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"Everywhen: Australia and the Language of Deep History" is a book that explores Indigenous perspectives on time and history. The book consists of twelve essays and an introduction by the editors, who aim to incorporate Indigenous temporalities into modern historical thinking. The essays in the book alternate between Indigenous and non-Indigenous perspectives, highlighting the differences in understanding and conceptualizing time and history. The book emphasizes the importance of blending different understandings of the past to enrich our overall historical understanding. [Extracted from the article]

From January 2017 until January 2020, the Stormont assembly in Northern Ireland was suspended, with the Irish language being cited as the main stumbling block to the restoration of government. The continued debate around the necessity of an Irish Language Act (ILA) for Northern Ireland is bound up with more general divisions in society surrounding national identity, and as such, it divided political parties and the nationalist and unionist communities from which they draw their support. Through the analysis of ethnographic interviews conducted in various language learning centres across Belfast, I explore how this debate around legislating for the language impacted on the engagement of learners with the language in the city. By considering the role played by the media in the engagement of interview participants with the Irish language in Belfast, I aim to examine how the policy delay and political discourse affects those engaging with the language. This paper aims to address changing attitudes to the Irish language in Belfast in a period of political crisis, and what it means for those who use the language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Older carers or 'care partners' of older people experiencing care needs often provide essential support, at times while neglecting their own health and well‐being. This is an increasingly frequent scenario due to both demographic changes and policy shifts towards ageing in place. Multiple community stakeholders within the care and support ecosystem hold valuable expertise about the needs of older care partners, and the programme and policy responses that may better support their health and well‐being. The aim of this study was to identify the perspectives of stakeholders obtained through the codesign phase of a multicomponent research project investigating new models of care and support for older care partners suitable for the Australian context. Methods: Principles of codesign were used to engage a purposeful sample of older care partners, health professionals, researchers, policy makers and health service administrators. Participants took part in a series of three codesign workshops conducted remotely via video conferencing. The workshops were supported with briefing material and generated consensus‐based summaries, arriving at a preferred service model. Findings: This paper reports the research design and structure of the codesign panels, the range of findings identified as important to support the health and well‐being of older carers of older people, and the resulting service model principles. The codesigned and preferred model of care is currently being prepared for implementation and evaluation in Australia. Public Contribution: This study was conducted using codesign methodology, whereby stakeholders including older care partners and others involved in supporting older carers, were integrally involved with design, development, results and conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The impact of Australia's diverse population on the aged care sector has been acknowledged, with the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety findings providing evidence of the importance of population diversity for consumer-directed and person-centred care. Similarly, the Aged Care Quality Standards and Aged Care Diversity Framework acknowledge the diversity of Australia's ageing population and potential implications for equitable access to care and the ensuing importance of culturally appropriate and culturally safe care. This paper reports on the development of informational web pages and utilisation findings for use by the aged care workforce supporting diverse populations. Methods: Content was created for the End of Life Directions for Aged Care website, based on rapid review findings relating to barriers and limitations for people accessing equitable care in the aged care and palliative care sectors. Results: Website pages containing embedded links to useful content and resources for health professionals and care workers who work with older diverse adults are shown to be well received among users. Conclusions: As Australia's future population will age with increasing diversity markers, with implications for aged care and palliative care service provision, workforce access to up-to-date, relevant and evidence-informed information on best practice non-clinical support for individuals from diverse backgrounds towards the end of life promotes a person-centred care approach. Access data shows that the website content is being utilised increasingly over time and suggests that it is filling a gap in comprehensive and accessible end of life resources that have been missing from the Australian aged care and palliative care workforce. Consumer-directed and person-centred care is crucial in appropriately servicing all older adults, given each older adult has a diverse background, which impacts their aged care experiences. This paper reports on the development of web pages designed to support the knowledge and information needs of the aged care workforce. There is a need for such resources within this sector to inform culturally appropriate and safe care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Computer‐based assessment allows for the monitoring of reader behaviour. The identification of patterns in this behaviour can provide insights that may be useful in informing educational interventions. Objectives: Our study aims to explore what different patterns of reading activity exist, and investigates their interpretation and consistency across different task sets (units), countries, and languages. Three patterns were expected: on‐task, exploring and disengaged. Methods: Using log data from the PISA 2012 digital reading assessment (9226 students from seven countries), we conducted hierarchical cluster analyses with typical process indicators of digital reading assessments. We identified different patterns and explored whether they remained consistent across different units. To validate the interpretation of the identified patterns, we examined their relationship to performance and student characteristics (gender, socio‐economic status, print reading skills). Results and Conclusions: The results indicate a small number of transnational clusters, with unit‐specific differences. Cluster interpretation is supported by associations with student characteristics—for example, students with low print reading skills were more likely to show a disengaged pattern than proficient readers. Exploring behaviour tended to be exhibited only once across the three units: It occurred in the first unit for proficient readers and in later units for less skilled readers. Major Takeaways: Behavioural patterns can be identified in digital reading tasks that may prove useful for educational monitoring and intervention. Although task situations are designed to evoke certain behaviours, the interpretation of observed behavioural patterns requires validation based on task requirements, assessment context and relationships to other available information. Lay Description: What is already known about the subject matter?: Students differ in how they read, comprehend and use digital information.Indicators from process data provide insight about how students engage with digital reading tasks. What does