Advocating for the interests
of teachers of English to speakers of other languages and dialects and their students.
Advocacy
Our Advocacy
Advocacy in TESOL is a central ACTA objective. Our ACTA Advocacy pages thus aim to play a pivotal role in outlining these issues and the various ways you can engage and deal with them.
Issues discussed here are both Federal and State matters. Advocacy for the needs of EAL/D learners and teachers in the Federal arena is a matter of agreement across the State Associations, and usually (but not always) takes place through the ACTA Council.
State/territory advocacy issues will in some cases be addressed differently according to the relationships between the State or Territory TESOL associations and its State or Territory government and education systems.
ACTA presents the matters here for information sharing across State/Territory associations. Members are encouraged to contact their State/Territory association for details of advocacy actions planned and underway in their particular State/Territory.
Media Room
Welcome to ACTA's Media Release page where members of
the media can find information and recent statements from ACTA. For further information and interviews on ACTA media matters, please contact the President of ACTA, .
Below are general media releases, position statements and submissions. For those on specific sectors, please see our other pages under Advocacy.
ACTA has launched its National Roadmap for English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) Education in Schools, calling for national ‘build back better’ reform of specialist provision for English language learners in schools ahead of the Federal Election.
The plan addresses longstanding and now pressing national policy issues that have affected the quality of English language provision for over 600,000 English language learners in Australian schools through twelve key actions aligned to the directions and initiatives of the National Schools Reform Agreement.
Read ACTA’s National Roadmap for English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) Education in Schools
Read ACTA’s media release
For decades, ACTA and other advocacy groups have argued against the limits on adult migrants’ access to the AMEP because of the eligibility requirements that were instituted in the 1992 Immigration Education Act.
On Friday 28th August, 2020, Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge announced major reforms to the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP).
The reforms extend migrants’ access to English language tuition by removing three key 1992 eligibility requirements:
- the limit on tuition hours (formerly 510 hours with various capped extensions)
- a time limit on when migrants can access the AMEP (formerly 6-12 months to apply and 5 years to complete) – it is now open-ended for all adult migrants in Australia prior to 1st October 2020
- the cut-off proficiency level (formerly less than “functional English”) and now less than “vocational English”, which is defined as English lower than IELTS 5.5 (which is approx. equivalent to ACSF 3).
These changes are therefore truly historic.
They will come into force once the Immigration Education Act is amended. In the meantime, greater flexibility within existing AMEP provision will operate.
Read ACTA's Media Release: Welcome reforms to the Adult Migrant English Program
For more information:
- Official advice from the Department of Home Affairs: Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) Reform Announcement, 28 August 2020
- Minister’s announcement, go to: Address to the National Press Club - Keeping Australians together at a time of COVID
- Other relevant media, go to: The Hon Alan Tudge MP, Acting Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs - Media Hub
- ACTA advocacy on the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) on the Adult ESOL Advocacy page
ACTA have made a submission to the Senate Standing Committees on Legal and Constitutional Affairs Inquiry into Migration Amendment (Strengthening the Character Test) Bill 2019. The bill would amend the character test in section 501 of the Migration Act 1958 to provide grounds to consider visa cancellation or refusal where a non-citizen has been convicted of a serious crime, and make consequential amendments to the definition of ‘character concern’.
Read: ACTA submission on the proposed Character test bill - August 2019.pdf
Information about the inquiry and submissions published by the committee are available on the committee's website here.
Welcome to the Australian Council of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) Associations’ 2019 Federal Election page where members of the public and media can find recent information about ACTA pre-election policy platform, related correspondence and media releases. For further information and interviews on ACTA media matters, please contact the President of ACTA, Michael Michell at .
ACTA’s Federal Election Policy Platform - The National Strategy for Language in Education and Training
The ACTA National Strategy for Language in Education and Training was approved as ACTA’s Federal Election Policy Platform in November 2018. It has 15 actions in all aimed at addressing the long-standing national policy/program gaps and neglect in the area of language in education and training (EAL/D, Indigenous, languages education, AMEP) which ACTA has been advocating in our submissions over the last few years.
The document has been used as the focus for discussions with Government and other parties about their education and training policy commitments prior to the federal election.
Read ACTA's National Strategy for Language in Education and Training
ACTA request for response to the National Strategy from political parties
Prior to the announcement of the federal election, ACTA forwarded the National Strategy to the Coalition Government, Labor and the Greens for their response.
Read ACTA's letter to Education Minister Dan Tehan, Minister Tehan’s response and ACTA’s reply to his response.
ACTA has been liaising with Tanya Plibersek’s office on the National Strategy over the last year. We are expecting to receive a formal response to the Strategy from the Shadow Minister for Education and Training shortly.
ACTA welcomes Greens’ plan for English language learners
On 18 April, the Greens announced their national plan to ensure that migrants and refugees throughout Australia have access to effective English language support in the school, post-school and adult education sectors. The plan can be found on the Greens’ website at: Greens Launch Plan to Ensure Access to English Language Support (The Greens, 18 April 2019).
SBS coverage of the plan can also be found at: Greens push to revamp English language support services (SBS, 19 April 2019)
ACTA welcomes the Greens’ plan. Read ACTA’s media release: Greens’ national plan for English language learners welcomed
ACTA scorecard of parties’ responses to the National Strategy
ACTA is keeping a scorecard of parties’ responses to the actions in the Strategy and will update the scorecard weekly until the election.
Read ACTA’s scorecard of parties’ responses to the National Strategy
ACTA Media Release - 16 May 2019
ACTA media release calling on major parties to address the crises in Australia’s English language programs in their election platforms.
Read ACTA Media Release: Major parties ignore crises in Australia’s English language programs - 16 May 2019
For further information
Contact: Michael Michell, President, ACTA.
Email:
W: 93851956
H: 96104870
M: 0412167054
The Australian Council of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) Associations welcomed the Greens’ announcement today of their national plan to ensure that migrants and refugees throughout Australia have access to effective English language support in the school, post-school and adult education sectors.
“The Greens’ four-point plan addresses key areas of need in this long-neglected area of education and training.” ACTA President, Dr Michael Michell, said today.
“The Adult Migrant English Program, which provides English language tuition each year for tens of thousands of recently arrived adult migrants with low levels of English, is currently in a state of turmoil”, he said. “The Greens’ commitment to reverse the disastrous outsourcing of this vital settlement service comes in time to halt the damage being done to this once world-leading program by the Government’s introduction of its so-called business model”.
“Despite having English language support programs in its schools for some fifty years, Australia still has no common national approach to identifying, assessing and reporting on migrant and refugee students’ English language learning. The Greens’ commitment to develop and implement a national English language assessment framework will ensure that this ‘unfinished business’ in the Gonski reform agenda towards needs-based education provision is finally achieved.”
“Too many young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds with incomplete schooling are falling through the cracks of school and post school provision and failing to access further education and training. The Greens’ commitment to expanding Youth Transition Support pilot programs will help ensure the development and ongoing provision of effective post-school education and training pathways for these youth.”
“These initiatives are backed up by the Greens’ commitment to establish a dedicated national office to oversee and coordinate language in education and training across government. This shows real national leadership in this vital policy area,” Dr Michell said.
“We are delighted that the Greens’ plan has picked up a number of initiatives proposed in our National Strategy for Language in Education and Training which ACTA forwarded to Government, Labor and the Greens prior to the announcement of the federal election”.
“Australia’s migration and humanitarian programs and its language diverse population demand ongoing national effort to ensure that recently arrived migrants and refugees receive the English language and literacy learning support they need to successfully participate in education and training and contribute to a cohesive and prosperous multicultural society.”
Read ACTA's Strategy for Language in Education and Training
For further information contact: Michael Michell, President, ACTA.
