Newsletter compiled by: Dee Edwards, National Co-ordinator [Learning languages], Secondary Student Achievement Contract | Phone: 09 623

8899 ext. 48724 | Email: de.edwards@auckland.ac.nz

Team Solutions, Faculty of Education, The University of Auckland | Epsom Campus Private Bag 92601, Symonds Street, Auckland 1150

New Zealand |

Secondary Learning Languages Newsletter

Information and resources for leaders of Learning Languages in secondary schools | Term 4 | October 2012

Tēnā ra tātou ngā kaiako e kawe ana I ngā reo, mauriora mauritau.

The recent Level 3 NCEA Alignment workshops provided valuable opportunities to focus on enhancing the assessment capability of Year 13 students and the development of their strategic competence as language learners. A range of strategies were explored that develop Literacy and critical thinking, and support student confidence when interacting. More workshops have been planned for Term 4 in both the Northern and Central North regions.

Level 3 writing workshops are being organised that will provide the opportunity for middle leaders to work with colleagues who teach the same language, and collaboratively develop planning and assessment resources. Dates for upcoming Alignment and Writing workshops are outlined later in this newsletter, on TKI, and on the PLD calendars of the Learning Languages PLD wiki.

Also in this newsletter are articles written by Siliva Gaugatao and Lesley Parris, Regional Facilitators, Learning Languages. Lesley talks about The Beauty of Using Poetry in the Languages Classroom and inspires the use of poetry as a stimulus for critical thinking and creative production. On another note, Siliva shares his passion for music and offers strategies for Creating Educationally Powerful Connections in Learning Languages and Music.

The wiki https://learninglanguagespld.wikispaces.com/ is being updated regularly and all resources from workshops and inquiry clusters are uploaded onto the relevant pages of the wiki so that middle leaders can use the resources to lead PLD in their own departments. The draft version of the Making Literacy Explicit in Learning Languages tool is now available on the Literacy page of the wiki and is supported by a wide range of strategies and resources that can be used in any second language context.

This year, it has been rewarding to support the many languages leaders who demonstrated their commitment to professional development, leading languages education, and enhancing the success of their students. With only a few weeks before your senior students begin their external assessments, I would like to take this opportunity to wish them all success.

Mauritau ki a tātou. Naku ihi nei, nā Dee Edwards National Co-ordinator Learning Languages, Secondary Student Achievement Contract – Northern and Central North Regions

Ko tōu reo, ko tōku reo,

te tuakiri tangata. Tīhei uriuri, tīhei nakonako.

Kia Ora! Ni hao! 你好! 안녕하세요

Kia orana! Bonjour!

Guten Tag! Konnichiwa こんにちは。

Salvete! Faka’alofa lahi atu!

Talofa lava! ¡Buenos días! Malo e lelei! Taloha ni! Dia dhuit!

Dates for your diary:

• Tokelau Language Week

29 Oct – 02 Nov http://www.learntokelau.co.nz/

Team Solutions, 2012

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The Beauty of Using Poetry in the Languages Classroom

“Poetry is emotional, personal, creative, and communicative….. a powerful vehicle for internalizing new words and expressions in a foreign language” says Diane Farrug in her blog ‘Write Poetry in a Foreign Language’ and she goes on to share various ways of doing this… http://suite101.com/article/poetry-in-foreign-language-classes-a44904

But that’s about writing poetry. I want to encourage you to have your students read and hear poetry – not to analyse the language and translate it, but to use it as a stimulus for critical thinking and creative production. In the draft achievement standard in Languages 3.2, students are required to give a clear spoken presentation in target language that communicates a critical response to stimulus material. What fun to use poetry (shorter than a novel!) – or even song words, hymns, slam and rap, proverbs or limericks, depending on the target culture – for example, try Prévert in French, Albert Wendt in Samoan, Goethe or Ernst Jandl in German, Kenji Miyazawa in Japanese, Nicolás Gullén and Gloria Fuertes in Spanish. Find a You Tube clip on the same theme, a podcast, mood music and soul food to go with it, limited only by your imagination – or rather that of your students!

