Throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), I had discussed the importance of having a high level of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace for the future of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business or people-to-people in nature). However, while the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan are among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that had specialised in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that this decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language (and, more generally, the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English) at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system has had negative ramifications for the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, as well as the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia.

When it comes to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and Japan had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), as well as the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally, having a high level of Japan literacy (as well as having a high level of Asia literacy more generally) is widely seen as important for both the development, as well as the maintenance, of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, as well as the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the constituent nation-state and territories of Asia, especially when it comes to the future of these relationships as the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan) are among the most important relationships that Australia has with the world’s constituent nation-states and territories. But despite the importance of the various relationships that Australia has with Japan (as well as the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories), in recent years, the development of Asia literacy (and in particular the development of Japan literacy) among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) had been downplayed by governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (whether the government in question had been located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system, and this tend to be most pronounced among governments that had been located at both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system), placing a stronger emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the SASH (the Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study, the latter including the teaching and the study of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching and study of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012 by the Australian Federal Government, of which the Japanese language was one of the four Asian languages other than English that was identified as a ‘priority’ Asian language other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century), and an argument could be made that this decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system has had negative ramifications for the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of Japan literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace.

And while there had been a decline in the number of academic programs that had specialised in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) and that the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012, of which the Japanese language was one of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as a ‘priority’ Asian language other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper), it has not been the only part of the wider Australian society that had seen a decline in its focus on Japan. Another part of the wider Australian society that has seen a decline in its focus on Japan (and, more generally, a decline in its focus on Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories) in recent years has been large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), which had, in recent years, seen a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (and, more generally, a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories), and that an argument could be made that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”).

As had been discussed in the fourth article in this series of articles that had looked at the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (and, more generally, Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) and the impact that it had on the image that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (as well as Asia more generally) has had on the image of Japan that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the image of Japan that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media system often serves as the people’s window on the outside world, a role that became more pronounced during the coronavirus pandemic which saw national governments around the world implement restrictions on movements (both internally as well as externally) in order to control its spread, limiting physical people-to-people contact between the people of Australia and the people of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and in particular physical people-to-people contact between the people of Australia and the people of Japan. And in regards to the coronavirus pandemic, and the limitations that it imposed on the level of people-to-people contact between the people of Australia and the people of Japan, an argument could be made that the coronavirus pandemic also had negative ramifications for the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, especially as many media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (and this had especially been the case with media outlets that makes up the so-called “mainstream media”) citing the coronavirus pandemic as the reason behind the closure of various news bureaus that had been located throughout Asia.

When it comes to the future of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that both the educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), as well as the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) will play an important role in the development of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the development of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace. As had been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, in recent years, there had been a decline in both the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (and, more generally, a decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), and an argument could be made that these two key variables can have negative ramifications for the future of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan, as having a high level of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, is important for the various relationships that exist between the two nation-states.

So, what is the future of the various relationships between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) and what role that the level of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among the members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) can play in regards to the future of the various relationships between Australia and Japan and the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Japan? In this sixth and final article in this series of articles that had been looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) which can influence how Japan is viewed among members of the general Australian populace. In this article, I will be discussing the future of Japan literacy in Australia through both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular educational institutions that had been located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) as well as the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (as well as the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”).

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/09…

As had been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that had existed among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) has been the among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and that in this regard, an argument could be made that when it comes to both the development, as well as the maintenance, of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, a high level of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace – and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system – is often required. In recent decades, governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that had been located at both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system, and whether it is the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that is in power at either, or both, of these levels of the Australian political system), as well as industry groups (both within, as well as outside, the Australian education system) had released various policy papers and white papers that had been aimed at increasing the level of Asia literacy that had existed among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, with the most important of these key documents being the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released by the Australian Federal Government in October 2012.

As had been discussed in the third article in this series of articles that looked at both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), in recent decades, much of the emphasis that had been paid by governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system had been to the development of Asia literacy among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. When it came to the development of Asia literacy among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Asia literacy among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system the Australia in the Asian Century white paper identified four Asian languages other than English as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English that students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system would be encouraged to undertake study in in order to better prepared for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, of which the Japanese language was one of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as a ‘priority’ Asian language other than English that students who were undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system were encouraged to undertake study in.

In the previous article in this series of articles, there was a discussion on the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (and, more generally, the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories), and how the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (and Asia more generally) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, but also the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. And when it came to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, an argument could be made that the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had emanated from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) can have ramifications for the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Japan, and in particular the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan.

However, despite the importance of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and Japan in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) to both Australia and Japan, in recent years, much like the decline in the number of academic programs that had specialised in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language (as well as, more generally, the decline in the number of academic programs that specialised in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English, and in particular the teaching and the study of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper), in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (and, in general, a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), and that an argument could be made that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) has had an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views Japan, and this in turn can have an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views the Japanese people. It has often been argued that the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) often serves as the people’s window on the outside world, a role that became more important during the coronavirus pandemic, which saw governments around the world close their national borders (as well as imposing restrictions on internal movements) in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus, and that the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem had often used the coronavirus pandemic as a pretext to close bureaus in key cities throughout Asia and that these closures of bureaus that had been located throughout Asia has led to a decline in the level of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and this had especially been the case when it comes to the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem.

When it comes to the development of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), having a high level of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) is important for the development of the various relationships that has existed between Australia and Japan, and that when it comes to the development of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace, the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), this can influence the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. However, in recent years, there had been a decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) and that an argument could be made that the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem has had negative ramifications for the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Japan and the Japanese people, and this has especially been the case when it comes to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, which will be the main focus of attention in this fifth article in this series of articles that is looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and this is largely due to the importance of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and Japan in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature).

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/09…

In the third article in this series of articles on Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), I had a look at the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels of the Australian education system, and how the level, depth, and quality of both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language (and, more generally, the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English, and in particular the teaching and the study of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. As had been discussed throughout the course of the third article in this series of articles, in recent decades, governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (whether the government in question had been located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system, and this had especially been the case in regards to governments that had been located at the state and federal levels of the Australian political system, and whether it is the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that is in power at either, or both, of these levels of the Australian political system) had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system to undertake study of Asia and an Asian language other than English (and in particular one of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released by the Australian Federal Government in October 2012) in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

However, and this had also been discussed in the third article in this series of articles, despite the active encouragement from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system to encourage students to undertake study of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular to undertake study in one of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper, which were the Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, Indonesian and Japanese languages) in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, in recent years, there had been a move away from both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, with a growing emphasis instead being paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study. In this regard, an argument could be made that this decline in the level of emphasis that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and an increase in the level of emphasis in both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM fields of study could have negative ramifications for both the level of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and that this, in turn, can have negative ramifications for the level of Japan literacy that exist among the general Australian populace as a whole.

And while there had been a decline in the level, depth, and quality of both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language (and, more generally, the teaching and study of Asia and Asian languages other than English) at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that the various educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system has not been the only sector of the wider Australian society that had witnessed a decline in the dissemination of knowledge of Asia and its constituent nation-state and territories, as another sector that had seen a decline in the dissemination of knowledge of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories has been the Australian media ecosystem, as in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) and an argument could be made that this could lead to a decline in the level of Japan literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace. In this regard, an argument could be made that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem can have negative ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views Japan and the Japanese people.

It has often been argued that the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) has often served as the people’s window on the outside world, and that this important role that the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem plays in informing the general Australian populace of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from around the world became more pronounced during the coronavirus pandemic which saw the closure of international borders in order to stop the spread of coronavirus. However, much like the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), which was discussed in the third article in this series of articles that is looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), in recent years, there had been a decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), with this decline having negative ramifications for the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia, and in particular the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature).

As had been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) has been widely considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and that having a high level of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace is important when it comes to the development of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan. However, while educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system does play an important role in the development of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace (which is important for the development of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan), it is not the only aspect of the wider Australian society that can play a role in the development of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, as another aspect of the wider Australian society that can play a role in the development of Japan literacy among members of the general Australian populace is the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), and that an argument could be made that having a high level of understanding of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan among members of the general Australian populace is important for the future of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan.

However, much like the decline in the number of academic programs that had specialised in both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this was discussed in much detail in the third article in this series of articles that looked at both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), in recent years, there had been a noticeable decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media), and not only can this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan (as well as, more generally, the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories) can have negative ramifications for, not only the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, but also how members of the general Australian populace views Japan and the Japanese people. In this fourth article in this series of articles that is looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), I will be looking at the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, in both the so-called “mainstream media” as well as in the so-called “alternative media”, and how the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem has impacted the level of, not only the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, but also how members of the general Australian populace views both Japan and the Japanese people.