this paper add to the subject matter?: Based on multiple process indicators, a small number of clusters indicating different behavioural activity can be distinguished.These clusters can be described as on‐task, passive, hasty, exploring, disengaged, persistent and lost interest.A meaningful interpretation of the clusters must consider the requirements of the underlying tasks. Implications for practice and/or policy: Knowledge of how students engage with digital resources may provide useful feedback for teachers to guide students' learning or intervene when they struggle.Educational monitoring: The high comparability of country‐specific results suggests an invariant set of solution strategies in the digital reading assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. The goal of the paper is to identify, investigate and present the official ways of controlling the press in Australia in the 1930s and the ways in which editors and publishers of Croatian newspapers in Australia avoided censorship. This was the time when publications in foreign languages were checked before granting permission to publish, and within the Australian Croatian community the primary language of communication was Croatian. Based on the research, a list of all Croatian newspapers that were published in Australia in the early 1930s is compiled. Approach/methodology/design. The methods used in the research are the method of structured search of online public institutions' catalogues (primarily libraries and archives in Australia), content analysis of archival sources and publications, and the method of involving the Croatian community in Australia. Results. The research resulted in new findings about publications and their editing in the observed period. The social framework for publishing newspapers was researched and presented, and ways to avoid censorship were identified. Each way to avoid censorship is documented and described on the basis of archival sources or a few preserved publications. The research has identified publications that were published in the observed timeframe; the basic data on their publication and editing practices have been investigated. Originality/value. Two publications discovered during the research are described in the paper (Oganj and Iskra). In addition, one publication (one issue of Borba) was found, which was mentioned in the literature, but the bibliographic elements and technical characteristics have never been analysed and the place of storage was not known. All three publications have been digitized and are freely accessible at the links provided in the paper. Furthermore, the research has shown that one publication, which has so far been cited as the publication of Croats in Australia, was not actually published in Australia (Proleter). A list of publications published by Croats in Australia in the early 1930s was compiled on the basis of archival documents, and the ways of conducting and avoiding censorship were presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective interventions are needed to stop homophobic behaviours in sport settings as these behaviours are associated with negative health and social outcomes for individuals who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or other diverse genders and sexualities. This paper reports the results of a quasi-experimental study commissioned by a public health agency to explore the benefits of a novel intervention that has been widely adopted by Australian community sport clubs. The 'Pride Cup' intervention includes education for club leaders, sport participants and the hosting of a rainbow-themed 'pride game'. Survey responses of male participants from six randomly selected sport clubs which had received the intervention (n = 148) were compared to responses (n = 137) from six randomly selected comparison clubs (Australian Football, cricket, field hockey, roller derby). Employing a post-test-only design, the study explored differences in homophobic attitudes, behaviours and individual efficacy to react negatively to homophobic behaviours. The study found significant differences (p < 0.001) in self-reported use of homophobic slurs (e.g. fag) in the last 2 weeks by participants in the treatment (11%) versus comparison (31.8%) clubs, and significant differences in the perceived use of these slurs by teammates (25.9% vs. 56.6%) or coaches (7.8% vs. 23.3%). There were also significant differences in efficacy scores, but no differences in homophobic attitudes. These results, combined with evidence of community-driven adoption, support the allocation of public health resources to conduct larger scale trials using pre/post designs to confirm these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Health literacy is an important predictor of health outcomes. The Health Literacy Questionnaire has been widely adopted to measure health literacy and has been translated into multiple languages including Chinese. This study aims to evaluate the psychometric properties of the simplified Chinese Health Literacy Questionnaire. Methods: Data were obtained from a sample of 362 Chinese immigrants from Chinese community organizations in New South Wales, Australia. Statistical analyses include descriptive and exploratory factor analyses. Results: A seven‐factor solution was derived from 39 of the original 44 items, all with acceptable to excellent internal consistency but differing from the original construction. The health literacy subscale scores were negatively associated with age and with age at immigration, but positively associated with duration of stay (years) in Australia, better English proficiency and current employment. Differing interpretations of the questions based on Chinese culture could possibly explain the variations between the two versions. Conclusion: The simplified Chinese Health Literacy Questionnaire measures some central concepts of health literacy well. However, the questionnaire may require further development, especially in linguistic and cultural aspects. SUMMARY STATEMENT: What is already known about this topic? The Health Literacy Questionnaire has been translated and validated in multiple languages with good reliability and validity. What this paper adds? The study addresses issues that may be related to cultural adaptation and language interpretation of the simplified Chinese version of the Health Literacy Questionnaire. The implications of this paper: It is important for researchers and clinicians to evaluate the cultural sensitivity of translated questionnaires within the specific context before application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The language used in health promotion warrants attention as it shapes how health promotion is understood, constraining or opening up possibilities for action. The 2016 Shanghai Declaration and the 1986 Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion call for comprehensive approaches which include policy and environmental changes. Yet many health promotion programmes in Australia continue to focus on informational and/or behavioural strategies, and there is a contemporary tendency for such programmes to be described as 'sending messages'. This paper uses frame analysis to discuss the role of language, and specifically language that frames health promotion as sending messages, in contributing to and reinforcing the predominance of informational and/or behavioural strategies. It argues such 'message' language helps to set a pattern in which informational and/or behavioural strategies are assumed to be the primary goal and extent of health promotion; rather than one component of a comprehensive, multi-strategic approach. It discusses how frames can be 'taken for granted' and ways in which such frames can be challenged and broadened. It argues that the message frame and associated behavioural framings set narrow boundaries for health promotion, contributing to the continuation of health inequities. These frames can also displace the