It’s an interesting time in the world of language teaching and learning.
In July, the biannual conference of the Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers Association highlighted the need to urgently review how we teach languages in schools and universities.
This was the first conference since the introduction of ChatGPT and the dramatic uptake of AI by educators, students and parents. Since the arrival of AI, there has been a mistaken – but growing – belief by some that AI has made the need to learn a new language redundant.
While AI has its place in schools and in education more broadly, so does learning a language. It is still relevant and it still delivers so many benefits – as anyone who has worked hard to build proficiency in more than one language knows!
AI can help with basic and transactional communication, but it can’t replicate the essential elements of learning a language such as developing cultural empathy, understanding nuance and building authenticity and trust.
Language learning opens doors to greater cultural literacy, adaptability and global competence, which are all critical if we are going to better understand different contexts and cultures.
Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills at the OECD, has said the job of educators is to develop ‘first-class humans’, not ‘second-class robots’ who are unable to read between the lines, or to hear what’s been left unsaid. Learning a language equips young people to do this.
September has also been an interesting month for the future of Chinese language in Australia. During the Premier’s visit to China, the Victorian Government announced its new China Strategy: For a New Golden Era.
This aims to transform Victoria into a ‘leading hub for China-related expertise’, and for schools and tertiary institutions to promote Chinese language and cultural literacy. The strategy sees learning Chinese as a gateway to developing cultural knowledge, building personal connections on campus, engaging in sister school partnerships, and taking part in youth forums where Australian students learn to interact more effectively with their Chinese peers.
For the first time, Victorians with Chinese ancestry and international students are also explicitly recognised as having an essential role in delivering on these goals.
At the time of writing, a federal parliamentary inquiry into Building Asia Capability in Australia through the education system and beyond is re-exploring the notion of ‘Asia capability,’ and initial recommendations include improving language skills, intercultural understanding, regional engagement and diplomacy skills.
Already the inquiry is sparking interesting debates about what Asia Literacy means now, compared to when the term was first introduced more than a decade ago.
“[A] second-track Asia literacy has emerged – driven by demography, technology and mobility. Migration from Asia has reshaped Australia’s cultural landscape, while social media and AI have enabled experiential engagement with Asian languages and cultures. Youth-led initiatives, scholarships, and diaspora networks are building experiential Asia competency outside our education system,” says Philipp Ivanov, former CEO of Asia Society Australia and the current CEO of GRASP (Geopolitical Risks and Strategy Practice).
So how are educators preparing students to engage with the world? What is the best way forward? Language proficiency alone does not make ‘first-class humans.’ It needs to be coupled with the skills, knowledge and experience that come with connecting globally.
Stanley Wang (Deputy Principal, One Haileybury), Grenville Green (Deputy Principal, Junior School), and Dr Stephan Muller (Deputy Principal, International), have been working on Haileybury’s approach to this challenge for more than 18 months.
As a result, Haileybury is way ahead of the game with new and innovative curricular, co-curricular and extracurricular activities designed, developed and already implemented.
This includes:
- The introduction of a Junior School Languages and Cultures subject for the current Prep cohort as they move through Junior School. The new curriculum sparks young learners’ curiosity in linguistic and cultural diversity in school and beyond. It encourages peer-to-peer learning about languages and cultures, fosters a positive image of bilingual and bicultural identities and develops metalinguistic awareness and cultural knowledge.
- Buddy Classes from 2026. Each Year 1 class will be paired with a buddy class abroad so students can build international connections and learn to ‘experience’ the world. The Year 1 theme is ‘Our closest neighbours’ and will includes class-to-class connections between Haileybury and schools across Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste. As students move through Junior School, they will go on a ‘trip around the world’ with their buddy classes.
- Bilingual teaching for Middle School Chinese (Background) that recognises the important role the Chinese diaspora plays in fostering China literacy in Australia. New subjects and ways of teaching and learning ensure our background students develop deep knowledge of the Chinese culture and society and so become proficient at navigating both cultures.
- The introduction of our Senior School International Outlook Student Club. In 2025, the student club undertook various pilot initiatives to foster cultural literacy and global competence. For example, students in Senior School and Haileybury Pangea attended global youth forums where they worked with over 100 students from the Asia-Pacific on a project related to Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Students also developed a video exchange project with Haileybury’s partner schools in the Asia-Pacific region and hosted many international visitors as tour guides – an opportunity to put into practice their cross-cultural communication skills. They even initiated a fundraising campaign for an international social enterprise founded by their peers and shared childhood games from around the world with Middle School students during Languages and Cultures Week.
- “Cultural Primers” and Pre-Departure Intercultural Communications Workshops – In 2025, our Head of International Outlook, Dr Nonie Tuxen, piloted a series of ‘cultural primers’ and ‘guided reflections’ for staff and students attending the Year 9 India trip, ensuring they had deeper knowledge to make the most of their immersion experience. Next month, before our Languages students depart on their exchanges to France, Japan and China, students will undertake an immersive intercultural communications workshop as part of their pre-departure preparation.
- Our International Outlook Strategy Plan is a three-year Action Plan to embed opportunities for International Outlook across the school, from ELC to Senior School. In 2025, selected staff were trained to ensure we adopt best practice in our approach, and to this end, we are using the Global Competence Model as a framework to guide our program. We are excited to be the only school in Australia using the Global Competence Aptitude Assessment to track the global competence of our students.
Language teaching and learning continues to be highly valued at Haileybury and we look forward to continuing to strengthen our offerings as a great world school and to see our graduates being ready and willing to excel with a global outlook.