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/09…

In the second article in this series of articles that is looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), I looked at the history of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the educational institution in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), and the role that the history of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan had played in the development of Japan literacy that had existed among the general Australian populace, with this being most pronounced among older Australians. As had been discussed in much detail in both the first and second articles in this series of articles, when it comes to the history of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan and how this had impacted the level of Japan literacy that had existed among members of the general Australian populace, It is important to understand the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories had often been fraught with tension, and that this had led to a strong level of reluctance among members of the general Australian populace to develop a level of Asia literacy (and in particular a level of Japan literacy) in order to better prepare themselves for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by both the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

When it comes to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia (and in particular the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan), the development of Asia literacy (and in particular the development of Japan literacy) among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) has become more important than ever, and this had been largely due to the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. However, while Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (as well as the development of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace) had become more important to Australia – especially in regards to the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories – in recent years, despite the focus of governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that had been located at both the states and federal levels of the Australian political system) on both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching and the study of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper) in order to increase the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of Japan literacy) among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) in order to better prepare them for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by both the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, in recent years, governments at all three levels of the Australian political system, and in particular governments that had been located at both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system, had begun to place a stronger emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of the teaching and the study of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

When it comes to the education policy of governments that had been located at both the states and territories of the Australian education system, while there had been a large focus being paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012 by the Australian Federal Government, which, at the time was led by Prime Minister Julia Gillard who was the leader of the centre-left Australian Labor Party which was in power at the federal level of the Australian political system) in recent decades in order to better prepare students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories; but in recent years, there had been a strong emphasis on the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM fields of study at the expense of the teaching and the study of Asia and Asian languages other than English. In this regard, an argument could be made that this switch from the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper) to the focus being paid to the teaching and the study of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study is in stark contrast to previous policies that had emanated from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

As had been discussed in the second article in this series of articles that is looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), when it comes to the level of Japan literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, the history of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) has had ramifications for the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among the older members of the general Australian populace. However, it could also be argued that this could also impact the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and it is this that will be looked at in this third article in this series of articles that will be looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among the general Australian populace.

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/09…

In the previous series of articles that looked at the level of China literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system, and this had especially been the case when it comes to the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), I discussed the history of the various relationships that had existed between (what is now) the Commonwealth of Australia and (what is now) the People’s Republic of China (with a particular focus being paid to the diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, as well as the people-to-people relationships between Australia and the People’s Republic of China) has, throughout the post-British settlement history of Australia (which begun on 26 January 1788) had often been fraught with tension, although the same argument could be made that the history of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, and this had particularly been the case when it comes to the people-to-people relationships that existed between the two nation-states. And much like how the Immigration Restriction Act of 1901 (which was the first piece of legislation that was passed by the newly created Australian Federal Parliament in 1901), the “White Australia Policy” (as the Immigration Restriction Act of 1901 was also known as) had negative ramifications for the various relationships that existed between Australia and the then Chinese Empire (and in particular the people-to-people relationships that existed between Australia and the then Chinese Empire), the “White Australia Policy” would also have negative ramifications for the various relationships that existed between Australia and Japan (including restrictions that was imposed on immigration to Australia from Japan). However, and this will be discussed in much detail in this second article in this series of articles on Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this had especially been the case when it comes to the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), while the “White Australia Policy” did place heavy restrictions of the level of immigration to Australia from Japan, these restrictions did not dampen the people-to-people connections between Australia and Japan.

When it came to the various relationships that existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question was diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), one key event that has had negative ramifications for the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan had been the Second World War and a fear among the general Australian populace at the time of a possible Japanese invasion of Australia, a fear that came true in 1942 when the Japanese Imperial Army bombed Darwin. However, and this will be discussed in more detail later on in this second article in this series of article on Japan literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, when it comes to the various relationships that existed between Australia and Japan in the 1930s and into the 1940s, and this had particularly been the case in regards to the people-to-people relationships that existed between the people of Australia and the people of Japan (which, due to the “White Australia Policy” being in effect at the time, placed heavy restrictions on people-to-people relationships between the people of Australia and the people of Japan at the time), the expansion of the Japanese Empire into mainland Asia in the years leading up to the beginning of the Second World War, combined with a general fear among the general Australian populace at the time of a potential invasion of Australia by the Japanese Empire saw an increase in the level of hostility that the general Australian populace has towards Japan and the Japanese people. But at the same time, an argument could be made that the hostility that was shown towards Japan and the Japanese people by members of the general Australian populace at the time was to be the latest chapter in the history of hostility that members of the general Australian populace (who, at the time, considered themselves to be British subjects, as the concept of Australian citizenship would not be a thing until 1949, and even then, Australia would remain constitutionally tethered to the United Kingdom until 1986 with the passage of the Australia Act) had towards Asia.

As had been discussed in the previous series of articles that looked at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, ever since the beginning of British colonisation of Australia on 26 January 1788, there had been a high level of fear among the British in the then Colony of New South Wales of the region that they (and their descendants) would call home, a fear that would become more pronounce during the Gold Rushes of the 1850s and the arrival of the Chinese diggers on the goldfields of the then Colonies of New South Wales and Victoria (the latter having just become a separate British colony, having previously been a part of the former), with the arrival of the Chinese diggers resulting in open hostility towards the Chinese by the British, which resulted n the Victorian colonial government passing laws that placed strong restrictions in regards to the entry of the Chinese into the Colony of Victoria, including an entry tax of £10 for any Chinese person who entered the Colony of Victoria through any Victorian port. When it came to the various relationships that had existed between (what is now) the Commonwealth of Australia and Asia (which, at the time, was largely under European colonial control), at the time, the restrictions that that Victorian colonial government at the time placed on those who were attempting to enter the Colony of Victoria from China, combined with the later implementation of the “White Australia Policy” in 1901 by the newly established Australian Federal Parliament, saw (what is now) the Commonwealth of Australia close itself from its own region.

In this second article in this series of articles that will be looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, I will be looking at the history of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in questions is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), and how the history of these relationships between Australia and Japan has had on the level of Japan literacy that exists among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among student who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system). When it comes to the development of Japan literacy among the general Australian populace, an argument could be made that the willingness of members of the general Australian populace to become Japan literate could be a generational thing, with older generations (who had been more impacted by the Second World War) being less likely than younger generations to be willing to develop a high level of Japan literacy, an issue that will be discussed in more detail later on in this second article in this series of articles that is looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system).

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/09…

It has often been discussed in large sections of the wider Australian society that the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship that exist between Australia and Japan had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) are among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and that due to the importance of these relationships that Australia has with Japan (and, more generally, the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories), there had been much emphasis paid to by governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (whether the government in question had been located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system, and whether it is the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that has been in power at these levels of the Australian political system) paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language) at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) in order to increase the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. In recent years, governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that had been located at both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system, and whether it was the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that had been in power at either, or both, of these levels of the Australian political system) had introduced various policies that had been aimed at increasing the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of Japan literacy) that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, as well as, more generally, the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of Japan literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace.

When it comes to the development of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), the various educational institutions that makes up the wider Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) plays an important role in the development of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. In regards to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and an argument could be made that this could also be applied to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system). However, while there had been an emphasis paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (as well as the teaching, and the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English), in recent decades (and this will be discussed in much detail in the third article in this series of articles that will be looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, with governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that had been located across the state and federal levels of the Australian political system) had placed a strong emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching and the study of Japan and the Japanese language) at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the emphasis that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English, with the emphasis instead being paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study, and that these changes had resulted in a decline in the level of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

And while there had been much emphasis paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Japan and the Japanese language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) among both governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that had been located at both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system), as well as by the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), there had been one aspect of the wider Australian society that can influence the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of Japan literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system is the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”). As will be discussed in much detail in the fourth article in this series of articles that will be looking at Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (again, whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) often serves as the people’s window on the outside world (a role that became more important during the coronavirus pandemic, which saw governments around the world imposed the closure of national borders in order toe control the spread of coronavirus), in recent years, there had been a decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular a decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, and since the various media outlets that makes up large sections of the Australian media ecosystem plays an important role in the development of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the development of Asia literacy) among the general Australian populace, an argument could be made that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem could have negative ramifications for the level of Japan literacy (as well as the level of Asia literacy more generally) among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, can have negative ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views Japan (as well as Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories) more generally).

When it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship that exist between Australia and Japan had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), an argument could be made that the development of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the development of Asia literacy) among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the development of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) is paramount when it comes to both the development, as well as the maintenance, of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, widely considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. However, despite the importance of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan, there is often very limited coverage of these relationships in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”).

When it comes to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) can have an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views these relationships, which are widely considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. However, much like the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem; when it comes to the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan (again, whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and Japan had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), much like the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, in recent years, there had also been a decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, with this decline being most pronounced in regards to the diplomatic relationships that exist between Australia and Japan.

As will be discussed in the fifth article in this series of articles, when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and Japan had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), which are widely considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories – much like the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem – an argument could be made that the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) can influence how members of the general Australian populace views the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan. When it comes to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, as well as the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia more generally, much of the emphasis that had been paid to by large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) had been focused on the diplomatic relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan, but an argument could be made in this respect that even when it comes to the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the diplomatic relationships that exist between Australia and Japan, even the coverage of the diplomatic relationship that exist between Australia and Japan tends to be limited in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem.

