Chinese native-speaker volunteers contributions to the teaching and learning of Chinese language and culture in Western Sydney schools

Chinese native-speaker volunteers contributions to the teaching and learning of Chinese language and culture in Western Sydney schools

AFMLTA National Conference 2011

Cheryl BallantyneSchool Development OfficerNSW Department of Education and CommunitiesWestern Sydney RegionFocus questionWhat can a Chinese native-speaker volunteer program contribute to the teaching and learning of Chinese language and culture in schools?

Structure of presentationFour-dimensional analytical framework (Singh, 1989):

Describe the programSituate it within policy and theoryConfront the challengesReconstruct (future directions)

Western Sydney-Ningbo Chinese Volunteer Teacher-researcher ProgramAims to promote the teaching and learning of Chinese language and culture in WSR schools by generating interest in school communities and embedding that interest through a sustained program of support

Ningbo Municipal Education BureauUniversity of Western Sydney Centre for Educational ResearchNSW Dept. of Education and Communities Western Sydney RegionProgram features2008-2012Up to 10 graduates from Ningbo, China arrive at the end of June each yearUndertake M.Ed.(Hons)Volunteer in schools two days per weekReturn to China in December the next year

Program featuresSchool experience informs and is informed by M.Ed.(Hons) research

Reflection and classroom investigation built into the Program.Program participants - PSPSChinese teacher on staff% Chinese b/ground students in school% of sch pop in Chinese Program1Yes b/ground speaker1%73%2No0%60%3Yes non b/ground speaker5%100%4Yes b/ground speaker1%15%5No1%27%6Yes bilingual program1%97%7No1%92%8No1%69%9No1%28%10No0%100%Program participants - HSHSChinese teacher on staff% Chinese b/ground students Participation in Program1Yes b/ground speaker13%Year 7 2Yes b/ground speaker12%Year 7 & 103Yes non b/ground speaker3%Year 84No0%Year 7 & 85Yes b/ground speaker1%Year 7 & 86Yes b/ground speaker1%Year 77Yes non b/ground speaker3%Stage 68Yes non b/ground speaker1%Year 7, 8, 9, 10 & Stage 6Program outcomesIncreased numbers of students learning Chinese

School community interest in Chinese

School leaders planning for Chinese

Volunteers realising their development of intercultural understanding - a foundation for teachingIncrease in number of students learning Chinese - primary schools20103,989 primary students learning Chinese

1,397 (35%) taught by Ningbo Volunteers working in classrooms with non Chinese-speaking teachers

Chinese language and culture programs in primary schools

Primary school students learning Chinese

Increase in number of students learning Chinese high schools2010931 secondary students learning Chinese

44 (0.05%) taught by Ningbo Volunteers working in classrooms with non Chinese-speaking teachers2009876 secondary students learning Chinese

110 (12.5%) taught by Ningbo Volunteers supporting non Chinese-speaking teachers

School community interest in Chinese primary student surveys Term 3 2010702 student responses from eight schools

67% - learning Chinese language important 80% - learning Chinese language interesting63% - learning about China important 78% - learning about China interesting 65% would like to continue learning Chinese in 2011

School community interest in Chinese parent surveys - primary schools Term 3 2010117 parent responses from seven schools

More than 80% - learning Chinese language and culture important and valuable for students

School community interest in Chinese secondary student and parent surveys Term 3 2010245 student responses from five schools

178 student responses from one school only

10 parent responses all from one school.

School community interest in Chinese staff survey Term 3 201050 staff responses representing 12 schools38 from 6 primary schools12 from 6 high schools

95% - learning Chinese language important

100% - learning Chinese culture important

93% - Chinese Program has a positive influence on schools

Staff represented

School leaders planning for Chinese - Principal focus group Term 1 2010

Volunteers rapport with students has stimulated interest in Chinese language

Chinese language is accepted as part of the curriculum (no longer exotic High School Principal)

Planning for Chinese language and culture programs occurring in primary schools and high schools

School leaders planning for Chinese- Principal focus group Term 1 2010Chinese language has replaced other LOTE programs - two high schools

Links between Chinese language and culture and other KLAs - three high schools

Chinese classroom allocated - one high school

School leaders planning for Chinese- Principal focus group Term 1 2010

Collaboration across learning communities to support transition Year 6 to 7.

