VOA常速英语2007年-Aboriginal Languages Slowly Making Way into Aus

By Nicola Fell
Sydney
04 December 2007

On the eve of European settlement in Australia, around 250 indigenous¹ languages were spoken. Today most of them have been lost, and only 17 are thought likely to survive for another generation. But in the state of New South Wales, the government is attempting to reverse this. In schools with a large indigenous population, learning an aboriginal² language will be available to all students, as Nicola Fell reports from Sydney.

Here at Broulee Primary School on the southeastern coast of Australia, Waine Donovan is greeting his students in the local Aboriginal language, Dhurga.

"I didn't learn the actual Dhurga language… because traditionally, Aboriginal people were forbidden from speaking their own language. If they were caught doing it, they could be punished by beating, or they could be killed. So, a lot of our elders still don't speak the language. They also don't feel that it's valuable," he explained.

Donovan, who is half Aboriginal and grew up here in Broulee, says the new emphasis on native languages is popular among Aboriginal students.

"For Aboriginal people in Australia, if you do something that draws attention to yourself, it's seen as a shame. But since we've been doing this language course in our school, we actually use the language a lot more, in the staff room, we hear it being used in the playground, it permeates³ throughout the school. That shame aspect has actually been turned around, to pride," said Donovan.

In New South Wales, all students have to learn a second language, and this policy being pioneered by the state government aims to make indigenous languages the main option, along with Chinese and French.

Rob Randal of the New South Wales Department of Education says that so far, 5,000 Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students are learning an indigenous language local to their area.

In a nation where indigenous culture suffered greatly since European settlement, Randal says the reason for this new program goes beyond mere⁵ education.

"This move is as much about reconciliation⁶ as it is about enhancing their cultural identity, as it is about the educational reasons," he said.

Randall says the reception to the language courses has been striking. He says one school had a 12 percent suspension rate the year before the language was introduced. The following year, suspensions dropped to zero.

He says there was also a 25 percent increase in attendance at the school, and he hopes this enthusiasm will help eliminate the achievement gap between indigenous and non-indigenous students.

"Having children attend school and engage in school leads logically to improved results," he said. "Our goal is by 2012 to have Aboriginal student achievement on a par⁴ with non-Aboriginal student achievement. At the moment, there's a significant gap."

When European settlement began in Australia more than 200 years ago, 250 Aboriginal languages were spoken. Today there are only 20, and fewer than 3,000 people speak an indigenous language in New South Wales.

Michael Walsh, a linguist⁷ at the University of Sydney, says revitalizing languages can help people like Australia's Aborigines recover their lost identity.

"I've seen specific instances where Aboriginal people have had a terrible life, and the mere reintroduction of their language has been enough to turn their life around from one of despair and hopelessness to one of optimism, and an ability to function much more effectively in the wider society," he said.

 

Many teachers believe that this policy can make a real difference to how Aboriginal children perform in school. Currently only 33 percent are completing high school - which is less than half the national average.

Tiahnnya Smith is 10 and lives near her school in Broulee.

"I'm Aboriginal and I think I should know Aboriginal words," said Smith.

Q: "The teachers say that when children learn an Aboriginal language, like you, then they do better at school. Do you think that's true?"

A: "Yes because makes me feel good because I'm learning my own culture."

Frances Kerkham, who is nine, says non-Aboriginal students also enjoy learning the language.

"I reckon it's really interesting because I get to learn about the language of the people who originally lived on these grounds," said Kerkham.

Interesting to a girl like Frances - but important to a girl like Tiahnnya. For her and students like her, this is a part of personal history.

Tiahnnya is teaching her mother to speak their native language, she says. Doing so makes her proud.

1 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

2 aboriginal   

adj.（指动植物）土生的，原产地的，土著的

参考例句：

• They managed to wipe out the entire aboriginal population.他们终于把那些土著人全部消灭了。
• The lndians are the aboriginal Americans.印第安人是美国的土著人。

3 permeates   

弥漫( permeate的第三人称单数 )； 遍布； 渗入； 渗透

参考例句：

• Studies show that water vapor quickly permeates plastic packaging material. 研究证明水蒸汽能迅速渗入塑料封装材料。
• Democracy permeates the whole country. 民主主义（的思想）普及全国。

4 par   

n.标准，票面价值，平均数量；adj.票面的，平常的，标准的

参考例句：

• Sales of nylon have been below par in recent years.近年来尼龙织品的销售额一直不及以往。
• I don't think his ability is on a par with yours.我认为他的能力不能与你的能力相媲美。

5 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

6 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

7 linguist   

n.语言学家；精通数种外国语言者

参考例句：

• I used to be a linguist till I become a writer.过去我是个语言学家，后来成了作家。
• Professor Cui has a high reputation as a linguist.崔教授作为语言学家名声很高。