Email:
W: 93851956
H: 96104870
M: 0412167054
Download copy of this Media Release: Greens’ national plan for English language learners welcomed
ACTA Strategy for Language in Education and Training
The ACTA Strategy for Language in Education and Training has 15 actions in all aimed at addressing the long-standing national policy/program gaps and neglect in the area of language in education and training (EAL/D, Indigenous, language education, AMEP) that we have been advocating for in our submissions over the last few years.
The document will be used as the focus for discussions with Government and other parties about their education and training policy commitments prior to the federal election.
- ACTA's FULL submission to the Review to Achieve Educational Excellence in Australian Schools
- SUMMARY version of ACTA's full submission above (to meet the Review’s word limit requirements)
The Panel for the Review to Achieve Educational Excellence in Australian Schools chaired by Mr David Gonski AC, has been commissioned to examine evidence and make recommendations on how school funding should be used to improve school performance and student outcomes.
ACTA made a submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee's Inquiry into the Australian Citizenship Legislation Amendment (Strengthening the Requirements for Australian Citizenship and Other Measures) Bill 2017. ACTA's submission focused on the English proficiency test proposed for Australian Citizenship eligibility: the arbitrary and negative effects of the test on specific groups; current English language learning opportunities for migrants; social cohesion; arbitrary exemptions and inclusions; types of tests and the notion of “competent”; and, the ethics of language testing.
ACTA also made a Supplementary submission specifically regarding encouraging English language learning, combined with learning about Australian citizenship: ACTA Supplementary Submission on the Citizenship Bill - July 2017
We encourage members to also read the other submissions, especially the many personal ones. The ramifications of this legislation go far beyond what we documented in our submission. Members should get up to speed on this issue.
ACTA's submission was quoted in this article in The New Daily: Reject English test, longer wait for citizenship, UN tells Senate (2 August 2017)
The Report of the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee was published on 5 September 2017
Media Release from the ACTA President regarding the English language test proposed for Australian Citizenship eligibility.
Australian Council Of TESOL Associations, Media Release, 27/06/2017: English Teachers Condemn English Test for Citizenship
Also, listen to the recording of an interview ACTA's Helen Moore did on this issue with Wendy Harmer on ABC RN 702 in Sydney: Radio interview re proposed English language test, June 2017
ACTA made a submission to the Joint Standing Committee on Migration’s inquiry into Migrant Settlement Outcomes: Australian Council Of TESOL Associations. Submission To The Joint Standing Committee On Migration, Inquiry Into Migrant Settlement Outcomes - May 2017 Inquiry into Migrant Settlement Outcomes (Submission no. 108)
ACTA later prepared a supplementary submission as part of its presentation to the inquiry committee at the public hearing in October 2017. It summarises the problems and proposals of English language provision in Australia outlined in its May submission: ACTA supplementary submission to the Inquiry into Migrant Settlement Outcomes, October 2017
Inquiry Terms of Reference:
The Joint Standing Committee on Migration shall inquire into and report on migrant settlement outcomes with reference to:
- the mix, coordination and extent of settlement services available and the effectiveness of these services in promoting better settlement outcomes for migrants;
- national and international best practice strategies for improving migrant settlement outcomes and prospects;
- the importance of English language ability on a migrant’s, or prospective migrant’s, settlement outcome;
- whether current migration processes adequately assess a prospective migrant’s settlement prospects; and
- any other related matter.
The Committee shall give particular consideration to social engagement of youth migrants, including involvement of youth migrants in anti-social behaviour such as gang activity, and the adequacy of the Migration Act 1958 character test provisions as a means to address issues arising from this behaviour.
The ACTA submission addresses all of the Terms of Reference, specifically focussing on:
- English language provision for all sectors: early childhood education and care, the school and adult sectors, with particular mention of provision for refugee youth with severely disrupted/minimal previouus education.
- examples of best practice
- the importance of English language ability on prospective migrant outcomes
- Social engagement of “youth migrants”.
Also in the appendices are included exemplars of resources for EALD/D Assessment, best practice in curriculum and materials for EAL/D learners, and resources for teacher development to assist EAL/D learners.
This is a comprehensive submission with concrete evidence and information from the grass roots contributed by members of affiliated associations from across Australia. At around 200 pages, the ACTA submission is not exactly something to skim through. If you want just a taste, read the Conclusion, which is short. Depending on your concerns, you may find some sections more relevant than others. For those researching this area, it should be very useful.
We also commend the Inquiry website to you: inquiry into Migrant Settlement Outcomes. There are some excellent submissions there (ACTA's is Submission 108 on page 6). The Hansard of hearings is also very interesting. ACTA is also hoping to give evidence to this Inquiry, possibly in September 2017
The report of the parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Migration’s Inquiry into Migrant Settlement Outcomes was published in December 2017: No one teaches you to become an Australian
Media Statement from the ACTA President regarding the importance of accountability for EAL/D service provision in the new National Plan for School Improvement.
'ACTA supports collaborations throughout Australia among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities and educators who work with them. These collaborations need to include how Australian Indigenous languages can best be used in different schools.
We affirm the essential link between resourcing the promotion of Australian Indigenous languages in school communities and improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Students' educational outcomes.'
'ACTA actively supports the structured learning of the Cocos Malay language (the home language of the students) in the Territory of the Cocos (Keeling) Island schools. ACTA also recommends the appointment of experienced and qualified Language, EALD and trained local teachers to these schools with a view to further developing the Cocos community's bilingual strengths.'
EAL/D Issues-Schools
ACTA calls for EAL/D teachers to be included in the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan
On 3 November 2022, the Hon Jason Clare MP, Minister for Education, released a draft a National Teacher Workforce Action Plan for public consultation. The plan was developed to address the national issue of teacher workforce shortages.
Read the draft National Teacher Workforce Action Plan here.
ACTA provided its submission to the draft Plan. It included actions in early childhood and school settings already underway through the National Childhood Education and Care Workforce Strategy.
Read the final National Teacher Workforce Action Plan published on 15 December 2022 here.
ACTA calls for EAL/D learners to be included as a national priority equity cohort in the 2024 National Schools Reform Agreement
ACTA submitted its final response to the Productivity Commission’s Interim Report on the Review of the National School Reform Agreement (NSRA).
The submission challenges the national policy silence about EAL/D learners in the current Agreement and their non-recognition as an equity cohort within the national reform agenda.
ACTA argues for the inclusion of the EAL/D learner cohort in the next NSRA on educational equity and national interest grounds so that more than 600,000 Indigenous, migrant and refugee English language learners in Australian schools can benefit from the next intergovernmental school reform agreement.
ACTA’s submission draws on ACTA’s National Roadmap for EAL/D Education in Australian Schools and additional research to address all relevant Interim Report’s recommendations and information requests, and outlines the benefits of including EAL/D learners in the new NSRA in relation to:
- lifting outcomes for all learners
- improving EAL/D learner wellbeing
- supporting teachers of EAL/D learners
- fostering EAL/D informed school leadership
- measuring progress towards achieving EAL/D learner outcomes within the NSRA.
Read the Productivity Commission’s Interim Report on the Review of the National School Reform Agreement
The submission is uploaded as DR 124 on the Productivity Commission’s website.
The Commission will provide a final report by 31 December 2022 to allow time for the review’s findings to inform the design of the next intergovernmental school reform agreement and improvements to the National Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia.
On July 14th the universities of NSW and Sydney, together with the Australian Council of TESOL Associations (ACTA) and ATESOL NSW, hosted a public forum on the future of EAL/D education in Australia.
The forum provided an opportunity for key NSW stakeholders to consider a National Roadmap for EAL/D Education in Schools launched by ACTA on the 6 May. Click here to read that post.
Australia once had a world-class national system of specialist English language provision supporting newly arrived, migrant and refugee students’ participation and achievement in the English-medium curriculum. Over the last two decades, however, national commitment, effort and accountability for this vital educational access and equity program has faltered.
As Australia emerges from the pandemic and re-opens to the world, state and national leadership is needed to restore its former leading role and rebuild the effective English language and literacy provision that Australia’s English language learners need to successfully participate in school education and contribute to a cohesive and prosperous multicultural society.
