Article published In:
Australian Languages: A challenge for applied linguisticsEdited by Michael Walsh
[Australian Review of Applied Linguistics 34:3] 2011
► pp. 260–279
Edited by Michael Walsh
[Australian Review of Applied Linguistics 34:3] 2011
► pp. 260–279
The status and future of bilingual education for remote indigenous students in the Northern Territory
This article analyses the status and future of bilingual education programs using Indigenous languages and English in remote Northern Territory schools. It explains why this educational approach is so contested at present, resulting in an unresolved situation which can best be regarded as an uneasy compromise on the ground and a stalemate at higher levels of political decision making. If the bilingual education approach was better understood by the current NT Government, there would a strong impetus now to refine and effectively implement a model of schooling that is appropriate for students in remote areas. Instead, current politicians debunk the bilingual approach, thereby robbing schools and literacy plans of any momentum and distracting attention away from the work that needs to be done. Meanwhile, student attendance rates have fallen away to worryingly low levels (Dickson, 2010). The current regime may well resolve the impasse, but in the absence of any meaningful, open negotiation the future looks uncertain. It is too soon to judge the cost of this uncertainty, but it may well result in further alienation and the emergence of non-government alternatives.
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.
For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].
References
Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC)
(2008) Bilingual schools won’t be successful: Snowdon. [ABC News]. Retrieved April 30, 2011 from [URL].
(2009) Chronology: The Bilingual Education Policy in the Northern Territory. Retrieved April 26, 2011 from [URL]
Australian Associated Press (AAP)
2008, November 17). Calma backs bilingual education in NT. Retrieved on April 22, 2011 from [URL]
Baker, C.
(2001) Foundations of bilingual education and bilingualism (3rd ed.). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Calma, T.
2009, June 26). They are our children, this is our community. Paper presented at AIATSIS Research Symposium on Bilingual Education. National Museum of Australia, Canberra. Retrieved April 23, 2011 from [URL].
Collier, V. & Thomas, W.
(2002) The astounding effectiveness of dual language education for all. Retrieved on October 31, 2010 from [URL].
Collins, B. & Lea, T.
(1999) Learning Lessons: an independent review of Indigenous education in the Northern Territory. Darwin: NT Department of Education.
Crossin, T.
2009, October 28). Matters of public interest: Bilingual Education. Speech to the Australian Senate. Retrieved April 23, 2011 from [URL]
Devlin, B.
(1995) The evaluation of bilingual programs in the Northern Territory, 1973-1993. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 1131, 25–41. 
(1999) Bilingual education and the acquisition of English literacy. Ngonjook, 161, 103–106.
2009, June 26). Bilingual education in the Northern Territory and the continuing debate over its effectiveness and value. Paper presented to an AIATSIS Research Symposium, “Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory: Principles, policy and practice”, Visions Theatre, National Museum of Australia.
2010, October 29). Bilingual, bicultural and biliteracy education in the Northern Territory, Australia: 1980-2010. Education bilingue dans le Territoire du Nord:1980–2010. Invited presentation for the international seminar, L’école plurilingue dans les communautés du Pacifique, on October 29, 2010.
Dickson, G.
(2010) No Warlpiri, No school? A preliminary look at attendance in Warlpiri schools since introducing the First Four Hours of English policy. Ngoonjook, 351, 97–113.
Doyle, M.
Executive producer). (2009, September 14). Going Back to Lajamanu. [Television broadcast]. Sydney, Australia: ABC Four Corners.
Egan, J.
(1999) Nyampuju yimi warlalja yungulipa mardarni waja-waja-maninja wangurlu yijardurlu: It’s important not to lose our language. Ngoonjook, 161, 92–95.
Faludi, S.
(1991) Backlash: The undeclared war against American women. New York: Crown Publishers.
Gale, K., McClay, D., Christie, M. & Harris, S.
(1981) Academic achievement in the Milingimbi bilingual education program. TESOL Quarterly, 15(3), 297–314.