When it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan and the largely limited coverage of these relationships in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), much of the emphasis that had been paid to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and Japan had been largely focused on the diplomatic relationships that exist between Australia and Japan. And while the diplomatic relationships that exist between Australia and Japan are the most important type of relationship that exist between Australia and Japan, the coverage of the diplomatic relationship between Australia and Japan has often come at the expense of the coverage of the other relationships that exist between Australia and Japan, and in particular the people-to-people relationships that exist between Australia and Japan, in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, even though the people-to-people relationships that exist between the people of Australia and the people of Japan can be just as influential in regards to both the development, as well as the maintenance, of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan as the diplomatic relationships that exist between Australia and Japan. But when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan (and, more generally, the various relationships that exist between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia), having a high level of Japan literacy (and, more generally, having a high level of Asia literacy) among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located at both the secondary, as well as the tertiary, level of the Australian education system) is important for the future of these relationships.

However, and this will be discussed throughout the course of this series of articles on Japan literacy in Australia and the level of Japan literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Japan literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), while the development of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the development of Asia literacy) among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, while the development of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the development of Asia literacy) among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system had been a core policy for governments that had been located across both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system (whether it was the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party was in power at either, or both, levels of the Australian political system in question). But despite the emphasis that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching, as well as the study, of the four Asian languages other than English that had been identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper, of which the Japanese language was one of the four Asian languages other than English that was identified as a ‘priority’ Asian language other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper), in recent decades, in recent years, there had been a noticeable decline in the level of emphasis that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), with the emphasis instead being paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study, and an argument could be made that this switch in the emphasis that had been paid from the teaching and the study of Asia and Asian languages other than English to subjects that are in the STEM fields of study can have negative ramifications for the level of Japan literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), and in turn, this could have negative repercussions for the future of the various relationships that exist between Australia and Japan.

Throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian educational system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), it had been argued that the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) had been widely considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and that due to the importance of the various relationships that Australia has with the People’s Republic of China had seen a strong emphasis that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and this had especially been the case in regards to educational institutions that had been located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system, which had played an important role when it comes to increasing the level of China literacy that had existed among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located at both the primary and secondary levels of the Australian education system. And when it comes to increasing the level of China literacy among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (as well as the level of Asia literacy among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system more generally), governments – as well as think tanks – had released both policy papers, as well as white papers, that had been aimed at increasing the level of China literacy that had existed among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the possibilities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

When it came to the various policy papers and white papers that had been released by both governments and think tanks that had been aimed at increasing the level of Asia literacy (and, more specifically, the level of China literacy) that had existed among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the most important of these policy papers and white papers had been the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012 by the Australian Federal Government, which, at the time, was led by Prime Minister Julia Dillard of the centre-left Australian Labor Party), and that the Australia in the Asian Century white paper identified four Asian languages other than English as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in which students who were undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system were encouraged to undertake study in one of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as a “priority” Asian language other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper (one of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as a ‘priority’ Asian language other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper being Chinese (Mandarin)) in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

Throughout the course of this series of articles that had looked at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that had existed among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) and how important that the development of China literacy (as well as the development of Asia literacy more generally) to the future of Australia. In the past couple of decades, governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (whether the government in question had been located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system) had placed a strong emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching, as well as the study, of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as “priority” Asian languages other than English that were identified as “priority” Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper) in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. However, and this had also been discussed in much detail throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at China literacy in Australia, despite the growing importance of the People’s Republic of China to Australia, in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and, in turn, this decline in the level, depth, and quality of both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system has had negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and this can, in turn, have negative ramifications for the image of the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese people that exist among the general Australian populace.

However, when it comes to the development of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the level, depth, and quality of both the teaching, as well as the study, of Chin and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system has not been the only variable that can have an impact on the level of China literacy that had existed among members of the general Australian populace, as another variable that can have an impact on the level of China literacy (as well as the level of Asia literacy more generally) had been the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”). As had been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) often serves as the people’s window on the outside world – a role that became more important during the years of the coronavirus pandemic when travel was largely restricted in order to stop the spread of coronavirus – and that an argument could be made that the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China (as well as the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally) can have ramifications for the image that members of the general Australian has had negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and this in turn can have negative ramifications for the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese people.

The third variable that was looked at in regards to the level of China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) that was looked at in this series of articles had been the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature). As had been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles, the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China had been widely considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories; however, and this had also been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that had been looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, in recent years, the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China had become the most controversial relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and an argument could be made that the controversies that had emerged in regards to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China has had negative repercussions for the level of interest among members of the general Australian populace to undertake study of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language, and that this in turn has had negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that existed among members of the general Australian populace.

Throughout the course of this series of articles, I had looked at several variables that had influenced the level of China literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that had existed among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and how the reduction in the level of emphasis that had been paid to the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language across all sectors of the wider Australian society has had negative ramifications for the level of China literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and that this, in turn, can have negative ramifications for the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese people. In this regard, an argument could be made that this decline in the level of China literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, when combined with the active encouragement from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that had been located at both the state and federal levels of the Australian political system) for students to undertake study in subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the SASH (the Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study, the latter including the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia.

So, with all that said, what does the future hold for both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system? And will the state of affairs in regards to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) and the importance of these relationships between Australia and the People’s Republic of China see a renaissance in the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system? In this final article in this series of articles that had been looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that had existed among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, I will be looking at the future of China literacy in Australia and how the various areas of the wider Australian society, led by governments that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the government in question is located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system) can work together to increase the level of China literacy (as well as to increase the level of Asia literacy more generally) among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) for the challenges, as well as the opportunities that awaits.

You can view the entire post on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/?p=628

When it comes to the development of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (which was discussed in much detail in the previous article in this series of articles that is looking at the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace), much of the emphasis that had been paid to increasing the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, much of the emphasis that had been paid to by large sections of the wider Australian society (and in particular the level of emphasis that had been paid to by governments that had been located at the federal level of the Australian political system, and, to a lesser extent, governments that had been located at the state level of the Australian political system as well) had been placed on both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system). However, while much of the emphasis that had been paid to the development of China literacy among the general Australian populace by governments had largely been focused on educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that when it comes to the development of China literacy among the general Australian populace, the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem plays an important role when it comes to increasing the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, a role that, as will be discussed throughout the course of this fourth article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia, had been wanting in recent years.

It had often been argued that when it comes to the image that people of the world has of the world around them, the various media outlets that makes up the wider media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) has often played an important role when it comes to influencing how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China). However, when it comes to the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the level, depth, and quality, of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) had declined in recent years, and this had occurred despite the important role that Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the People’s Republic of China) will play in regards to the future of Australia, with this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (as well as the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally) can have negative ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views, not only the People’s Republic of China, but also how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally. It could also be argued that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China (as well as from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), when combined with the decline in the level of the teaching of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, has had an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China.

In this fourth article in this series of articles that is looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), I will be having a look at the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) and how the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem has had on both the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and how this has especially been the case in regards to the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language that had been offered at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system). When it comes to the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace and how the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China, an argument could be made that the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) had coincided with a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (an issue that was discussed in much detail in the third article in this series of articles) has had an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views, not only the People’s Republic of China, but also how members of the general Australian populace views the Chinese people as well.

You can read the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/06…

When it comes to the development of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (which was discussed in much detail in the previous article in this series of articles that is looking at the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace), much of the emphasis that had been paid to increasing the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, much of the emphasis that had been paid to by large sections of the wider Australian society (and in particular the level of emphasis that had been paid to by governments that had been located at the federal level of the Australian political system, and, to a lesser extent, governments that had been located at the state level of the Australian political system as well) had been placed on both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system). However, while much of the emphasis that had been paid to the development of China literacy among the general Australian populace by governments had largely been focused on educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that when it comes to the development of China literacy among the general Australian populace, the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem plays an important role when it comes to increasing the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, a role that, as will be discussed throughout the course of this fourth article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia, had been wanting in recent years.

It had often been argued that when it comes to the image that people of the world has of the world around them, the various media outlets that makes up the wider media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) has often played an important role when it comes to influencing how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China). However, when it comes to the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the level, depth, and quality, of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) had declined in recent years, and this had occurred despite the important role that Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the People’s Republic of China) will play in regards to the future of Australia, with this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (as well as the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally) can have negative ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views, not only the People’s Republic of China, but also how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally. It could also be argued that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China (as well as from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), when combined with the decline in the level of the teaching of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, has had an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China.

In this fourth article in this series of articles that is looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), I will be having a look at the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) and how the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem has had on both the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and how this has especially been the case in regards to the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language that had been offered at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system). When it comes to the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace and how the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China, an argument could be made that the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) had coincided with a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (an issue that was discussed in much detail in the third article in this series of articles) has had an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views, not only the People’s Republic of China, but also how members of the general Australian populace views the Chinese people as well.

You can read the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/06…

As had been discussed in the first article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this had particularly been the case when it comes to the level of China literacy that exist among students who re undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), in recent decades, governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and this had particularly been the case when it comes to governments that are located at the federal level of the Australian political system) had placed a strong emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) in order to better prepare members of the general Australian populace, and in particular students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and especially students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. When it comes to governments encouraging students to undertake study of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, governments, as well as think tanks, had released both policy papers, as well as white papers, that had been aimed at increasing the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system).

