Article published In:
Australian Languages: A challenge for applied linguisticsEdited by Michael Walsh
[Australian Review of Applied Linguistics 34:3] 2011
► pp. 297–319
Edited by Michael Walsh
[Australian Review of Applied Linguistics 34:3] 2011
► pp. 297–319
Policy and Indigenous languages in Australia
Graham R. McKay | School of Communications and Arts, Edith Cowan University; Faculty of Humanities and Education, St John's University of Tanzania
The use of Indigenous languages has been declining over the period of non-Aboriginal settlement in Australia as a result of repressive policies, both explicit and implicit. The National Policy on Languages (Lo Bianco, 1987) was the high point of language policy in Australia, given its national scope and status and its attempt to encompass all aspects of language use. Indigenous languages received significant recognition as an important social and cultural resource in this policy, but subsequent national policy developments moved via a focus on economic utility to an almost exclusive emphasis on English, exacerbated by a focus on national literacy standards. This is exemplified in the Northern Territory’s treatment of Indigenous bilingual education programs. Over recent years there have been hopeful signs in various states of policy developments supportive of Indigenous languages and in 2009 the Commonwealth Government introduced a new National Indigenous Languages Policy and a plan for a national curriculum in languages. Support for Indigenous languages remains fragmentary, however, and very much subservient to the dominant rhetoric about the need for English skills, while at the same time ignoring research that shows the importance of Indigenous and minority languages for social well-being and for developing English language skills.
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 (52)
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner (2009). Social Justice Report 2009. Retrieved April 29, 2011, from [URL]
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics). (2008). Language spoken at home by proficiency in spoken English/language for Indigenous persons – Australia (i06) (Cat. No. 20680.0–2006). Retrieved August 29, 2011, from [URL].
ABS (2011). Culture, heritage and leisure: speaking Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander languages. Retrieved May 1, 2011 from [URL].
ACARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment Reporting Authority) (2011). Draft shape of the Australian curriculum: Languages. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
AILF Australian Indigenous languages framework. (1993). Australian Indigenous languages framework: National consultation document November 1993. Adelaide: Australian Indigenous languages project.
Collins, B. (1999). Learning lessons: an independent review of Indigenous education in the Northern Territory. Darwin: Northern Territory Department of Education. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
Department of Communications, Information Technologythe Arts (2005). National Indigenous languages survey report 2005. Canberra: Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts.
Department of Families, Housing Community Services and Indigenous Affairs 2009. (2011). Closing the Gap: the Indigenous reform agenda and Closing the Gap: targets and building blocks. Retrieved April 29, 2011 from [URL].
Devlin, B. (2009). Billingual education in the Northern Territory and the continuing debate over its effectiveness and value. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
Erebus Consulting Partners (2002). Review of the Commonwealth Languages Other Than English Programme: A report to the Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
Gale, M.-A. (1990). A review of bilingual education in Aboriginal Australia. Australian Review of Applied Linguistics, 13(2), 40–80. 
House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs. (1992). Language and Culture–A Matter of Survival: Report of the Inquiry into Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Language Maintenance. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.
Jennings, G. (2007). New language policy to preserve Aboriginal culture. Media release from the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Victoria. Retrieved April 29, 2011 from [URL].
Johnston, E., Q.C. (1991). Overview and Recommendations: National Report: Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.
Leitner, G. (2004). Australia’s many voices: Ethnic Englishes, Indigenous and migrant languages: Policy and education. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Lo Bianco, J. (1987). National policy on languages. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.
(2001). From policy to anti-policy: How fear of language rights took policy-making out of community hands. In J. Lo Bianco & R. Wickert, (Eds), Australian policy activism in language and literacy (pp. 13–44). Melbourne: Language Australia.
Macklin, J. (2009a). Media Release: New national approach to preserve Indigenous languages. Retrieved April 29, 2011 from [URL].
(2009b). Statement on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved April 28, 2011 from [URL].
Malcolm, I. & Königsberg, P. (2007). Bridging the language gap in education. In G. Leitner and I. G. Malcolm (Eds) The Habitat of Australia’s Aboriginal Languages: Past, Present and Future (Trends in Linguistics: Studies and Monographs 179) (pp. 267–297) Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Malcolm, I. G., Haig, Y., Königsberg, P., Rochecouste, J., Collard, G., Hill, A. & Cahill, R. (1999). Two-way English: Towards more user-friendly education for speakers of Aboriginal English. Perth: Education Department of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University.