language of the Ottawa Charter, which has capacity to reframe health issues socio-ecologically and include collective strategies. The paper concludes that a first step (of the many needed) towards applying the Charter's approach and multi-level, multi-strategic framework is to use the innovative vocabulary it offers. The words matter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although health services in Australia have an aim to provide inclusive care for their patients/clients, this study highlights how barriers to care can lie at the centre of patient-provider interactions. Racial microaggression is a subtle form of racism that can occur in health settings, leading to further exclusion for First Nations Australians, immigrants and refugees. This paper is guided by Derrida's approach to deconstructionism by unpacking how language is used by health professionals – as holders of organisational power – and how they construct 'truths' or discourses about clients that historically have been marginalised by health services and system. Data comprise 21 interviews with staff from two rural health services. It identified three racial microaggressions were used to justify the challenges of providing care to people from First Nations, immigrant and refugee backgrounds: (1) Participants problematised culture(s) of service users; (2) participants implied cultural superiority in their conceptualisation of 'other' cultures; and (3) participants shared stories of inactions, discomfort and relegating of responsibility. The findings identified these discourses as forms of racial microaggression that can potentially lead to further exclusion of people seeking services and support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper responds to the Indigenous language turn in Australian performance to suggest approaches that are epistemologically significant. We look to examples of intercultural collaboration in Australia, where a close analysis of selected practices provides opportunities for situating problems and enhancing efficacy. We focus on two community projects from Ngapartji Ngapartji [You give me something, I give you something/reciprocity], a theatre and performance-based program for language revitalisation with the Anangu people of the Central Western Desert from 2005 to 2010. The question driving the inquiry is, 'In what ways, if any, are Anangu epistemologies able to enter the performance?' In focusing on the epistemologies, we respond to the deficit of intercultural collaboration which often sees dominant paradigms privileged, even when Indigenous languages are being drawn from and revitalised. Methodologically, we bring together an interactional sociolinguistic and performance studies analytical approach to highlight dramaturgies employed and epistemologies signalled. We argue that improvisation allows Anangu epistemologies to enter the performance, proposing them as intercultural dramaturgies for Indigenous language revitalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cultural and linguistic heritage of Chinese Australians is complex and often poorly understood by Australian communities. It can be challenging for GLAM sector organisations to both understand and share the complexity of Chinese culture in Australia in a meaningful and coherent way. Using the Chinese Museum in Melbourne, Australia as a case study, this paper reflects on how this diversity shaped the work of the Museum. Drawing on personal experience as the curator of the Museum, the author argues that communities are evolving, our understandings of them imperfect and so learning about cultural complexity is an ongoing iterative process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the terminological apparatus of sociolinguistics, there are many unambiguous and ambiguous concepts that refer to the non-first language of different social groups. In line with the new European tendency, Bulgarian sociolinguistics names the language of Bulgarian emigrants around the world using terms offered in the theoretical papers of famous authors or schools working in the field of sociolinguistic emigration. The text proposed here is an attempt to redefine all these concepts and summarize them into one which indicates the hereditary Bulgarian emigrant language that is characteristic of the language of the Bulgarian immigrant community in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-stopping is a widespread and usually non-contrastive phenomenon in Australian languages. Contrastive pre-stopping is rare and materials on it are limited. Based partly on original phonetic data, this paper provides evidence that Arabana, a language of northern South Australia, has contrastive pre-stopping of both laterals and nasals. Current analyses of pre-stopping, both contrastive and non-contrastive, model pre-stopped sequences as complex segments, and relate their diachrony to perceptual motivations favouring the enhancement in the discrimination of place oppositions. We provide evidence that pre-stopped sequences in Arabana are best analyzed as heterosyllabic clusters, and that their diachrony centrally involves perceptual motivations favouring the augmentation of phonologically strong constituents, specifically stressed syllables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has shown that participatory music programs can encourage positive health and well-being outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of participatory music programs, which aim to promote positive mental and physical health and well-being outcomes for young people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities, characterized as at-risk. Method The databases EBSCOhost, ProQuest, SCOPUS, HRCA, Informit, JSTOR, SAGE and OVID were searched for literature published between 2002 and 2013. Outcomes from studies were plotted against the Shultz and Northridge's Social Determinants of Health framework (2005). Results In total, six sources were included in this review. The majority of music participation programs targeted toward young people characterized as at-risk possess positive outcomes on the Proximate and Health and Well-being levels of the SDOH framework, such as a reduction in anxiety, depression, emotional alienation, truancy and aggression. Additionally, participants in programs reported an increase in attendance in school, self-esteem, cultural empathy, confidence, personal empowerment and healthy nutrition. Conclusion Results suggest that participation in music programs is able to encourage positive mental and psychosocial health outcomes for individuals. Considering the short-term focus of programs reviewed, and limitations surrounding data analysis and collection, this paper underscores the need for rigorous research that explores the potential long-term outcomes of similar programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to evaluate the Proto-Iwaidjan hypothesis, which proposes that several languages in northwestern Arnhem Land in Northern Australia are genetically related. The evaluation is based on a rigorous application of the Comparative Method to provide an initial reconstruction of the Proto-Iwaidjan segmental inventory. We show that Amurdak, Iwaidja and Mawng are demonstrably genetically related. Given that Ilgar and Garig are very close in terms of grammar and vocabulary to Iwaidja, their membership of the Iwaidjan family is also supported. However, there is insufficient evidence to support the inclusion of Marrku, Wurrugu and Manangkari within the Iwaidjan language family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In Australia and internationally, Peer Workers are increasingly being incorporated into the mental health workforce. Underpinning this trend is the conviction that the inclusion of workers with lived experience in overcoming mental health challenges is central to transforming service delivery. Given there are few identified Australian studies into the experiences of Peer