However, despite the active encouragement from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular from governments that are located at the federal level of the Australian political system, although an argument could be made that in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper, of which the Chinese (Mandarin) language was one of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English), with the focus of the various Australian governments (and in particular governments that are located at the federal level of the Australian political system, although an argument could be made that this has also been the case among governments that are located at the state level of the Australian political system) has instead placed a stronger emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the HASS (Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study. When it comes to both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) can be influenced by the state of the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and this had particularly been the case in regards to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China that is in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), which, as will be discussed throughout the course of the fourth and fifth articles in this series of articles that is looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system, and this had especially been the case in regards to the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) has had negative ramifications for, not only the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of China literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace, but also the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of China literacy) that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system); and that an argument could be made that the decline in the level of Asia literacy, and in particular the level of China literacy, that exist among members of the general Australian populace can also have negative ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China more generally.

It has often been argued that when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australian and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China that is in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people) – which are the most important relationships that exist between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia – the attitude that members of the general Australian populace has towards the People’s Republic of China, and the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China can be influenced by how the People’s Republic of China (as well as Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories more generally) is taught at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), as having a high level of China literacy (as well as having a high level of Asia literacy more generally) can be beneficial for the various relationships that between Australia and the People’s Republic of China, and this is especially the case as having a high level of China literacy among the general Australian populace can reduce the level of fear that members of the general Australian populace has of the People’s Republic of China, and, more generally Asia as a whole. However, and this will be discussed in much detail throughout the course of this third article in this series of articles that is looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institutions in question at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system, and this has especially been the case when it comes to the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), in recent years (and this will also be discussed in more detail in both the fourth and the fifth articles in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace), there had been a deterioration in the state of affairs when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), and an argument could be made that the encouragement from governments that are located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that are located at the federal level of the Australian political system, although an argument could be made that this could also apply to governments that are located at the state level of the Australian education system) for students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) to undertake study in subjects that are in the STEM fields of study instead of subjects that are in the HASS fields of study could be linked to the deterioration of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China.

But despite the deterioration in the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that exist between Australian and the People’s Republic of China that is in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), an argument could be made that increasing the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) is important. However, and this will be discussed in much more detail in both this third article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia, as well as in the fourth and fifth articles in this series of articles), there had been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, including the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions across all three levels of the Australian education system, and this has had negative ramifications for, not only the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, but also how members of the general Australian populace views the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people).

In this section of this third article in this series of articles that is looking at China literacy that exist in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among the students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this has especially been the case in regards to the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), I will be looking at both the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institutions that are located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and how the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system can have ramifications for, not only for how members of the general Australian populace views the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), but also how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China itself. As will be discussed throughout the course of this third article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, having a high level of China literacy among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system) is important when it comes to both the development, as well as the maintenance, of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China, which are among the most important relationships that exist between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia. But, as will be discussed throughout the course of this third article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia, despite the fact that the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China being among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent and territories.

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/06…

As had been discussed in the introductory article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various relationships that Australia has had with the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) has often been considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, but in recent years, these relationships had become the most politically controversial relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. In the introductory article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that one of the key variables that can have ramifications for the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China is the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China.

However, while the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China is but one variable that can have ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and that the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located at these levels of the Australian education system can influence the image of the People’s Republic of China that is held by members of the general Australian populace. And while there had been a number of variables that can influence the level of China literacy (and in turn the image of the People’s Republic of China) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist (as well as the image of the People’s Republic of China) among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, as another variable that can influence both the level of China literacy that exist, as well as the image of the People’s Republic of China that exist, among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system) is the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China. As will be discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), the three key variables that can influence the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (that will be discussed in upcoming articles in this series of articles that will be looking at variables that can have ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace) are the educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system); the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”); as well as the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the state of affairs of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China that is in question was diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (again, whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”).

And while an argument could be made that both educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), as well as the various media outlets that makes up the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) plays an important role in the development of China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), it could be argued that the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China has played an important role when it comes to the development of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace. As will be discussed in this second article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) had played an important role when it came to the development of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. And while it could be argued that while the history of the various relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China has had negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that had existed among members of the general Australian populace, an argument could be made that the recent deterioration in the state of affairs in regards to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China, as well as recent policy changes from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular from governments that had been located at the federal level of the Australian political system that had placed a strong emphasis on both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are part of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the HASS (the Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study can have negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

You can view the entire article through my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/06…

When it comes to the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, the various relationships that Australia has with the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) are among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. And, as will be discussed in the second article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, the history of the relationships that had existed between what is now the Commonwealth of Australia and what is now the People’s Republic of China, the history of the various relationships that had existed between the two nation-states (again, whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) had often been fraught with tension, and an argument could be made that the often tense relationship between both Australia and the People’s Republic of China has, not only the various relationships that had existed between the two nation-states, but also the image that the general Australian populace has of the various relationships that had existed between the two nation-states (and in particular the people-to-people relationships that had existed between the people of Australia and the people of the People’s Republic of China), had also impacted both the teaching, as well as the study, of China at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and that when combined, both of these variables can have negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), which can have ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese people.

When it comes to the development of the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese people (and in particular the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Australia’s 1.2 million strong Chinese-Australian community), several sectors of the wider Australian society plays an important role in the development of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and these various institutions that makes up the wider Australian society that can have an influence on the level of China literacy (and the level of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace are the Australian political system, educational institution that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and the media ecosystem in Australia (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”). In this series of articles, I will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

When it comes to the development of China literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) plays an important role when it comes to the development of China literacy among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. As will be discussed in the third article in this series of articles on China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system played an important role in the development of China literacy (and, more generally, the development of Asia literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had undertaken study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

When it comes to the level of China literacy (and the level of Asia literacy) that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), one of the key variables that can influence the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and this in turn can have ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese people, and the level of encouragement emanating from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (whether the government in question is located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system) to undertake study of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

In recent decades, and this will be discussed in more detail in the third article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system (whether the government in question had been located at the federal, state, or local level of the Australian political system, and this had been most pronounced among governments that had been located at the federal level of the Australian political system, whether it was the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that had been in power at the federal level of the Australian political system) had actively encouraged students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system to undertake study of Asia and Asian languages other than English in order to take advantage of the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. When it came to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, there had been various policy papers and white papers that had been released that had been aimed at increasing the level of Asia literacy that had existed among students undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, with the Australia in the Asian Century white paper (which was released in October 2012 by the Australian Federal Government, which, at the time was led by Prime Minister Julia Gillard of the centre-left Australian Labor Party) being the most important of these policy papers and white papers that was aimed at increasing the level of Asia literacy that had existed among students who had been undertaking study within the Australian education system.

When it comes to increasing the level of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of China literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, it had often been argued that the various educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question had been located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) plays an important role when it comes to the development of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system. And while the various educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system does play an important role when it comes to the development of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of China literacy) that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, it is not the only aspect of the wider Australian society that plays an important role when it comes to the development of China literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace, as another aspect of the wider Australian society that plays an important role in the development of China literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace is the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) plays an important role when it comes to the development of Asia literacy (and in particular the level of China literacy) that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and an argument could be made that the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China) in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (again, whether the media outlet is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) can have an impact on the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Asia (and in particular the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the People’s Republic of China).

It has often been argued, and this will be discussed in more detail in the fourth article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), the media ecosystem often serves as the people’s window on the outside world, and that the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the world’s constituent nation-states and territories can have ramifications for how individuals views the world’s constituent nation-states and territories, and this is especially the case when it comes to how members of the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the People’s Republic of China. As will be discussed in the fourth article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various media outlets that makes up the wider Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) plays an important role when it comes to the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the People’s Republic of China, and this had especially been the case when it comes to the recent deterioration in the state of affairs when it comes to the state of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China in recent years (whether the relationship between Australia and the People’s Republic of China in question was diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), with this deterioration in the state of the various relationships that had existed between Australian and the People’s Republic of China (and in particular the deterioration of the people-to-people relationships that had existed between the people of Australia and the people of the People’s Republic of China) having been influenced by the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had been emanating from the People’s Republic of China in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), as well as statements that had been made by members of the political class in Australia towards the People’s Republic of China having negative ramifications for the image that members of the general Australian populace has towards the People’s Republic of China, and that this had become more pronounced during the coronavirus pandemic, which saw members of the general Australian populace violently attack members of the various Asian-Australian communities on suspicion of causing the coronavirus pandemic, which was not helped by the coverage of the coronavirus pandemic in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem, which promoted unfounded conspiracy theories into the alleged origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

When it came to the coronavirus pandemic and the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of the coronavirus pandemic in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question was part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) and the reaction from the general Australian populace to the news of the coronavirus pandemic and the impact that it would have on the wider Australian society, an argument could be made that the news of the coronavirus pandemic and the impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had on the wider Australian society had been compounded by the deterioration of the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China in the years immediately preceding the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic which had impacted all relationships, and in particular the people-to-people relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China, and in some instances, the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question was diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people) had become major political issues in Australia, and this had been the case when it comes to foreign direct investment coming into Australia from the People’s Republic of China. In the years immediately preceding the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in late 2019 and early 2020, there had been a lot of concern among members of the general Australian populace in regards to foreign direct investment coming into Australia from the People’s Republic of China, with many Australians putting forward the argument that successive governments at the federal level of the Australian political system (whether it was the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that had been in power at the federal level of the Australian political system) had allowed too much foreign direct investment from the People’s Republic of China to enter Australia, and that as a result, the People’s Republic fo China basically controls Australia (this is despite that foreign direct investment coming from the People’s Republic of China only makes up less than two per cent of all total foreign direct investment that had entered the Australian economy annually, and that this sensationalist coverage of foreign direct investment entering Australia from the People’s Republic of China often ignores the level of foreign direct investment entering Australia from the key Anglophone nation-states of the United States of America and the United Kingdom, which are often the two largest sources of foreign direct investment coming into Australia, accounting for almost half of all foreign direct investment coming into Australia annually.

