ViệtSpeakOur voices must be heard
ViệtSpeak“As a former Masters of Teaching student, I have strong pedalogical belief in the importance of culturally responsive education, which reflects, values and centers the culture of students and the wider local community. Language is an important part of this, and It is essential for the educational outcomes of students and wellbeing of the larger Vietnamese community in Footscray for the billingual Vietnamese Language program to continue.” – K. Grimmer |
| “I believe bilingual programs is a fantastic way to provide extracurricular growth and fostering of the creation and appreciation of cultural awareness, adds academic and educational value, enhances creativity, adjustment in school where English is not the primary language spoken at home and appreciation of cultural roots. Vietnamese is a large population in Footscray making up 9.0% of the population therefore there is definitely a necessity for the bilingual program. I myself have been in bilingual programs as a youth up to 4th grade and it has immensely impacted my ability to read and write Vietnamese in comparison to peers of my same age. I believe this skill is wonderful to have as an adult and to strip Primary School students of this opportunity is very disheartening.” – T. Nguyen |
“The importance of a bilingual program of this cannot be understated. Having not grown up with a program like this has hurt me in many ways. I mourn the years of learning and appreciating my culture through the intrinsic foundation of Vietnamese language. I am now learning slowly and painfully how to speak and understand in Vietnamese and fighting with my Anglo Catholic school upbringing that gave me option in French, Italian and (thankfully) Japanese. I am now healing from the scars of self hatred towards being Vietnamese and reconnecting and hastily collecting the family stories that I can understand from my last living grandparent. This will cause so much hurt if this cycle is broken.” – M. Dang |
| “I proudly sign this petition because I believe it is important to pass on the Vietnamese language, as a language if inextricably linked to one’s culture and identity. As a Vietnamese, born and raised in Australia, who has never had the opportunity to return to my mother country, I know firsthand how beneficial Vietnamese classes can be.. I have my Vietnamese teachers to thank for playing a vital role in my ability to speak, understand, read and write in the Vietnamese langauge. I am thankful I took the classes when I was younger, as without them, I wouldn’t know a second language, my mother tongue, nor the opportunity to learn more about Vietnamese history and culture. Knowing Vietnamese has also helped me in my career and community involvement. The limited numbers of Vietnamese teachers should not be seen as a road block. If anything, it should give reason for the government to boost resources and funding to train more Vietnamese teachers.” – A. Ngoc |
L
| “Vietnamese has direct relevance and usefulness to a large proportion of students at the school, and many will be able to use it outside class and beyond primary school. Neither of these apply to Italian. Help the Vietnamese children stay connected to their heritage. ‘There just aren’t that many’ is an easy scapegoat that is routinely used to push out marginalised communities across many industries. Don’t let education be one of them.” – H. Koehne |
L