We are proud to welcome a new group of Foreign Language Assistants from France, Germany and Spain into Aotearoa New Zealand for the academic year for 2024.
These lovely young people have been placed in schools in Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin and bring different experiences and perspectives to their language classrooms and schools. Language Assistants are selected from a pool of pre-service teachers in training and usually have a Master's degree or are completing their Master's while in New Zealand.
Why have Language Assistants?
The Ministry of Education in a 2014 publication acknowledged the special place of the Learning Languages Area as ‘one of the most effective ways for students to develop cross-cultural communicative competence and an awareness of other cultures and world-views’ (Ministry of Education, Citation 2014, p. 12).
Language Assistants support this skill development because they are a living embodiment of the Language and Culture of their home country and can translate their intercultural experiences into teachable moments in the classroom. They are aware of the latest linguistic and cultural trends from their home and can share these in ways that inspire students to work hard and emulate the Language Assistant when they are older. Our relationships with our European partners are reciprocal, giving NZ students opportunities to be Language Assistants abroad.
Teachers report that they are a very valuable resource for the school. They can support the teacher to differentiate the learning for different groups of students especially in multi-level classes; motivate students to improve their speaking by conversing with a native speaker; focus on pronunciation in small groups; provide support for students wishing to sit French, Spanish and German proficiency exams and so on.
Funding
The Ministry of Education partially funds the salary of the Language Assistant and schools also contribute financially. We place the Assistants in clusters of schools in order to spread the financial commitment. Our National Language Advisers of French, German and Spanish provide pastoral care for the assistants during the year plus orientation days on arrival and a debrief day before they leave. We also provide advice and guidance to host schools and cluster schools to make it as easy as possible to have a language assistant.
We will be recruiting for 2025 later this year so if you are interested in having a Language Assistant in your school, visit our International Language Assistants Programme page to learn more or contact us for more information.
Ko tōu reo, ko tōku reo, te tuakiri tangata. Tīheiuriuri, tīhei nakonako.
Your language and my language are expressions of identity.
May our descendants live on and our hopes be fulfilled.
