The nature of the learner, the pathway and particular language

Languages studied in the First Language Learner Pathway (L1) are typically used in spoken form as the language of everyday communication by whole communities across all generations.

Typically, but not exclusively, L1 programs will occur on Country/Place and will have constant involvement from a variety of speakers from the community. A key expectation in the L1 pathway is that of students having opportunities to interact with Elders and particular places on Country/Place.

Learners are typically Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander children who have learnt the language from their families as a first language and continue to use it naturally at home and play. Students may have varying skills in other languages, including varieties of English.

The curriculum content and achievement standards in the First Language Learner Pathway are generalised in order to cater for the range of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages that may be learnt as a first language. The curriculum content and achievement standards will need to be adapted when developing language-specific curricula, and will need to be modified for programs occurring off-Country.

Students enter the early years of schooling with well-established skills in spoken forms of the language along with a growing knowledge of local community and culture. In addition they may have varying skills in other languages, including varieties of English. School is often the first place these children encounter written language as a systematic means of communication.

Language learning and use

As well as continuing to develop oracy, a key feature of the First Language Learner Pathway is the development of literacy and extending language use in additional domains, particularly relating to the school context. Children build a vocabulary for thinking and talking about school topics, routines and processes, and expand their knowledge and understanding by exploring Country/Place with Elders and community members and by engaging with stories and other texts in the language.

Children learn about the concepts of kin, social groupings and how these are connected to the natural environment. They learn about their own songs, stories, dances and designs and their own place in the kinship system.

From Foundation to Year 2 children are learning how to interact with people in new contexts, share with others, and participate in more structured routines and activities. They learn about school, teacher and community expectations in terms of ‘right’ behaviour and ‘right’ ways of talking.

The curriculum builds on children’s interests and sense of enjoyment and curiosity, with an emphasis on active and experiential learning and confidence building. Creative play provides opportunities for using the language for purposeful interaction in some less familiar contexts. Imaginative activities, games, music and songs, movement and familiar routines provide essential scaffolding and relevant contexts for language development.

Students are supported to use the language for different language functions and in different domains, such as asking and responding to questions on a range of topics, expressing feelings, following instructions, working together for a common purpose, and taking turns in games and simple shared learning experiences.

They learn to recognise how the sounds of the language and its intonation are encoded in writing. They begin to understand how the language works, comparing and contrasting it with other known languages and learning how it fits into the diversity of regional and national languages.

The transition from spoken to written language is scaffolded through shared exploration of simple texts and language features. Children progress from supported comprehension and use of a small number of high-frequency and personally significant sight words to more elaborated texts that take account of context, purpose and audience. They use grammatical, cultural and contextual cues to comprehend texts and engage in communicative interactions. They progress from writing by tracing and copying, to independently forming legible letters. Writing skills progress from the ability to label images and copy high-frequency words to co-construct simple texts using familiar vocabulary, language features and structures. Children begin to develop familiarity with different types of texts in different genres.

Contexts of interaction

Across Foundation to Year 2, learning occurs largely through interaction with peers and the teaching team, with access to Elders and other speakers living in the same community for additional enrichment and authentication of the learning experience. Interacting with Country/Place to explore the environment with Elders and other community members is essential to learning at all stages, but particularly in the early years, when learning is grounded in the familiar, and understanding of the role of language as lived experience is important.

Texts and resources

Country/Place and the community are the most important resources for learning and are the origin of most of the texts and communicative situations offered to learners.

Children engage with a variety of spoken, visual, written and digital texts. They listen and respond to teacher talk, share ideas, and join in with song, dance, story, rap, as well as with various forms of play, performance, conversational exchanges and activities mediated by language. Printed and digital texts include stories, shared Big Books, wall charts and teacher-generated materials such as games, flashcards and items from the community and local environment. They engage with visual texts such as designs on body, bark and sand, and etchings and carvings on wood and rock.

Level of support

Learning is supported through the provision of experiences that are challenging but achievable with appropriate scaffolding and support. This involves modelling, monitoring and moderating by the teacher; provision of multiple and varied sources of input; opportunities for revisiting, recycling and reviewing; and continuous cueing, feedback, response and encouragement. Use of recount, experiencing and retelling in oral and written formats assists in establishing early literacy.

The role of languages

The language of study is the principal medium of instruction in First Language Learner Pathway classrooms, while other known languages play a complementary role, such as for translating and creating bilingual/multilingual texts.

