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Registrations are now open for the NSW Japanese Teachers' Conference 2026 which will be held on Friday 27 March 2026 at the Parramatta Education Office. The theme is 'The power to learn, the passion to teach'. Cost is $50 for DoE teachers and $150 for non-DoE teachers. Teaching standards are 2.1.2, 2.4.2, 2.6.2, 3.4.2, 6.2.2. Registrations are now open until Friday 20 March or when places have been filled. Please visit the Japanese Teachers’ Conference 2026 website for further information on pricing, the agenda and to register.

The NSW Department of Education has just published comprehensive support for the new Auslan K-10 Syllabus, for implementation from 2026. The fully-resourced Stage 4 unit of work is for Term 1 so you can jump in now in preparation for Term 1 next year. The full suite of support on the Auslan page includes: Stage 4 and Stage 5 sample scope and sequences a fully-resourced Stage 4 sample unit of work – 'Myself and my class', including videos of Auslan 'in action' student-friendly infographics for each scope and sequence and the unit of work 28 ready-to-go activities with resources and answer sheet. In addition to the curriculum support you will also find: advice for schools teaching the Auslan K–10 Syllabus programming guidelines assessment guidelines an infographic that unpacks the 'Role of language, culture and identity' outcome (AU4-RLC-01). The team has recorded a launch of the Auslan support that you can access any time. The video includes a syllabus overview and a walk-through of the resources, including the sample unit set and how to find it. You can also find information and advice on preparing to teach Auslan in your school, as well as how to seek advice regarding accreditation and staffing.

The Languages and Culture team is very excited to announce that their new eLearning course, Practical strategies to enhance student engagement in the language classroom ,   is now live! The course is divided into 10 sequential modules and focuses on addressing the challenges of student disengagement, specifically within the languages context in Stages 4 and 5. Throughout the modules, you will explore what student disengagement looks like, examine factors that may impact student engagement and gain access to practical strategies to enhance student engagement in the classroom that can be modified or adapted to suit all stages, languages and contexts. To support your learning, the course includes videos of language classrooms in action, as well as images and visual examples that deepen your understanding of effective engagement practices. Please note that the modules must be completed in order, as each builds on the learning from the previous one. Upon completion, participants can log 3 hours of professional development (PD) in eTAMS. You can access this course on MyPL, using the course code NPL00612

Are you a teacher of Japanese, or a stakeholder in Japanese education? The NSW Department of Education is currently seeking expressions of interest (EOIs) to present at their Japanese Language Teachers' Conference 2026. The conference will be held on Friday 27 March 2026 at Parramatta, with the theme 'The power to learn, the passion to teach'. If you are successful in the EOI process, you will have your conference fees waived. For NSW public school teachers, you will also receive 2 days’ relief (1 day to prepare and 1 day to attend the conference).  For teachers, EOIs must be endorsed by your principal and submitted by 5pm on Friday 31 October 2025.  Further information can be found on the relevant EOI form, or please contact Shanelle Ingram, Languages Adviser on 0448 479 778 or at  shanelle.ingram@det.nsw.edu.au .

Looking for language-specific professional learning in 2026?

When designing assessment for your language classes, incorporating structured student choice, linked to syllabus outcomes and with clear expectations and learning goals, can be a powerful way to support learning. Student choice in assessment where students are given options, or may even negotiate their own, can have the following benefits for students: Increased motivation and engagement with a greater sense of ownership Support for various learning styles Select contexts to use language relevant to their world Encourages critical thinking as they plan and reflect on how they will demonstrate their skills Differentiated content for different language proficiency and interests Builds confidence by using language in ways they feel comfortable with Links language to identity and culture To ensure fairness in assessment while offering student choice is achievable with clear, consistent criteria, design and support. The key is the what (learning outcomes)  stays the same, while the how (task)  varies. This can be achieved through: using a common set or marking guidelines, regardless of the format students choose focus on skills not the task, ensuring all options demonstrate the same core language skills clearly communicate what the learning goals and success criteria looks like before students choose, such as language use, vocabulary, grammar and cultural awareness use templates and scaffolds, so all students can succeed provide a limited set of task options which are aligned with the same outcomes, have the same language content and skills and can be assessed using the same marking guidelines, for example using an assessment choice board incorporate opportunities for self reflection and peer feedback using the marking guidelines during the unit use moderation processes to ensure consistent teacher judgement. 'When you're giving your students choice, you're giving them opportunities to become more engaged, to find avenues of learning that excite them, that make them want to learn more.' - Student-Centered World .

