Victorian School of Languages

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students in Victoria, Australia

Q & A with Federica Cologni, teacher of Italian

Posted on October 16, 2015 by stefce

Meet the teacher: Federica Cologni, Teacher of Italian, Matthew Flinders Centre in Geelong
Ive been at the VSL for eight years as an Italian teacher; before that Id been a
VSL student (Italian and Spanish) for three years and a language assistant (Italian)
for one.
Lately Ive been working on different ways to include ICT in my teaching as I
think digital literacy is a necessary 21st century skill.
The most important thing I take into the classroom each week is energy.
It can be hard for students to come to school on a Saturday morning so its
important that I keep them motivated and enthusiastic. The group I am currently
teaching ranges from years 7 to 12 and also includes adults. Ensuring that every
single student is catered for requires a lot of energy and good time-management
(on my part but also theirs).

Picture: under a portico in Bologna,

Emilia Romagna, Italy

What I love about language teaching is that its never the same. Each student
is unique and has his/her own understanding of the world, so teaching is never boring nor repetitive. My second
favourite thing is hearing from past students a few of them have permanently relocated to Europe while others
are on a gap year. Hearing about their adventures is always exciting and is a constant reminder that the world is
a big place full of opportunities for todays youth. Knowing an extra language can give you the edge.
My advice to parents is for them to encourage their kids to keep up their
interest in language learning; even casually asking them about what theyre
currently working on in class can do wonders for their motivation and enthusiasm.
If you have the time, get your kids to teach you a couple of words in the language
from time to time.
The book that changed my life I dont think I could choose just one book. I
was an avid reader when I was at school as I found reading the best way to improve
my English (I came to Australia at age 14). Orwells 1984, which I read at age 15,
was probably the reason why I decided to study politics and international relations
at university so I guess I could say that was quite significant. When I was younger
Exploring Ostia Anticas borgo and
castle, in the outskirts of Rome

and living in Italy my favourite book was called Il Grande Libro dei Perch (the Big
Book of Whys). It taught me to question everything in life, be curious and always
dig deeper.

The most inspirational figures in my life are my past teachers. They taught me to appreciate learning as a
life-long journey and it is because I admired them so much that I eventually chose this profession. Of course not
all of my teachers were great (I had some really bad ones too), but there were quite a few who made the

difference with their patience, passion and dedication. Thankfully I am

still in touch with them today.
The regional food I love
best is casoncelli alla
bergamasca. A casoncello is a
ravioli-like dumpling stuffed
with Grana Padano cheese,

Visiting one of my primary school teachers in Bergamo,

Italy

amaretti biscuits and a couple

of other ingredients.
Casoncelli alla bergamasca (in dialect: casonsi)

Casoncelli are pan-fried with pancetta, butter and sage. They are a
typical dish from my hometown Bergamo (40 Km NE of Milan) and
are normally reserved for special occasions. My grandmother (nonna

Lucia) makes them from scratch. However I also love Thai food: Som Tum Thai (green papaya salad with
shrimp and peanuts) and Tom Yum (spicy and sour soup with lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, galangal, lime
juice, fish sauce and crushed chili peppers) are favourites of mine.
My favourite expression in Italian is chi trova un amico, trova un
tesoro; who finds a friend, finds a treasure or a friend is a treasure.
What I love to do most when I am in Italy is spending time with
family and friends.
My favourite apps are Duolingo, Facebook, Viber and Whatsapp; I
use Duolingo to maintain the Spanish and French I studied at
university, while I use the other three apps to keep in touch with my
Past students featured on Il Globo, Melbournes Italian
newspaper

friends who live all over the world.

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Posted in Italian, Migration, teachers, Uncategorized | Tagged Federica Cologni, Italian

Writing my Book Karin Ru German teacher, VSL Distance Education

Posted on September 17, 2015 by stefce

It was the photos that started it wonderfully detailed photos of a far away and
past world that was yet part of my history. The photos were of family and
community life in Palestine and often taken in the town of Tiberias, by the shores
of the Sea of Galilee. This is where a large hotel of black stone still stands the
former Hotel Tiberias. In 1904 my great-aunt Frieda Ruff (1884-1972) married the
man who built this hotel in 1894, after getting the job of housekeeper there in
1902. After Richard Grossmanns death in 1916, Frieda took on the management of
the now large hotel and ran it with her son until mid-1940. Her brother, my
grandfather Alfred Ruff, also moved to the hotel in 1905 and helped to run it. So it
was in Tiberias that my father spent his childhood.
The family photos brought the