When it comes to the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), these relationships had been at the centre of much political controversy in recent years in Australia, with this political controversy becoming more pronounced in the lead up to federal elections that are held in Australia every three years (unless the Federal Parliament is dissolved prior to the end of the three years). As will be discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question was diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) are among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. However, and this will also be discussed throughout the course of this series of articles (and in particular the second article in this series of articles, as well as in the sixth and concluding article in this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), while the various relationships that had existed between Australia and the People’s Republic of China had been considered to be among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, in recent years, the various relationships that Australia has with the People’s Republic of China had become the most politically controversial relationship that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

But despite the politically controversial nature of the various relationships that Australia has with the People’s Republic of China, an argument could be made – and that this argument will be made throughout the course of this series of articles that will be looking at China literacy in Australia and the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace – when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature), the development of China literacy among the members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question was located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) is widely considered to be very important when it comes to the development of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature). However, despite the importance of the development of China literacy among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system (as well as encouragement from governments that had been located across all three levels of the Australian political system to undertake study of Asia and Asian languages other than English as part of their journey through all three levels of the Australian education system), in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the level of attention that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching, as well as the study, of China and the Chinese (Mandarin) language) at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system, with a greater emphasis instead being paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the HASS (the Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study, and an argument could be made that this growing emphasis that had been paid to both the teaching, as well as the study, fo subjects that are in the STEM fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the HASS fields of study could have negative ramifications for the level of China literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of China literacy that exist among students who had been undertaking study at educational institutions that had been located across all three levels of the Australian education system), and that this, in turn, can have negative ramifications for the various relationships that exist between Australia and the People’s Republic of China.

You can view this article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/06…

Location: Xin Jin Shan Chinese Library, 200 Sturt Street, Ballarat Central VIC 3350

Dates: 18 April 2026 to 24 May 2026

Admission: Free

In recent years, many members of the general Australian populace had begun to question the level of loyalty that members of Australia’s 1.2 million member Chinese-Australian community has to Australia, a phenomenon that had been promoted by members of the Australian political class (and in particular those on the right wing of the Australian political system), especially with allegations that had been made by members of the Australian political class, as well as the tabloid media outlets that are part of the Australian media ecosystem (such as those that are part of the global media empire that is owned by the controversial Australian-born American media mogul Rupert Murdoch) that had accused members of the Chinese-Australian community of being loyal to the People’s Republic of China and having no loyalty to Australia. It could even be argued that at recent federal elections that had been held in Australia, the Chinese-Australian community had become political footballs for those who had been campaigning for election, and that it could be argued that the alleged lack of loyalty that members of the Chinese-Australian community has been accused of had been drummed up by members of the Australian political class, as well as in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”), when combined with the various relationships that Australia has with the People’s Republic of China (whether the relationship in question had been diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people in nature) had become major election issues when a federal election takes place in Australia.

However, while the loyalty of the Chinese-Australian community to Australia by members of the political class in Australia (as well as by large sections of the Australian media ecosystem), it can be argued that the Chinese-Australian community has in fact has had a strong sense of loyalty to Australia and its people. But despite the strong sense of loyalty to Australia and its people, there is often a high level of doubt among members of the general Australian populace in regards to the loyalty to Australia and its people by members of the Chinese-Australian community. In this regard, an argument could be made that this high level of distrust that members of the general Australian populace has of the Chinese-Australian community could be attributed to the increasingly sensationalised nature of the coverage of the Chinese-Australian community in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”) and that this increasingly sensationalised nature of the coverage of the Chinese-Australian community in large sections of the Australian media ecosystem has led to an increase in the level of tension that members of the general Australian populace has towards members of the Chinese-Australian community.

When it comes to the loyalty that members of the Chinese-Australian community has towards Australia, it has often gone under the radar, and that this had not just been a recent phenonemon, as this has also occurred throughout the history of the Chinese-Australia community ever since the arrival of the first Chinese-born migrant to Australia in 1811. In fact, when it comes to the level of loyalty that members of the Chinese-Australian community has towards Australia and the Australian people, it had often gone under the radar, and had often gone unacknowledged throughout the post-26 January 1788 history of Australia. One example of this had been the role that members of the Chinese-Australian community played during the First World War (which was fought between 1914 and 1918) in the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps, which members of the Chinese-Australian community had played a largely unacknowledged role in, and it could be argued that this could be due to the “White Australia Policy” that was in effect at the time And when it comes to the history of the relationships that had existed between members of the Chinese-Australian community and the general Australian populace, the role that members of the Chinese-Australian community played serving Australia during the First World War is an often unacknowledged part of that relationship between members of the Chinese-Australian community and members of the general Australian populace, and this is what this exhibition looks at.

When war was declared in 1914, Australia issued a call to arms, and the Chinese-Australian community rallied behind the war effort. In Sydney, Chinese businessmen took out advertisements in the Tung Wah Times to encourage fundraising among the community. In Brisbane, the Chinese community actively raised funds to support returned personnel, while the Normanton Chinese community also donated money to the Normanton branch of the Red Cross Society.

Along with other Australians, families of Chinese descent sent their sons to war. During the First World War, around two hundred Australians who were of Chinese descent enlisted, and of these, nineteen received a total of twenty-three gallantry awards, and of the around two hundred who saw active duty during the First World War, nearly forty died. There were no identifiable Chinese-Australian nurses who served during the First World War.

When it came to enlistment, enlistments into the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) were guided by the conditions that were listed in The Defence Act 1909. Within The Defence Act 1909, Part 13, Article 138, Section 1, Part B exempted those “not substantially of European origin or descent” from serving in the naval and military forces. In addition to this, physical requirements also had to be met. The guidelines that were used for the purposes of enlistment meant that young men who enlisted were profiled and acceptance was at the discretion of the attending medical officer. This meant that as a result, it was more difficult for young men who had non-European ancestry or mixed heritage to successfully enlist in the AIF. However, once they were in the AIF, they were treated as equals. In 1915 and 1917, changes to the physical requirements, as well as an easing of restrictions saw many more young men from the Chinese-Australian community successfully enlsit in the AIF.

Like other Australian families at the time, many Chinese-Australian families contributed more than one son to the war effort, and in some instances, brothers and cousins served in the same regiments. Siblings who did not go to war often took over the responsibilities of those who were serving on the front line, caring for their families and working in the family business One family that were looked at in this exhibition was the Leep family from Ballarat in which fourteen cousins from the second-generation Chinese-Australian family responded to the call to arm. Of the fourteen members of the Lapp family who served in the First World War, two were killed, one was gassed and one received the Military Medal. Their descendants continued the family tradition of serving in the armed forces, with James serving in the Second World War with his niece Thelma and nephews Stanley and Laurence.

When it came to the families who sent their sons to war, many Chinese-Australian families at the time saw their sons make the ultimate sacrifice for their country in the theatre of war during the First World War, a fact that had been lost in recent years with the increasingly sensationalised coverage of the Chinese-Australian community in large sections of the Australian community (whether the media outlet in question had been part of the so-called “mainstream media” or had been part of the so-called “alternative media”).

However, the exhibition is more than telling the story of the Chinese-Australians who served in the First World War, as it also looked at those who served during the Second World War (which was fought between 1939 and 1945). It looked at the impact that war had on those who fought and their transition back to civilian life after the war (whether it was those who fought in the First World War or those who fought in the Second World War).

You can view the article through my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2026/04…

When it comes to the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), having a high level of Korea literacy among the general Australian populace, and in particular having a high level of Korea literacy among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) is important for the development of the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, and this is particularly the case when it comes to the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea (as well as the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the Korean Peninsula in general, whether it is the Republic of Korea to the south of the 38th Parallel or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to the north of the 38th Parallel), and it could therefore be argued that the image that the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea has had an impact on how members of the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea. However, and this has been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles on Korea literacy, and the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system. And while the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea is among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, in recent years, there has been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), and that this decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system can have negative repercussions for the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and that the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, can have negative repercussions for the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea.

