Bujari gamarruwa

We never know whether our words will reach their audience in the way that we hope.

Occasionally, I am given the opportunity to deliver the keynote address to the 400 students and staff attending my school’s High School Assembly. It’s a spot usually held by the Principal, which once each term is offered to myself and my co-Deputy Principal, to speak on a topic of our choosing.

Last week was one of those occasions.

I take the opportunity to speak to our students really seriously.

I hope that what I say to them makes them think. But, more than that, I hope that they are moved to take action as a result of what I say.

It seems, this time, that my words found their audience and that people have been moved to act. It has been so pleasing to have feedback from teachers and students that my words connected with them.

I chose to talk with my students about some words that we hear spoken every week but perhaps have never stopped to think about. I talked about the significance of understanding why the words are spoken, and which people those words are spoken about. I talked about the words that those people would have spoken and what has happened to that language. And I talked about what my students and colleagues can do to ensure that those words and that language might be known and heard.

It is reported that of the 200+ languages that were spoken on the Australian continent 200+ years ago, only thirteen are living, breathing languages today. Once thriving languages have been lost, or face extinction.

At a High School Assembly in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, though, on a Tuesday morning last week, the language of the Gadigal people – the Sydney language – was spoken by 400 young people.

I’m grateful that students reached out to me afterwards to share how my words reached them.

I’m grateful that I chose to speak on a topic that has led to a team of teachers implementing changes to their teaching programs, therefore reaching dozens of students immediately, and many more in years to come.

I’m grateful that my words did reach my audience in the way I hoped they would.

But I’m most proud that the words of those who were speaking on the same spot hundreds of years before were able to be spoken there, again.

For the full transcript of my address, click here.