Chinese is language of choice for West Aussies

There is growing support for the Chinese language Mandarin to be taught in WA schools.

The What matters to the West survey found that European languages such as French and Italian seem to be out of favour.

Almost half the survey’s respondents thought Mandarin should be taught in schools, followed by more than a fifth who said students should learn indigenous languages.

The survey canvassed the opinions of more than 3400 people and was run by _The West Australian _ and Channel Seven.

French was the favourite for 18 per cent and Italian, just 13 per cent.

Chinese Language Teachers Association of WA president and Mt Lawley Senior High School Mandarin teacher Anita Chong said there had been a push by parents wanting their children to learn a language that would help with career opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region.

Mr Rudd’s linguistic abilities had also improved the popularity of Mandarin, she said.

“It is difficult; speaking it is easier than writing and students might not become fluent but through the language they understand the culture and have the opportunity to be one step ahead,” Ms Chong said.

Learning Mandarin opened up opportunities in places such as Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, where it was also spoken, as well as China.

Kimberley Land Council senior cultural adviser Irene Davey said she was encouraged by the number of people who thought indigenous languages should be taught in schools.

She believed it would deepen understanding of Aboriginal culture, help young Aboriginal people retain their own language and secure indigenous languages as an important part of Australia’s history and culture.

Education Department school support programs executive director David Axworthy said the department was aiming to raise the quality and profile of teaching of Mandarin and other Asian languages in WA public schools.

The department had opened six specialist language hubs in secondary schools this year.

He said Aboriginal languages had a unique place in Australia’s heritage and cultural and educational life and 25 Aboriginal languages were being taught at public schools in WA.

Survey respondents also overwhelmingly supported compulsory uniforms at school, with 85 per cent in favour.
Half thought students got a better education at a private school, while a quarter thought public schools did the job.

Source: The West Australian

Students threaten teachers on Facebook

FACEBOOK, the world’s largest social network site, is under more pressure to tighten security after West Australian high school students used it to threaten teachers, calling for them to be “massacred by chainsaws”.

The pressure comes after a Facebook memorial site for murdered 12-year-old Queensland schoolboy Elliott Fletcher was desecrated with images of child pornography and bestiality.

Users of two Facebook groups set up for past and present students of North Albany Senior High School, in WA’s south, posted threatening and defamatory comments about current and former teachers.

One comment said: “If we get over two million people saying they hate ( ) all staff and workers involved should be massacred by chainsaws and the school should be shut down.”

It is understood the Department of Education and Training has identified the student who allegedly posted the comment, although no action has yet been taken in the case.

Albany police said they were not involved at this stage.

In one discussion, past students referred to a teacher by name, claiming he was a “pervert” and had “sleazed” on to them.

State School Teachers Union president Anne Gisborne called for tighter protocols governing the use of Facebook and similar internet sites.

“What you’ve got potentially is the setting up of a kangaroo court, without the opportunity for any witness statements to be made or any defence,” Ms Gisborne said. “It can be the ruin of an individual and their professional integrity.”

Facebook refused to comment.

State Education Minister Liz Constable said she was appalled at the students’ postings and they should be punished.

The school’s principal, Sharon Doohan, indicated staff were being instructed in the appropriate use of social networking sites.

She urged parents to be vigilant over the potential misuse of the internet by their children.

Federal Education Minister Julia Gillard said yesterday a $3 million pilot program to combat cyber bullying in schools would promote “smart, safe and responsible use of technology”.

Source:  The Australian

Father fined over two daughters’ truancy

A PARENT charged for not sending his children to school has been found guilty.

In the first case of its kind in Western Australia, Hans Ulrich Meier, a father of six children was given a conditional release order in Midland Magistrate’s Court.

The court heard that two of his daughters, aged 14 and 15 years, missed almost three terms of school.

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Perth girl, 14, crowned ‘Australia’s brainiest student

Uma Jha, from Perth’s Shenton College, in Shenton Park, outsmarted more than 4000 national competitors to win the 2010 Australian Brain Bee Challenge.

The neuroscience competition tests high school students on a range of topics, including intelligence, memory, emotions, sleep, Alzheimer’s disease and stroke.

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WA teaching vacancies filled

THE global financial crisis has benefited at least one sector of the West Australian economy, with teacher vacancies almost non-existent at the start of the new year.

Almost 400,000 students returned to school across the state on Monday, with just one teacher vacancy.

It is a far cry from the economic boom years, when there were 264 vacancies at the start of 2007 and 79 at the start of 2008.

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