- Community Languages Program supported by record $2.345 million WA Government investment
- Goethe Society WA and Polish School WA language teachers take honours at Outstanding Community Language Teacher of the Year Awards 2025
- Community language teachers recognised by Annual Awards
The exemplary efforts of two community language teachers have been highlighted at the Outstanding Community Language Teacher of the Year awards 2025 held at WA Museum Boola Bardip last night.
The annual event pays tribute to the achievements of community language teachers and is presented by Community Languages WA in partnership with the Office of Multicultural Interests.
It features two awards in the categories of Outstanding Community Language Teacher of the Year and Emerging Community Language Teacher of the Year.
Mrs Christine Reger from the Goethe Society WA received the Outstanding Community Language Teacher of the Year Award, acknowledging a recipient who has made an exceptional contribution which significantly enhanced the quality of teaching and learning in a community language group in Western Australia.
Mrs Sylwia Mason, from the Polish School WA, received the Emerging Community Language Teacher of the Year Award, first introduced in 2024. This accolade is for a community language teacher in their first three years of teaching a community language. It aims to reflect the dedication of new teachers to community language schools.
The 2025 awards attracted a strong and competitive field of applicants from a wide range of community language schools, which reflected the value of the awards to the sector.
The WA Government has invested a record $2.345 million in the Community Languages Program for 2025, supporting 18,291 students across community language schools as well as the Italian in-School Insertion Program in the State.
This year, 59 community language schools teaching 37 languages such as Igbo, Amharic and Russian have been funded through the program.
More information on the Community Languages Program is available on the Office of Multicultural Interests' website .
As stated by Multicultural Interests Minister Dr Tony Buti:
"Congratulations to Mrs Christine Reger and Mrs Sylwia Mason for their well-deserved recognition as passionate educators who make a real difference to their students, inspiring a love of culture and language that I hope will last a lifetime.
"Many community language teachers are volunteers, selflessly offering their time, energy and skills to benefit their communities through helping to ensure community languages continue to be relevant, used and appreciated by young people.
"The Outstanding Community Language Teacher of the Year Awards 2025 is a valuable opportunity to celebrate and thank community language teachers for their role in empowering their students to embrace diverse aspects of their culture.
"Western Australia is enriched by the array of culturally diverse communities who make up its unique identity, and teaching community languages is a key way to help keep our cultural diversity strong and proud for generations to come."