Karin Ru

stories and people of my family

alive through their outstanding
quality and details when I scanned them and was able to see
them enlarged on the computer screen. Many changes from
the late 1880s to the end of World War 2 and then to the end
of the country of Palestine itself were evident, and
personalities came alive in expressions and gestures.
1912 Hotel Tiberias Postcard

Frieda and Alfred were

among the first
generation to be born to a

group of German settlers in Palestine. Their father had migrated with his
family from southwest Germany to Haifa in Palestine in 1873, when he was
18. The family were members of a small German Christian group, the
Templers, who had decided to move to the Holy Land and build communities
in the original spirit of Christianity. They also aimed to improve life and
bring economic prosperity to the Holy Land. Emigration was carefully
planned and individuals with the essential skills and trades needed for the
success of a pioneering community were the first to be sent. The Templers
achieved much over their 75 years in Palestine. The Temple Society Australia
is now the largest branch of this Christian group.

1910 Frieda & Richard

Grossmann with their children

Although much of the history of the Templers in Palestine is now being

valued and researched in Israel, the emphasis there is on the surviving
buildings and their restoration. The lives of individual people, especially relatively insignificant ones, such as
that of a woman concerned with the daily chores of running a hotel and family, are not as likely to be
recognised. This is only natural, as we, the descendants of the Templers, are not living in Israel. During her full
life Frieda suffered more great sorrows than many have to bear, but her achievements stood out: a great female
role model of stoicism and caring in the face of tragedies. I wanted to honour this womans life and write her
story down to share with others.
Photographs were one of the precious few things the German families from the Templer settlements in Palestine
were allowed to bring with them when most were forcibly transported to Australia by the British Mandate
Government in 1941. They were then interned in prison camps in north Victoria until after the end of World

War 2. My grandfather and his family were amongst them,

but his sister Frieda stayed in Palestine until 1948, when
the state of Israel was founded and later ended up in
Germany. I often heard Frieda Grossmann spoken about,
and she was always very fondly referred to as Mutterle
(dear mother), so I was curious to know more about her.
The discovery of a diary written by Frieda and covering 3
years from March 1939 provided my second impetus to
write down this story. A great-grandson of Friedas
miraculously tracked it down in Israel in 2003 and later

1904 Summer night arrangements on Hotel roof

kindly sent me a photocopy. The diary starts a few months

before the German Templer communities in Palestine
were encircled by barbed wire and guarded by the British Mandate authorities, to New Years Eve 1942.
I gathered information about Frieda and life in Palestine from interviews with family
members and a few others who encountered Frieda as children. Further information
came from books and written documents such as Friedas daughters memoirs, some
letters, and from my memories of stories told by my family and by Friedas children.
Most people spoke to me in German and most documents were in German, so my
knowledge of the language allowed me full and immediate access to these resources.

1935 Hotel Tiberias

luggage label

Having spent so many of my hours and days travelling with Frieda in my

mind, I did not want to let go and am now working on transcribing all of
the surviving diary pages by typing it into the computer and translating
the other chapters of my book into German. Family members and others
in Germany are keen to read it, and the diary itself is a valuable historical
document. Its been a great journey.

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Posted in German, Migration, Uncategorized

Language learning myths is the sky falling?

Posted on August 7, 2015 by viclanguages

Will the sky fall in if your child learns a language other than English?Heard any of these when
you explain that your child is spending their Saturday morning (or weeknight) on language
classes?
Time spent on one language means time taken away from another
Other languages detract from your childs ability to acquire English literacy
Real Australian students shouldnt bother learning a second language, because they will face unfair
competition from students who have grown up with that language
Students who speak and hear a language at home dont really have to learn it
The University of Melbournes Research Unit for Multilingualism and Cross-Cultural Education (RUMACC) has
a handy brochure on some common misconceptions about children learning another language or maintaining
the language of their home.
Download it here.

The Sky is falling!

RUMACC is also developing a collection of readers in other languages,
starting with Chicken Little.
Sometimes known as Henny Penny or Chicken Licken, this is the story
of a chook who leads a gaggle of farm animals to an untimely end as a
result of her belief that the sky is falling. The tale has passed into
popular English usage as an idiom indicating a hysterical or mistaken
belief that disaster is imminent.
There is also a series of readers in East Timorese languages, Somali

1916 illustration for Chicken Little

and Italian.
And a very useful post, by Rita Rosenback, author of the US blog, Multilingualparenting.com, on the seven
worries parents of bilingual children have.

