically with each other and with Aboriginal communities
Demonstrate knowledge of the richness of vocabulary concerned with family ties and country in Aboriginal Languages
Understand the importance of maintaining the cultural values, beliefs and knowledge associated with the chosen Language by comparing and contrasting various ways of life
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the impact on and involvement of Aboriginal peoples in the history of Australia from the time of colonisation onwards
Demonstrate an awareness of Language revival and maintenance efforts and discuss the importance of this process
Demonstrate understanding of local stories contained in oral passages … by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through the production of responses in oral, artistic and literary forms
Protocols for Language reclamation (activity 4)
Aboriginal kinship as an enduring social system (activity 2)
Survival techniques (activity 1), Aboriginal kinship (activity 2), Language and culture (activity 3), Contact between Aboriginal and European people (activity 3)
Aboriginal community leaders (activity 2), Contact between Aboriginal and European people (activity 3)
Language reclamation (activity 4)
Aboriginal stories and their role in sustaining Aboriginal culture (activity 2)
Total Physical Response (TPR): In second language teaching, total physical response is based on listening and linking a word or phrase to a particular physical action. This reinforces comprehension of basic items.