To support you with the 'Interacting' focus area in the Modern Languages K-10 Syllabus, particularly with large classes, the Languages and Culture team at the NSW Departmnet of Education has just added 2 new documents to their website: Guidelines for assessing ‘Interacting’ in Stage 4 Assessing ‘Interacting’ through card play - sample. You can find both documents on our Assessing 'Interacting'  webpage. The team has also just completed reformatting their Stage 6 pages , which are now organised into: Teaching resources Student resources. You can access them all from our Planning, programming and assessing languages 11–12  link.

Registrations are now open for the Beginning and Preservice Teachers' Workshop, designed to support beginning teachers (in their first 5 years of teaching) and preservice teachers. As you start your careers as language teachers, the NSW Department of Education will support you with teaching and learning strategies, and planning and programming.   The theme of the workshop is Ready, set, teach! Tools, tips and teamwork for the journey ahead.   At the workshop there will be a number of presentations including: You’re not alone - click on our support and connect with the team Hooked from the start - sparking student engagement Work smarter, not harder - time-saving teacher tips (for beginning teachers) Plan with purpose - teaching and learning design that works (for preservice teachers) Tech it out together - explore, play and share. To register go to MyPL.  Date: Thursday 23 October Time:  8:45 am-3 pm Venue: Department of Education NSW Office, 105 Phillip Street, Parramatta Course name:  Languages and Culture Secondary Curriculum - Beginning and Preservice Teachers' Workshop Course code: TPL01068 Choose the relevant session for you - Beginning OR Preservice teacher Places are limited and registrations close when places are filled or by 16 October.   For further information, please contact shanelle.ingram@det.nsw.edu.au  or coreena.allen@det.nsw.edu.au .

Save the date for the NSW Department of Education's upcoming Beginning and Preservice Teachers' Workshop, designed to support beginning language teachers (in their first 5 years of teaching) and preservice language teachers. As you start your careers, the Languages and Culture team will support you with teaching and learning strategies, and planning and programming.   The theme is Ready, set, teach! Tools, tips and teamwork for the journey ahead.   At the workshop there will be a number of presentations including: You’re not alone - click on our support and connect with the team Hooked from the start - sparking student engagement Work smarter, not harder - time-saving teacher tips (for beginning teachers) Plan with purpose - teaching and learning design that works (for preservice teachers) Tech it out together - explore, play and share. Places are limited and registrations will open soon.

The NSW Department of Education's support materials for the Chinese Extension prescriptions 2026-2030 are now available to teachers from all sectors. The link to the materials can be found on the Stage 6 section of the department's website  under the heading Extension support materials. The materials are designed to guide the teaching of the prescribed issues and prescribed texts for  Chinese . These materials were produced with the assistance of teacher expert writers, whose contributions were significant and are much appreciated.  Important note : As the support includes extracts, transcripts and lyrics from the prescribed texts, for copyright reasons the resources are behind a password protected firewall that only Extension teachers can access. These support materials are intended for teacher use only. Please do not share the materials in their entirety with students, including sharing on school digital platforms. Instead, teachers use the activities and information as a basis to guide the design of their own teaching and learning activities .

If you missed the Languages and Culture team's statewide staff meeting on consistent teacher judgement , you can now access the recording .   The features include:  What is consistent teacher judgement? What are you comparing for consistent teacher judgement? C grades are expected Why is consistent teacher judgement important? Getting started Effective assessment Goals of collaboration for consistent teacher judgement Process for collaboration for consistent teacher judgement Negotiating differences Check for bias Finding collaboration partners Looking at a task together Formative assessment to build to consistent judgement Making consistent judgement when it is tricky Further assessment support.   Thank you for your attendance and for the highest audience participation we have had in a statewide staff meeting, we enjoy working with you and hearing your feedback and perspectives!   If you're a member of the team's statewide staffroom, you can also access related posts in the Ideas channel , which focus on assessment throughout this term.

CI (Comprehensible Input) is an innovative language teaching strategy that has been gaining success Australia wide over the past 15 years in Australian classrooms. The 2026 Brisbane conference will be the 6th conference to be held in Australia, with previous conferences held in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia.   The 2026 conference will follow the model used during the 2024 NSW conference. Language labs (teachers working with beginner language learners over 10 consecutive lessons, for conference participants to either observe or participate in as students) will run each morning and after lunch, workshops run by both Australian and international teachers will be available.    The organising team is warmly encouraging and inviting Australian CI language teachers keen to share a successful aspect of their practice in one or more of the afternoon workshops.  Further to this, please see the EOI link  for anyone keen to present a workshop at the conference. All successful applicants will not be charged registration for the day of their workshop.