Click here to access the forum recording.
ACTA calls for EAL/D education to be included in the next National Schools Reform Agreement
ACTA forwarded a submission to the Productivity Commission’s review of the National School Reform Agreement arguing that EAL/D learners be recognised as a priority equity cohort in the 2024 National Schools Reform Agreement and be included in the National Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia which measures progress towards achieving the outcomes of the NSRA. It also recommended that the NSRA’s National Policy Initiatives be informed by ACTA’s National Roadmap for EAL/D Education in Schools.
Read the Productivity Commission’s submissions paper, Review of the National School Reform Agreement.
Read ACTA’s submission to the Productivity Commission’s review of the National School Reform Agreement.
The Commission will provide a final report by 31 December 2022 to allow time for the review’s findings to inform the design of the next intergovernmental school reform agreement and improvements to the National Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia.
ACTA has launched its National Roadmap for English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) Education in Schools, calling for national ‘build back better’ reform of specialist provision for English language learners in schools ahead of the Federal Election.
The plan addresses longstanding and now pressing national policy issues that have affected the quality of English language provision for over 600,000 English language learners in Australian schools through twelve key actions aligned to the directions and initiatives of the National Schools Reform Agreement.
Read ACTA’s National Roadmap for English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) Education in Schools
Read ACTA’s media release
Additional information and recordings from recent briefing sessions held by Monash and VicTESOL can be found here
On July 14th the universities of NSW and Sydney, together with the Australian Council of TESOL Associations (ACTA) and ATESOL NSW, hosted a public forum on the future of EAL/D education in Australia. The recording of this forum can be found here
The Australian Council of TESOL Associations made a submission to the Department of Education, Skills and Employment’s Quality Initial Teacher Education Review. Our submission focuses on (i) the knowledge, skills and dispositions that graduate teachers need to be successful teachers in Australia’s cultural and linguistically diverse schools, and (ii) the policy barriers that are currently preventing the graduate teachers from enabling such knowledge, skills and dispositions.
The submission is in two parts:
- key understandings and supporting evidence base relating to the field of EAL/D learning and teaching, and
- key issues preventing quality initial teacher education in relation to the EAL/D field with specific recommendations addressing these issues.
Relevant documents:
ACTA’s submission to the Quality Initial Teacher Education Review
"ACTA welcomes this timely review of the 2008 Melbourne Declaration. Major changes have occurred over the last decade, particularly in the area of EAL/D education, which need to be reflected in the revised Declaration. ACTA believes the 2008 Melbourne Declaration needs updating specifically in the areas of language-in-education, English as an additional language or dialect (EAL/D) education and community languages education to both reflect and respond effectively to the contemporary linguistic landscape of Australia’s multicultural schools. Given their notable absence from the 2008 Melbourne Declaration, these areas need to be given explicit recognition in the revised Declaration."
Read more in ACTA's submission:
ACTA submission to the Review of the 2008 Melbourne Declaration (14 June 2019)
For more on the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians (December 2008), find the original Melbourne Declaration and the Review of the Melbourne Declaration discussion paper at the Review website: https://www.reviewmelbournedeclaration.edu.au/
ACTA’s response to the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority’s Victorian Curriculum F-10 English as an Additional Language (EAL) Consultation is now published. The response considers the rationale for a new EAL curriculum, the nature of the EAL curriculum document, EAL curriculum development and consultation, and specific comments on the EAL curriculum rationale and aims, and the EAL scope and sequence.
ACTA's submission to the Review to Achieve Educational Excellence in Australian Schools (Gonski Review) has now been published. ACTA's submission focused on the role of language in educational achievement; evidence on the difference that EAL/D pedagogy makes in classrooms when supported by schools and systems; the importance of a systemic approach including leadership development, specialist teacher standards, teacher education and professional learning; the unfinished business of defining and measuring EAL/D students’ educational success; the deterioration of EAL/D programs in schools under state and territory school autonomy and flexible resource management policies and restructures; and promising projects and tools of national significance that drive good EAL/D practice and continuous improvement. Each issue is addressed by specific recommendations.
ACTA’s submission responded to the Commission’s September 2016 draft report and was forwarded to the Commission on 18th October.
- ACTA submission to the Productivity Commission’s Inquiry on the National Education Evidence Base
- and can also be found along with submissions from other organisations and individuals on the Commission’s website.
Our submission focuses on the long-standing issue of the serious gap in national data collection and reporting in relation to the English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) student target group. As a subgroup of the larger population of students from language Backgrounds other than English (LBOTE), students for whom acquisition of English is essential for participation and achievement in the Australian Curriculum can only be identified on the basis of their levels of English Language Proficiency.
ACTA President, Michael Michell, and Secretary, Margaret Turnbull, presented at the Public Hearing in Sydney on Oct 20th and discussed ACTA’s submission before the two Commissioners. Michael says, "I think we made a strong case for the necessity and adoption of a national framework for assessing English language proficiency need to rectify the ‘invisibility’ of the EAL/D student target group and the associated policy and planning vacuum at the national level. The Commissioners had read ACTA’s submission, asked pertinent questions and listened intently to what we had to say." Transcripts of the Public Hearings are also on the Commission's website.
The Education Evidence Base Inquiry final report was sent to Government on 9 December 2016 and publicly released on 24 May 2017.
This report is about seeking ways to address the challenge of what data to collect and how to use it to support the generation of evidence about what works best in education, and the application of this evidence to inform decision making.
A biannual round-table forum for state and territory EAL/D Program Managers and curriculum officers was held at the 2016 'DIVERSITY: exchanging ways of being' Conference in in Perth in April.
This closed-meeting forum provided the opportunity for representatives from all states and territories and sectors, along with their state and territory association representatives, to network, discuss pertinent and pressing issues for EAL/D across Australia, and address common issues of concern.
For further information, please contact the ACTA Secretary.
In July, ACTA was invited to attend a consultation with the Australian Government Department of Education on the Students with Disability and English Language Proficiency loadings and the Review of the Low Socio-Economic Status loading. Following consultation with members, ACTA submitted this report to the Department at the end of September. We would like to thanks all those who contributed as well as the Department of Education for their consideration of our concerns.
ACTA Council has submitted a response to the Australian Parliament Senate Select Committee on School Funding inquiry. To read the submission which draws on the recent ACTA survey into school EAL visit the Senate Committee website.
The ACTA Submission is number #74.
Please note: Once a committee has authorised the release of a submission, subsequent publication of it is protected by parliamentary privilege. Please do not download and forward the submission to others but refer them to the above website.
State of EAL/D Schools Survey
What’s the state of EAL/D Education in Australia in 2016?
Over the last decade, the policy framework that has long supported EAL/D (English as an Additional Language or Dialect) teaching programs as Australia’s educational access and equity response to school-aged migrant, refugee and indigenous students has completely changed. Overall responsibility for EAL/D has passed from Commonwealth to state and territory governments and now, under school autonomy and school-based management policies, is being devolved to schools. The policy imperative for EAL/D programs has changed from Multicultural and Language education to literacy assessment and performance.
So what is happening ‘on the ground’?
ACTA conducted its second national survey of school EAL/D educators to ascertain the current health of EAL/D programs in schools, and policy impacts and developments since its last report in 2014 (see below). Findings will be published in a ‘State of EAL/D’ Report and used to inform ACTA’s policy advocacy with governments and education systems.
ACTA invited EAL/D teachers, consultants and administrators to participate in the survey. The survey was open for a six week period from 8th Feb to 1st April. Watch this space for results of the survey to be posted.
Your participation will help ensure that the report accurately reflects the current state of EAL/D education across Australia’s state and territory education systems and will strengthen the effectiveness of ACTA’s policy advocacy on your behalf.