Workers, this paper reports findings from qualitative interviews conducted in a Partners In Recovery programme in one regional area in Australia. The interviews formed part of a larger mixed‐method study evaluating Peer Worker roles in the programme. Thematic analysis of interview transcripts with Peer Workers and other staff employed in the programme (n = 22) was undertaken. Central to the five themes that emerged was the concept of lived experience expertise in overcoming mental health challenges. The themes were: (i) role variance, (ii) the challenges and opportunities for Peer Worker, (iii) the processes Peer Workers employed as they attempted to shape an identify and language, (iv) the inconsistencies and challenges of employing lived experience as a defining feature of the peer worker role, and (v) the nature of trust arising from lived experience relationships. From this study, it is evident that the Peer Worker role remains underdeveloped. The difficulties experienced by Peer Workers in establishing a homogenous identity and role is not unique. The process and lack of clarity around role identity revealed from the narratives, parallels the experiences of Mental Health Nursing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: There is strong and consistent evidence from large scale randomised controlled trials that type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed through lifestyle modification which improves diet quality, increases physical activity and achieves weight loss in people at risk. Worldwide, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is increasing in individuals of Chinese descent. Culturally tailored programs are required to address the risk in the Chinese population. This paper analyses effectiveness of a culturally tailored community-based lifestyle modification program (Sydney Diabetes Prevention Program (SDPP)) targeting Mandarin speakers. The SDPP was a 12 month translational study aiming to promote increased physical activity and dietary changes. Effectiveness was assessed through the improvement of anthropometric, metabolic, physical activity and dietary outcomes and number of goals met.Methods: Seventy-eight Mandarin-speaking participants at a high risk (Australian Diabetes Risk, AUSDRISK≥15) of developing diabetes were recruited for this study.Results: In this cohort, waist circumference, total cholesterol and fat intake significantly improved at the 12-month review. In comparison to the English-speaking stream, the Mandarin-speaking stream achieved fewer improvements in outcomes and goals.Conclusion: The SDPP was not effective in reducing the risk factors associated with developing type 2 diabetes in this cohort of high risk Mandarin-speaking individuals living in Sydney. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the linking relative (or connectivewhich) in the spontaneous conversation of Australian English. Using a combination of survey and corpus data, two distinct discourse functions are identified: resumptive topic marker and focus. Survey data from 170 linguistics students at an Australian university indicate a strong preference for the resumptive topic marker function: I argue that this is due to the parallel between discourse function and the structure of the standard relative clause. UWA corpus data suggest that the connectivewhichis used solely to create textual cohesion in Australian English, while anecdotal examples from American English podcasts, blogs and the animated TV showArcherhint at the possibility of this becoming an expressive resource for speakers in the future. Thus it appears the Australian English use of the connectivewhichis situated on the textual level of Traugott’s cline: propositional > textual > expressive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on death and dying was conducted to open the dialogue around death and dying. In one activity, participants were asked to engage with language and to think of alternative words (or euphemisms) that are used to describe death. Aim: To reflect from a nursing perspective how language enables and sometimes disguises important messages and conversations. Methods: Four hundred and seventy one participants provided 3053 euphemisms. Findings: Euphemisms were varied, with many providing commentary on their purpose and use. Discussion: As a society we have become quite creative in the use of euphemisms, but need to be mindful of misunderstandings and misinterpretations which can cause embarrassment and distress in clinical situations. Conclusion: This paper describes some of the euphemisms that were provided, examining why they are used and how their use can be easily misconstrued in daily life and in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Regular health visits for parents with young children provide an opportunity for developmental surveillance and anticipatory guidance regarding common childhood problems and help to achieve optimal developmental progress prior to school entry. However, there are few published reports from Australian culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities exploring parents' experiences for accessing child health surveillance programs. This paper aims to describe and explain parental experiences for accessing developmental surveillance and anticipatory guidance for children.Methods: Qualitative data was obtained from 6 focus groups (33 parents) and seven in-depth interviews of CALD parents recruited from an area of relative disadvantage in Sydney. Thematic analysis of data was conducted using an ecological framework.Results: An overarching theme of "awareness-beliefs-choices" was found to explain parents' experiences of accessing primary health care services for children. "Awareness" situated within the meso-and macro-systems explained parents knowledge of where and what primary health services were available to access for their children. Opportunities for families to obtain this information existed at the time of birth in Australian hospitals, but for newly arrived immigrants with young children, community linkages with family and friends, and general practitioner (GPs) were most important. "Beliefs" situated within the microsystems included parents' understanding of their children's development, in particular what they considered to be "normal" or "abnormal". Parental "choices", situated within meso-systems and chronosystems, related to their choices of service providers, which were based on the proximity, continuity, purpose of visit, language spoken by the provider and past experience of a service.Conclusions: CALD parents have diverse experiences with primary health care providers which are influenced by their awareness of available services in the context of their duration of stay in Australia. The role of the general practitioner, with language concordance, suggests the importance of diversity within the primary care health workforce in this region. There is a need for ongoing cultural competence training of health professionals and provisions need to be made to support frequent use of interpreters at general practices in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2007 Bonta and Osborne published 'Cycads in the vernacular: A compendium of local names', in which they concluded that, in contrast to other cycads around the world, very few names and meanings had been documented for Australian Macrozamia species. This paper aims to better document the cycad species utilised by Aboriginal people for the benefit of researchers in diverse disciplines. It draws on information contained in primary sources and many early historic documents to present Aboriginal names and meanings for various species of Bowenia, Lepidozamia and Macrozamia in Australia, to clarify the names of some Australian species, and to provide additional names for species and plant components not included in the compendium. In addition, it compares patterns in the meanings of names in Australia to those used overseas, finding