As the number of Australians using Auslan at home continues to grow, as do school enrolments in the sign-language provision, particularly in Victoria.
The 2021 National Census indicates more than 16,000 people in Australia use Auslan at home. Victoria had the highest number of users at 4,355.
This is a significant increase in comparison to the 2001 Census, in which Auslan users numbered just 5,306 nationwide.
Language provision statistics are showing a similar trend, with Auslan ranking sixth in the most-studied languages in Victorian government schools, according to the latest report by the Department of Education and Training.
In 2020, Auslan made up 6.7 per cent of total language enrolments, with 31,355 students enrolled in the study area.
Spanish ranked below Auslan in seventh position, making up 4.9 per cent of total enrolments, and German ranked eighth, making up 4.1 per cent.
While Auslan ranked sixth overall, the majority of students studying the language were primary students, making up 95.2 per cent of overall enrolments. Secondary students therefore made up just 4.8 per cent of Auslan enrolments in 2020.
This has been a consistent theme throughout the past decade, dating back to 2012 where only 4.2 per cent of 9,629 Auslan enrolments were secondary pupils.
So, why the substantial difference?
As of May 2022, there were only six secondary schools in the state offering Auslan as a language provision, according to the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA).
This number incorporates schools from all sectors, including government, independent and catholic secondary schools in Victoria.
VCAA state on their website that students attending a school that is not able to provide a particular language study, "can enrol in studies at other schools or providers".
Therefore, primary students who wish to continue Auslan studies in secondary school must either attend one of six schools in the state that provide the language as a study option or organise alternative arrangements.
However, with few schools in Victoria offering the language provision, many students may lack access to these institutions.
Despite ranking below Auslan in total enrolments, Spanish studies were offered at 38 secondary schools and German studies were offered at 73 secondary schools in 2022, further reiterating the inequality that exists within Victorian education.
Many students lack the opportunity to further their Auslan studies in secondary school due to insufficient provision state-wide which may rightfully explain the disparity evident between primary and secondary Auslan enrolments in the last decade.
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