The nature of the learner, the pathway and particular language

Languages studied in the First Language Learner Pathway (L1) are typically used in spoken form as the language of everyday communication by whole communities across all generations.

Typically, but not exclusively, L1 programs will occur on Country/Place and will have constant involvement from a variety of speakers from the community. A key expectation in the L1 pathway is that of students having opportunities to interact with Elders and particular places on Country/Place.

Learners are typically Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander children who have learnt the language from their families as a first language and continue to use it naturally at home and play. Students may have varying skills in other languages, including varieties of English.

The curriculum content and achievement standards in the First Language Learner Pathway are generalised in order to cater for the range of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages that may be learnt as a first language. The curriculum content and achievement standards will need to be adapted when developing language-specific curricula, and will need to be modified for programs occurring off-Country.

Learners at this level are expanding their social networks, experiences and communicative repertoire in the language. They benefit from varied, activity-based learning that builds on their interests and capabilities and makes connections with other areas of learning. The curriculum ensures that learning experiences and activities are flexible enough to cater for learner variables while being appropriate for learners' general cognitive and social levels.

Language learning and use

Students interact with peers, the teaching team, Elders and community members in a variety of learning experiences and activities. They continue to build vocabulary that relates to a wider range of domains, such as curriculum areas that involve some specialised language use.

Students engage in a range of listening activities and build oral proficiency through responding to rich language input and opportunities to engage in meaningful communicative activities. They follow instructions, exchange information and express ideas and feelings related to their immediate environment and personal worlds. They participate in shared tasks, performance and play.

Students’ development of written literacy progresses from supported comprehension and use of high-frequency and personally significant sight words to more elaborated simple texts which take account of context, purpose and audience. The development of reading skills and textual knowledge is supported through interaction with a range of spoken, written, visual and multimodal texts, including sign language as appropriate.

At upper primary level, learners use the language for a widening range of purposes: collaborating, creating, performing and responding to resources and experiences. They have greater control of vocabulary and grammatical resources and use an increasingly sophisticated range of non-verbal strategies to support communication. Shared learning activities develop social, cognitive and language skills and provide a context for purposeful language experience and experimentation.

Oracy development includes listening to a range of varied language input from different sources and building more elaborated conversational and interactional skills. These include initiating and sustaining conversations, reflecting on and responding to others’ contributions, making appropriate responses and adjustments, and engaging in debate and discussion. Individual and group oral presentation and performance skills are developed through researching and organising information, structuring and resourcing presentation of content, and selecting appropriate language to engage a particular audience.

At this level, there is focused attention on language structures and systems. Learners draw on more established grammatical and lexical resources to compose and comprehend more complex language. With support they build increasing cohesion and complexity into their writing in terms of both content and expression. They use ICT to support their learning in more independent and intentional ways and make comparisons between the language they are learning and other languages they speak or are learning, including English.

Contexts of interaction

Learning occurs largely through interaction with peers and the teaching team. Additional enrichment and authentication of learning experience is provided through interactions with Elders and other speakers living in the community. Interacting with Country/Place and exploring the environment with Elders and other community members is essential to learning at all stages. Students may also have access to community facilities and functions, such as the health clinic, art centre, coast patrol, local interpretative centre, and the office of the park ranger or land council.

Elders and community members may teach about cultural elements of language and communication, such as gender-differentiated roles, working separately with male and female students when appropriate.

Students may have some access to speakers of the language or related languages in other communities and regions through digital technologies.

Texts and resources

Country/Place and the community are the most important resources for learning the language. They are the origin of most of the texts and communicative situations students engage with.

Learners interact with a growing range of spoken, visual, written and digital texts, including photographs, maps, oral histories, community texts such as posters from health clinics, community notices, land-care programs, songs, raps, dances, stories, painting and visual design, music, video clips and films.

Level of support

While learners work more independently at this level, ongoing support is incorporated into task activity and the process of learning is supported by systematic feedback and review. Form-focused activities build student’s grammatical knowledge and support the development of accuracy and control in written language. Opportunities to use this knowledge in meaningful activities build communicative skills, confidence and fluency. Tasks are carefully scaffolded: teachers provide models and examples; introduce language, concepts and resources needed to manage and complete learning activities; make time for experimentation, drafting and redrafting; and provide support for self-monitoring and reflection. Discussion supports learning and develops children’s conceptual frame for talking about systems of language and culture.