similarities and differences. By providing a more comprehensive synthesis of information on Indigenous names and meanings of these three genera, the paper demonstrates that the gap identified by Bonta and Osborne is more apparent than real, and high-lights the value of cross-disciplinary collaboration in ethnohistorical, ethnobotanical, linguistic, anthropological and archaeological research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the functions of represented speech and thought (RST) in narratives in Umpithamu, a Pama-Nyungan language of Cape York Peninsula (Australia). The paper first surveys the different mechanisms available for marking a shift from the narrator's deictic centre to a narrative participant, including a number of constructions that use perception and motion predicates to signal RST. The analysis then focuses on the narrative functions of RST, showing that it has a macrostructural function beyond the representation of a specific participant's speech and thought, more specifically highlighting the central episodes of a narrative. The evidence comes from an analysis of three genres with a different macrostructure: one (personal history) for which the classic Labovian schema of complication–resolution works well and two others (both dealing with the supernatural world) that rely on different structuring principles. It is shown that RST is systematically associated with central episodes across the three genres, and that the location and nature of RST co-vary with the different location and nature of these episodes in the three genres. In narratives of supernatural encounter, for instance, RST conveys modal negotiation about the interpretation of the central events in terms of the supernatural world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the role of the court interpreter in cross-cultural and cross-linguistic communication in the courtroom. Drawing on the analysis of the discourse of witness examinations interpreted by Korean interpreters in Australian court proceedings, this paper argues that in the absence of cultural and/or linguistic explanations by the interpreter, evidence given by witnesses from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds may not be accurately or fully interpreted, and this can have potentially serious consequences for the witness in the adversarial context. The discussion highlights the significance of interpreters' disclosure of linguistic and cultural issues which are related to the accuracy of interpreting during court-room examination and suggests that ‘conduit’ interpreters may in fact adversely influence adversarial court proceedings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite Australia's strong tradition of research on language maintenance and shift, little is known about the ways in which migrant background students continue to use their heritage languages in Australian schools. This paper presents an in-depth case study of students' linguistic practices at a multiethnic Melbourne high school, where over 95% of students speak a language other than English (LOTE) at home. Although virtually all students are bilingual, it shows that peer group divide sharply on linguistic lines, with recent arrivals from China and Sudan the only students to consistently speak their first languages with friends at school. More established students use English as their lingua franca with friends, but continue to deploy their LOTEs for a variety of purposes, including gossiping, crossing and communicating with recent migrants. The paper argues that while established students make only incidental use of their LOTEs at school, LOTE use performs important social functions for these students that could not be substituted by using English alone. Local conditions at the school clearly shape the meanings ascribed to LOTE use; and the paper thus argues that detailed analysis of students' linguistic practices can be a valuable tool for examining interethnic relations in multiethnic schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the evidence on the classification of the Garrwan language family, in terms of the Pama-Nyungan vs Non-Pama-Nyungan opposition. The Garrwan language family is the only family whose status has been analyzed as indeterminate or intermediate with respect to this opposition. This paper shows that Proto-Garrwan was characterized by a high degree of innovation in grammatical morphology. Consequently, there are only limited materials, restricted to the pronominals, which can serve to evaluate its genetic status. This paper shows that this evidence, though limited, is sufficient to classify Garrwan as a Pama-Nyungan family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how diversity is used as a key term to describe the social and educational mission of universities in Australia. The paper suggests that we need to explore what diversity ‘does’ in specific contexts. Drawing on interviews with diversity and equal opportunities practitioners, the paper suggests that ‘diversity’ is used in the face of what has been called ‘equity fatigue’. Diversity is associated with what is new, and allows practitioners to align themselves and their units with the existing values of their universities. However, given this, diversity can mean potentially anything: and practitioners have to re-attach the term ‘diversity’ to other more marked terms such as equality and justice if it is to ‘do anything’. The paper explores the appeal of diversity, the strategic nature of diversity work, and the role of commitment, leadership and training. It also offers some more general reflections on how language works within organisations by showing that words, although they do things, are not finished as forms of action: what they do depends not only on how they are used, but how they get taken up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper interrogates examination English in Australia from the point of view of two analytical frameworks: Bernstein’s code theory and systemic functional linguistics. Linguistically it explores the semantic features of six responses to an open question about an unseen narrative in Year 10 examinations. Two responses at three achievement levels are described in terms of ideational, interpersonal and textual meanings and the overall orientation to narrative interpretation in each grade is related to a particular type of reading — tactical, (D or E grade), mimetic (C grade) and symbolic (A- grade). Capturing students’ orientations to meaning through text analysis is one aspect of the challenge. The other is explaining how some students appear to ‘recognize’ and ‘realize’ what the ‘open question’ requires of them in this context while others do not. The second half of the paper applies Bernstein’s code theory, particularly his notion of ‘recognition’ and ‘realization rules’ to the readings students make of the interpretive context. