up2now is a learning portfolio where high school students can enter information and record their progress and achievements in learning a language (or languages).
 
The up2now website allows students to add to their portfolio via four sections: Results (e.g. school reports), Awards (e.g. formal accreditation), Achievements (not necessarily an official certificate), Student Profiles (i.e. summary of portfolio and personal description).
 
Awards are those achievements that are publicly recognised for the accreditation that is provided by the organisation upon successful completion. The inclusion of the Certificate of Attainment in Greek as an Award example in the up2now tool is a positive development that can further encourage the study of Greek in NSW schools, as it reinforces the relevance of learning Greek in the Australian educational and professional setting.
 
The Certificate of Attainment in Greek is the only qualification officially recognised internationally as confirming an individual’s knowledge of Greek as a language across six levels. The Centre for the Greek Language in Thessaloniki is the official institution authorised by the Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs, Greece to conduct the examinations for the Certificate, following the specifications of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages.

The up2now website can be found at:
http://www.up2now.net.au

The celebration of the 1st International Greek Language Day (9 February - Dionysios Solomos Commemoration Day) took place at the Parliament House of New South Wales on Thursday 8 February 2018.

The evening was organised by the Consul General of Greece in Sydney, Mr Christos Karras and included the 23rd Hellenic Studies Awards presented by the Australian Hellenic Educators’ Association, and the award ceremony for the Certificate of Attainment in Greek by the Centre for the Greek Language and the Consulate General of Greece in Sydney.

In the presence of parliamentarians, Greek language educators, family and friends, Hellenic Studies awardees and successful candidates of the Certificate of Attainment in Greek were presented with their awards and degrees respectively.

For a more extended coverage of the event, visit:
http://neoskosmos.com/news/en/Celebrating-the-International-Day-of-the-Hellenic-Language-at-the-23rd-Annual-Hellenic-Studies-Awards
and
http://60.241.173.43/kosmos/2018/02/13/

Photo source: O Kosmos Online and neoskosmos.com

Photo: Carnival in Greece. Photo source: flymetothemoontravel.com

“Apokria” or “Apokries’ in Greece refers to the Carnival season, a period which traditionally begins ten weeks before Greek Orthodox Easter and lasts for three weeks prior to Great Lent (Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστή). The carnival celebrations culminate on the weekend before “Clean Monday” (Ash Monday, Καθαρή Δευτέρα), which marks the beginning of Lent and is on 19 February this year.

The word «Αποκριά» or «Απόκρεω» (Apokria) is similar in meaning with the word “carnival” from the Latin “carneval/carnevale” and all point to the abstinence from meat as preparation for the fasting period during Lent.

Although today the Greek Apokria is connected to the Orthodox religion, the tradition dates back to the pagan world of ancient Greece. The ancient Dionysian festivals were a celebration of the rebirth of nature held at the end of winter as a way to welcome spring.

The characteristic of ‘Apokries’ in contemporary Greece is masquerading with the use of costumes and masks that can offer anonymity and thus possibly more freedom of expression. Different parts of Greece have their own customs and traditions during Apokries, which include float parades, playing jokes or dancing around big fires on the streets.  “Το καρναβάλι της Πάτρας" (the Big Carnival of Patras) is among the most famous events during Apokries in Greece, while other prominent carnivals include those at the cities of Xanthi and Rethymno.

‘Dionysios Solomos Commemoration Day’ held on 9 February each year has been recently established as ‘International Greek Language Day’ (see attached file: Joined Ministerial Decree No. ΑΣ 17889, Government Gazette, Β’/1384/24.04.2017).

Various Greek associations and communities, several Greek diplomatic missions as well as the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad have been promoting such an idea for years and as a result this year the 1st International Day for the Greek Language will be celebrated in Greece and across the diaspora.

In order to celebrate the 1st International Greek Language Day in Sydney, the Consulate General of Greece in Sydney has organised an evening where learners of Greek will receive their language awards. These awards include the Certificate of Attainment in Greek (Centre for the Greek Language, Consulate General of Greece in Sydney) and the Australian Hellenic Educators’ Association Awards.
 
Date: Thursday 8 February 2018
Venue: The Strangers’ Room, Parliament House of NSW, 6 Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 2000
Time: 6:00pm

Dear colleagues,

It is my turn to welcome you all into the new academic year and wish you a productive 2018, full of new teaching and learning encounters!

I would like to thank my beloved and highly respected colleague, Eleni Papagiannopoulou, for her introduction and welcoming wishes. It is my pleasure and honour to take over from Eleni and my previous colleagues seconded by the Ministry of Education in Greece, and build on their tireless efforts to support Greek language learning and teaching in NSW schools.

During my first day at the office of the Learning and Teaching Directorate of the NSW Department of Education I had the pleasure to meet a number of colleagues including members of the primary and secondary teams. I especially thank Amanda Davis, Nina Conomos, Dominic Crisafulli and Vera Szyjan for their warm welcome, Nina Conomos, in particular, for taking the time to introduce me to so many colleagues, and Dominic Crisafulli for generously offering valuable information on work-related and technical issues.

As a newly seconded teacher from Greece, I have noted a number of different providers for the teaching of the Greek language, from government and religious institutions to communities, associations and private institutes.  The existence of all the different providers as well as their contributions and the individual contributions of all language teachers are positive aspects for the learning and teaching of Greek.  Today, I invite us all to an even more close and fruitful collaboration for the benefit of many more generations of Greek language learners. For speaking Greek in addition to English, just as speaking any additional language, can be enriching not only for one’s own understanding of one’s roots but for one’s more versatile perspective on life, on others and on one’s own self.

Welcome to 2018,
Dr Maria Harissi

Dear colleagues,
I would like to wish you all a happy and a productive school year. 

I am pleased to announce that a worthy colleague Dr. Maria Harissi is taking over as a Greek Language Advisor at the DoE. Dr Harissi was recently seconded to Sydney by the Hellenic Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs. 
I would like to welcome her and wish her every success in her work. I am positive that she will have the full cooperation of all and the opportunity to make a substantial contribution to the progress of the Greek language in NSW.
I will keep trying my best to support the Greek Language and help in any way that I can.

I take the opportunity to thank you all for your cooperation. I would particularly like to thank my colleagues at the Learning and Teaching Directorate of the NSW Ministry of Education:​ Amanda Davis, Nina Conomos, Sana Zreika, Dominic Crisafulli, Elisabeth Robertson, Vera Szyjan and Janelle Byrne, for their constant support, guidance and feedback.

Maintaining and promoting the Greek language in NSW schools, as we all know, can be challenging but well worth-while and your contribution in this endeavour is valuable.
​
Warm regards,
Eleni Papagiannopoulou