System support important to the long term effectiveness of the Program

Volunteers realising their development of intercultural understanding - a foundation for teachingFebruary 2009:When students said dao clearly and correctly, I appreciated their first good try and wanted to encourage them. However I found that I could only say good and great. I found that I could not give students immediate and suitable (English and Aussie like) comments, such as fantastic, brilliant, fabulous when they did what I told them, because it was hard for me to express these words that were too emotional for me I felt strange and uncomfortable when I spoke like this although I knew it was a normal expression for English speakers (Li, 2010, p. 200).

Volunteers realising their development of intercultural understanding - a foundation for teachingSeptember 2009:My presentation was in Chinese. Since university I have not given a presentation in Chinese. I was used to doing English presentations and using English expression in the presentation. But this time, in order to show our respects, we decided to give a Chinese presentation.Then I found a strange thing. I had grown used to using some emotional word in English, such as appreciate, amazing, fantastic, dear, sincere, and so forth. I was used to expressing my thoughts. However, when I had to say similar things in Chinese, I felt really strange and awkward. Why did I feel this way? Then I realized, in Chinese culture, people are not used to expressing feelings like this. We feel uncomfortable saying I love you, I miss you, or offering praise publicly. Some words that are common in English made me feel weird in Chinese.

Volunteers realising their development of intercultural understanding - a foundation for teachingAs I understand, when people are learning a foreign language, it is inevitable for them to learn about and adapt to the related culture. I have learned English for a long time. But before I went to Australia to teach I did not feel this because I did not actually use this language when I was in China, even though I studied at an English-speaking university. However, when I started teach here, I had to use English and learn how to speak or use it in an English way. I gradually got used to these expressions and thought it was common to hear emotional words as I mentioned before.When I was saying those words and expressing in an English way, I did not treat myself as the same person who speaks Mandarin. As I was talking in English, I set up a different scene for myself, so that I could behave or even think in a more English way. So I could express this in English but I felt strange expressing it in Mandarin (Li, 2010, p.203-204).

The words of a Volunteer Teacher-researcherA teacher stops at a self-reflection journal, but a researcher will do something with that journal. Reflection should be disciplined by research; otherwise, reflections are reflections, and may not be systematised, analysed and given value (Zhang, 2010, p. 185).

Contexts of the ProgramNALSSP target 2020 (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, 2009)

Draft shape of the Australian Curriculum: Languages (ACARA, 2011)

Intercultural language teaching and learning (Lo Bianco, Liddicoat, & Crozet, 1999; Liddicoat, Papademetre, Scarino & Kohler, 2003, Liddicoat, 2005; Kohler, 2010)Challenges & future directions1: Retention

Challenges & future directions1: RetentionExpand Volunteer Program beyond current 18 schoolsEstablish Confucius Centre:Year 6-7 transition in Chinese middle years outreach programsconnected classroom delivery of Chinese

Challenges & future directions2: Teacher supplyStrategies being considered by WS Region and UWS:Volunteers supporting Chinese in schools during PhD research

extending Program into second 5-year period 2012-2016 focus on schools without Chinese teachers

Challenges & future directions2: Teacher supplyStrategies being considered by WS Region and UWS:Volunteer Program with a second Chinese Education Bureau

UWS exploring combined MEd (Hons)/Master of Teaching for Volunteers

UWS exploring possibility of graduates of proposed MEd(Hons)/Master of Teaching being offered employment as Chinese teachers in NSW

Challenges & future directions3: Time spent on learning Chinese; goals and pedagogy of school programs

Challenges & future directions3: Time spent on learning Chinese, goals and pedagogy of school programs

School self-evaluation process with reference to:Program standards in Professional standards for accomplished teaching of languages (AFMLTA, 2005)Dimensions of instructional leadership (Robinson, 2007)

Program sharing across schools (Moodle)Challenges & future directions4: Volunteers further development of an intercultural orientation to teaching and learning Chinese language and culture

and impacts on students development of intercultural competence

Proposed and future PhD research

Questions?