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of the potential of this dual analysis (textual and contextual) for making success in school English both more visible for students currently disadvantaged by examination English and more tractable rhetorically in their production of successful responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper identifies five questions about the possible origins and development of early Australian English and reviews the ways in which scholars have answered these questions so far. But the paper also argues that there are as yet too few empirical studies of early Australian English. Plato's use of reason needs to be followed and complemented by Aristotle's empirical approach. Despite the doubts of some scholars, it is possible to look at early written sources. The paper describes a corpus of early Australian English, the principles followed in building it, and the ways in which it can be used. A progress report on the study of lexis using the corpus is included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Naming systems play a prominent role in discussions of land tenure by Aboriginal people. Reference to one area of land and its owners is most commonly in terms of name 'X', whereas reference to another area of land and its owners is most commonly made in terms of name 'Y'. Much of the analytical literature examines how these names refer to groups of people. There is considerable dispute as to whether the reference of these names suffices to determine disjoint groupings of owners that can be described by the term 'clan'. This paper proposes that the analysis of linkages between names and areas of land should have priority over the analysis of linkages between names and groups of people. The evidence shows that the attachment of names to areas of land is more stable and consistent than their attachment to groups of people. There are differences in the ways that names attach to the landscape, and these differences are significant--they determine whether or not more than one name from the same system may be attached to an area of land. This paper focuses on two areas of Australia: the northern Kakadu-Oenpelli area and the Timber Creek area (both in the Northern Territory). It shows that naming systems identify disjunctive areas of land as the targets for claims of primary ownership in both areas. These disjunctive areas may reasonably be described with the translation term 'estate'. In the northern Kakadu-Oenpelli area, corresponding to these estates, there are disjunctive groupings of owners, which may be termed 'clans'. However, groupings of owners are not clearly disjunctive in the Timber Creek area, and there is little motivation for using the term 'clan'. This paper proposes that this difference reflects a general pattern in Aboriginal Australia, with naming systems stably and consistently identifying 'estates' across much of the continent. They do not identify 'clans' with equivalent stability and consistency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life offers the recommended best start in the life for a newborn baby. Yet, in Australia only a small number of babies receive breast milk exclusively for the first 6 months. Reasons for the introduction of formula milk are multi‐factorial including access to appropriate support and the woman's experience of breastfeeding. The language and practices of health professionals can impact upon how a woman feels about breastfeeding and her breastfeeding body. One aspect of breastfeeding support that has had scarce attention in the literature is the language used by health professionals to describe the behaviour of the breastfeeding infant during the early establishment phase of breastfeeding. This paper reveals some of the ways in which midwives, lactation consultants and breastfeeding women describe the newborn baby during the first week after birth. The study was conducted at two maternity units in New South Wales. Interactions between midwives and breastfeeding women were observed and audio recorded on the post‐natal ward and in women's homes, in the first week after birth. The transcribed data were analysed using discourse analysis searching for recurring words, themes and metaphors used in descriptions of the breastfeeding baby. Repeated negative references to infant personality and unfavourable interpretations of infant behaviour influenced how women perceived their infant. The findings revealed that positive language and interpretations of infant breastfeeding behaviour emerged from more relationship‐based communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of nationalism on the linguistic rights of Deaf communities. In exploring the subtle hegemony of nationalism in relation to linguistic minorities, the paper discusses the impact of nationalisms on sign languages from two perspectives and in two contrasting situations. First, the paper examines the impact of nationalism on the recognition and promotion of natural sign languages. Second, it examines a particularly potent form of linguistic imperialism as the dominant linguistic forces seek not only to destroy minority languages but to transform existing minority linguistic processes to conform with the form and content of the national language, through the development and promotion of manually coded versions of national spoken and written languages in formal education. These issues are examined in relation to the nationalisms and indigenous sign languages of Australia and Indonesia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] This paper describes 692 Indigenous Australian children's language competence. [•] Cross-sectional and longitudinal data are reported from 3 to 7 years of age based on parent report and direct assessment. [•] Children spoke between one and eight languages: English, Indigenous languages, creoles, foreign languages, and sign languages. [•] Children who spoke an Indigenous language were more likely to live in moderate to extreme isolation. [•] Language environments were rich. Family members and friends told stories, read books, and listened to the children read. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses some of the reasons why in the Northern Territory of Australia speakers of indigenous languages shift from using indigenous languages to using creoles and standard or non-standard English. Language attitudes of speakers are discussed in terms of what people say about languages, what public activities they engage in with respect to language maintenance, and how they talk in informal settings. The divergence between people's positive attitudes towards a language (as indicated by public language activities) and their everyday talk is discussed in the light of linguistic vitality indicators, including the socio-structural features of political, social, economic and cultural control, institutional control and status, and demographic factors as well as interactional possibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a multimodal perspective on how identities are performed and negotiated in discourse, concentrating on the interaction of language and body language within a particular genre, Youth Justice Conferencing. These conferences operate as a diversionary form of sentencing in the juvenile justice system of New South Wales, Australia. Typically, they involve a young person who has committed an offense coming face to face with the victim of their crime, in the presence of family members, community workers, police, and a conference 'convenor.' We conduct close, multimodal discourse analysis of the interactions that occur during the Rejoinder step in a particular conference, and investigate an 'angry boy' identity enacted by two young persons at this point in the proceedings. This persona is very different to the forthcoming and remorseful persona idealized by conference designers. The role of body language in intermodally proposing and negotiating bonds within the conference is explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper takes an interdisciplinary approach to the history and politics of the development of Indonesian language studies within Australia. It examines the effect on Indonesian language education of government policies such as the National Asian Languages and Studies in Australian Schools (NALSAS) strategy, and responses developed by Indonesian language educators at the tertiary level. It suggests that, in order to achieve a more complete understanding of such issues as changes in the popularity of Indonesian language studies at the tertiary level, or the development of language education per se, it is necessary to broaden the frame of reference to include not only national policies but also politics. The impact of ideological, social, political, national and international frameworks also needs to be considered. Stakeholders may be able to effect improvements if the academic sector and government bodies identify and consciously pursue common goals, notably through a critique of the status of language teachers and continuous, collaborative consultation between the stakeholders on planning and problem solving. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A consistent finding in the literature on Indigenous peoples is the importance of the sustainability of land, language and culture. All three are related, with the maintenance of one helping to protect the others. This paper uses a nationally representative, cross-sectional survey of the Indigenous Australian population to look at the factors associated with individual measures of sustainability. Geography matters for those in remote areas who are much more likely to have participated in hunting, fishing and gathering than those in non-remote areas and somewhat more likely to be learning an Indigenous language. However, those in remote areas are somewhat less likely to have participated in Indigenous cultural production. Participation in the mainstream economy is not necessarily a barrier to these aspects of wellbeing as those with high levels of formal education were more likely to speak, understand or be learning an Indigenous language. While important in their own right, such aspects of sustainability also have the potential to directly contribute to narrower measures of social and emotional wellbeing. A positive relationship was found between the sustainability of Indigenous land, language and culture and an Indigenous person's subjective emotional wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The study reported in this paper was aimed at developing understanding of schizophrenia-related knowledge and preferences surrounding professional help, medication, and treatment methods among Chinese living in Shanghai, China. Method: A multi-stage cluster sampling method in which participants were taken from six of the 20 districts in Shanghai was adopted for this study. The 522 Shanghai Chinese participants were presented with a vignette describing an individual with schizophrenia before being asked questions designed to assess both their understanding of schizophrenia and their preferences surrounding professional help, medication, and treatment methods. A comparative approach was adopted to identify similarities and differences between our findings and those of two previous studies on the mental health literacy of Chinese living in Melbourne, Australia and Hong Kong, respectively. Results: A lower percentage of Shanghai Chinese than Hong Kong Chinese and Australian Chinese could correctly identify the condition described in the vignette as a case of acute schizophrenia. Although a far lower percentage of Shanghai Chinese endorsed the use of counselling professionals, a much higher percentage of the same group endorsed Chinese medical doctors and herbal medication. A lower percentage of Shanghai Chinese endorsed ''lifestyle changes'' as a strategy for dealing with schizophrenia than did Chinese subjects living in Australia and Hong Kong. On the other hand, a higher percentage of Shanghai residents endorsed psychiatric treatment and the traditional Chinese practices of ''eating nutritious food/taking supplements'' than among the other two groups of Chinese. Conclusions: This study highlights the need for educating Chinese in Shanghai to improve their schizophrenia literacy. The contents of the education programmes will need to take into consideration the socially and culturally driven beliefs that may have been influencing the knowledge and preferences of Shanghai Chinese concerning professional help, medication, and treatment methods for people suffering from schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language is an important way of presenting an identity, either individual or group. This paper explores the language used in the presentation of the identity of academic development. The study is based on an analysis of websites from academic development centres in the UK and Australia and outlines the public ways in which academic developers present their work and the meanings that are attached to this presentation. It uses frame theory to analyse the language of academic development websites in order to explore some of the assumptions underpinning the public face of academic development. It explores the ways in which language is used to frame and persuade in order to establish the credibility of academic development as an expert and scholarly field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spelling is an area where the varieties of English beg to differ. Whereas British and American English have long been considered as having stable and juxtaposed spelling traditions, this has not been the case for newer varieties such as Australian English. This paper shows that Australian English indeed has its own spelling traditions and that they are not the result of haphazard choices from British and American English. In fact today's Australian spelling is the result of a fascinating historical process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a reanalysis of the TAM categories of Amurdak. Previous work has assumed a contrast of tense categories. It will be shown that such an analysis is inadequate, as it cannot accurately account for the data, because the morphemes representing these categories do not have the function to localize events in time. Instead, it is posited that the Amurdak verb possesses a contrast between a perfective and an imperfective aspect. This permits an accurate explanation of the data, and it is well-supported cross-linguistically. In addition, it opens up interesting questions from the viewpoint of comparative areal and typological linguistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The early years in a child's life are widely acknowledged as significant for development and learning, yet in Australia a co-ordinated approach where emergent literacy is acknowledged and prioritised is not evident, particularly in early childhood settings during the period prior to school. Despite a large body of International and Australian research conducted with young children, families and teachers where results emphasise the need for emergent literacy opportunities to be made available for all, there is little evidence that changes are being made in early childhood settings in Australia. This paper describes a study of emergent literacy conducted in two early childhood classes in the year immediately prior to Year 1 in North Queensland where teachers embedded emergent literacy opportunities within their play-based programs. Design-based research, an emerging paradigm, was utilised and both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Results showed young children's emergent literacy understandings improved significantly on a number of measures over a period of five months and teachers' perceptions of emergent literacy pedagogy changed due to the experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reconstruct an indigenous language known solely from historical wordlists, the linguist needs to decide which source wordlists are most relevant, i.e. which sources are most likely to be attestations of the language to be reconstructed. There is little published research on methods appropriate to this task, and yet there is increasing attention to indigenous language reconstruction in support of language revival and revitalisation in education and community contexts. This paper 1 describes a replicable and relatively objective method for comparing lexical similarity within a set of historical sources. The method described draws on the use of measures of lexical similarity in linguistics and the use of measures of endemism in biogeography. The method is illustrated via an analysis of historical sources for Aboriginal languages from the greater Sydney region, New South Wales, Australia. The sample is used to describe the overall similarity and difference between wordlists from this region, and to identify which wordlists are most similar to the wordlist recorded by the surveyor R. H. Mathews (e.g. 1903) as Darkinyung language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a preliminary attempt to evaluate the linguistic vitality of Yankunytjatjara spoken in Coober Pedy and other communities in South Australia, with particular emphasis on extra-linguistic factors. The Western Desert dialects Yankunytjatjara and Pitjantjatjara are the two remaining 'strong' languages within South Australia, but considering the socio-cultural and political context wherein Indigenous Australian languages exist as spoken in decreasing numbers by members of encapsulated minorities, subject to an intrusive and increasingly dominant Euro-Australian culture, the question is how strong Yankunytjatjara really is. Different language endangerment indices are incorporated into the discussion with a view to how they apply to the study of contact-induced extensive linguistic change in general, and specifically to Yankunytjatjara. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As in a number of ergative languages, the ergative case-marker -na∼-ma in Warrwa is occasionally found on the subject of intransitive clauses, indeed even on the subject of verbless clauses. I argue that the presence vs. absence of the ergative marker in this environment is not random free variation, but is motivated and highly constrained. The paper is concerned with identifying the motivations. It is proposed, based on an investigation of uses in a corpus of narrative and other texts, that two features are relevant: (a) semantic - the subject is highly agentive; and (b) referential - the identity of the subject is not predictable: it is unexpected. Use of the ergative on an intransitive subject thus highlights both the agentivity and the unexpectedness of the subject. I argue that, contrary to recent claims by some, Warrwa is not an active language: it is not the case that -na∼-ma groups together some intransitive and transitive subjects, while zero marking groups some intransitive subjects with transitive objects; these groupings are, I argue, purely formal and epiphenomenal. Finally, I situate optional marking of intransitive subjects in Warrwa in a wider theory of optional case marking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Summary: Although many ‘Anglophone’ countries now host significant linguistic diversity, minimal attention has been paid to language policy in social work. This paper examines how language policy in both its overt and covert forms infiltrates social work via three ‘orientations’ to linguistic diversity: language as a problem; language as a right; and language as a resource. The utility of this framework for viewing linguistic diversity in social work is explored with reference to an exploratory study that canvassed the views of overseas-born bilingual social workers practising in Australia. • Findings: The participants strongly identified with a problem orientation to language, where a lack of English constitutes a significant barrier to participating in the social, economic and political domains. While a rights orientation to language was endorsed, it was seen to have limitations in terms of the inadequacies of legislation for challenging ‘monolingual’ language attitudes. All informants supported a resource orientation to language, but claimed that linguistic diversity is often devalued in English-dominant locations. • Applications: Rather than privileging one particular lens on language, the study concludes that a flexible framework that allows for movement between different language orientations is necessary given the context-dependent nature of language use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While heavy lexical borrowing can pose a problem to any approach to linguistic prehistory, it has often been regarded as an especially difficult problem for lexicostatistics, especially in such areas as Australia, where some believe that extensive borrowing is the norm. The present paper applies lexicostatistics to what is arguably the most massive case of borrowing known for Australia, namely between the Jingulu and Mudburra languages of the Northern Territory, and finds that it actually leads to what is generally considered the correct genetic classification of these languages. This result is then shown to depend on certain relationships among the lexicostatistical percentages that may not always obtain in other cases of heavy borrowing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The languages of the small Nyulnyulan family of the far northwest of Western Australia all exhibit a grammatical category traditionally dubbed irrealis. In this paper we describe the grammatical expression of this category, and its range of meanings and uses. It is argued that these can be accounted for as contextual senses or pragmatic inferences based on a single encoded core meaning, that the referent situation is construed by the speaker as unrealized. This semantic component remains invariant across all uses of the category, and is not defeasible. Contra claims by some investigators, the realis-irrealis mood contrast is fundamental, and encapsulates a viable conceptual contrast between real and unreal events; epistemic and deontic notions of probability, necessity, desirability, and the like are secondary pragmatic inferences. The irrealis is thus a modal category that can grammaticalize in human languages; indeed, it is a communicatively useful category. We explicate the nature of the conceptual contrast between the construed real and unreal. It is further argued that the notion of scope is essential to an understanding of the irrealis, and its interaction with other mode-like categories. Finally, we situate the Nyulnyulan irrealis in the wider cross-linguistic context of irrealis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decade, a growing number of complaints have been made against Australian education authorities over the language of instruction used to teach deaf children. The complaints, made under the Disability Discrimination Act, were lodged with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission for investigation and possible conciliation. When conciliation failed, two of these cases continued to the Federal Court of Australia. An analysis of court transcripts and the determinations made by the Federal Court is presented in this paper. The focus of analysis is the way in which researchers who appeared as expert witnesses in these cases were positioned by counsels for the respondents. Foremost among the findings was the way in which researchers, whose work challenged the approach taken by the education authorities, were represented as being political. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines theoretical analyses of vowel harmony in the light of data from Warlpiri, a language of Central Australia. Modern analyses account for vowel harmony in terms of a constraint requiting feature agreement within a particular domain (e.g. Backovic, 2000; Lombardi, 1996). These analyses predict that exclusively suffixing languages should exhibit only rightwards harmonies. They also predict that all disharmonic sequences within a particular domain should be equally disfavoured. Warlpiri is of interest for two reasons. Firstly it is an exclusively suffixing language, but it shows both leftwards and rightwards harmonies. Secondly, it permits one disharmonic sequence within the lexicon, but not its converse. We show that the leftwards harmony is not an exception to the predictions of modem analyses, as it is morphologically and not phonologically motivated. However, we show that agreement constraints cannot account for the evidently related harmony constraints on the structure of the lexicon in Warlpiri. Rather, these must be accounted for by constraints against specific disharmonic sequences. Under this 'anti-disagreement' analysis the structure of the lexicon follows from the grammar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]