However, when it comes to the development of Korea literacy, as well as the development of Asia literacy in general, among the general Australian populace, and in particular the development of Korea literacy (and Asia literacy) among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this is especially the case when it comes to the development of Korea literacy among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system are not the only sector of the greater Australian society that can have an influence on the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, as another aspect of the greater Australian society that can influence the level of Korea literacy (and, more generally, the level of Asia literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace is the Australian media. As discussed in the fourth article in this series of articles on Korea literacy, and the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, the various Australian media outlets (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) plays an important role when it comes to the level of Korea literacy (as well as the level of Asia literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace, and that an argument could be made that the level, depth, and quality, of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) can have an influence on, not only the level of Korea literacy (as well as the level of Asia literacy) that exist among the general Australian populace, but also the image that members of the general Australian populace has of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories as well. And while it could be argued that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that has been emanating from the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) can have negative ramifications for, not only the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, but also the image that members of the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea as well, and that these two variables, when combined, can have negative ramifications for how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people).

So what does the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this is especially the case when it comes to students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) have for the future of the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people)? And how does the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system? In this sixth, and final, article in this series of articles on Korea literacy in Australia, and the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, I will be looking at the impact that the decline in the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, I will be looking at the impact that the decline in the Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace as a result of the discontinuation of academic programs that had been offered at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, as well as the gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media, whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”. I will then conclude this series of articles on Korea literacy in Australia by looking at the future of the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and in particular the teaching and the study of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system heading into the future.

You can view the entire article through my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2025/09…

As has been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles that has been looking at the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this is especially the case in regards to the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship between Australia and the Republic of Korea in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), having a high level of Korea literacy among the general Australian populace, and in particular a high level of Korea literacy among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, is considered to be important when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea. And when it comes to the development of Korea literacy that exist among, not only among members of the general Australian populace, but also the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system – and this has especially been the case in regards to increasing the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system – there are two major social institutions that can play a major role when it comes to increasing the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and these two social institutions that can play a role in increasing the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace are educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and the various Australian media outlets (whether the Australian media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”).

As has been highlighted in the previous two articles in this series of articles on the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the student in question is undertaking study at an educational institution that is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people) are among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and the importance of these relationships between Australia and the Republic of Korea will be at the forefront of the discussion in this fifth article in this series of articles on the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace. And while it could be argued that having a high level of Korea literacy (as well as having a high level of Asia literacy in general) is important for the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea – and this is particularly the case in regards to both the diplomatic and the people-to-people relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (with this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, and the study, of Korea and the Korean language being most pronounced at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), as well as the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events that had emanated from the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), issues that had been discussed in much detail in previous articles in this series of articles that has been looking at the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

When it comes to the development of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, an argument could be made that both the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and the various media outlets in Australia (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) plays an important role in the development of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), as both educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, as well as the various Australian media outlets, plays an important role when it comes to the facilitation of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (as well as the various relationships that exist between Australia and the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia), and this is particularly the case as both educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system), as well as large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) are important when it comes to the facilitation of Asia literacy (and in particular Korea literacy) among the general Australian populace. However, and this has been discussed in much detail in the previous two articles of this series of articles, despite the growing importance of Asia (and in particular the growing importance of the Republic of Korea to Australia), as well as the active encouragement from governments that are located across all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular from governments that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system) for students to undertake study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system to undertake study of Asia and an Asian language other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper (which was released in October 2012 by the Australian Federal Government, which, at the time was led by Prime Minister Julia Gillard of the centre-left Australian Labor Party) throughout their journey through all three levels of the Australian education system in order to increase the level of Asia literacy that exist among, not only students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, but also the level of Asia literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, in recent years, there has been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English being offered at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, as well as a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), and it could be argued that this decline in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system – when combined with the decline in the level, depth, and quality, of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media – has had negative ramifications for the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and this decline has had a particular impact on the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

As has been discussed throughout the course of this series of articles on the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and this is especially the case when it comes to students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), there has been a decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and it could be argued that this decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system has had negative ramifications for the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and this has in turn has had negative ramifications for the various relationships that Australian has with the Republic of Korea, and in particular the diplomatic and the people-to-people relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, which will be discussed in more detail throughout the course of this fifth article in this series. When it comes to the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), an argument could be made that the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language within the Australian education system is low on the priority of the various Australian governments when it comes to the development of Asia literacy among the general Australian populace, and this is despite the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea being among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, which will be the focus of the discussion of this fifth article in this series of articles on the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system.

You can view the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2025/09…

As has been discussed throughout this series of articles that has been looking at the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the history of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question was diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people) had been an important variable when it comes to the level of Korea literacy that exist among, not only among members of the general Australian populace, but also the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and in particular educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system. However, and this was also discussed in the previous article of this series that looked at the history of the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system; and, when combined with the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released by the Australian Federal Government in October 2012) at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) has had negative ramifications for the level of Korea literacy, as well as the level of Asia literacy that exist among, not only among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system). And while governments at all three levels of the Australian political system has been placing a greater emphasis on the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (including the teaching, and the study, of Korea and the Korean language) at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, and in particular educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system, in recent years, there had been a greater emphasis being paid to the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of subjects that are in the HASS (Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study, and this can have negative repercussions for, not only the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, but also the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, which will be discussed in more detail in the next article in this series of articles, that will look at the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, with a particular emphasis being paid to the diplomatic relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea).

When it comes to the development of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (and especially the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), while the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language, at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system can play a role in developing a high level of Korea literacy among the general Australian populace, it is not the only sector within the wider Australian society that can influence the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace is the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of news and current affairs emanating from the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), which has seen a stark decline in recent years, and this reduction in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea (and especially the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in general) has had negative repercussions for the level of Asia literacy that exist amogn the general Australian populace – as well as the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace – and this in turn has had negative ramifications for how the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the Republic of Korea and the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people.

It has often been argued that the media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) serves as the people’s window on the outside world (a role that became more important during the coronavirus pandemic when much of the world was in lockdown in order to prevent the spread of the virus), and more often than not, the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the world’s constituent nation-states and territories can have consequences for how the people of the world views the constituent nation-states and territories of the world, and this is especially the case when it comes to how the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and in particular how the general Australian populace view the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (again, whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), and this is true when it comes to the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea. When it comes to the image that the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea, as well as the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, an argument could be made that the image of the Republic of Korea that is projected to the general Australian populace through the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”) can have ramifications for how the general Australian populace, not only views the Republic of Korea, but also how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, and in particular the diplomatic relationship that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, which will be looked at in the next article in this series of articles that will be looking at the various relationships, and in particular the diplomatic relationship, that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea.

When it comes to the level, depth, and quality, of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Korean Peninsula (whether the coverage of the key news and current affairs events are emanating from the Republic of Korea or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), there is often a large gulf of difference when it comes to the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea when compared to the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea, and an argument could be made that this difference when it comes to the level, depth, and quality, of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the two sides of the 38th Parallel that divides the Korean Peninsula can have ramifications for, not only how the general Australian populace view the Republic of Korea (and, more generally, the Korean Peninsula as a whole), but also how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea, which is widely considered to be one of the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. When it comes to the media in Australia, both the so-called “mainstream media” as well as the so-called “alternative media” plays an important role when it comes to the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and that the coverage of key news and current affairs events from this part of the world plays an important role in helping the general Australian populace better understand the Korean Peninsula.

As will be discussed throughout the course of this fourth article in this series of articles on Korea literacy in Australia, I will be looking at the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea (and, to a lesser extent, the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea), and the impact that this has had on, not only the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system, but also the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace as a whole. In this fourth article in the series, I will first look at the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Korean Peninsula (whether it is emanating from the Republic of Korea or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”). In the second section of the article, I will be looking at the coverage of elections that are held in the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media, and how the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of elections in the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media can influence the image that the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea. The final section of the article will have a look at the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media, and juxtapose this with the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of news and current affairs events emanating from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media.

If you wish to read the entire article, you can read it at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2025/09…

On 28 February 2026, the United States of America and Israel attacked Iran, using the pretext of ending Iran’s nuclear weapons program and freeing the people of Iran from the rule of the Ayatollahs, who had ruled Iran with an iron fist since the founding of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979. If you have been following the news in the lead up to the bombing of Iran, you would’ve noticed several instances of hypocrisy emanating from the President of the United States of America Donald Trump, and it is these instances of hypocrisy that had come from President Trump that may have exposed the aims of the United States of America in regards to the attack on Iran.

Firstly, I should start by saying that I support the people of Iran in their quest for freedom from the Ayatollahs, and in regards to Israel, I believe that the people of Iran and the people of Israel have more in common with each other than they have with their own government. The people of Israel does not want war with Iran, and the people of Iran don’t want war with Israel, but sadly, it is inevitable that both will be forced into war against each other, which is not in the interests of the people of Israel, nor is it in the interest of the people of Iran.

