Milpera Live

​​​​​Croatian-born Irena Sopic-Zdral was shocked when told Australia was very lucky to have her.

'That was when I thought, “Oh, I can really bring something to this country,”' Irena said. 'Until then I was only conscious of what I did not have—fluent English.'

The positive comment was made shortly after Irena's arrival in Australia when she was a volunteer at Milpera State High School, which helps newly arrived migrant and refugee students learn English before they transition to mainstream state high schools.

Twenty-five years later, now fully trained teacher Irena leads Milpera State High School's 'Milpera Live' initiative, a completely free online English-language program for Years 5–9 refugee and migrant students.

Born out of COVID

Irena's Milpera Live team of 8​ teachers, including herself, delivers the program that resulted from the COVID pandemic.

In 2021 staff at Milpera State High School had travelled to nearby primary schools to observe younger migrant and refugee students learning and also to collaborate with teacher colleagues.

'During COVID lockdowns we realised we could teach these students online, and then we realised we could reach other more remote Queensland state schools that were keen to access our service,' Irena said.

Sector-wide demand

Now 4 years on Milpera Live has gone from strength to strength.

In its first year, it provided lessons for 20 students per Term.

A three-year partnership with Schools Plus supported the establishment of Milpera Live and ensured the development of further programs.

'At the moment we have 6 classes and 81 students,' Irena said.

'I want to also thank my colleague Donna Torr, who helped write the initial Milpera Live programs. Donna and two key teachers, Hannah Turner and Oliver Ryan, who learnt how to teach online, were just some of the pivotal people responsible for Milpera Live becoming a reality.'

'We also connected with Dr Sue Creagh a TESOL [Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages] academic to ensure that the integrity of our program was underpinned by high quality TESOL research.'

Milpera Live has just been made part of the recently released and wider ranging Queensland Virtual Academy (QVA), which provides a much wider range of subjects.

Milpera Live programs

Milpera Live provides 3 10-week 'rounds' per year, where students participate in 1-hour sessions twice a week.

This schedule provides an intensive, but most importantly a fun-filled, program.

'Our 3 (proficiency level related) programs are all based on short books written by MSHS's [Milpera State High School] author-in-residence, Claire Kamber,' Irena said.

'The class activities are based on her narratives, Blue Water, All in a Game and Shark Beach.

'Claire has based the books on the students here and the need we have at this school.

'They feature a boy from Congo, a girl from Samoa and a boy from Brazil who loves soccer.'

Irena is happy to report they will shortly launch a 4th program, also based on a Claire Kamber book.

'This means we will be able to cater for even more students as the demand is definitely there,' Irena said.

Target group

Irena said while remoteness drives schools to sign up, it's not the only driver.

'MSHS has grown and can only offer places to high school age students now, so Milpera Live is now helping younger students right across Queensland including here in the south-east,' Irena said.

'We're trying to help students who need this EAL/D [English as an additional language or dialect] support to become the best they can be, and we are trying to help them in their own schools.

'In Brisbane there are also primary students who might not have the EAL/D support they need—Milpera Live is responding to the issues of distance and age.'

Kids love it

Sherwood State School Inclusion Teacher Raelee Bonython, whose students have benefitted from the program, has high praise for the Milpera Live initiative.​

'Milpera Live has been a fantastic support for Sherwood State School, providing targeted English language learning for students in Years 5 and 6 in our school,' Raelee said.

'The partnership with Milpera has strengthened our ability to support new arrivals and helped them transition smoothly into school life at Sherwood.'

Raelee also said her kids love the program and often comment on how much fun it is and how it has lifted their confidence, plus how it has helped their technology and online skills improve.

'One student said it has helped his writing improve and another said the books have helped her understand lots of people move to Brisbane and go to a new school.'

The real prize

While Irena and her team love to see their students' English develop, they also love witnessing their confidence build and their friendships emerge with other online class members.

Irena says while their assessments show most students improve their overall English by approximately 17% over one round, it's what she hears that tells her they have really progressed.

'As a teacher and as an English speaker, you can tell how much of an improvement a person has made,' she said.

'When you see a young student approaching a student from another cultural background and they chat and talk to each other, that's how we can tell they have improved.

'And they don't have the same language apart from English; they only do that when they're confident, and then their speaking will improve.'

But Irena says another key yardstick is the friendships they form.

'Seeing students from a variety of schools working with each other, gaining knowledge and supporting each other, that is wonderful,' Irena said. 'You know when one student, maybe from another school, praises another one from a different school—that's fabulous.'

To participate

Student IT requirements:

• A laptop/desktop with a camera
• Internet access
• Headphones with a microphone attached

Contact

Email: milperalive@milperashs.eq.edu.au
Phone: (07) 3270 3222