Greene, J.
(1998) A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of bilingual education. Retrieved March 14, 2007, from [URL]
Gutiérrez, K., Asato, J., Santos, M. & Gotanda, N.
(2002) Backlash pedagogy: Language and culture and the politics of reform. The Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, 241, 335–351.
Hale, K.
(1999) Remarks on Northern Territory bilingual education. Ngoonjook, 161, 42–50.
Harris, S. & Devlin, B.
(1999) The Northern Territory Bilingual Education program: Some historical reflections. Manuscript.
Hill, S.
(2008) Yolngu Matha and English Learning at Galiwin’ku, an Indigenous community in Northeast Arnhem land. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of New England, New South Wales.
Hoogenraad, R.
(2001) Critical reflections on the history of bilingual education in Central Australia. In J. Simpson, D. Nash, M. Laughren, P. Austin & B. Alpher (Eds.), Forty years on: Ken Hale and Australian Languages (pp. 123–150[C1]). Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.
Langford, B.
Marich, G.
2010, September 15). NT Govt defends bilingual education policy [ABC News]. Retrieved April 26, 2011 from [URL]
Markwick-Smith, V.
(1985) Bilingual Accreditation ongoing report—Shepherdson College. Prepared for the Accreditation Panel, August 1985 Darwin: NT Department of Education.
McCarty, T.
(2008) The impact of high-stakes accountability policies on Native American learners: Evidence from research. Retrieved October 31, 2010 from [URL]
McKay, G.
2007, March 18-23). ESL and bilingual education in Australian Indigenous contexts: some issues for policy. Paper presented at Oxford Round Table on ESL and Bilingual Education, Oxford University, UK.
McMahon, K.
Murtagh, E.
(1979) The use of two languages of instruction with Aboriginal Australians. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, Stanford University, USA.
(1982) Creole and English used as languages of instruction in bilingual education with Aboriginal Australians: Some research findings. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 361, 15–33.
Nancarrow, K.
2010, July 27). Labor Senator criticises NT’s bilingual policy. ABC News. Retrieved April 23, 2011 from [URL].
Northern Territory Department of Education (NTDE)
(1986) Handbook for Aboriginal bilingual education in the Northern Territory. Darwin: NTDE.
Northern Territory Department of Education and Training (NT DET)
2008a, October 27). Data for bilingual schools in the Northern Territory. Document tabled in the Legislative Assembly by Marion Scrymgour on November 26.
2008b, November 3). Compulsory teaching in English for the first four hours of each school day. Draft policy document. Unpublished manuscript.
(2008c) Policy: Compulsory teaching in English for the first four hours of each school day. [Policy document]. Retrieved April 23, 2011 from [URL].
(2008d) Guideline: Compulsory teaching in English for the first four hours of each school day. DET file: 2008/2492. Retrieved April 29, 2011 from [URL].
Northern Territory Department of Employment, EducationTraining (NT DEET)
(2005) Indigenous languages and culture in Northern Territory schools. Report 2004-2005. Darwin: Author.
(2006) Indigenous Education Strategic Plan 2006-2009. Darwin: Northern Territory Government. Retrieved June 22, 2009, from [URL].
Northern Territory Department of Education and Training (NT DEET)
Northern Territory Government (NTG)
2007, July 30). Local community and school partnership agreement between Yambirrpa Schools Council and Northern Territory of Australia represented by the Department of Employment, Education and Training (version 2) [Manuscript].
(2008) Education restructure includes greater emphasis on English. Media release. Retrieved February 26, 2009, from [URL].
Purdie, N. & Buckley, S.
(2010) School attendance and retention of Indigenous Australian students. Issues Paper No 1 produced for the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse. Retrieved April 30, 2011 from [URL].
Resource Network for Linguistic Diversity (RNLD)
2010, June 2). Letter to the Hon. Julia Gillard. Retrieved September 23, 2011 from [URL].
Richards, A.