Michael Michell
President, ACTA
November 2014
After collecting responses from over 200 members across the country, and analysing over 1000 comments, ACTA is proud to release the final report on the ACTA 2014 State of EAL/D survey. This report reflects current experiences and challenges faced by EAL/D teachers through anonymous quotes, accompanied by respective sector and jurisdiction, and comments on apparent trends. The writers have strived to remain objective, quoting in context and covering all jurisdictions.
This report is for local associations and their members: to support their discussions and decision making in their local contexts, at the state and individual school level. As school funding continues to be decentralised (and this is occurring to different degrees across the country), ACTA believes that EAL/D advocacy will need to follow suit. With school autonomy comes opportunities and risks regarding the most effective use of EAL/D resources, and members may be best placed to inform and advocate where necessary.
We hope that this report will assist advocates in achieving the best possible outcomes for their students and themselves professionally.
No one doubts that teachers of English need to know how language works and to build this knowledge for students. But we do not know yet about the current 'state of the art' in the profession, particularly about the kinds of support English teachers need if they are to build students' language knowledge in coherent and cumulative ways, as prescribed by the Australian curriculum for English. Benchmarking teacher knowledge and know-how is crucial if we are to provide build a strong knowledge base in the profession, including English, literacy and EAL/D teachers.
The survey was developed as part of a study funded by the Australian Research Council titled Grammar and Praxis: investigating a grammatics for twenty-first century school English (DP110104309). The project team is led by Mary Macken-Horarik of the University of New England (UNE) and includes Kristina Love, Len Unsworth and Carmel Sandiford of the Australian Catholic University (ACU).
NAPLAN
2013-2014
- The Senate Education and Employment Reference Committee 2013 Inquiry into the Effectiveness of the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) has released its final report. ACTA's submission is referenced on a number of occasions.
- SBS news item Changes to NAPLAN needed to help disadvantaged students
ACTA Submission to the Standing Committee an Education, Employment and Workplace Relations: ‘The effectiveness of the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy’.
- ACTA’s submission to the inquiry: Submission 79.
- Committee Report
2010
ACTA's joint submission - with the Applied Linguistics Association of Australia (ALAA) and Australian Linguistic Society (ALS) - to the Senate Education, Employment and Workplace Relations Committee Inquiry into the administration and reporting of NAPLAN testing.
Australian Curriculum
The EAL/D Teacher Resource developed for the Australian Curriculum provides a range of materials for teachers of EAL/D learners. The resource includes an overview of EAL/D learning, an EAL/D learning progression, advice for teachers of EAL/D students, a glossary and references, along with EAL/D Learning Area Annotations for F-10 English, Maths Science and History and annotated EAL/D student work samples. The resource and additional materials are available on the ACARA website at
https://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/student-diversity/english-as-an-additional-Language-or-dialect
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft general capabilities for the Australian
Curriculum. (8 August 2011) - Read ACTA's letter to ACARA regarding the Languages Shape Paper. (29 April 2011)
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft senior years English Curriculum. (5 August 2010)
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft K-10 Australian Curriculum in English, mathematics, science and history. (30 May 2010)
ACTA has attended National Curriculum forums in an advisory capacity to represent the interests of EAL and EAD learners around the country.
- Read ACTA's position statement on the need for inclusivity of EAL/EAD students in the National Curriculum
- ACTA's position statement on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's 3-part paper on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's responses to the National Curriculum framing papers (February 28, 2009).
- Read the initial advice statement on the National Curriculum in English.
Adult ESOL
ACTA President, Dr Anne Keary, sent a 6-point Action Plan for the AMEP to incoming Immigration Minister Andrew Giles, on 5 July 2022, together with a request for a meeting with ACTA representatives.
The Plan was developed by the newly formed ACTA Adult TESOL Consultancy Group, convened by Margaret Corrigan, ACTA Immediate Past President and currently President VicTESOL.
To read and download the Action Plan, click here: Action Plan for the Adult Migrant English Program
To read the article sent as an attachment, click here: W(h)ither the AMEP
To read the attached compilation of ACTA submissions on the reform of the AMEP, click here: ACTA Submissions on the Reform of the AMEPAttachment 1 - ACTA Submissions on the Reform of the AMEP
SBS TV and on-line have reported on concerns about the proposed new funding model for the AMEP. The reports include comments by Dr Helen Moore, ACTA Vice-President.
To see the on-line report, click here: Fears over new funding model for Australia's migrant English program (sbs.com.au)
To listen to audio of the TV news item, click here: Concerns sparked over Adult Migrant English Program funding (sbs.com.au)
To read Helen Moore’s article in the VALBEC journal Fine Print, which describes the key issues, click here.
To read ACTA submissions about this proposed funding model, click here.
ACTA submitted three separate papers in response to the Department of Home Affairs Discussion Paper Reform of the Adult Migrant English Program:
- An Interim Statement entitled Towards an Outcomes-Focussed Model for the AMEP. This paper analysed the proposed outcomes model for the AMEP and proposed an alternative. Click here to read the ACTA paper. Click here to read the NEAS AMEP Standards document which is referenced in the ACTA paper (but which is no longer available on the internet).
- Reform of the Adult Migrant English Program – Answers to Questions in the Discussion Paper Submission Form. This document provides ACTA’s answers to the questions asked in the official Department submission form. Click here to read these answers.
- Towards a Payment Model to Incentivise Authentic Outcomes from the AMEP. This supplementary paper addresses the key issue of how providers should be paid in a model that genuinely promotes quality outcomes in the AMEP. Click here to read this paper.
To read the original Department of Home Affairs Discussion Paper Reform of the Adult Migrant English Program, click here
OFFICIAL DHA FORUMS
- AMEP Teachers Forum: Group A – Wednesday 16 June 2021 16:00 – 18:00 AEST
- AMEP Teachers Forum Group B – Thursday 17 June 2021 18:00 – 20:00 AEST
ACTA encourages you to register for this forum. Registering is an important way in which you can express your concerns regarding these changes.
WRITTEN SUBMISSION TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS
The numbers of people registering to attend the forums and making submissions can become part of the public record of responses to the proposed reforms.
SUMMARY OF IMPORTANT LINKS
- Discussion Paper AMEP Reform Discussion Paper 11 May 2021:
- Expression of Interest to attend DHA Forum:
- Written Submission form. Reform of the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP)
ACTA BRIEFING MEETINGS
- ATESOL NT 3pm Wednesday 26th May at 3pm
- Vic TESOL, SA TESOL & TasTESOL on Monday 7th June at 4pm AEST
- Padlet Notes from this meeting are now available here: VicTESOL Discussion Forum- Reform of the AMEP – VicTESOL
- WATESOL on Monday 7th June at 6 pm Western Australian time (8pm AEST
- ATESOL NSW on Wednesday 9th June at 4pm AEST
- QATESOL on Wednesday 9th June at 4pm AEST
- ATESOL ACT on Wednesday 9th June at 8pm AEST
- SATESOL on Tuesday 15th June at 3pm (South Australian time)
- Notes from this meeting are available here: Notes from SATESOL Briefing Meeting on Reforms to the AMEP
ACTA has made two submissions to the 2021 Parliamentary Inquiry into The Importance of Adult Literacy.
To see/download this and other submissions, please go to: Submissions – Parliament of Australia.
ACTA's is Submission number 85 and its more up-to-date Supplementary Submission is 85.1
For Hansard of ACTA's evidence to the Inquiry, download the hearing on 19 August 2021 at Public Hearings - Parliament of Australia.
ACTA's member association ATESOL NT also made two submissions that focus on remote schooling in the NT (105 and 105.1). Its Supplementary Submission 105 is a landmark documentation of the current situation.
For more details, click here.
To find out more about the Inquiry and read/download the final report entitled “Don’t take it as read: Inquiry into adult literacy and its importance”, visit the Inquiry home page. To read the press release, click here.