This is where there is an instance of hypocrisy emanating from President Trump. In the lead up to the bombing of Iran on 28 February 2026, President Trump called for the people of Iran to rise up against the Ayatollahs, and that the United States of America would support the people of Iran in their quest for freedom from the Ayatollahs. And while I do support freedom for the people of Iran from the rule of the Ayatollahs, this is one instance of hypocrisy from the Trump regime in the United States of America, in which, while President Trump had expressed support for the protesters in Iran, the same man called protesters in the United States of America hwho had been protesting against ICE “domestic terrorists” who should be jailed for protesting against ICE agents who had been carrying out human right abuses against American citizens, and in some instances has seen American citizens being killed by ICE. Is this not a double standard emanating from the Trump regime? And why does the Trump regime not care about the people of Gaza?

In addition to the numerous human rights abuses that had been carried out by the Trump regime in the United States of America through the deployment of ICE agents in various places in the United States of America and have killed American citizens, there had been attacks on the democratic process in the United States of America by the Trump regime, including purges in regards to voting databases throughout the United States of America, claiming that there had been instances of non-citizens illegally voting, even though this had largely been disproved, even by the ultraconservative Heritage Foundation. How is this not a double standard emanating from the Trump regime?

Yes, the people of Iran should be free from the Ayatollahs, but at the same time, the people of the United States of America should be free from the Trump regime. And in regards to the conflict in the Middle East, neither the people of Israel, nor the people of the United States of America, nor the people of Iran want war. War is in no one’s interest.

And will those in power send their own children into conflict?

When it comes to the development of Asia literacy, and in particular the level of Korea literacy, that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Asia literacy and Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (and especially among students who are undertaking study at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), the Australian education system plays an important role to play when it comes to the development of Asia literacy, and in particular the development of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system. And when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the type of relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), having a high level of Korea literacy among the general Australian populace, and in particular having a high level of Korea literacy among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, is considered to be important when it comes to the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people. However, in recent years, there has been had been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching, as well as the study, of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was published in October 2012) at all three levels of the Australian education system, and in particular the decline in the number of academic programs in Asian Studies and Asian languages other than English that are offered at the tertiary level of the Australian education system, and it could be argued that the decline in the number of academic programs in Asian Studies and Asian languages other than English that are offered at all three levels of the Australian education system, can have negative ramifications for the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories (and in particular the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea), as well as how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

When it comes to the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012), one of the constituent nation-states of Asia that had experienced a decline in the study of in recent years had been the Republic of Korea, which, as has been discussed in previous articles in this series of articles that is looking at Korea literacy in Australia, has become one of the most important relationships that Australia has with the constituent nation-states and territories of Asia, and this is especially the case as both Australia and the Republic of Korea are both considered to be global middle powers when it comes to global politics and international relations, with both Australia and the Republic of Korea being members of MIKTA – which is a grouping of global middle powers – along with Mexico, Indonesia, and Turkiye. And while it could be argued that the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (and in particular the diplomatic, as well as the people-to-people relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea) being among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, it should be acknowledged at this point that when it comes to the teaching, as well as the study, of Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English that were identified in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was published by the Australian Federal Government in October 2012), the Korean language was not identified as one of the four ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English that were identified in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper, even though it could be argued that the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea is widely considered to be one of the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and that it could also be argued that the fact that the Korean language was not one of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released by the Australian Federal Government in October 2012 (the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper being Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, Indonesian and Japanese) has resulted in a decline in the level of interest in the study of the Korean language among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, and that it could be argued that this decline in the number of students undertaking study in the Korean language at all three levels of the Australian education system, and it could even be argued that this decline in the number of students undertaking study in the Korean language within the Australian education system can have ramifications for the level of Korea literacy that exists among, not only students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether it is at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system), but also the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and this can have negative ramifications for the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (and this has particularly been the case when it came to the diplomatic and people-to-people relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea), and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, and in particular how members of the general Australian populace views both the diplomatic, and the people-to-people, relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, and this in turn can influence the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea.

It has often been argued that the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular students who are undertaking study at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) can have an influence on how Asia, and in particular the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and this is particularly true when it comes to the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace. As will be discussed in this article, in recent years, there has been a gradual decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language, at all three levels of the Australian education system (with this decline being most pronounced at educational institutions that are located at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), and it could be argued that the decline in the number of academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at all three levels of the Australian education system has had ramifications for how members of the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (and in particular the diplomatic and people-to-people relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea), but also how the general Australian populace views the Republic of Korea itself

If you wish to read the entire article, you can read it via my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2025/08…

When it comes to the various relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (and in particular the diplomatic and the people-to-people relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea) is widely considered to be one of the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. So why is the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea considered to be one of the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories? And why is having a high level of Korea literacy (in addition to having a high level of Asia literacy in general) important when it comes to the understanding, as well as the fostering, of the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people)? As will be argued in this second article in this second article in the series of articles that will look at the history of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, and how the history of the various relationships that exist between Australia and (what is now) the Republic of Korea has influenced the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the student in question is undertaking study at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), as well as how the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system) can have ramifications for both the image that the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea (as well as the image that the general Australian populace has of the Korean Peninsula in general), as well as how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the type of relationship between Australia and the Republic of Korea in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people).

When it comes to the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, there are several variables that can affect the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace. The first of these variables that can have ramifications for the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace is the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea (as well as the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Korean Peninsula in general) in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”). As will be highlighted in the fourth and fifth articles in this series of articles that will look at the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, having a high level of understanding of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea, as well as having a high level of understanding of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Korean Peninsula in general, is important when it comes to the development of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace. However, and this will be discussed in more detail in the fourth article in this series of articles on Korea literacy in Australia (the fourth article in this series of articles will look at the coverage of Korea in the Australian media), despite the importance of having a high level of understanding of key news and current affairs events stemming from the Republic of Korea (as well as having a high level of understanding of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Korean Peninsula as a whole) to the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, in recent years, there had been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea, as well as a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs events events emanating from the Korean Peninsula in general, in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), and an argument could be made that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the Republic of Korea has had negative ramifications for the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace.

Another variable that can have ramifications for the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace is the level, depth, and quality of key news and current affairs in regards to the diplomatic relationship that exists between Australia and the Republic of Korea, an issue that will be discussed in much detail in the fifth article in this series, which will look at the coverage of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people). As will be discussed throughout this series of articles, the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people) is widely considered to be one of the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and this is largely due to both Australia and the Republic of Korea being considered to be global middle powers when it comes to global politics and international relations, and that when it comes to international groupings, both Australia and the Republic of Korea are both members of MIKTA (alongside Mexico, Indonesia and Türkiye), which is a grouping of global middle powers in the realms of global politics and international relations. Another aspect in regards to the importance of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea that will be discussed in much detail in the coverage of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea, is the alliance that both Australia and the Republic of Korea has with the United States of America. However, despite the importance of the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (and this is especially the case when it comes to the diplomatic and people-to-people relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea), an argument could be made that there is very little, if any, coverage of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or Is part of the so-called “alternative media”) and that this lack of coverage of the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea in large sections of the Australian media can have ramifications for, not only the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the student is undertaking study at an educational institution that is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), and this in turn can have ramifications for, not only the image that the general Australian populace has of the Republic of Korea (as well as the image that the general Australian populace has of the Korean Peninsula in general), but also how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that exist between Australia and the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people), with the two most important of these relationships, which will be the centre of the discussion of the fifth article in this series of articles, being the diplomatic and the people-to-people relationships between Australia and the Republic of Korea, and how the Australian media outlets (whether it is the so-called “mainstream media” or the so-called “alternative media”) covers the various relationships that exist between the two nation-states affect, not only the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system), but also how the general Australian populace views the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea.

The third, and final, variable that can influence the level of Korea literacy that exist among, not only the general Australian populace as a whole, but more specifically the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, is the level, depth, and quality, of the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the educational institution in question is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system). When it comes to how the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language is taught and studied at educational institutions that are located at the three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular the teaching and study of Korea and the Korean language at the tertiary level of the Australian education system), the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language in the Australian education system, is part of moves by governments that are located at all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments that are located at the federal level of the Australian political system) to increase the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the student in question is undertaking study at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), in order to better prepare members of the general Australian populace for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that had been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. And, as will be discussed in the next article in this series of articles, despite the various relationships that Australia has with the Republic of Korea (whether the relationship that Australia has with the Republic of Korea is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people) are among the most important relationships that Australia has with Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, there has been very little, if any, effort from governments at all three levels of the Australian political system (and in particular governments at the federal level of the Australian political system) to encourage students who are undertaking study at the three levels of the Australian educational system to undertake study of Korea and the Korean language as part of their studies. When it comes to the teaching, as well as the study, of the Korean language at educational institutions that are located at all three levels of the Australian education system – and this has been most pronounced at educational institutions that are located at both the primary and secondary levels of the Australian education system – there are few educational institutions that offer academic programs that specialise in the teaching, as well as the study, of the Korean language as a language other than English, and when it comes to the availability of the Korean language as a language other than English at educational institutions that are located at the primary and secondary levels of the Australian education system, an arugment could be made that there is a large discrepancy between the various Australian states and territories when it comes to the number of educational institutions that offers students to undertake study in the Korean language as a language other than English at either the primary or secondary levels of the Australian education system, with the majority of educational institutions that are located at the primary and secondary levels of the Australian education system that offers the Korean language as a language other than English being in New South Wales.