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Posted in bilingualism, parents, tips | Tagged chicken Little, keep calm and be bilingual, RUMACC

Q & A with Olga Quijada-Luna, Spanish teacher

Posted on June 26, 2015 by stefce

Meet the teacher: Hi, my name is Olga Alicia Quijada Luna, Spanish teacher at the VSL Box Hill Centre. I am
from Mexico and I have lived for 7 years in Australia.

Lately, Ive been working on I worked here as a Spanish teacher in a kindergarten and playgroup, and
given private lessons (tutoring). I have a Bachelor Degree in Educational Sciences.
Ive been at VSL for I started at the VSL as a replacement teacher in 2010, and in 2011 I started as a regular
teacher.
The most important thing I take into the classroom each week is A good attitude, to start the day
full of energy and patience. My group has different levels so the Saturdays morning are very busy.
What I love about language teaching is. Being able to teach and transmit part of my culture is
wonderful; especially when you can see the children master new things, when they are proud of themselves for
being able to speak another language that they are learning in our classes, when you as a teacher can see the
progress they make. When I see them reading, writing, speaking in Spanish it is a great honour for me.
My advice to parents is. Perseverance, not giving up when children tell us they do not want to learn
another language in the future they will appreciate the effort that you made to achieve it.
For parentsof children that are learningtheir native language, always try to speak your language with your kids,
if the kids respond to you in another language say to them that in your home all the family speak your native
language. You can say that you do not understand what they are saying, but they know that you understand so
you need to explain to them the importance of learning another language and be patient.
For parents who do not speak the language that their kids are learning or want to learn, just encourage them to
do it, and explain the importance in their life to learn different languages.
Perseverance and patience is the most important.
Books I like reading, I like romance books, inspirational books and I love cooking books.
The most inspirational figures in my life are God and my parents.
The regional food I love best is. I love Mexican food and I love cooking. Mexico has many different types
of food; each city has its own traditional food.
My favourite movie Forrest Gump, Life Is Beautiful and The Pursuit of Happiness.
My favourite expression is You can do it, Thank you and Sorry.

What I love to do most when I visit another country When I visit my country I love spending time with
my family, talking with my parents, visiting my brothers and friends, going out to have dinner all together.
When I visit a different country I like to know about their culture and traditions, try their traditional food and
visit their landmarks.
Hobbies Cooking, reading and, the most important thing, spending time with my family.

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Posted in bilingualism, Spanish, teachers

VSL Tops the Premiers VCE Awards

Posted on June 17, 2015 by stefce

On Wednesday 3 June a number of VSL staff members, VCE teachers, students and their parents attended the
2015 VCE Premiers Awards at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. The Awards were presented
by the Governor of Victoria (Alex Chernov), the Premier of Victoria (Daniel Andrews) and the Minister of
Education (James Merlino).
The awards recognise excellence in achievement by the previous years VCE students. VSL students received a
total of 15 awards, which is a VSL record.
It was also the highest number for an individual school in the state.

Minister James Merlino presents an award to Anika Hoffman (German)

The students who received the Awards were:
Patrycha Stachura Polish University HS VSL Centre
Prisha Dadoo Hindi Glen Waverley VSL Centre
Dalila Hota Bosnian Carwartha VSL Centre
Cesar Dobre Romanian Dandenong VSL Centre
MarKo Matkovic- Croatian Keilor Downs VSL Centre
Amira Alzahabi Arabic VSL Distance Education Section
Francesca Coluccio Italian VSL Distance Education Section
Anika Hoffman German VSL Distance Education Section
Andrea Osuno Spanish VSL Distance Education Section
Kara Willand German VSL Distance Education Section
Tijana Avramovska Macedonian Thomastown VSL Centre
Ivana Dobrevska Macedonian Thomastown VSL Centre
Liyan Bojeh Arabic Lalor VSL Centre
Nivan Kaya Turkish Roxburgh VSL Centre
Maria Veresova Russian McKinnon VSL Centre
For any school to receive 15 awards is an excellent achievement, and we would like to congratulate the students,
teachers and parents on this wonderful result.

Tijana Avramovska (Macedonian) with VSL staff and family

You can see some photos of the event at the following link: http://www.vsl.vic.edu.au/News.aspx?
NewsId=26
CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR THE OFFICIAL PHOTOS FROM THE 2015 PREMIERS VCE
AWARDS
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/v70r7p7ny4hm3lm/AADFA12chOxpxowO13m4gTdGa/StudyAwards?dl=0
(No password is required to access this site and photos can be downloaded free-of-charge.)
Herald Sun Article
Our achievements were also reported in the Herald Sun: The Victorian School of Languages was the topperforming school last year, with students receiving 15 awards, ahead of Scotch College (12), Methodist
Ladies College (11) and Melbourne High School (10).

