2013LANGUAGE ASSISTANTS PROGRAM

SCHOOL GUIDELINESAND APPLICATION FORM

Closing date: 27 July 2012

  1. Overview

The Language Assistants Program places language assistants from France, Germany, Indonesia, Japan and Spain in Victorian government schools.

The Program is an initiative of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development and supports the Victorian Government’s commitment to strengthen languages education in Victorian schools by ensuring that all students have access to quality languages programs.

Language assistants support qualified language teachers to provide authentic language and cultural experiences for students. Language assistants can use traditional and contemporary language and culture to engage students in face-to-face and online language learning. This includes, but is not limited to, team-teaching, providing small group or individual student language support, offering advice on linguistic and cultural matters and participating in school activities relating to their language and culture.

Language assistants can also support cluster, region or Department initiatives, including resource development, student language immersion camps and teacher professional learning.

  1. Program objectives

The Victorian Language Assistants Program aims to:

  • enrich Victorian government school languages programs through the provision of fluent speakers of French, German, Indonesian, Japanese and Spanish to work as language assistants;
  • provide Victorian teachers and students with opportunities to increase their knowledge and understanding of other languages and cultures;
  • promote language learning and intercultural understanding in Victorian communities; and
  • foster relationships between Victoria and other countries through ongoing linguistic and cultural exchange.
  1. Selection of Schools

The Department receives more applications from schools than there are funded language assistants available. Therefore the information sought in this application form will assist regional offices to assess applications for the funded language assistantsand will enable the Department’s Language Assistants Program assessment panel to make an informed recommendation about the allocation of language assistants for 2013.

Please note that schools that have previously been allocated a language assistant through the Program may not be allocated a language assistant in 2013.

3.1School Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to be allocated a funded language assistant, schools must apply as a partnership of two schools*. The partnership must:

  • Include at least one secondary school
  • Provide a qualified languages teacher(s) who is teaching the targeted language for a minimum of 20 hours per week

* The travel time by public transport between the two schools should not be more than 40 minutes. Applications from single schools will only be accepted if the school is isolated and not able to apply as a partnership with another school. The single school must provide a qualified languages teacher(s) who is teaching the targeted language for a minimum of 20 hours per week

Applications from all schools will be assessed against the following assessment criteria.

3.2School Assessment Criteria

  1. The schools demonstrate how a language assistant could enhance the language program in at least one of the following :
  • supporting activities to promote the transition of students from primary to secondary languages programs (Year 6 into Year 7)
  • working with students where languages study is an elective (usually Years 9 and 10)
  • supporting students studying languages at VCE level so as to impact positively on increasing retention rates and VCE results
  1. The schools demonstrate a strong commitment to the teaching of the language (e.g. evidence that languages are identified as a priority in the schools’ Strategic Plans; goals/ targets are included in their Annual Implementation Plans; a demonstrated increase in students enrolled in their languages program; an appropriate time allocation for each group/class of students learning the language; or other school initiatives to promote and improve languages education).
  1. The schools demonstrate how the quality of their languages program would be improved through the support of a language assistant fluent in the target language.
  1. The schools outline an effective strategy for sharing the language assistant across the two schools. This should include how the schools intend to sustain the benefits of having been provided with/having had access to the language assistant after the one year placement concludes.(Isolated schools that are unable to apply as a partnership with another school do not need to outline an effective strategy for sharing the language assistant but should outline how the school intends to sustain the benefits of the language assistant after the placement concludes.)
  1. The schools outline a sound strategy for supporting the wellbeing of the language assistant during the placement and a commitment to providing professional support and development opportunities for the language assistant, including the appointment of a mentor (e.g. participation in language conferences, professional learning activities and network meetings).
  1. Nominating a Base School

One of the schools participating in the partnership must be nominated as the Base School. This school will be responsible for administration of the program, including employment of the assistant and coordinating the sharing of the assistant across the schools. The Base School will be the central point of contact between the assistant, the other school and the Department.

  1. Responsibilities of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development

The International Education Division, DEECD, will:

  • coordinate the Program, including the school application and allocation process;
  • liaise with partner organisations to identify and select the language assistants;
  • liaise with the language assistants before their arrival and support them to obtain a Special Programs (subclass 416) visa;
  • provide an orientation program (and accommodation during orientation) for the assistants upon arrival;
  • liaise with the language assistants and schools to address issues as they arise;
  • direct language assistants and schools to information relevant to the placement (e.g. DEECD HR advice, Working with Children Check); and
  • organise a mid-year review meeting and farewell event for the language assistants.
  1. Responsibilities of the School
  2. Responsibilities of theBase School Principal

The Principal at the Base School is responsible for overseeing the placement of a language assistant and will:

  • ensure that the language assistant does not assume the role of a teacher and does not teach unsupervised;
  • nominate an appropriate staff member as the Language Assistant Program Liaison Contact to provide suitable supervision, co-ordination and guidance to the language assistant, and support this member of staff to attend a one-day Program briefing;
  • oversee the welfare of the language assistant during the placement and respond in a timely manner if any issues arise;
  • ensure that temporary accommodation and support to find ongoing accommodation is made available to the language assistant upon arrival;
  • ensure that the language assistant is provided with a school-basedorientation and induction upon arrival;
  • ensure that the language assistant is provided with a personal workspace in the school;
  • ensure that the language assistant is supported with professional learning opportunities;
  • provide a school representative to attend the orientation on 6 February 2013 (see Section 9 below)
  • coordinate logistics with the principal of the other school (e.g. timetable, transport); and
  • provide a mid-year and final report to the International Education Division (a report template will be provided).

6.2Responsibilities of the Language Assistant Program Liaison Contact

A key contactin the Base School must be nominated as the Language Assistant Program Liaison Contact.

The Language Assistant Program Liaison Contact will:

  • liaise between the school, the language assistant and the Department over matters that arise related to the Program;
  • coordinate the day-to-day activities of the language assistant in consultation with the language assistant and other staff;
  • monitor the welfare of the language assistant and respond in a timely manner if any issues arise;
  • coordinate temporary accommodation for the language assistant upon arrival and support the language assistant to find ongoing accommodation;
  • liaise directly with the language assistant before their departure to Victoria to provide them with information about the schools and the community;
  • liaise with the language assistant to develop a timetable outlining their activities between the two schools;
  • ensure lesson planning and preparation with the language assistant occurs on a weekly basis;
  • assist the language assistant to complete a Working with Children Check, apply for a Tax File Number and complete any other forms required by the school;
  • identify professional development opportunities that may benefit the language assistant and support them to undertake such opportunities;
  • ensure that there are opportunities for the language assistant to integrate into the broader school community (e.g. invitations to functions and excursions outside the scheduled language lessons) to extend the language and relationships beyond the languages classroom; and
  • liaise with other teachers in the two schools to ensure the language assistant is receiving the appropriate level of support to undertake their role.
  1. Role of a language assistant
  2. Student and teacher support
  • work with individual or small groups of students undertaking language learning activities;
  • provide feedback to students on correct language usage;
  • model correct language usage (e.g. pronunciationand idiom);
  • team-teach or provide targeted support to small groups or individuals;
  • assist the delivery offace-to-face or online cultural activities;
  • contribute to professional development sessions for language teachers;
  • provide expertise to teachers on use of the language; and
  • provide advice to teachers on current culturalconventions (e.g. pop culture).

7.2School curriculum support

  • contribute to curriculum planning and resource development;
  • contribute to the development and maintenance of digital language resources (e.g. Ultranet workspace, class wiki);
  • provide support for school-based language program initiatives (e.g. sister school, school open night, language day); and
  • contribute to the development of language teaching and learning materials that require expert knowledge of the target language (e.g. multimedia recording).

7.3Other support that a language assistant may provide

  • participate in initiatives or projects that promote the language across the two schools, region or State (e.g. language speaking contest, student immersion camp, student forum);
  • assist with the delivery of language and cultural activities either face-to-face or online;
  • assist with the development of resources to support the teaching of the language (e.g. recording audio content, developing digital content for the Ultranet);
  • help to facilitate language or cultural professional learning workshops for teachers;
  • present at regional or professional teacher association language conferences; and
  • participate in activities that promote language learning and intercultural understanding in the broader community (e.g. regional showcase events, forums).

A language assistant should never teach unsupervised or assume responsibility for the school’s language program.

  1. Employment of a language assistant

If theschools are allocated a language assistant through this Program, funding will be provided to the Base School to employ the assistant. Language assistants are employed part-time (O.8 EFT) and attend school for 30.4 hours per week. Further advice about the employment arrangements for language assistants will be provided to schools that are allocated an assistant.

  1. Arrival orientation

The Department will provide an orientation for the assistants to help prepare them to undertake their role in schools. The orientation will take place on 5 and 6 February 2013. A representative from the two schools (e.g. the LAP Liaison Contact or aLanguages teacher) will be required to attend on 6 February 2013 to participate in activities with the assistant. At the end of the orientation, the school representative will need to accompany the assistant to the temporary accommodation. More than one representative from the schools is welcome to attend. Further information about the orientation will be provided in Term 4, 2012.

  1. Submitting your application

Please forward an electronic copy of your completed application form to the nominated contact in your region by close of business Friday 27 July 2012.

