MEC Languages & Cultures
The Minister for Education's Award for Excellence in Languages and Culture
The Minister for Education's Award for Excellence in Languages and Culture is run by the Australia Day Council of South Australia and provided by the Multicultural Education Committee on behalf of the Minister for Education. The Award is presented at the Australia Day Awards Ceremony held on Australia Day Eve in the grounds of Government House.
The Minister for Education's Award for Excellence in Languages and Culture 2010: Kayvan Abak
Kayvan fled Iran as a 13 year old completely separate from his family, after facing persecution for his religious beliefs. He arrived in Australia via people smugglers and was detained at the Woomera detention centre for 48 months as a teenager.
Despite these difficult beginnings, he mastered English and completed year 12 and went on to University to complete a social work degree. He now works as a Refugee Support Worker and has developed a number of programs to support different cultural groups in South Australia. Kayvan is fluent in four languages besides English and has used these skills to better support and also educate cultural groups.
Congratulations Kayvan!
Unfortunately Kayvan was unable to attend the presentation so Sister Theresa Swiggs accepted the Award on his behalf.
In 2010 there were three outstanding nominees who were given commendations in addition to the Award Winner. Here are there stories:
The Minister for Education's Commendations for Excellence in Languages and Culture 2010
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Sebastian Marr |
Sana Qasimy |
Pradeep Kumar Yadev |
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A trip to Indonesia sparked Sebastian’s interest in language. He has since become proficient in both Indonesian and Spanish and recently begun learning both Russian and Hungarian as well! Congratulations Sebastian. |
Sana and his family first came to Australia as refugees from Afghanistan. In 2005, at Blackfriars School, Sana was asked to convey their story to students to aid in understanding of the refugee experience. Sana has since been actively involved in presenting his story and helping others to understand both the Afghhan perspective and the importance of understanding other cultures. Congratulations Sana. |
Pradeep works for the South Australian Police in the Information Systems Branch, due to his fluency in four languages including Hindi, Marathi, Gujrati and Urdu. He has demonstrated an ability to work across cultures to ensure the community is a safer one, improving the interactions between Police and many different cultural groups in Adelaide. Congratulations Pradeep |
