Master-Apprentice training

In March 2012, RNLD auspiced two 3-day workshops to train thirty-six Indigenous trainers from thirty-one language groups across Australia in the Master-Apprentice Language Learning Program (MALLP) method.

This project was a Strategic Initiative funded under the Indigenous Languages Support scheme.

Goals

• to develop a pool of Indigenous regional trainers who will subsequently be able to deliver expert training in the Master-Apprentice method in communities, Indigenous organisations, and key Indigenous educational institutions across Australia,

• to offer training in methods appropriate for use in locations which do not have a fluent language speaker population and thus which are not yet ready to develop Master-Apprentice teams; for example, 'language pods', which have been developed in the US by communities such as the Yurok of Northern California,

• through this, to create local Master-Apprentice teams and language pods in numerous locations to help rebuild conversational fluency in Australia's Indigenous languages.

Method

The Master-Apprentice method pairs one speaker of the language (the master) with one apprentice belonging to the same ancestral language group, and the pair is trained in one-on-one language immersion techniques. The trained team commits to spending at least ten hours per week together teaching and learning the language.

The method was developed in the USA, where it is managed by the Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival (AICLS).

Resources

The Master-Apprentice manual describes the method and activities in detail. 

How to Keep Your Language Alive: A Commonsense Approach to One-on-One Language Learning by Leanne Hinton with Matt Vera and Nancy Steele (2001) Berkeley: Heyday Books.

AICLS has developed a list of wordless books you can use in Master-Apprentice training.

Training partners

The two workshops were led by US training team Leanne Hinton, Nancy Steele and Stan Rodriguez, supported by Australian training partners the Resource Network for Linguistic Diversity, Mirima Dawang Woorlab-gerring Language and Culture Centre , Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education / Australian Centre for Indigenous Knowledges and Education (ACIKE), and the Koori Centre, University of Sydney .

Locations

13-15 March — Desert Peoples Centre, Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, Alice Springs

19-21 March — Mirima Dawang Woorlab-gerring Language and Culture Centre, Kununurra

Languages represented in the workshop (and AustLang codes)

Adnyamathanha (L10)
Arrernte (C8)
Awabakal (S66)
Banyjima (A53)
Bidjarra (E37)
Boon wurrung (S35)
Butchulla (E30)
Dhanggatti (E6)
Gamilaraay (D23)
Gumbaynggirr (E7)
Gungabula (E35)
Kalaw Kawaw Ya (Y2)
Kuuku Ya'u (Y22)
Manyjilyjarra (A33)
Miriwoong (K29)
Ngiyampaa (D22)
Noongar (W41)
Nyangumarta (A61)
Paakantyi (D12)
Palawa Kani
Taribelang (E33)
Tharawal (S59)
Wajarri (A39)
Warlmanpa (C17)
Warumungu (C18)
Wirangu (C1)
Woiwurrung/Wurundjeri (S36)
Wubuy/Nunggubuyu (N128)
Yankunytjatjara (C4)
Yinhawangka (A48)

Participants

New South Wales

Jacqui Allen, Miromaa Aboriginal Language and Technology Centre, Newcastle
Caroline Bradshaw
Murray Butcher
Alfred Fazldeen
Michael Jarrett
Donna McLaren, Curriculum and Learning Innovation Centre, NSW Department of Education and Communities
Brad Steadman

Northern Territory

Peter Abbot
Leonie Murrungun
Bunny Nabarula
Jangu Nundhirribala
Penny Philips
Cristobel Swan

Queensland

Joy Bonner
Phil Brown, Central Queensland Language Centre
Martha Maka
Benjamin Pascoe, Kuuku Ya'u Aboriginal Corporation, Lockhart River
Greg Pascoe, Kuuku Ya'u Aboriginal Corporation, Lockhart River
Sharon Phineasa
John Waterton

South Australia

Ema Bovoro
Gillian Bovoro
Karina Lester, Mimili, Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands, SA
Lucy Lester, Mimili, Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands, SA
Estelle Miller
Leonard Miller

Tasmania

Rossetta Thomas, Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre

Victoria

Fay Stewart-Muir, Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages
Mandy Thomas, Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages

Western Australia

Charmaine Bennell
Leonie Boddington, Irra Wangga Language Programme, Geraldton community
Glennis Galbat-Newry, Mirima Dawang Woorlab-gerring Language and Culture Centre, Kununurra
Dwayne Newry, Mirima Dawang Woorlab-gerring Language and Culture Centre, Kununurra
Denise Smith-Ali
Dennis Thomas, Wangka Maya Language Centre, Port Hedland
Julie Walker