“Choose the right poem or extract and you could fire students’ love of learning a language. Just learning one line can be satisfying, and it embeds key grammar and vocabulary in the memory, too. Poetry also provides an incentive for working on pronunciation. You have to get it right to hear the poem's music “ http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6278641 You can use poetry in Languages classes, not to teach students to write or even appreciate poetry, but to develop their communicative competence, at the heart of the Learning Languages section of the NZ Curriculum. Carla Cariboni Killander in her research Poetry in Foreign Language Teaching: Aspects of a Major Challenge talks about dramatizing poetry as “a powerful tool in stimulating learning …..learners become intellectually, emotionally, and physically involved ….. within the framework of the new culture……..Learners use the target language for specific purposes, language is more easily internalized and, therefore, language is remembered.” http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=16&ved=0CE4QFjAFOAo&url=http%3A%2F%2Flup.lub.lu.se%2Fluur%2Fdownload%3Ffunc%3DdownloadFile%26recordOId%3D2278641%26fileOId%3D2278653&ei=APRxUOmEBqiZiQfThIFY&usg=AFQjCNE1DbBzPxN4HpqeHdzF_LIPKIvAPQ&sig2=YOq7_KKtRoZafKERCo-WRQ

Secondary Student Achievement Contract

National Co-ordinator Learning Languages

Dee Edwards – Northern and Central North Regions Faculty of Education The University of Auckland T: 09 623 8899 ext. 48724 M: 0275880488 F: 09 623 8881 E: de.edwards@auckland.ac.nz W: teamsolutions.ac.nz https://learninglanguagespld.wikispaces.com/ Regional Facilitator Learning Languages

Siliva Gaugatao – Northern Region Faculty of Education The University of Auckland T: 09 623 8899 ext. 48134 M: 027554655 F: 09 623 8881 E: s.gaugatao@auckland.ac.nz W: teamsolutions.ac.nz Regional Facilitator Learning Languages

Lesley Parris – Central Region Faculty of Education The University of Auckland T: 09 623 8899 M: The University of Auckland T: 06 8365334 M: 0275544642 E: l.parris@auckland.ac.nz W: teamsolutions.ac.nz

“How do you spell ‘friend’?” Piglet asked Pooh. “I don’t have to spell it,” says Pooh. “I just feel it.”

Team Solutions, 2012

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Making Literacy Explicit in Learning Languages Tool This resource has been developed to support middle leaders in Learning Languages to build on their use and interpretation of assessment data to develop relevant pedagogical knowledge to inform the literacy focus of their programmes. A range of explicit literacy strategies that will support reading and writing in the second language classroom have been identified that will support teachers to be responsive to student learning needs, and to increase the levels of achievement for students undertaking achievement standards with high literacy demands in this learning area. These include the aligned .5 writing portfolio, and the external comprehension standards. These strategies should be integrated into Learning Languages programmes, using appropriate second language contexts, and can also form the basis for writing portfolio tasks. In some cases, difficult skills will need to be taught directly supported by opportunities for continuous practice and corrective feedback. Middle leaders in Learning Languages can use this resource to shift their programmes from an exclusively content focused approach where the focus is entirely on language knowledge and its assessment, to incorporate a literacy approach that supports the development of students' strategic competence where the focus is on both content and skills. The tool supported by an extensive range of Literacy and Thinking resources are available on the Literacy page of the Learning Languages PLD wiki https://learninglanguagespld.wikispaces.com/

In my reading, I have found this article Using poetry with mixed ability language classes by Brian Tomlinson useful, as it reinforces the explicit literacy strategies in focus currently, albeit the examples are in English. http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=25&ved=0CEsQFjAEOBQ&url=http%3A%2F%2F203.72.145.166%2FELT%2Ffiles%2F40-1-5.pdf&ei=dQByUICTJIiviQePsICwCg&usg=AFQjCNGKmCPN0IT0s5NMAPf2DrB11UOVCw&sig2=TnnNoYbJrC2K11d7NZCBaw

• Pre-reading strategies (to arouse curiosity, make poem accessible – focus on content only, not language): related to the poem/theme - discuss controversial topics; listen to songs, look at pictures; read related poem in mother tongue;

• During reading (to elicit emotional response): listen (teacher or podcast www.librivox.org), look at pictures, listen to mood music; present poem line by line or in jumbled order.