RECORDING OF THE WEBINAR & OTHER RESOURCES
March 10 from 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm AEDT
A follow on event from the ACTA Forum on Future Directions of the AMEP (11th Nov. 2020)
The Department of Home Affairs has provided answers to the questions that arose in the forum. These were collated and summarised under relevant headings by Helen Moore and Jakki Cashman – see AMEP-Forum-Nov-2020-Questions-by-topic.pdf
Please view the Department’s answers in the file below:
ACTA Forum 11-11-2020 Department of Home Affairs response
Ms Larkins and the AMEP Team agreed to participate in a follow-up “listening” meeting. The meeting was held online on Wednesday 10th March 2021 7-9pm AEDT.
The forum focussed on providing feedback to these questions:
- What resources do teachers need to ensure quality teaching? How should they be shared?
- How can the AMEP support the different needs of the diverse student cohorts, particularly those who have low literacy or limited formal education?
- How can the AMEP benefit from advances in educational technology? What resources do teachers and students need in terms of digital and remote learning?
- What is the ideal teaching environment (e.g. mode of delivery, class size, mixed levels)?
- What role should AMEP providers play in seeking employment outcomes for students?
The webinar recording is now available below, and other information from the forum will be added here soon.
Hosted by ACTA in collaboration with VicTESOL
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RECORDING OF THE WEBINAR & OTHER RESOURCES
Wednesday 11th November 2020
Learn about the Commonwealth Government’s vision for English language provision for adult migrants
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Presenter Alison Larkins was appointed in late 2019 as Commonwealth Coordinator-General for Migrant Services. Her role is to work closely within the Commonwealth and State/Territory governments, industry, and the community sector to drive improvements to employment, English language, and broader settlement outcomes, and through this work, to promote the contribution of migrants, refugees and humanitarian entrants to Australia. |
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Experienced AMEP teachers Jakki Cashman (Canberra) and Skye Playsted (Queensland) will provided, followed by audience questions. |
The webinar recording, and information from the webinar, is now available on the VicTESOL website:
For questions posted in the Q&A box during the webinar, download this file:
AMEP Forum Nov 2020 - Questions by topic
The AMEP team in the Department of Home Affairs is currently considering these questions and their response will be posted here once it becomes available.
Ms Larkins and the AMEP team in the Department of Home Affairs have generously agreed to a second on-line meeting early in March 2021. The aim of the meeting will be for Alison and the AMEP team to listen to participants’ ideas around some of the key issues raised at the last meeting.
Key questions will be circulated before the meeting. The meeting will consist of break-out groups to discuss the questions, followed by reports back to the whole meeting and discussion.
For further details, please watch this space!
Hosted by the Australian Council of TESOL Associations (ACTA) in partnership with VicTESOL and ATESOL ACT.
ACTA is delighted that the Department of Home Affairs has set up an AMEP Advisory Committee in line with one of the recommendations of the 2019 Social Compass AMEP Evaluation. The Committee is chaired by Alison Larkins, who was appointed in late 2019 as the Commonwealth Coordinator-General for Migrant Services. For the official announcement, including the names of Committee members, see this media release from the Department of Home Affairs:
Announcement – Establishment of the AMEP Advisory Committee
The Council is further pleased that ACTA Vice-President, Helen Moore, was invited to join this Committee. Helen advises that the Committee has had two very productive meetings and, as the announcement indicates, its Work Plan includes consideration of curriculum & assessment, teacher qualifications, online/remote learning and incentivising settlement outcomes.
For decades, ACTA and other advocacy groups have argued against the limits on adult migrants’ access to the AMEP because of the eligibility requirements that were instituted in the 1992 Immigration Education Act.
On Friday 28th August, 2020, Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge announced major reforms to the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP).
The reforms extend migrants’ access to English language tuition by removing three key 1992 eligibility requirements:
- the limit on tuition hours (formerly 510 hours with various capped extensions)
- a time limit on when migrants can access the AMEP (formerly 6-12 months to apply and 5 years to complete) – it is now open-ended for all adult migrants in Australia prior to 1st October 2020
- the cut-off proficiency level (formerly less than “functional English”) and now less than “vocational English”, which is defined as English lower than IELTS 5.5 (which is approx. equivalent to ACSF 3).
These changes are therefore truly historic.
They will come into force once the Immigration Education Act is amended. In the meantime, greater flexibility within existing AMEP provision will operate.
Read ACTA's Media Release: Welcome reforms to the Adult Migrant English Program
For more information:
- Official advice from the Department of Home Affairs: Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) Reform Announcement, 28 August 2020
- Minister’s announcement, go to: Address to the National Press Club - Keeping Australians together at a time of COVID
- Other relevant media, go to: The Hon Alan Tudge MP, Acting Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs - Media Hub
- ACTA Advocacy on the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) here on the Adult ESOL Advocacy page
Following ACTA President Margaret Corrigan’s letter to the Acting Immigration Minister, the Hon. Alan Tudge, she and the ACTA Vice-President (Helen Moore) have been invited to a (online) meeting on 21 July 2020 with Ms Alison Larkins, Coordinator-General for Migrant Services in the Department of Home Affairs (21 July, 2020). The link to the briefing paper sent in preparation for this meeting is below.
The paper is a more comprehensive description of current issues and proposed solutions, and draws from consultations with the ACTA Adult ESL Working Group, the VicTESOL and ATESOL ACT Adult ESL Working Parties, and ACTA’s informal email list of adult EAL educators and researchers.
Download the briefing paper sent in preparation for the meeting here:
For a brief report on the meeting, click here:
ACTA President, Margaret Corrigan, has written to Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge about the implications for the AMEP of the suspension of immigration for the foreseeable future. The letter recommends lifting existing AMEP eligibility requirements in order to address the backlog of unmet English language learning needs in the Australian community. Download from the link below:
Have you taught or managed in programs for international students and/or adult migrant and refugee English language learners, for example in the AMEP, SEE Program, TAFE, university, ELICOS and community and State-funded programs?
Then you’ll know that the closure of Australia’s borders has huge implications for your program and employment!
To help ACTA advocate on your behalf, we need a sound evidence base. So please complete our survey!
Click here to start the survey:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ACTApost-school
You’ll need this password to start the survey: ACTA
(upper case)
On 28th May, ACTA made a submission to the Senate Inquiry Into COVID-19. It dealt with the effects of the suspension of immigration on programs for English language provision in the post-school sector (adult migrants and international students).
Download and read ACTA's submission here:
ACTA Submission to the Senate COVID-19 Inquiry - Sub379_Australian Council of TESOL Associations
You can see also ACTA's submission (Submission 379) and other submissions, as well as more information about the Senate inquiry on the website of the Senate Select Committee on COVID-19
In 2019, an Evaluation of the Adult Migrant English program (AMEP) was undertaken by the independent consultancy firm, Social Compass. To access their report (published August 2019), go to: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/amep-subsite/Files/amep-evalution-new-business-model.pdf
To see ACTA’s submission, click here: ACTA Submission to the AMEP Evaluation, April 2019
In late 2019, the Government also released their response to the Shergold et al. Review into Integration, Employment and Settlement Outcomes for Refugees and Humanitarian Entrants. To see that review and the Government’s response, go to: https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-publications/reviews-and-inquiries/inquiries/review-integration-employment-settlement-outcomes-refugees-humanitarian-entrants
Following both reports, the Department of Home Affairs invited responses to a series of questions. To see ACTA’s response to these questions, click here
ACTA Response to Dept of Home Affairs on Improving the AMEP - Request for feedback
The Settlement Council of Australia was commissioned to conduct community consultations across Australia. The reports from these consultations can be found at:
http://scoa.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/SCOA-AMEP-Consultations-Report-2020-PDF.pdf
In the new post-election Morrison Government, the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) has been moved back to the Immigration portfolio, whose Minister is the Hon. David Coleman, MP, the member for Banks (western Sydney). ACTA has written a letter to him requesting an urgent meeting and has supported this request with a paper outlining current problems in the AMEP and ACTA’s proposed solutions. A draft was widely circulated for comment. The final version has received unanimous support from those who have written to ACTA.