(1984) Accreditation ongoing report—St Therese’s School. Prepared for the Accreditation Panel, May 1981. Darwin: NT Department of Education.
Richards, A. & Thornton, C.
(1981) Report of the bilingual education program at Yirrkala Community School. Prepared for the Accreditation Panel, May 1981 Darwin: NT Department of Education.
Rowse, T.
2010, August 18). Contesting the Coombs legacy in Indigenous policy. Public lecture presented at Charles Darwin University, Australia.
Scrymgour, M.
(2008) Full text transcript–11/27/2008. In Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory, 11th Assembly. Parliamentary Record No. 3 (starting 25 November 2008). Darwin. Retrieved June 8, 2009 from [URL].
2011, April 20). Lockdown and labelling has failed the women and children. National Times. Retrieved on April 21, 2011 from [URL].
Silburn, S., Nutton, G., McKenzie, J. & Landrigan, M.
(2011, August). Early year English language acquisition and instructional approaches for Aboriginal students with home languages other than English: A systematic review of the Australian and international literature. Retrieved September 23, 2011 from [URL].
Simpson, J., Caffery, J. & McConvell, P.
(2009) Gaps in Australia’s Indigenous language policy: Dismantling bilingual education in the Northern Territoryz. AIATSIS Discussion Paper Number 24.
in press). Maintaining languages, maintaining identities: what bilingual education offers. In B. Baker, I. Mushin, M. Harvey and R. Gardner Eds. Indigenous language and social identity: papers in honour of Michael Walsh Ch. 2 Canberra Pacific Linguistics
Stuckey, P. & Richards, A.
(1982) Report of the bilingual education program at St Therese’s school. Prepared for the Accreditation Panel, May 1981.
Tong, F., Lara-Alecio, R., Irby, B., Mathes P. & Kwok, O.
(2008) Accelerating early academic oral English development in transitional bilingual and structured English immersion programs. American Educational Research Journal, 45(4), 1011–1044.
Toohey, P.
Waller, L.
(2011) Bilingual education and the language of news. Paper presented at the AIATSIS Seminar Series, Canberra.
Willig, A.
(1985) A meta-analysis of selected studies on the effectiveness of bilingual education. Review of Educational Research, 551, 269–317.
Cited by
Cited by 27 other publications
Bianco, Joseph Lo
2015. Multilingual Education across Oceania. In The Handbook of Bilingual and Multilingual Education, ► pp. 604 ff. 
Bianco, Joseph Lo & Yvette Slaughter
2016. Bilingual Education in Australia. In Bilingual and Multilingual Education, ► pp. 1 ff.
Lo Bianco, Joseph & Yvette Slaughter
2016. Bilingual Education in Australia. In Bilingual and Multilingual Education, ► pp. 1 ff.
Lo Bianco, Joseph & Yvette Slaughter
2017. Bilingual Education in Australia. In Bilingual and Multilingual Education, ► pp. 347 ff.
Bow, Catherine, Michael Christie & Brian Devlin
2017. Digital Futures for Bilingual Books. In History of Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory [Language Policy, 12], ► pp. 347 ff.
Bromham, L, X Hua, C Algy & F Meakins
2020. Language endangerment: a multidimensional analysis of risk factors. Journal of Language Evolution 5:1 ► pp. 75 ff.
Devlin, Brian
2017. Policy Change in 2008: Evidence-Based or a Knee-Jerk Response?. In History of Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory [Language Policy, 12], ► pp. 203 ff.
Disbray, Samantha
2016. Spaces for learning: policy and practice for indigenous languages in a remote context. Language and Education 30:4 ► pp. 317 ff.
Disbray, Samantha, Carmel O’Shannessy, Gretel MacDonald & Barbara Martin
2022. Talking together: how language documentation and teaching practice support oral language development in bilingual education programs. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism 25:4 ► pp. 1451 ff.