• Post-reading: discuss emotional response (without teacher judgement or correction); offer choice of communicative task e.g. group interpretation; interviews with poet/characters; drama, mime or dance versions; turn into short story, pop/rap/slam; continue poem; rewrite from different perspective; compare with poem on same topic.

The poem is not the task; it is the stimulus for communicative tasks. I like that!

Lesley Parris Regional Facilitator, Learning Languages

LEARNING LANGUAGES: LEVEL 3 NCEA ALIGNMENT WORKSHOPS 9am – 3pm

Taupo: 15 November Tauranga: 19 November

LEVEL 3 NCEA ALIGNMENT WRITING RESOURCES WORKSHOPS 9am – 3pm

Taupo: 16 November Hawkes Bay: 21 November and/or 03 December Hamilton: 29 November

These workshops are being offered as a follow-up to the Learning Languages: Level 3 NCEA Alignment Workshop.

Enrol by email indicating which language you will be developing resources for: l.parris@auckland.ac.nz LEVEL 1/2 NCEA LESSONS LEARNT WORKSHOPS 1 - 4pm

Hamilton: 14 November Rotorua: 27 November Registration details in separate email.

These are Ministry of Education supported PLD opportunities and are offered at no cost to participants. Lunch is not included and participants are invited to bring a contribution (a plate please) for a shared lunch. Morning/afternoon tea is included.

Team Solutions, 2012

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Leading from the middle: educational leadership for middle and senior leaders http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Leadership-development/Professional-information/Leading-from-the-middle

Leading from the Middle: educational leadership for middle and senior leaders (2012) describes the qualities, practices and activities middle and senior leaders need to lead in ways that enhance learner outcomes. This resource is the third in a series that includes Kiwi Leadership for Principals and Tū Rangatira: Māori Medium Educational Leadership. Together the series describes the knowledge, skills and qualities that are at the heart of every level of effective school leadership. Who are our middle and senior leaders? Middle and senior leaders are a large and diverse group – diverse because of the differing needs for pedagogical and administrative leadership across schools. The majority are classroom teachers and interact with students as part of their roles. Senior leaders include associate, deputy, and assistant principals. This group, along with the school principal, usually makes up the senior leadership team. Senior leaders can be called on to stand in for the principal in an acting capacity. Middle leaders work with and support classroom teachers and students, providing pedagogical and pastoral leadership and fulfilling various administrative functions. Middle leaders include:

• pedagogical leaders at the subject, curriculum, and faculty levels;

• team and syndicate leaders; • pastoral leaders involved in student services, career

or guidance, and counselling work; • teachers with specific or designated whole-school

responsibility, such as for sport, information and communications technology (ICT), assessment, literacy, special education needs, or mentoring;

• coaches and mentors who help lead professional learning.

Me Korero - Let's Talk!

This booklet will:

• tell you a bit about Ka Hikitia • provide you with a snapshot of the current picture for Māori learners in education • highlight some of the Government’s key ideas for making a difference over the next five years and beyond • tell you about the Government’s focus on targets and driving improvement based on the evidence of what works best

There are some questions for you at the back of this booklet or on the Ministry's website: http://www.minedu.govt.nz/theMinistry/PolicyAndStrategy/KaHikitia/MeKoreroLetsTalk.aspx

Your answers will help:

• provide a picture of what you are doing to help Māori learners achieve their full potential

• provide knowledge around what kinds of information or support will help us all raise achievement together.

• to develop Ka Hikitia - Accelerating Success 2013 - 2017

but, more importantly,

• ensure that it helps deliver real gains for Māori learners in education for the next five years and beyond.

Team Solutions, 2012

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Creating Educationally Powerful Connections in Learning Languages and Music

Learning a language(s) through music is a well-established aspect of teacher practice especially at an early stage of learning. People are often moved and engaged with music, even if the lyrics are in a foreign language. This article looks at ways that teachers can enhance student learning through making links between learning languages and music, and maximizes the learning that some of your students are making across these two subjects, where possible. I have framed this piece around two key components of the music curriculum: composition and performance.