While learners are becoming more autonomous and independent at the upper primary years, ongoing support is still needed, including explicit instruction, structured modelling and scaffolding, and provision of appropriate stimulus materials and timely feedback. Learning experiences incorporate implicit form-focused language learning activities and examples of texts and tasks.

The role of languages

The language of study is the principal medium of instruction in First Language Learner Pathway classrooms. Other known languages play a complementary role, for example, used when translating, creating bilingual/multilingual texts or comparing and contrasting writing systems, language structures and language features and use.

The nature of the learner, the pathway and particular language

Languages studied in the First Language Learner Pathway (L1) are typically used in spoken form as the language of everyday communication by whole communities across all generations.

Typically, but not exclusively, L1 programs will occur on Country/Place and will have constant involvement from a variety of speakers from the community. A key expectation in the L1 pathway is that of students having opportunities to interact with Elders and particular places on Country/Place.

Learners are typically Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander children who have learnt the language from their families as a first language and continue to use it naturally at home and in social situations. Students may have varying skills in other languages, including varieties of English.

The curriculum content and achievement standards in the First Language Learner Pathway are generalised in order to cater for the range of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages that may be learnt as a first language. They will need to be adapted when developing language-specific curricula, and will need to be modified for programs occurring off-Country.

At this level, students bring a range of learning strategies to their language learning. They are increasingly aware of the world beyond their own and are engaging with broader issues of youth and society, land and environment, education and identity, while establishing a balance between increasing personal independence and social responsibilities. They are considering their future pathways and choices, including how their own language could be part of these.

Language learning and use

Learners work collaboratively and independently, exploring different modes and genres of communication, with particular reference to their current social, cultural and communicative interests. They pool language knowledge and resources to plan, problem-solve, monitor and reflect. They create and present more complex and varied texts, for example, shared stories, songs/raps, blogs, reports and journal entries, and plan, draft and present imaginative and informative texts. They use vocabulary and grammar with increasing accuracy and complexity, drafting and editing written work to improve structure and to clarify meaning.

Learners continue to expand their vocabulary to domains beyond their personal experience and interests. They use a range of grammatical structures and language features to convey more complex ideas and experiences. They use descriptive and expressive language to create particular effects and to engage interest. They make connections between texts and cultural contexts, identifying how cultural values and perspectives are embedded in language and how language choices influence how people, issues and circumstances are represented. They are increasingly aware of the nature of the relationship between languages and cultures, noticing how family, community values and behaviours, such as familiarity, mutual obligation, reciprocity, respect, caring for Country/Place, are conveyed in the language.

Contexts of interaction

Learning occurs largely through interaction with peers and the teaching team, while additional enrichment and authentication of the learning experience is provided through access to Elders and other speakers living in the community. Interacting with Country/Place to explore the environment and learn about Country/Place with Elders and other community members is essential to the learning of students at all stages.

Elders and community members may teach about gender-differentiated roles as encapsulated in language, working separately with male and female students as appropriate.

Students may also have some access to speakers in other regions through digital technologies and may have opportunities to participate in school excursions or camps.

Texts and resources

Country/Place and the community are the most important resources for learning. They are the origin of most of the texts and communicative situations that learners engage with.

Learners interact with a broad range of spoken, visual, written and digital texts, such as photographs, maps, oral histories, community texts such as posters from health clinics, community notices, songs, raps, dances, stories, painting and visual design, music, video clips and films.

They may also have access to community facilities and functions, such as the health clinic, art centre, coast patrol, local interpretative centre, community interpreters, and the office of the park ranger or land council.

Level of support

While learners at this level are less reliant on teacher support during interactions, continued provision of rich language input and modelled language are needed to consolidate and sustain their learning of the language in its extended spoken and written forms. The teacher provides both implicit and explicit modelling and scaffolding in relation to meaningful language use in a range of contexts, and explicit instruction and explanation in relation to language structures, grammatical functions, vocabulary and abstract cultural concepts. Opportunities for learners to discuss, clarify, rehearse and apply their knowledge are critical in consolidating language capabilities and in developing autonomy. Learners are encouraged to self-monitor, for example, by keeping records of feedback and through peer support, and to self-review and adjust language in response to their experiences in different contexts.

The role of languages

The language of study is the medium of instruction in First Language Learner Pathway classrooms. Other known languages play a complementary role, for example, when translating and creating bilingual/multilingual texts, and when comparing and contrasting writing systems, language structures, and language features and usage.