Malcolm, I. & Grote, E. (2007). Aboriginal English: restructured variety for cultural maintenance. In G. Leitner and I. G. Malcolm (Eds), The habitat of Australia’s Aboriginal languages: past, present and future, (pp. 153–179). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
McConvell, P. & Thieberger, N. (2001). State of Indigenous Languages in Australia – 2001. Canberra: Department of the Environment and Heritage.
MCEETYA (Ministerial Council on Education, Employment Training and Youth Affairs) (2006). Australian directions in Indigenous education 2005–2008. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
(2008). Melbourne declaration on educational goals for young Australians. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
(2009). MCEETYA four-year plan 2009–2012: A companion document for the Melbourne declaration on educational goals for young Australians. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
McKay, G. (1996). The land still speaks: Review of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language maintenance and development needs and activities (National Board of Employment Education and Training Commissioned Report No. 44). Canberra: Australian Government, Publishing Service. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
(2007). Language maintenance, shift—and planning. In G. Leitner & I. G. Malcolm, (Eds.), The habitat of Australia’s Aboriginal languages: past, present and future (Trends in Linguistics: Studies and Monographs 179) (pp. 101–129). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
(2008). WA Aboriginal language policy: Discussion paper. Perth: WA Department of Indigenous Affairs. [Unpublished paper]. Retrieved April 26, 2011, from [URL].
(2009a). English and Indigenous languages in the Australian language policy environment. In H. Chen & K. Cruickshank, (Eds.), Making a difference: Challenges for Applied Linguistics (pp. 283–297). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
(2009b). Developing an Aboriginal language policy for Western Australia: Some issues. In A. Mahboob & C. Lipovsky, (Eds.), Studies in Applied Linguistics and language learning. (pp. 108–123). Newcastle on Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Moore, H. (1996). Language policies as virtual reality: two Australian examples. TESOL Quarterly, 3031, 473–497.
NSW Board of Studies (2003). Aboriginal languages K–10 syllabus. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
NSW Department of Aboriginal Affairs (2004). Aboriginal languages policy. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
(nd). NSW Aboriginal languages policy strategic plan 2006–2010. Retrieved April 29, 2011, from [URL].
Office for the Arts (2010a). Maintenance of Indigenous Languages and Records program funding 2010–11. Retrieved April 29, 2011, from [URL].
(2010b). Indigenous languages—A national approach. Retrieved April 29, 2011, from [URL].
(2011a). History of the MILR program. Retrieved April 28, 2011, from [URL].
(2011b). Maintenance of Indigenous Languages and Records (MILR) program guidelines 2011–12. Retrieved April 29, 2011, from [URL].
Office of Multicultural Interests (2008). The Western Australian language services policy 2008. Retrieved July 21, 2011, from [URL].
Purdie, N., Frigo, T., Ozolins, C., Noblett, G., Thieberger, N., & Sharp, J. (2008). Indigenous languages programmes in Australian schools: A way forward. Australian Council for Educational Research. Retrieved from [URL]
Rumsey, A. (1993). Language and territoriality in Aboriginal Australia. In M. Walsh & C. Yallop, (Eds.), Language and culture in Aboriginal Australia, (pp. 191–206). Canberra: Aboriginal Studies Press.
Schmidt, A. (1990). The loss of Australia’s Aboriginal language heritage. Canberra: Aboriginal Studies Press.
Simpson, J., Caffery, J. & McConvell, P. (2009). Gaps in Australia’s Indigenous language policy: dismantling bilingual education in the Northern Territory. (AIATSIS Discussion Paper No. 24). Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
Steering Committee for Government Service Provision (2009). Overcoming Indigenous disadvantage: Key indicators 2009. Canberra: Productivity Commission.
Truscott, A. & Malcolm, I. (2010). Closing the policy–practice gap: Making Indigenous language policy more than empty rhetoric. In J. Hobson, K. Lowe, S. Poetsch & M. Walsh, (Eds.), Reawakening languages: Theory and practice in the revitalisation of Australia’s Indigenous languages (pp. 6–21). Sydney: Sydney University Press.
United Nations (2007). UN Declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples. Retrieved April 28, 2011, from [URL] and from [URL].
Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (2010). Indigenous languages of Victoria: Revival and reclamation. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
WA Curriculum Council (2010). Aboriginal languages of Western Australia. Retrieved April 30, 2011, from [URL].
Walsh, M. (2002). Language ownership: A key issue for native title. In J. Henderson & D. Nash, (Eds.), Language in native title (pp. 231–244). Canberra: Aboriginal Studies Press.
(2010). Why language revitalisation sometimes works. In J. Hobson, K. Lowe, S. Poetsch & M. Walsh, (Eds.), Re-awakening languages: Theory and practice in the revitalisation of Australia’s Indigenous languages (pp. 22–36). Sydney: Sydney University Press.
Zubrick, S. R., Lawrence, D. M., Silburn, S. R., Blair, E., Milroy, H., Wilkes, T., Eades, S., D’Antoine, H., Read, A., Ishiguchi, P. & Doyle, S. (2004). The Western Australian Aboriginal child health survey: The health of Aboriginal children and young people. Perth: Telethon Institute for Child Health Research.
Cited by (19)
Cited by 19 other publications
Bankira, Dula, Srinibas Panda & Satya Ranjan Dash
2024. Role of Digital Technology in the Education, Promotion, and Revitalization of “Ho” Languages. In Applying AI-Based Tools and Technologies Towards Revitalization of Indigenous and Endangered Languages [Studies in Computational Intelligence, 1148], ► pp. 45 ff. 
Claire Bowern
2023. The Oxford Guide to Australian Languages,
Hindman, Emily, Peter Hassmén, Abbey Orchard, Kylie Radford, Kim Delbaere & Gail Garvey
2023. Clinicians’ views on cognitive assessment with Aboriginal Australians. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
Sivak, Leda, Seth Westhead, Graham Gee, Michael Wright, Alan Rosen, Stephen Atkinson, Emmalene Richards, Jenna Richards, Harold Dare, Ngiare Brown, Ghil’ad Zuckermann, Michael Walsh, Natasha J Howard & Alex Brown
2023. Developing the Indigenous Language and Wellbeing Survey: approaches to integrating qualitative findings into a survey instrument. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples 19:3 ► pp. 656 ff.
Pâquet, Lili
2020. Gamified Identification: Gamification and Identification in Indigenous Australian Interactive Documentaries. Computers and Composition 56 ► pp. 102571 ff.
Disbray, Samantha & Gillian Wigglesworth
2019. Indigenous Children’s Language Practices in Australia. In The Palgrave Handbook of Minority Languages and Communities, ► pp. 357 ff.
Oliver, Rhonda & Helen CD McCarthy
2019. Using Facebook as a Conduit to Communicate: Translanguaging Online. In Literacy Unbound: Multiliterate, Multilingual, Multimodal [Multilingual Education, 30], ► pp. 183 ff.
Parkinson, Chloe & Tiffany Jones
2019. Aboriginal people’s aspirations and the Australian Curriculum: a critical analysis. Educational Research for Policy and Practice 18:1 ► pp. 75 ff.
Wilson, Byron, Stephen J. Quinn, Tammy Abbott & Sheree Cairney
2018. The role of Aboriginal literacy in improving English literacy in remote Aboriginal communities: an empirical systems analysis with the Interplay Wellbeing Framework. Educational Research for Policy and Practice 17:1 ► pp. 1 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.
Baker, Beverly & Gillian Wigglesworth
2016. Language Assessment in Indigenous Contexts in Australia and Canada. In Language Testing and Assessment, ► pp. 1 ff.
Baker, Beverly & Gillian Wigglesworth
2017. Language Assessment in Indigenous Contexts in Australia and Canada. In Language Testing and Assessment, ► pp. 287 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.
Disbray, Samantha
2016. Spaces for learning: policy and practice for indigenous languages in a remote context. Language and Education 30:4 ► pp. 317 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.
Bianco, Joseph Lo
2015. Multilingual Education across Oceania. In The Handbook of Bilingual and Multilingual Education, ► pp. 604 ff.
Grote, Ellen, Rhonda Oliver & Judith Rochecouste
2014. Code-Switching and Indigenous Workplace Learning: Cross-Cultural Competence Training or Cultural Assimilation?. In Critical Perspectives on Language Education [Multilingual Education, 11], ► pp. 101 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 9 october 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.