See the complete article at: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/student-who-received-near-perfectvce-score-reveals-his-secrets/story-fni0fit3-1227380998319

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Posted in award winners

Will learning a language get me a job?

Posted on June 3, 2015 by viclanguages

From the UK, interesting developments in the debate on language learning. The British Academy for the
Humanities and Social Sciences is undertaking a research project, Born Global, on the extent and nature of
language needs in the labour market and the implications for language education from school to higher
education.
The project is being advised by a steering group comprising a whos who of British corporate life, including the
Chief Operating Officer of the Confederation of British Industry, the Chair of UBS Ltd, and a former director of
Reuters and Deutsche Bank, as well as linguistics experts and government representatives.
In late 2014, the Academy held a symposium to discuss the interim findings. The summary of those findings,
available on the website, kicks off with a quote from Australias very own champion of language learning,
Professor Jo Lo Bianco of the University of Melbourne:
There are two disadvantages in global language arrangements: one of them is not knowing English; and the
other one of them is knowing only English.
The report highlighted a growing divide between government and private schools, and found that language
learning, or lack of it, was in itself an indicator of educational inequality:
Between 2004, when languages ceased to be a statutory requirement for fourteen-year olds, and 2010, the
percentage of state-maintained schools retaining compulsory languages dropped from 30% to 20%.
Meanwhile the Independent Sector appeared to be prioritising languages, with figures for compulsory
language learning rising from 75% in 2004 to 89% by 2010.
This lack of language skills acquired during school had impacts later on: very few UK graduates are studying or
working overseas. And while young people from other countries are clamouring to join the European Unions
Erasmus student exchange program, applications from Britons are declining. The report traces this back to a
lack of confidence and motivation. Not surprisingly, in an increasingly globalised and globalising economy,
employers are alarmed.
Missed opportunities to take up international places leaves young people less equipped with the attributes
they need to work in a global labour market. Such attitudes may also affect the propensity to export of many
small- to medium-sized companies.
Some lessons for Australia, perhaps?

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Posted in Language debate, policy | Tagged Born Global, British Academy for the Humanities & Social Sciences, Erasmus, Jo Lo Bianco

School holidays whats on

Posted on March 27, 2015 by viclanguages

The Easter school holidays are upon us (last class this Saturday!). What to do?
Help is at hand
The Immigration Museum has just launched a free multilingual tour app
for Apple and Android, in English, Arabic, French, Italian, Japanese and
Mandarin.
There are school holiday activities including Dazzling Deco Rides (until 12
April), where you bring your own helmet, horn, toy vehicle, pram or walking

The Immigration Museums Wheelie

Workshop Source: The Squeaky Wheel

frame to personalise with special decorations, or help deck out the Museums
own mini-fleet; or create a good luck travel charm.
The Freedom exhibition (until 8 June), photos by Andy Drewitt of 24 asylum seekers since World War II.
On Wednesday April 1, theyre running Art, Hope & Culture (1-2.30pm), talks by women artists from
migrant/refugee backgrounds:
Helen Kassa a writer, film maker and spoken word artist who was born in Eritrea and raised in Ethiopia
Mehwish Iqbal a visual artist whose work draws on personal experiences of social, cultural and political
landscapes in the country of her birth, Pakistan, and her home Australia
My Le Thi, a visual artist of Chinese heritage from Vietnam, whose work displays a strong social conscience
and concern for oppressed minorities and the dispossessed
Yumi Umiumare a dancer, choreographer and the only Japanese Butoh dancer living in Australia. Migrating
to Australia in 1993, she has been creating her distinctive style of visceral dance theatre works over the last
20 years.
AND the Chinese Museum, on Cohen Place off Little Bourke, is holding
a Childrens Treasure Hunt.: Follow Zheng He, the most famous Chinese
explorer of all time, and hunt for treasures across Museums five floors.
Answer the 10 questions on the treasure map and win a prize at the end of
your journey.
The Museum also has some permanent kids trails for under-12s.
Zheng Ye Treasure Hunt courtesy of the
Chinese Museum Melbourne.

If you fancy a trip out of town, theres also a lot going on at the Golden
Dragon Chinese Museum in Bendigo, with Childrens workshops on
Good Friday. On Saturday 4 April, the Chinese Spring Festival kicks
off, with dance performances, a torchlight parade and an Easter Gala
Procession featuring Sun Loong, the longest Imperial dragon in the
world, which only parades in the public once a year.
Sun Loong, via visitvictoria.com

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Chinese Museum, Golden Dragon Museum, immigration Museum, school holidays

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