DISBRAY, SAMANTHA, ROSEMARY PLUMMER & BARBARA MARTIN
2020. Languages Ideologies and Practice From the Land and the Classroom. The Modern Language Journal 104:2 ► pp. 519 ff.
Farrant, Brad M., Carrington C. J. Shepherd, Roz D. Walker & Glenn C. Pearson
2014. Early Vocabulary Development of Australian Indigenous Children: Identifying Strengths. Child Development Research 2014 ► pp. 1 ff.
Fry, Gary
2022. The Enduring Voice of Harris in NT Aboriginal Education Policy Debates: Comments from an Aboriginal Scholar and Former Student. In Stephen Harris—Writer, Educator, Anthropologist, ► pp. 265 ff.
Gale, Kathryn
2017. Lessons Learned from Bilingual Education. In History of Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory [Language Policy, 12], ► pp. 49 ff.
He, Vincent Yaofeng, Georgie Nutton, Amy Graham, Lisa Hirschausen, Jiunn-Yih Su & Nishith Prakash
2021. Pathways to school success: Self-regulation and executive function, preschool attendance and early academic achievement of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in Australia’s Northern Territory. PLOS ONE 16:11 ► pp. e0259857 ff.
Jorgensen, Robyn & Mellony Graven
2021. Introduction. In Merging Numeracy with Literacy Practices for Equity in Multilingual Early Year Settings, ► pp. 3 ff.
Keary, Anne & Lucas Walsh
2020. Mobility, Travel and Work: ‘I’d Like to Live Overseas Again’. In Education, Work and Catholic Life, ► pp. 137 ff.
Lowe, Kevin, Christine Tennent, Nikki Moodie, John Guenther & Cathie Burgess
2021. School-based Indigenous cultural programs and their impact on Australian Indigenous students: a systematic review.. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education 49:1 ► pp. 78 ff.
Macqueen, Susy, Ute Knoch, Gillian Wigglesworth, Rachel Nordlinger, Ruth Singer, Tim McNamara & Rhianna Brickle
2019. The impact of national standardized literacy and numeracy testing on children and teaching staff in remote Australian Indigenous communities. Language Testing 36:2 ► pp. 265 ff.
McKay, Graham
2017. The Policy Framework for Bilingual Education in Australian Indigenous Languages in the Northern Territory. In History of Bilingual Education in the Northern Territory [Language Policy, 12], ► pp. 85 ff.
Morales, Gemma, Jill Vaughan & Merrkiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs
2018. From Home to School in Multilingual Arnhem Land: The Development of Yirrkala School’s Bilingual Curriculum. In Language Practices of Indigenous Children and Youth, ► pp. 69 ff.
Oliver, Rhonda, Honglin Chen & Stephen Moore
2016. Review of selected research in applied linguistics published in Australia (2008–2014). Language Teaching 49:4 ► pp. 513 ff.
Osborne, Sam
2015. Learning from Anangu Histories: Population Centralisation and Decentralisation Influences and the Provision of Schooling in Tri-state Remote Communities. The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education 44:2 ► pp. 127 ff.
Osborne, Samuel, John Guenther, Sandra Ken, Lorraine King & Karina Lester
2022. Centring Anangu voices on work: A contextualised response to red dirt thinking. The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education 51:2
Poetsch, Susan
2018. Languaging Their Learning: How Children Work Their Languages for Classroom Learning. In Language Practices of Indigenous Children and Youth, ► pp. 147 ff.
Smith, James A., Michael Bullot, Veronica Kerr, Dean Yibarbuk, Millie Olcay & Fiona Shalley
2018. Maintaining connection to family, culture and community: implications for remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pathways into higher education. Rural Society 27:2 ► pp. 108 ff.
Vaughan, Jill & Debbie Loakes
2020. Language Contact and Australian Languages. In The Handbook of Language Contact, ► pp. 717 ff.
Youyeon Kim & LeeKyubin
2018. A Comparative Study of Bilingual Education Policy between Korea and Australia: Focusing on the History of Development and Current System. Bilingual Research null:73 ► pp. 29 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 28 march 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.