Following a nationwide survey of managers, teachers and volunteers in the AMEP in late 2018 and early 2019, and three forums held over March and April 2019, ACTA has now finalised a submission to the Evaluation of the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) “new business model”.
The Evaluation of the AMEP “New Business Model” is being conducted by the consultancy group Social Compass. The intended project outcomes are listed in the Statement of Requirements and the proposed methodology is outlined in the Evaluation Methodology Overview.
You can download and read the ACTA submission here:
ACTA submission to the AMEP Evaluation March-April 2019
Further to ACTA’s previous submission, and in the light of additional feedback we have received as a result of its wider circulation and placement on our website, the Australian Council of TESOL Associations ACTA offers seven further recommendations to the Evaluation of the AMEP “new business model”.
ACTA supplementary submission to the AMEP Evaluation - 1 May 2019
To see other submissions/reports on the AMEP Evaluation, go to:
- Sydney, 2 March 2019 in collaboration with ATESOL NSW, Sydney School of Education and Social Work (University of Sydney), and the School of Education at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).
- Melbourne, 30 March 2019 in collaboration with VicTESOL and the Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne.
- Brisbane, 6 April 2019 in collaboration with QATESOL.
These three ACTA Forums focus on issues relating to the current Evaluation of the AMEP “New Business Model”. See above for details.
Forum sessions are:
- The Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF): the appropriateness, effectiveness and practicality of utilising the ACSF as a benchmark in initial, progressive and exit assessments; the use of the ACSF in aligning the AMEP and SEE Program through a common assessment framework for English proficiency; the place of the ACSF in the wider VET system; the validity and reliability of using data based on any assessments of student progress as a benchmark or Key Performance Indicator.
- Current curriculum in the AMEP: appropriateness, effectiveness and practicality of current curriculum and curricular options in the “targeted tuition streams” (“Social English” and “Pre-Employment”); the impact of both the ACSF and DET policy on (i) “aligning” the AMEP with the SEE Program, and (ii) regulating the AMEP within the wider VET system.
- Teacher qualifications – stipulated program, curriculum licencing and regulatory requirements, including the VET Certificate IV in Training & Assessment (for further details on a recent report to DET, see AMEP Curricula and Teacher and Assessor Qualifications Guide).
- Competitive contracting and the “multi-provider” model: The appropriateness, effectiveness, value and viability of the current multi-provider service delivery model in the AMEP; whether it should be extended to other regions; its place in the overall competitive contracting model used to deliver the AMEP.
For the Power Point slides and Notes from the Discussions at each Forum, please click on the links below:
Sydney Forum
Presentation slides:
- Item 1: The ACSF
- Item 2: Curriculum now used in the AMEP
- Item 3: Teacher qualifications
- Item 4: Competitive contracting and the “multi-provider” model
Notes:
Melbourne Forum
Presentation slides:
- Item 1: The ACSF
- Item 2: Curriculum now used in the AMEP
- Item 3: Teacher qualifications
- Item 4: Competitive contracting and the “multi-provider” model
Notes:
- Composite notes from Melbourne Forum – to follow
Brisbane Forum
Presentation slides: to follow
Notes: to follow
To continue the discussion, please join the ACTA Adult ESOL Interest Group: Professional Conversations group on Facebook.
[Please note that while membership for this group must be approved, it is a 'Public Group', and any posts and comments are accessible to anyone on Facebook. Please consider this before posting or commenting.]
Comments can also be made to ACTA via your state/territory association or to .
An Expert Panel has been commissioned by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to review the VET sector. For details, go to: https://www.pmc.gov.au/domestic-policy/vet-review.
Based on a first pass of some of the extraordinary wealth of data from the ACTA Survey AMEP and SEE Program teachers, managers & volunteers (for which ACTA warmly thanks the 421 people who responded!) the ACTA Submission to the VET Review addresses four main issues:
- The ASQA requirement that all VET sector teachers (including AMEP and SEE teachers) hold the TAFE Certificate 4 in Training & Assessment,
- Standards of Provision – facilities and infrastructure,
- Use of student progress assessments as the basis of a Key Performance Indicator (KPI), and
- Working Conditions
You can download and read the ACTA submission here: ACTA submission to the VET Review - January 2019
See below for details of the Survey.
In December 2018-April 2019, ACTA conducted a comprehensive survey of AMEP and SEE Program teachers, managers and volunteers seeking their perspectives on the operation of these Programs under the current contracts (from 1st July 2017). The questions were drawn from consultation with practitioners and covered a range of topics, including curriculum, assessment and working conditions.
The response was magnificent!! ACTA warmly thanks the 435 people who gave up their time to do the survey and provide such a wealth of comments. You have given us an extraordinarily rich resource, which we can use in future advocacy on your behalf.
The size and complexity of the survey data have led to a decision not to write a complete report on the survey. It would just be too big and unwieldy. Rather, the survey results will be used to support future submissions and, if time allows, papers on specific issues. For example, see the ACTA submission to the VET Review - January 2019 and the Power Point presentations in the AMEP Evaluation Forums.[link to item above (2 above)] The ACTA submission to the AMEP Evaluation also used these data to address the Evaluation’s Statement of Requirements.
In the light of the profound concerns raised by our members about the consequences of the 2017 contracts for the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP), ACTA prepared a comprehensive Background Paper examining this Program, including its relationship to the Skills for Employment and Education (SEE) Program. The report includes verbatim accounts from teachers and recommendations for change.
Download the report here:
Problems in the AMEP & SEE Program 25 May 2018 - an ACTA Background Paper
In early August 2016, the Department of Education & Training circulated a draft Request for Tender (RTF) for the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) and Skills for Education and Employment Program.
A key proposal is to split the AMEP into two “streams”: Pre-Employment and Social English. The Social English stream is to be taught by graduates with no teaching qualifications of any kind in classes of up to 25 (compared to pre-employment classes of 20). Expected attainment is one indicator on the The Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF) compared to two in the other classes. The justification given in briefing sessions was that these classes would be “less rigorous”. Other aspects of the draft are also of concern to ACTA.
ACTA sent a response to the draft RTF to Minister Simon Birmingham - you can download the document here:
ACTA response to Draft Request for Tender for the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) 2017- 2020
Advocating for the interests
of teachers of English to speakers of other languages and dialects and their students.
Australian Curriculum
The EAL/D Teacher Resource developed for the Australian Curriculum provides a range of materials for teachers of EAL/D learners. The resource includes an overview of EAL/D learning, an EAL/D learning progression, advice for teachers of EAL/D students, a glossary and references, along with EAL/D Learning Area Annotations for F-10 English, Maths Science and History and annotated EAL/D student work samples. The resource and additional materials are available on the ACARA website at https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/student-diversity/students-for-whom-eald
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft general capabilities for the Australian Curriculum. (8 August 2011)
- Read ACTA's letter to ACARA regarding the Languages Shape Paper. (29 April 2011)
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft senior years English Curriculum. (5 August 2010)
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft K-10 Australian Curriculum in English, mathematics, science and history. (30 May 2010)
ACTA has attended National Curriculum forums in an advisory capacity to represent the interests of EAL and EAD learners around the country.
- Read ACTA's position statement on the need for inclusivity of EAL/EAD students in the National Curriculum
- ACTA's position statement on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's 3-part paper on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's responses to the National Curriculum framing papers (February 28, 2009).
- Read the initial advice statement on the National Curriculum in English.
Australian Curriculum
The EAL/D Teacher Resource developed for the Australian Curriculum provides a range of materials for teachers of EAL/D learners. The resource includes an overview of EAL/D learning, an EAL/D learning progression, advice for teachers of EAL/D students, a glossary and references, along with EAL/D Learning Area Annotations for F-10 English, Maths Science and History and annotated EAL/D student work samples. The resource and additional materials are available on the ACARA website at http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/student_diversity/eald_teacher_resource.html
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft general capabilities for the Australian Curriculum. (8 August 2011)
- Read ACTA's letter to ACARA regarding the Languages Shape Paper. (29 April 2011)
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft senior years English Curriculum. (5 August 2010)
- Read ACTA's submission to ACARA on the draft K-10 Australian Curriculum in English, mathematics, science and history. (30 May 2010)
- ACTA has attended National Curriculum forums in an advisory capacity to represent the interests of EAL and EAD learners around the country.
