In this episode of the Language-on-the-Move podcast, Dr Hanna Torsh speaks with Dr Prashneel Ravisan Goundar, an academic based in the Graduate Research School at the University of New England,…
Hanna TorshFebruary 25, 2025
Image from a university website “An amazing student experience awaits you!” - “a multicultural vibrant experience” in a “stunning landscape” covered by “year-round sunshine.” These phrases do not come from a…
Agnes BodisMay 27, 2023
(Image credit: Mana Akbarzadegan via Unsplash) When Muhammad* applied for admission to a postgraduate degree at an Australian university, he was asked to show evidence of his English language proficiency.…
Ingrid PillerJanuary 6, 2023
Australia Day Parade Melboure (Image credit: Mitchell Luo on Unsplash) In October 2020, the Australian government outlined budgetary plans to create language requirements for migrant partners seeking to remain in…
Kamran KhanFebruary 17, 2021
Late last year I attended the conference “Language Standardization and Linguistic Variation in Asia from Sociolinguistic Perspectives 社会语言学视角下的亚洲语言变异与标准化国际学术研讨会” at the University of Nottingham-Ningbo, China (UNNC). It was hosted by UNNC’s…
Alexandra GreyFebruary 6, 2018
Miriam's mother arrived as a refugee in New Zealand in 1939. She still remembers the kindness her family was shown. Like many other Western countries, Australia is currently grappling with…
Miriam FaineJuly 13, 2017
Australia: The White Man's Land (Source: NLA) Australia has a proud national narrative of migration and multiculturalism. It also has an equally prevalent history of exclusionary and discriminatory migration policy.…
Laura Smith-KhanDecember 9, 2015
Trial by fire depicted in a medieval manuscript (Source: Wikipedia) In the Middle Ages those suspected of witchcraft were often subjected to a ‘trial by fire’ to prove their innocence…
Ingrid PillerJuly 15, 2015
Nanai/Hezhe children (Source: Wikipedia) We have often examined here on Language on the Move how ‘English for all’ educational policies entrench inequality rather than alleviate disadvantage (e.g., here or here).…
Ingrid PillerMarch 25, 2015
Diversity in early childhood education: valued or silenced? (Source: easternct.edu) Bilingual education presents a major conundrum in contemporary diverse societies: on the one hand, bilingualism and diversity more generally are…
Ingrid PillerMarch 18, 2015
2014 NAPLAN Year 3 Numeracy test results by language status In Australia the results of last year’s round of student and school performance on national standardized testing have just been…
Ingrid PillerMarch 11, 2015
Excerpt from "The Haunted Lotus" by Australian-Hazara artist Khadim Ali (Source: Milani Gallery) An objection that is commonly raised against Esperanto and other auxiliary languages is that they are “invented.”…
Ingrid PillerFebruary 13, 2014
Speak English, people! says British politician Ed Miliband (Source: msn.com) Every ten years the UK government conducts a census, which every British resident is obliged by law to take part…
Deborah CameronFebruary 22, 2013
Gunbalanya School in West Arnhem Land (Source: abc.net.au) Last week, the results of the 2012 National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) were published. As has been the case…
Ingrid PillerSeptember 25, 2012
Inside Story has a must-read article about language testing for citizenship in Australia today Citizenship for beginners The Howard government made it harder for some nationalities to become citizens, and…
Ingrid PillerApril 16, 2012
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