Victoria’s only Vietnamese bilingual school program is set to be axed after Footscray Primary School decided to dump it from its curriculum.
But a campaign is under way to save the language-immersion program, one of only a dozen in the state and the only one of its type in the western suburbs.
A group of parents is seeking urgent intervention from Education Minister James Merlino to save the school’s long-running practice of classes being taught in Vietnamese for up to five hours a week.
Parents found out about the dumping via a school newsletter sent home late last month.
School principal Philip Fox cited concerns of some staff and problems with a crowded curriculum as factors in the axing from next year.
The newsletter stated a “leadership team” had reached the decision to cut language learning back to two hours a week based on curriculum feedback from more than 150 families over 18 months.
But a number of parents have told Star Weekly they were blindsided by the move.
Nicholas Cowall, who has two children at the school, said the program had run for close to two decades and the decision would change the identity of the school.
He said parents were dismayed by the lack of consultation and questioned whether all families even realised the decision had been made, given the newsletter was sent home with pupils and not translated into Vietnamese.
“We have concerns about the process and that the decision doesn’t recognise the value of the program,” he said.
“My children find the subjects to be challenging but in a positive way.”
According to the education department’s website, benefits of bilingual education include increasing respect for other cultures.
In a written response via the department, Mr Fox said the decision followed almost two years of consultation through a working group comprising teachers, school council members and parents.
“The decision has been about ensuring our curriculum is clearly focused and addresses the challenge of FPS having too many priorities,” he said.
“Our first priority is ensuring all our students – including those from non-English speaking backgrounds – get a strong grounding in literacy, numeracy and inquiry to set them up for future success and learning.
“After speaking with staff and the school community I believe this is the best course of action for the students. However, I am still keen to hear from parents and other interested parties and will consider all views when I take the plans to school council next term.”
Mr Fox said the school is showing it values language learning by continuing to teach two hours of Vietnamese a week.
But Mr Cowall said many families had chosen the school on the basis of the bilingual program, whether they were from Vietnamese backgrounds or simply attracted to the benefits of bilingual learning.
The group of parents is seeking a freeze on the changes until an independent review is carried out.
Some parents have indicated they may consider taking their children out of the school unless the decision is reversed.
A petition against the change is being circulated at the school and an online petition had attracted more than 100 signatures by Tuesday.
