Australian Indigenous and migrant language education policy: Some parallels. (original) (raw)

A great deal of research has been conducted into Indigenous and migrant Australians, with education and language shift often key issues. As well as significant differences, there are notable similarities between these two broad groups, such as minority status; a high level of language attrition; and significant language variation across the groups. Yet comparatively little attention has been paid to these similarities or to the possible implications of these similarities for language education policy development. As a result, these two Australian minority language groups are often treated separately: they have different language rights and are subject to largely unrelated language policies. This means that the potential for sharing educational and other resources is often unrecognised, leading in turn to inefficient and often ineffective language education policy. These issues are particularly urgent in light of the diminishing number of Indigenous languages being spoken in Australia, combined with the continuing increase in migrant language speakers. A more developed awareness of the parallels, as well as the differences, between Australian Indigenous and migrant groups could have many benefits, such as more effective design and implementation of language policy within Australia, and more efficient use of available resources.