Composition: where students write their own original piece(s) of music. Many choose to write songs with lyrics or words, or for an instrument(s) that they play. When writing songs, the words can be in any language that they choose.

Performance: this is where students perform a piece of music or a range of music. If they are singing, they can chose songs with lyrics from any language. Some teachers may ask students to give a brief synopsis of the song when performing in front of an audience that may not be familiar with the language being used. I say – tough! Go and learn the language!

Before having a go at some of the following suggestions, it helps making time to find out if some of your students are taking music. You may even consider talking with your music colleague(s) to see how you could both capitalise on the links that already exist; you just need to make time to discuss what they are (links) and work out how to collaborate for the benefit of your students.

Some things to consider for writing, interacting or presenting in learning languages:

Using the Target Language, students can:

• Talk about what they are likely to include in their composition portfolio. How many songs/pieces of music and reasons to support their decisions?

• Discuss how you came up with the lyrics, tune/melody or the selection of chords for the guitar or piano.

• What was the inspiration for the composition? What motivated you to write the song? How did you try to capture the mood of the song, e.g. techniques used?

• What style is the song in? What are the features of that musical style?

• How did they feel about hearing their composition for the first time?

• What did the audience like in particular? How do/did you know?

Our new website focuses on professional learning and development for secondary middle leaders

We have been working with the Ministry of Education to establish a website within TKI that outlines the professional development available to secondary middle leaders in English-medium schools: http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Minis try-curriculum-guides/Secondarymiddle- leaders/Professionallearning- and-development Here, middle leaders can: • get details of free workshops

• join regional clusters

• download e-newsletters

• request future e-newsletters

• network with National Coordinators The details for all planned PLD opportunities are available on this site as well as through the Learning Languages PLD wiki www.learninglanguagespld.wikispaces.com

Team Solutions, 2012

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• Was there any feedback from the audience? What types of feedback – positive, negative? Your thoughts about the feedback?

• What would you change if you were to make some editions? Why?

• Get your student(s) to make or find a backing track (BT) for a well-known tune / simple song in your TL country. Students write their own verse(s) and perform while playing the BT.

• Get your student(s) to make a rap-backing track, find one on the Internet, or use an electronic keyboard which has a range of beats. Select a topic and get your students to compose their own verses, lyrics, or simply write words and phrases associated with the topic. Play the backing track and get students to rap or simply recite their verses / words and phrases to the beat. (Your school will have a range of keyboards with these beats as presets – already recorded). If not, I have attached several links below that you may find useful.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=156970 - Free hip hop tracks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CDYxLUls3g&feature=related - Simple rap beat. 3.48mins How to Rap! (Write~Perform~Freestyle) Tips, Pointers and Secrets! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VT8S7ztgJow&feature=related

• Present your favourite children’s song as a powerpoint/movie etc with graphics/sound to enhance the meaning and understanding of intended audience. Comment and reflect on your journey through the task.

Frere Jacques Karaoke: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i6--tI5mkU Karaoké chanson enfant - Alouette (Piwi) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8M3sxU27Bqg&feature=related Karaoke Version contains thousands of backing tracks, custom backing tracks and karaoke videos. You will find a range of backing tracks here, including the Christmas Classics! http://www.karaoke-version.co.uk/free/karaoke_kids.html

Other useful links and resources: Using Music to Enhance Second Language Acquisition: From Theory to Practice This article appeared in Lalas, J. & Lee, S. (2002). Language, Literacy, and Academic Development for English language Learners. Pearson Educational Publishing. Suzanne L. Medina, Ph.D.Professor of Graduate Education California State University, Dominguez Hills http://www.scribd.com/doc/48535797/Using-Music-to-Enhance-Second-Language-Acquisition-From-Theory-to-Practice CBS 5 Bay Sunday (San Francisco) interview about the book, Language is Music, with book author, Susanna Zaraysky. Topics: learning foreign languages using music, media and other easy activities at home. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFpzeGoP-Kg

Siliva Gaugatao Regional Facilitator, Learning Languages

Learning Languages: Aligning the Internally Assessed Level 3 NCEA Achievement Standards Kohia Education Centre, Auckland Wed 14 November 2012 9:00am - 3:00pm   Course participants will: • Explore strategic

competence and its role as an important feature of successful communication in interactions, and discuss/ share effective strategies for Level 3 programmes that will promote meaning, making and student confidence and competence in interactions.

