Context
The new principal of School A contacted the primary languages team with concerns about the long-running Community Languages Program K–6, which was no longer valued by some parents, students, and other teachers at the school. The program was only offered to a small number of background speakers of 2 different languages.
Action
The primary languages team identified long-term funding couldn’t be justified due to the student numbers. Without intervention, the community language teachers with permanent positions would need to be moved to a different teaching role at the school.
The primary languages team advised the school to consider including non-background speakers. In addition, the teachers were directed to resources to support differentiation of teaching students with a range of language abilities.
Result
The school plans to include non-background speakers to increase community support and student engagement.