(Mis)understanding Australian English

7 May 2008

Dr Farzad Sharifian's research will explore the failure of the education system to improve literacy outcomes for Aboriginal-English speaking students.

A Monash academic hopes the outcomes of his research will improve Indigenous literacy education in Australia.

Dr Farzad Sharifian, a senior lecturer in the School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics will explore the failure of the Australian education system to improve literacy outcomes for the vast majority of Aboriginal-English speaking students.

Dr Sharifian's research will focus on whether this failure is due to the differences that exist between Aboriginal-English dialect, spoken by many Aboriginal students, and current school literacy materials.

Dr Sharifian said Aboriginal literacy was a high-priority national issue.

"Aboriginal students have a right to quality education to give them skills for full participation in Australian society," Dr Sharifian said.

"The education system in Australia has largely failed to improve educational outcomes for Aboriginal students and equip teachers of Aboriginal children with relevant professional development.

"Indigenous Australians operate in a bi-cultural world and negotiate their identity within two English languages -- Aboriginal-English dialect and what they are taught at school."

Dr Sharifian said the results of his research would be used in Aboriginal teacher education.

"Aboriginal students have often been identified as having difficulty in achieving literacy outcomes, yet the fact that their primary form of English is not the form in which literacy is being imparted is rarely taken into account," Dr Sharifian said.

"It makes sense then why Indigenous people, who in many cases are much stronger in Aboriginal-English than in Australian English, tend to suffer discrimination when it comes to receiving services intended to be equally available to all Australians.

"I hope this research will forge a new partnership between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, overcoming disadvantage and providing practical pathways to the future."