• Investigate how to promote second language acquisition while simultaneously developing generic skills and metacognition to develop assessment capable students.

• Review the aligned Achievement Standards for Level 3 Learning Languages and collaborate with other language colleagues to discuss/share possible contexts and tasks.

  Please enrol online: http://intranet.teamsolutions.ac.nz/forms/index.php/forms/workshop_enrolment/KPTS12-52 This is a Ministry of Education supported PLD opportunity and is offered and no cost to participants. Morning tea will be provided but lunch is not included.

Team Solutions, 2012

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NCEA Update from NZQA

Liz Scally has clarified several of the questions that have been asked recently by languages teachers and her responses have been summarised here: 1. The externals will look pretty much the same as they did

last year. The most important thing to remember by far (for L1 and L2 this year, and L3 as well next year) revolves around the Explanatory Notes in the standards that define what candidates have to demonstrate at each level. This information was put at the top of every question in the L1 Assessment Schedules that are up on the web. Specifically (abbreviated a bit to focus on what's important):

• Achievement • Demonstrate understanding refers to candidates

MAKING MEANING OF (language) by responding to information ideas and /or opinions

• Merit • Demonstrate CLEAR understanding means the

RELEVANT information, ideas and/or opinions from the texts are SELECTED and UNAMBIGUOUSLY COMMUNICATED.

• Excellence • Demonstrate THOROUGH understanding means the

RELEVANT information ideas and opinions form the texts are EXPANDED ON with SUPPORTING DETAIL to show understanding of the IMPLIED MEANINGS or CONCLUSIONS within the text.

2. Students at all levels can respond in their choice of English and/or the target language. An instruction to that effect has been put on the front cover so that the candidates won't be confused.

3. The Assessment Specifications published in 2011 referred to a DVD or CD being used for the L3 Spanish examinations. A DVD will be used in the Level 3 Spanish exams in 2012. The DVD is just the mode of presentation - the exam remains a listening exercise and the questions can be answered by listening only. The DVD will provide images that will assist students' understanding of the passages, and not disadvantage them. The visual information will be similar to illustrations used to help understanding in a written examination paper. Some of the DVD is static image with voice over, some is a video with someone filmed speaking. We expect that the candidates will find it both interesting and accessible. The questions in the examination paper all relate to the spoken passages. Before the passages are read, the candidates are given time to read the relevant questions (30 seconds per question). We have made the Listening Notes boxes nice and big, a full page in most cases, so the candidates can draft answers there if they want to. We've also provided a couple of minutes between one passage and the next to enable them to finish off what they're doing, and clear their head before they get to listen to the next passage.”  

4. Read more in Assessment Matters A2012/017 Spanish Level 3 listening passages in 2012  

Language Associations

New Zealand Association of Language Teachers NZALT is a professional organisation, which embraces and pro-actively promotes languages and languages education, to benefit New Zealanders. http://www.nzalt.org.nz/ NZ Chinese Language Association Laytee George, Immediate Past National President Email: georgesotonga@xtra.co.nz

NZAJLT NZ Association of Japanese Language Teachers Norihiro Yamada, President Email: ya@hnhs.school.nz http://www.japanese.ac.nz/

STANZA The Spanish Teachers' Association of New Zealand Aotearoa Cheryl Van Dijck, President Email: cheryl.VanDijck@stcuthberts.school.nz http://web.me.com/stanza/STANZA/Welcome.html

GANZ German in Aotearoa New Zealand Antonie Alm, President Email: antonie.alm@otago.ac.nz http://ganz.ac.nz/

NZAFT New Zealand Association of French Teachers Sue Pommarède, President E-mail: suepnzaft@gmail.com http://www.french.ac.nz/ Tongan Language Teachers Association Brian Lata, Secretary BrianL@tangaroa.school.nz FAGASA, National Association of Samoan Language Teachers in NZ Galumalemana Alfred Hunkin, Chairperson