Highlights
- Sue Ellery, Education and Training Minister announced the development of Punjabi curriculum for WA schools to begin in 2023
- Languages education is mandatory from Year 3 in Western Australia
Education Minister Sue Ellery announced earlier this month that the Punjabi language will be offered as an option to pre-primary through year twelve students in Western Australia.
She added that with over 190 languages spoken throughout the state, linguistic diversity is a great strength that provides a range of social, cultural and economic benefits.
"I am pleased to see the ongoing expansion of languages curriculum for WA students, and the development of Punjabi curriculum is particularly fitting given it could support students in key future employment opportunities," Ms Ellery said in a press release.
The addition of the Punjabi language follows an announcement in 2021 of the development of syllabuses for Hindi, Korean and Tamil, which will be introduced to schools next year.
Punjabi language to become an option for children from pre-primary to year 12 in 2024. Source: SBS
Students are expected to be able to take Year 11 courses in 2024, with the first Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) course examination set in 2025, while schools will have access to the pre-primary to Year 10 curriculum starting in 2024.
The decision comes at the back of , with more than 239,000 people using it at home, an increase of over 80 per cent from 2016.
Source: Supplied
Welcoming the move, Mr Pabla said the opportunity will allow students to learn about the language alongside its origin.
"Australian government is helping to keep our culture alive through this decision.
It's now our duty to avail this opportunity for our children through which we can keep our mother tongue alive.Amarjit Singh Pabla
While language is a new addition, earlier Australian Sikh history was included in the Humanities and Social Sciences subjects in WA schools for years 5, 6 and 9.
Perth's Bennet Springs Sikh Gurudwara's President Jarnail Singh Bhaur commended the community's joint efforts.
Mr Bhaur said that this milestone is the result of the significant growth of the community during the last few years.
In 2017, the New South Wales Department of Education undertook a similar project in collaboration with the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) to draft Punjabi syllabuses for students through kindergarten and year 10, after the state government gave its nod to teaching the language in public schools.
It's worth mentioning that the Punjabi community’s roots in WA go back around 120 years.
The rich history is found in the stories of early Sikh settlers documented in various archival records.
