Languages in AusVELS: Victoria’s approach to
Languages in the Australian Curriculum
AFMLTA National Conference 2013
Saturday 6 July 2013
Presenter: Maree Dellora
Languages in the Victorian curriculum
“You cannot say you
have mastered a new
language if you have not
discovered a brand
new world, and your
new self in it, through
the experience
of learning it."
Associate Professor Ariel Heryanto
Indonesian Studies, ANU
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What is AusVELS?
AusVELS is the F -10 curriculum
that all Victorian government
and Catholic schools use for
planning, assessment and
reporting.
AusVELS is available to all
Independent schools as a model for the effective
implementation of the Australian Curriculum (AC)
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AusVELS - Australian Curriculum and VELS
• is a framework that incorporates
the Australian Curriculum as it is
progressively developed
(Languages curriculum is not yet
ready for implementation)
• aims to ensure that teachers do not
have to manage two
different curriculum frameworks
during the development of the AC
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From VELS to AusVELS to the AC
AusVELS 2015
VELS - introduced 2006
A double helix model
A triple helix model
Physical, Personal
& Social Learning
Discipline-based
Learning
Domains/subjects
General Capabilities
Cross-curriculum priorities
Interdisciplinary
Learning
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In 2013…
In 2013 AusVELS curriculum is comprised
of:
 four Australian Curriculum subjects
(MESH)
 the remaining 12 VELS domains
 three embedded cross
curriculum priorities
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Australian Curriculum
LEARNING AREAS/ SUBJECT
DISCIPLINES
GENERAL CAPABILITIES
CROSS-CURRICULUM
PRIORITIES
•English (2013)
•Mathematics (2013)
•Science (2013)
•Health and Physical
Education (2015)
•Languages (2015)
•Humanities and Social
Sciences
[History (2013), Geography
(2015) Civics and Citizenship
(2015) , Business and
Economics (2015) ]
•The Arts (2015)
•Technologies (inc ICT) (2015)
• Critical and creative
thinking
• Personal and social
capability
• Intercultural understanding
• Ethical behaviour
• Literacy
• Numeracy
• ICT capability
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander histories and
cultures
• Asia and Australia’s
engagement with Asia
• Sustainability
(Reflected in subjects)
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Cross curriculum priorities
•
•
•
•
•
•
Three priorities:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories
and cultures
Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia
Sustainability
About the cross curriculum priorities:
embedded in domains, but with varying presence
not treated as separate areas of learning
no curriculum content located, rather illustrate how
learning can be integrated across the domains
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Learning areas still in development:
Geography
Languages
The Arts
Health and Physical Education
Technologies: inc. ICT and Design and
Technology
Humanities and Social Sciences:
Economics, Business and Civics and
Citizenship
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General capabilities
o Literacy
o Numeracy
o ICT
o Personal and social
capability
o Critical and creative
thinking
o Intercultural
understanding
o Ethical understanding
General capabilities underpin flexible and critical thinking, a capacity to work with
others and an ability to move across subject disciplines to develop new expertise.
