New Group of Language Assistants Helps Keep Italian Thriving

MELBOURNE – Smiling, excited and full of the energy that comes with a new adventure, a new cohort of Italian language assistants has arrived in Melbourne through Co.As.It.’s language assistant program. Over the coming months, they will work alongside teachers in schools across Victoria, helping bring the Italian language and culture to life for students.

Their presence is a valuable asset for language teachers, offering students direct contact with young native speakers and demonstrating that Italian is not just something found in textbooks, but a living, evolving language deeply connected to contemporary culture.

The 20 assistants, who come from all corners of Italy, will spend the rest of the year in Melbourne, bringing authentic language experiences into primary and secondary school classrooms. Along with standard Italian, they will introduce students to the accents, expressions and cultural nuances that make Italy’s linguistic landscape so rich and diverse.

For the assistants themselves, the experience promises to be equally transformative. Living and working in Australia will give them firsthand exposure to a school system and lifestyle very different from those they have known at home.

Upon arriving in Melbourne, the group spent several days at Co.As.It., where Michela Pellizon, Head of Educational and Language Services, and her colleagues introduced them to the Australian education system and provided practical guidance for daily life Down Under before they began their placements in Victorian schools.

What emerges from their stories is a shared sense of curiosity and a desire to explore unfamiliar worlds.

“I enjoy new adventures and new experiences,” said Jean, who believes his time in Melbourne will bring “a major change” to both his professional and personal life.

Yasmin, who holds a degree in Languages and Literature, did not hesitate to apply for an Australian placement because she has long been determined to live abroad.

“I’m trying as many experiences as possible so I can understand where I would like to settle permanently,” she said. “I’m extremely curious about Australia, even though it’s on the other side of the world.”

For Anna, who comes from Friuli, the decision to spend eight months in Melbourne was driven by a desire to immerse herself in an educational environment different from the Italian system. She was particularly interested in observing an approach to learning centred on play and discovery rather than traditional classroom instruction.

Being in Australia is the fulfilment of a long-held ambition, as teaching abroad had always been one of her goals after university.

The desire to challenge himself was also what motivated 27-year-old Antonio to apply for the Co.As.It. program. Originally from the province of Caserta, he had previously moved to Japan for an internship at the Italian Cultural Centre in Fukuoka, where he discovered a passion for teaching.

“I'm curious to understand how the Australian education system compares with those in Italy and Japan,” he said.

Several of the assistants already have classroom experience. Martina, for example, worked as a primary school teacher in Savona, teaching a Year 2 class before coming to Australia.

Ready to embrace a different educational approach, she sees the experience as an opportunity for professional growth.

“I know I’ll have to let go of many assumptions and habits from my current way of teaching,” she said.

Arianna, 25, from Rivolta d’Adda, also spent time working in primary school classrooms while studying for her degree in Education.

Keen to continue her professional development, she applied for the Co.As.It. program while simultaneously enrolling in a master's degree specialising in teaching Italian as a second language.

For her, the months spent in Victorian classrooms will provide the perfect combination of theory and practice.

If teaching can be described as a vocation, Francesca, 26, felt that calling strongly enough to undertake the experience twice. After spending time as an Italian language assistant in Sydney, she has now relocated to Melbourne for a second placement.

“I graduated in Italian Linguistics from La Sapienza University in Rome in January last year, and two months later I found myself in Sydney,” she said.

“I applied for the language assistant program partly by chance and partly because I was worried I might not be able to pursue teaching in Italy.”

The young Roman said her time in Australian classrooms ultimately helped clarify her future ambitions.

“Here in Australia I realised that teaching is exactly what I want to do,” she said.

She will now bring that passion to a girls’ secondary school in Melbourne.

The language assistant program has been running for three decades and continues to serve as what Italian Consul Chiara Mauri described during its 30th anniversary celebrations as “a remarkable example of cultural, educational and institutional cooperation between Italy and Australia”.

Just as importantly, it remains a life-changing experience for the young Italians who take part and for the thousands of students who have the opportunity to learn from them each year.