- Read ACTA's position statement on the need for inclusivity of EAL/EAD students in the National Curriculum
- Read ACTA's media release on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's position statement on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's 3-part paper on the National Curriculum.
- ACTA's responses to the National Curriculum framing papers (February 28, 2009).
- English
- Maths
- History
- Science
The vodcast of the Chair's opening address of the National Curriculum Board is now available at
http://www.ncb.org.au/communications/vodcasts.html
Read the initial advice statement on the National Curriculum in English.
Literacy & EAL/D
- Teaching EAL/D Learners in Australian Classrooms
An academic article co-written by ACTA Councillors Michèle de Courcy, Karen Dooley, Robert Jackson, Jenny Miller and Kathy Rushton, published by the Primary English Teaching Association Australia (PETAA). The article was contracted as a PETAA Paper and distributed to all PETAA members in March 2012. You can read it online and/or download a PDF at the PETAA website at PETAA Paper 183: Teaching EAL/D Learners in Australian Classrooms - Discriminatory features for ESL Learners in the Literacy Benchmarks
Dr. Penny McKay, Press Release 20th February, 1998 - Literacy goals fail ESL students
A prepared press release by Dr Penny McKay, President of ACTA - ACTA Background papers on Literacy
Includes 4 papers on ESL and Literacy:
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- The Literacy Benchmarks and ESL -Penny McKay
- ESL Is it Migrant Literacy? Is it History? - Joseph Lo Bianco'
- Literacy - meeting the needs of all learners - Dorothy Hoddinott
- Discriminatory Features for ESL Learners in the Literacy Benchmarks - Penny McKay
Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Education
ACTA’s member association, ATESOL NT, made two detailed submissions to the 2021 Parliamentary Inquiry into Adult Literacy and Its Importance (105 and 105.1) and also gave evidence in a Hearing on 29th July.
To view ACTA’s media release endorsing these submissions, click here.
To read an AAP syndicated article based on this media release, click here.
To listen to ABC Darwin news items following this media release, click here.
To view a follow-up letter from ACTA president and Vice-Presidents to the Hon. Key Wyatt, Minister for Indigenous Australians, click here. To read the reply from Acting Education Minister Stuart Robert, click here.
To view the ATESOL NT submissions, go the Inquiry website here and scroll down to Submissions 105 and 101.5. You will need to download them. Please note: 101.5 is a landmark documentation of the current situation in remote NT schools and also includes important recommendations.
You can also view submission 101.5 on ATESOL NT's website here.
You can view Hansard of ATESOL NT’s evidence on the Parliamentary Inquiry website here. You will need to scroll down to the hearing on 29 July 2021. You will need to download the PDF file. (If you would like to read ACTA’s evidence, download the hearing on 19 August 2021).
For details of ACTA’s submission 85 to the Inquiry and updated Supplementary submission 85.1, click here.
To find read the Inquiry’s final report entitled “Don’t take it as read: Inquiry into adult literacy and its importance”, visit the Inquiry home page. To read the press release, click here.
For further information and updates, go to the ATESOL NT website.
The Australian Government has asked the Productivity Commission to develop a whole-of-government evaluation strategy for policies and programs affecting Indigenous Australians, to be used by all Australian Government agencies. The Commission will also review the performance of agencies against the strategy over time. A draft report is expected in February 2020.
ACTA has made a comprehensive submission to the Commission based on widespread consultation with our networks across Australia. For details about the Evaluation Strategy and to read the other 100 submissions, which are very interesting, go to https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/current/indigenous-evaluation
NOTE: The links below are to past advocacy, report, initiatives, and many of these links may no longer work.
- ACTA's response and recommended additions to the draft Capability Framework for Teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander EAL/D Learners, which has been developed as part of the projects initiated by the Senior Officers National Network Indigenous Education (SONNIE) and the National Alliance for Remote Indigenous Schools (NARIS) (10 October 2012)
- ACTA's submission to the Inquiry into the Australian Human Rights Commission Amendment (National Children's Commissioner) Bill 2012 (1 June 2012)
- ACTA's submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Inquiry into language learning in Indigenous communities (22 August 2011)
- ACTA's joint submission (with ALAA and ALS) to MCEECDYA on the Stage 2 Consultation Draft of the Indigenous Education Action Plan (IEAP) 2010–2014 (3 March 2010)
- ACTA's media release on bilingual education
- ACTA's letter to parliament in support of retaining bilingual education in the Northern Territory.
Place of First Language
The Australian and international TESOL fields argue that the maintenance and ongoing development of a student’s first language (L1) provides learners with a solid base from which to acquire an additional language.
Awareness of the positive influences associated with supporting L1 development is particularly important for young learners. Older learners actively draw on knowledge of their first language and its structure, conceptual and content knowledge held in this language and their L1 literacy skills when learning a subsequent language. However younger learners do not yet have this depth of knowledge to draw on and without appropriate support they are at risk of failing to acquire full proficiency in either their first language or the main language of school instruction.
The following references explore the role of maintaining a learner’s first language in relation to the acquisition of English:
- Bialystok, E. (2001). Bilingualism in development: Language, literacy and cognition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Cross, R. (2009). Literacy for All: Quality language education for few. Language and Education, 23 (6) 509-522.
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a913007738~tab=linking - Cummins, J. (1991). Interdependence of first- and second-language proficiency in bilingual children. In E. Bialystok (Ed.), Language processing in bilingual children (pp. 70 - 89). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Cummins, J. (2007). Rethinking monolingual instructional strategies in multilingual classrooms. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(2), 221-240.
- de Courcy, M. C. & Yue, H. (2009). Children¹s experiences of multiple script literacy. In A. Mahboob & C. Lipovsky (Eds.) Studies in applied linguistics and language learning. (pp. 244-270). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
- de Courcy, M. C. (2007). Multilingualism, literacy and the acquisition of English as an additional language among Iraqi refugees in regional Victoria. University of Sydney Papers in TESOL, 2, 1-31.
- de Courcy, M. C. (2006). The effect of literacy in Hebrew on the acquisition of English. Babel: Journal of the AFMLTA, 41(2), 4-9, 38.
- Lo Bianco, J. (2009), Second Languages and Australian Schooling: Review and Proposals, Australian Education Review 54, Camberwell, Vic: Australian Council for Education Research.
- McKay, P., Davies, A., Devlin, B., Clayton, J., Oliver, R., & Zammit, S. (1997). The Bilingual Interface Project report: the relationship between first language development and second language acquisition as students begin learning English in the context of schooling. Canberra: Department of Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs (DEETYA).
- Molyneux, P. (2009). Education for biliteracy: Maximising the linguistic potential of diverse learners in Australia's primary schools. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 32(2), 97 - 117.
- Ramírez, J. D., Yuen, S. D., & Ramey, D. R. (1991). Final report: Longitudinal study of English immersion strategy, early-exit and late-exit transitional bilingual education programs for language-minority children (No. Contract No. 300-87-0156). San Mateo, CA: Aguirre International.
- Slavin, R. E., & Cheung, A. (2003). Effective reading programs for English language learners: A best-evidence synthesis. Baltimore, MD: CRESPAR/Johns Hopkins University.
- Thomas, W. P., & Collier, V. P. (1997). School effectiveness for language minority students. Washington, D.C.: National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education.
- Thomas, W. P., & Collier, V. P. (2002). A national study of school effectiveness for language minority students' long-term academic achievement. Santa Cruz, CA: Center for Research on Education, Diversity and Excellence (CREDE).