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Developing Languages in the Australian curriculum
Stage 1
Languages
Aboriginal Languages and Torres Strait
Islander Languages,
Chinese and Italian
Stage 2
Languages
Arabic, French, German, Indonesian,
Japanese, Korean, Modern Greek, Spanish
and Vietnamese
Stage 3
Languages
Auslan, Classical Languages, Hindi and
Turkish
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Languages in AusVELS
6 categories of Languages and standards
2 Dimensions:
- Communicating in a Language other
than English
- Intercultural Knowledge and Language
Awareness
6 Levels (two-year bands) converted into 11
Recommended time allocation:
150 mins per week
Languages in Australian Curriculum
Language-specific curriculum documents
2 Strands: Communicating
Understanding
(Originally a third: Reciprocating)
7 General Capabilities (inc Intercultural
Understanding)
3 Cross curriculum priorities
11 levels
Indicative time allocation: 350 hours over F - 6
160 hours over Years 7- 8
160 hours over Years 9-10
Two Pathways: Students begin in Primary
Three Pathways:
Students beginning at Year 7 Second language learners – 8 languages
Background language learners – Arabic,
Chinese and Vietnamese
First language learners – Chinese
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STRUCTURE OF THE AUSTRALIAN
CURRICULUM: LANGUAGES -
Structural
comparison
AC and AusVELS
Communicating
strand
6 sub strands:
• Socialising and taking action
• Obtaining and using information
• Responding to and expressing imaginative
experience
• Moving between/translating
• Expressing and performing identity
• Reflecting on intercultural language use
Understanding strand
4 sub strands:
• Systems of language
• Variability in language use
• Language awareness
• Role of language and culture
Content descriptions
have been written for
each of these ten sub strands
AusVELS is based on 11 levels
Nominal school level
VELS Level
Prep/Foundation
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
http://ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/
AusVELS Level
1
2
3
4
5
6
Foundation
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
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How Languages are organised in the
AC Australian Curriculum Levels for
Nominal school
level
Prep/Foundation
1
2
VELS
Level
AusVELS Level
1
Foundation
Foundation
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
Level 1 Achievement
Standards for Languages 4
5
5
6
Level 2 Achievement
Standards for Languages 6
7
7
8
Level 3 Achievement
Standards for Languages 8
9
9
10
Level 4 Achievement
Standards for Languages 10
2
3
4
3
5
6
4
7
8
5
http://ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/
9
10
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Languages
ACARA consultations on Languages in the
Australian curriculum
Stage 1
Languages
Stage 2
Languages
Stage 3
Languages
Consultation on curriculum documents for these two was open
until 12 April 2013:
Chinese and Italian
Consultation on curriculum documents for these ten is being
conducted from May – July 2013:
Aboriginal Languages and Torres Strait
Islander Languages, Arabic, French, German,
Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Modern Greek,
Spanish and Vietnamese
Consultation period yet to be decided
Auslan, Classical Languages, Hindi and Turkish
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Languages in the Australian curriculum
Innovative aspects of Australian Curriculum for Victorian
teachers:
• language specific approach
• focus on concepts and processes
• huge number of valuable teaching
ideas in the elaborations
• intercultural understanding has
greater focus and also cross curricular
• ethical understanding has more status
• 3 cross curriculum priorities
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Languages in the Australian curriculum
Possible issues:
• time allocation
• role of English
• status of general
capabilities
• organising strands and
sub-strands
• smaller candidature languages
• languages at senior secondary level
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Intercultural Understanding in the Australian curriculum
Intercultural understanding assumes
an integral connection between
language and culture, acknowledging
language as the primary means
through which people establish and
exchange shared meaning and ways
of seeing the world (Scarino, Dellitt and Vale
2007).
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Intercultural Understanding
The learning continuum is organised
into these three interrelated
organising elements:
• Recognising culture and
developing respect
• Interacting and empathising with
others
• Reflecting on intercultural
experiences and taking
responsibility
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Scope of Intercultural Understanding capability
“Intercultural understanding combines
personal, interpersonal and social
knowledge and skills.
….students learn to value and view
critically their own cultural perspectives and
practices and those of others through their
interactions with people,
texts and contexts
across the curriculum.”
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Intercultural Understanding – Values and Dispositions
Intercultural Understanding aims to cultivate in
students:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
curiosity
care
empathy
reciprocity
respect
responsibility
open-mindedness
critical mindedness
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Intercultural Understanding across the curriculum
……….taught
explicitly
in the Languages
learning area
and applied,
adapted,
strengthened
and extended
in other learning areas
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History in the Australian curriculum
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Contact Details:
Victorian Curriculum and
Assessment Authority (VCAA)
Maree Dellora
dellora.maree.r@edumail.vic.gov.au
Tel: 9032 1692
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