Region / Contact Name / Contact email address
Barwon South Western Region / Viviana Golding /
Hume Region / Heidi Perry /
Gippsland Region / Robyn Young /
Grampians Region / Margaret Stewart /
Loddon Mallee Region / Karen Roberts /
Eastern Metropolitan Region / Lili Cvetkovic /
Northern Metropolitan Region / Angela Minuzzo /
Southern Metropolitan Region / Lisa Dowse /
Western Metropolitan Region / Christine Bozin /

If you have any questions about the Language Assistants Program please contact Clinton Milroy, Senior Program Officer, International Education Division on 9651 4499, or via email at

2013 LAP School application form

Please provide sufficiently detailed responses as the assessment of applications is based on the information provided.

Please provide the names of the two schools applying to share a language assistant

School 1 (Base School)*
School 2

*One of the schools listed must be nominated as the Base School. This school will be responsible for administration of the program, including employment of the assistant and coordinating the sharing of the assistant across the two schools (See Section 6 in the Guidelines).

School 1 Name (Base School)
Street
Suburb / Postcode
Telephone
Base School Principal
Telephone
Email
Base School Business Manager
Telephone
Email
School Number
LAP Liaison Contact*
Position
Telephone
Email

Please indicate the DEECD Region

Barwon-South West / Hume
Gippsland / Grampians
Loddon Mallee / Eastern Metropolitan
Northern Metropolitan / Southern Metropolitan
Western Metropolitan

1. Which language would the schools prefer to be supported by a language assistant in 2013?

Language assistants are available to support French, German, Indonesian, Japanese and Spanish school language programs. Please note that applications indicating equal preference cannot be considered.

Preference 1
Preference 2

2. In the tables below, please provide the following combined data for both schools (based on 2012 data):

  • the language;
  • the number of classes at each year level;
  • the total time (in minutes) each class learns the language (e.g. 3 x 50minute periods = 150 minutes);
  • the total combined time (in minutes) of all language periods at that year level per week(E.g. 6 classeseach receiving 3 x 50 minute periods: 6 x 150 minutes = 900 minutes per week);
  • the total number of students taking the languageat each year;
  • the total number of students at each year level learning the language by distance education; and
  • whether language learning at that year level is compulsory (C) or an elective (E).

Language 1 (please select one) / French/ German/ Indonesian/Japanese/ Spanish
Year Level / E.g. / P / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / Total
No. of classes at each year level / 6 classes
Total weekly class time per class (mins) / 3 lessons x 50 minutes = 150 minutes
Total weekly class time allocation for all classes at each year level (mins) / 6 classes x 150 minutes = 900 minutes
Total no. of students / 150
Total no. of students studying by distance education / 0
Is the language compulsory (C) or an elective (E)? / C

Please complete this section if indicating a second preference in Question 1.

Language 2 (please select one) / French/ German/ Indonesian/Japanese/ Spanish
Year Level / E.g. / P / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / Total
No. of classes at each year level / 6 classes
Total weekly class time per class (mins) / 3 lessons x 50 minutes = 150 minutes
Total weekly class time allocation for all classes at each year level (mins) / 6 classes x 150 minutes = 900 minutes
Total no. of students / 150
Total no. of students studying by distance education / 0
Is the language compulsory (C) or an elective (E)? / C

3. In the table below, please list the language teachers at the two schools. Please also indicate:

  • The school(s) where they teach
  • The language(s) they teach
  • Number of years they have taught Languages
  • Whether they have a language methodology qualification
  • Their language level

Name / School(s) where teaching / Language(s) / No. of years teaching Languages / Language Qualification
(Yes/No) / Language method qualification? (Yes/No) / Language qualification level (Please select one)
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence
3 years post-VCE
4 years beginner
Statement of equivalence

4. Have the schools previously hosted an assistant through this or another Departmentprogram? Yes/ No

School 1 (Base school)

Year (s) / Program
Year (s) / Program
Year (s) / Program

School 2

Year (s) / Program
Year (s) / Program
Year (s) / Program

5. Please outline how a language assistant could enhance theschools’ language programs in at least one of the following:

  • supporting the transition of students from primary to secondary (Year 6 into Year 7)
  • working with students where languages study is an elective (usually Years 9 and 10)
  • supporting students studying languages at VCE level so as to impact positively on increasing retention rates and VCE results

6. Please outline how the schools demonstrate a strong commitment to the teaching of the language (for example, Innovative Language Provision in Clusters initiative, NALSSP Network Improvement Project, funded Bilingual program, BER Language or Science & Language Centres).

7. Please outlinehow the quality of the schools’ language programs would be improved through the support of a language assistant fluent in the target language. If the school intends to utilise the assistant to support the implementation of CLIL delivery, please provide specific information including number of students involved, CLIL subjects and number of hours.

8. Please outline how the schools will share the language assistant between the two schools. Please indicate how the schools will sustain the benefits of the language assistant after the placement concludes.

9. Please outline how the schools will provide professional support and development opportunities for a language assistant.