- Miller, J. M., Mitchell, J. M., & Brown, J. R. (2005). African refugees with interrupted schooling in the high school mainstream: dilemmas for teachers. Prospect: an Australian journal of TESOL, 20(2), 19 - 33.
ACTA Advocacy Archives
ACTA has undertaken advocacy on a wide range of issues over the years. In this section you will soon find an archive of older papers and letters on these issues and more:
- Citizenship Test 2007
- Special Purpose Payment funding 2008
- Advanced English for Migrants Programme (AEMP) 2000
- Correspondence from 2000
- Multiculturalism 1997
- Anti-Racism
- Adult ESOL Archives
Early Childhood Education
The Australian Council of TESOL Associations (ACTA) is committed to strengthening Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) for all young children whose caregivers speak languages other than English, and who are consequently learning English in addition to their home and family languages. These children are located in urban, regional, rural and remote communities across Australia. They come from linguistically, culturally and socio-economically diverse communities, and include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and migrant and refugee families.
This submission advances three proposals that will improve the quality and effectiveness of ECEC in serving the children and families for whom we specifically advocate but, just as importantly, the whole Australian society and economy.
Read ACTA's submission - Productivity Commission Inquiry into Early Childhood Education and Care here.
This Early Childhood Education (ECE) Principles document is a statement of the Australian Council of TESOL Association’s (ACTA’s) beliefs and values about home language-based English as Additional Language and/or Dialect (EAL/D) education in the Early Childhood (EC) years with a focus on the education of children in the years before schooling.
The ECE Principles encompass all EAL/D learners: newly arrived, migrant and Australia-born children, refugee and refugee-background children, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children functioning at all levels of home language and English language proficiency. The ECE Principles bring together the shared thinking of a large group of early childhood practitioners and researchers with EAL/D expertise from across Australia. The ECE Principles document is intended to raise awareness of issues to do with language/s for practitioners, researchers, policymakers, key stakeholders and State, Territory and Commonwealth governments.
The ECE Principles reinforce the principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (the Convention), which underpin the Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (DET, 2019).
The ECE Principles also align with the Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration In particular, the Council of Australian Governments is committed to closing the gap in educational achievement between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians and ECE plays a critical role in achieving this outcome (DESE, 2019). Target 3 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (2020) states that: Children are engaged in high quality, culturally appropriate early childhood education.
For more information please email
In November 2021 TESOL in Context, the peer-reviewed publication of the Australian Council for TESOL Associations (ACTA), published a volume specifically dedicated to Languages in Early Childhood Education.
The Australian Council of TESOL Associations (ACTA) appreciates the opportunity to become part of the national conversation about developing the Early Years Strategy by responding to the Early Years Discussion Paper.
ACTA is committed to strengthening Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) for all young children whose caregivers speak languages other than English and who are consequently learning English in addition to their home/family languages.
ACTA advocates for the rights of children and families to maintain their languages and to be supported in learning English, in addition, not as a replacement. We support the maintenance of Australia’s rich “language wealth” in the speakers of First Nations and overseas languages, young and old.
ACTA members believe that Australia should harness our shared linguistic diversity and multilingual resources encouraging all children to learn and use home and community languages, while at the same time adding to their English communication skills. In so doing, the Commonwealth Government would advance its commitment to the current lead policy in Indigenous affairs, Closing the Gap, by supporting First Nations children who are speakers of diverse Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages to thrive in their early years and beyond.
An inclusive and strengths-based strategy would enable ECEC settings to reflect and nurture children’s diversity. It is about every child accessing, participating meaningfully in, and experiencing positive outcomes from, ECEC programs. Inclusion is important as it nurtures children’s sense of identity, and their confidence in themselves as effective learners, as they take their first steps into education contexts outside their family/caregivers. Intentionally catering for diversity and enhances children’s experiences in high quality ECEC.
ACTA's complete Response to the Discussion Paper can be read here.
ACTA's Principles for Early Childhood Education can be found here.
ACTA feedback on the National Vision for ECEC in Australia
- support young children’s educational and development outcomes
- encourage parents’ workforce participation, and
- grow a strong and sustainable workforce.
Read the ACTA feedback on the National Vision for ECEC in Australia here
This Early Childhood Education (ECE) Principles document is a statement of the Australian Council of TESOL Association’s (ACTA’s) beliefs and values about home language-based English as Additional Language and/or Dialect (EAL/D) education in the Early Childhood (EC) years with a focus on the education of children in the years before schooling.
The ECE Principles encompass all EAL/D learners: newly arrived, migrant and Australia-born children, refugee and refugee-background children, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children functioning at all levels of home language and English language proficiency. The ECE Principles bring together the shared thinking of a large group of early childhood practitioners and researchers with EAL/D expertise from across Australia. The ECE Principles document is intended to raise awareness of issues to do with language/s for practitioners, researchers, policymakers, key stakeholders and State, Territory and Commonwealth governments.
The ECE Principles reinforce the principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (the Convention), which underpin the Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (DET, 2019).
The ECE Principles also align with the Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration In particular, the Council of Australian Governments is committed to closing the gap in educational achievement between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians and ECE plays a critical role in achieving this outcome (DESE, 2019). Target 3 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (2020) states that: Children are engaged in high quality, culturally appropriate early childhood education.
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In November 2021 TESOL in Context, the peer-reviewed publication of the Australian Council for TESOL Associations (ACTA), published a volume specifically dedicated to Languages in Early Childhood Education.
In November 2021 TESOL in Context, the peer-reviewed publication of the Australian Council for TESOL Associations (ACTA), published a volume specifically dedicated to Languages in Early Childhood Education.
"In the context of ever-changing global movement of peoples in and between countries, linguistic diversity, and diversity in modes of communication and expression have become increasingly vibrant and visible (D’warte & Slaughter, 2021). These changes have also been reflected in research scholarship into languages acquisition where monolingual-centric assumptions have been disrupted by heteroglossic perspectives that view the linguistic repertoire of any individual, including the very young child, as complex – shaped by the “linguistic, cognitive, social and emotional” characteristics of the individual (Seltzer & García, 2020, p. 2). In orienting this to the classroom, Cummins & Early (2011) argue that the relationship between language and identity cannot be untwined but that indeed, a critical precondition for learning involves recognising and engaging with the cultural and linguistic knowledges and learning experiences of students."
[Reference: Slaughter, Y., Keary, A., Gillian, P., & Bonar, G. (2021). Editorial: Languages in Early Childhood Education. TESOL in Context, 30(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.21153/tesol2021vol30no1art1571]
This issue contains four articles:
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Leveraging Languages for Learning: Incorporating Plurilingual Pedagogies in Early Childhood Education and Care / Caroline Cohrssen, Yvette Slaughter, Edith Nicolas
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Mothers as First Teachers: Exploring the Features of Motherchild Interactions That Support Young Aboriginal Children’s Multilingual Learning at Playgroup / Janet Scull, Jane Page, Wan Yi Lee, Lisa Murray, Dorothy Gapany, Samantha Stewart, Marilyn Murukun, Nuala Scannell, Rona Lawrence, Jonica Dhurrkay, Felicity Hayes, Verity Burarrwanga, Leah Chynoweth, Michelle Callahan, Jessica Noella Goveas, Megan L. Cock, Susan Mentha, Patricia Eadie, Joseph Sparling
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Knowing Who You Are: Heritage Language, Identity and Safe Space in a Bilingual Kindergarten / Kerry Taylor-Leech, Eseta Tualaulelei
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The Niichii Project: Revitalizing Indigenous Language in Northern Canada / Shelley Stagg Peterson, Yvette Manitowabi, Jacinta Manitowabi
Three books are reviewed in this issue:
- Bilingual Families: A Practical Language Planning Guide
- Rooted in Strength: Using Translanguaging to Grow Multilingual Readers and Writers
- Early Language Learning and Teacher Education. International Research and Practice
Click to view TESOL in Context. Vol 30 No 1.