Tamil Schools

மேற்கு ஆஸ்திரேலியா தமிழ்ப் பள்ளிகள்

North Tamil School | South Tamil School | Bunbury Tamil School | Valluvan Tamil School

The Tamil Association of WA, with the help of hard-working volunteers runs four Tamil Schools one for the Northern Suburbs, two for the southern suburbs, one in Bunbury. Our teachers come from different countries, like India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Singapore. This diversity not only gives our children a vast variety in the teaching techniques but also gives the teachers an understanding of how our language is taught in each of their countries.

Tamil schools are supported by the Office of Multicultural Interests (OMI) with funding provided under the Community Languages Schools program. They also participate in the OMI’s Pathway to Improvement Program (PIP) and achieved the Stage 1 registration status in 2019.

Teachers participate in ongoing professional development programs. Students participate in a range of Local Government and State level multicultural events and competitions, promoting the Tamil language and culture to the broader Australian community.

The school acts as a center for many children to learn the language and participate in Tamil cultural activities. The school holds the end of term assemblies to allow children to perform at events at the end of each school term. The school also holds parent-teacher meetings for teachers to discuss the children’s progress.

Further to this, the school conducts an annual Tamil Concert which showcases student’s language skills along with traditional dance and music items. The school community comes together to celebrate Tamil New Year and the Deepavali festival.

While schools operate individually, the principals frequently communicate and share knowledge with each other to organize group events like the School Concert, Tamil speech competition and Sports Day.

Syllabus

The schools adopt the New South Wales Federation of Tamil Schools (NSWFTS) syllabus and material. This syllabus is used in Tamil Language schools across Australia.

Our Tamil schools are as diverse as our country, with student and teacher percentages spread across 4 countries where Tamil is spoken. The principals and teachers look towards continually improving everything from the syllabus to teaching techniques.

Voluntary Services

All teachers provide their services voluntarily. Apart from some token amounts of money that may be paid for travel or associated teaching aids, our teachers do this purely for their love of the language and culture. It is important that you as a parent or member note the hard work put in by our Tamil School teachers and applaud them for their efforts.

Schools

Perth North Tamil School provides the opportunity for school-aged children in the northern suburbs to learn the Tamil language and engage in Tamil cultural activities. The school has 9 classes and 10 teachers with over 100 children enrolled in 2019. A management committee comprising ten volunteers is responsible for the school’s administration. Parents and senior members from the community provide valuable guidance and advice in developing the school’s programs and events.
The school was founded in 1995 by Tamil community members living in the northern suburbs of Perth. With the growth in student numbers, the school has expanded its facilities with additional classrooms in the adjoining Meerilinga Community Centre in 2019, and the Ballajura Public Library and the White Lion Youth Centre from 2020.

South Tamil School of Western Australia was formed in 1980 by our Tamil community members who felt the need to teach Tamil language to our children so that they do not lose their identity and mother tongue. The ‘Tamil School’ conducted its classes at ‘Tamil House’ in Perth City up until 1995. In 1995, the ‘Tamil School’ moved to Mandela hall in Bateman and functioned there up until 2009. With the formation of the ‘North Tamil School’ in 1995, the ‘Tamil School’ embraced the adjective of ‘South’ and became the ‘South Tamil School’. In 2010, the School moved to the Willetton Senior High School and operated there up until mid-2013. Since July 2013 the school operates in the current Lynwood Senior High School location. The school celebrates the fortieth anniversary in 2020.

The South Tamil School offers Tamil language classes from Kindergarten to Year 12, including the ATAR course to enable the students to take Tamil as a second language subject in the Year 12 exam. The school curriculum includes Tamil language, literature, arts, cultural and social values. The School has special and transitional classes for current and newly enrolled students based on their learning capacities and needs. The South Tamil School is a diverse school that involves teachers, students, and management from many countries such as India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Singapore.

The South Tamil School is managed and administered by an 11-member volunteer management team with the involvement of parent and community volunteers. The school now has 20 classes and more than 40 trained volunteer teachers with more than 350 student enrolments.

Bunbury Tamil School started in 2019 with about 15 students and volunteers from parents to school teachers. This school caters all the interested students in and around Bunbury and culture our language from the right age.

Valluvan Tamil School provides a fun and friendly environment for school-aged children from kindergarten to learn and excel in the Tamil language as well as engaging them in various Tamil cultural activities throughout the year. Operating from 9 February 2020 at Harrisdale Senior High School, It is aimed to cater to the growing Tamil community in Perth’s southern suburbs. School administration and operations are managed by a committee of six volunteers. Parents and senior members from the community will be volunteering as teachers and providing their valuable guidance and advice for the development of the school and related events.

Please do not hesitate to Email schools@tawa.org.au for any other details.