In addition, when it comes to the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the student in question is undertaking study at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system), there are hurdles in place when it comes to increasing the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace. And while the main variable that has been impacted by this particular issue revolves around the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language at educational institutions that are located across all three levels of the Australian education system, it can also have ramifications for the other two variables that can influence the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, and that is the level of proficiency that each individual member of the generla Australian populace has of the Korean language. As will be discussed in this second article in this series of articles that will look at Korea literacy, when it comes to the development of a high level of Korea literacy among the individual members of the general Australian populace, having a high level of proficiency in the Korean language is considered to be the key to the development of a high level of Korea literacy among members of the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system; however, when it comes to the development of a high level of proficiency in the Korean language among the general Australian populace, and in particular a high level of proficiency in the Korean language among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, being able to develop a high level of proficiency in the Korean language is easier said than done. In October 2012, the Australian Federal Government (which, at the time, was led by Prime Minister Julia Gillard of the centre-left Australian Labor Party) released the Australia in the Asian Century white pape, which paid particular attention to increasing the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular increasing the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the student in question is undertaking study at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system) by placing a stronger emphasis on the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia by avtively encouraging students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular students who are undertaking study at the tertiary level of the Australian education system) to undertake study of Asia and an Asian language other than English (and in particular one of the Asian languages other than English that was identified as one of the ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper). And, as will be discussed in the next article in this series of articles, while the four Asian languages other than English were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released by the Australian Federal Government in October 2012, unfortunately, the Korean language was not one of the four Asian languages other than English that was identified as one of the four ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paepr that was releasewd in October 2012 (for the record, the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper were Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, Indonesian, and Japanese).

When it comes to the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether the student in question is undertaking study at an educational institution that is located at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system), there are several aspects that needs to be looked at when it comes to the level of Korea literacy in Australia, one of which is the history of the various relationships between Australia and (what is now) the Republic of Korea, which will be the centre of attention in this second article in the series of articles that will look at the history of the teaching, as well as the study, of Korea and the Korean language within the Australian education system, and how the history of the various relationships that exists between Australia and the Republic of Korea has impacted the level of Korea literacy that exist, not only among students who are undertaking study at educational institutions that are located at all three levels of the Australian education system, but also the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace as well.

If you wish to read the entire article, you can read it at my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2025/08…

When it comes to the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012 by the Australian Federal Government, with the four ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English that were identified being Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, Indonesian, and Japanese) has at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether it was at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system) has experienced a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality, of both the teaching, as well as the study, and an argument could be made that this decline in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the four ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English that were identified in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper) has the potential to have negative ramifications for, not only the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system), but also how the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. When it comes to how the general Australian populace (and in particular students undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system) views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, an argument could be made that the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace would have ramifications for how Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories are viewed among the general Australian populace, with those who have a high level of Asia literacy being more likely to have a more favourable view of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories than those who have a low level of Asia literacy.

When it came to increasing the level of Asia literacy that existed among students undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether it is at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system, the two major Australian political parties (whether it is the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party) had largely been on a unity ticket when it came to increasing the level of Asia literacy that exist, not only among students undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, but also among members of the general Australian populace as well, whether it was through the encouragement of the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English within all three levels of the Australian education system (whether it was at the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of the Australian education system) or encouraging Australians to undertake work experience in one of the constituent nation-states or territories of Asia. And while the methods to increase the level of Asia literacy that existed among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, had been different between the two major Australian political parties (whether it is the centre-left Australian Labor Party or the centre-right Liberal Party that was in power at the federal level of the Australian political system), the goal of both of Australia’s two major political political parties was to, not only to increase the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system), but also facilitate people-to-people relationships between the people of Australia and the people of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

And while there has been much emphasis on the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching, as well as the study, of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012), at all three levels of the Australian education system in order to better prepare students for both the challenges, as well as the opportunities, that has been presented by the “Asian Century” and the rise of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, in recent years, there has been an increase in the level of emphasis from governments at all three levels of the Australian education system (and in particular from governments at the federal level of the Australian political system) being paid to the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields of study at the expense of the teaching and study of subjects that are in the HASS (Humanities, the Arts and Social Sciences) fields of study, the latter including Asian Studies, and an argument could be made that this increase in the level of emphasis that governments has paid to the teaching, as well as the study, of subjects that are in the STEM fields of study at the expense of the teaching and study of subjects that are in the HASS fields of study could have ramifications for the level of Asia literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, and this in turn could have ramifications for the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace as a whole. However, when it comes to the development of Asia literacy among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, and by extension increasing the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace in general, the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching and the study of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching and the study of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified as ‘priority’ Asian languages other than English in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper) has not been the only variable that had contributed to the decline in the level of Asia literacy that existed among the general Australian populace, as another variable that had contributed to the decline in the level of Asia literacy that existed among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, as another variable that had contributed to a decline in the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace has been the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), and much like the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories has had ramifications for the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, and this in turn can have ramifications for how the general Australian populace views Asia and its could be argued that this decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, this can also have ramifications for the image that the general Australian populace has of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and this too can have ramifications for how the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

When it comes to the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media (whether

When it comes to the development of Asia literacy among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, the Australian education system is not the only variable that can influence the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, as another variable that can influence the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace is the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), and much like the decline in the level, depth, and quality of the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English at all three levels of the Australian education system (whether it is at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), there has also been a decline in the level, depth, and quality in the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories. And much like how the decline in the level, depth, and quality in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and Asian languages other than English (and in particular the teaching, and the study, of the four Asian languages other than English that were identified in the Australia in the Asian Century white paper that was released in October 2012) has had ramifications for the level of Asia literacy that existed among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Asia literacy that existed among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, whether the student in question is undertaking study at the primary, secondary, or tertiary level of the Australian education system), the gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories has also had ramifications for the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and that this in turn can have ramifications for how the general Australian populace views Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories.

When it comes to the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in large sections of the Australian media (whether the media outlet in question is part of the so-called “mainstream media” or is part of the so-called “alternative media”), there has been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality when it comes to the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and it could be argued that this decline in the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories, and much like the impact that the decline in the level, depth, and quality in the teaching, as well as the study, of Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories at all three levels of the Australian education system had impacted how the general Australian populace (and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system had, not only impacted the level of Asia literacy that existed among the general Australian populace, but also the level of country-specific literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular the level of country-specific literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system. When it comes to increasing the level of Asia literacy through the Australian education system (and in particular at the tertiary level of the Australian education system, where students who hope to gain employment in areas such as diplomacy or intelligence, tends to specialise in a particular nation-state or territory as part of their studies), having access to the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from the particular nation-state or territory that the student has interest in when it comes to specialisation is just as important to the development of country-specific literacy as subjects that are available at their specific educational institution. However, and this has been discussed a number of times throughout the course of this article thus far, there has been a gradual decline in the level, depth, and quality of the coverage of key news and current affairs events emanating from Asia and its constituent nation-states and territories in recent years, with this decline being more pronounced in regards to certain nation-states and territories in Asia than others, with one of the nation-states in Asia that has seen a more pronounced decline in the level, depth, and quality in regards to key news and current affairs events, as well as a decline in the level of focus at all three levels of the Australian education system being the Republic of Korea, which will be the focus of this series of articles that will look at the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and how the decline in the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace (and in particular the level of Korea literacy that exist among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system) had coincided with the decline in the level of Asia literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and that an argument could be made that this decline in the level of Korea literacy that exist among the general Australian populace, and in particular among students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, can have ramifications for the level of Asia literacy, and in particular the level of Korea literacy, that exist among the general Australian populace, and this can also have ramifications for how the general Australian populace, and in particular students who are undertaking study at all three levels of the Australian education system, and this can in turn have ramifications for how the Republic of Korea (the official name of South Korea) is viewed among the general Australian populace in regards to the various relationships that Australian have with South Korea, whether the relationship in question is diplomatic, economic, business-to-business, or people-to-people.

You can read the entire article on my website at bhiskins.wordpress.com/2025/08…

Hello and welcome to my new channels on both Naver Band and Friendica. My name is Brenden Hiskins and I am from Melbourne, Australia. On these channels (as well as on my other channels, which can be accessed via Linktree at linktr.ee/brendenhiskins/), I will be looking at Asia literacy in Australia and the level of Asia literacy that exist in Australia, and in particular the level of Asia literacy that exist among members of the general Australian populace, although occasionally, I may discuss other issues in regards to Asia among my channels (such as elections that are held in Asia.

So, what are my qualifications you may ask? I have a Masters degree in Asian Studies from Monash University and a Masters degree in International Relations from the University of Melbourne. Prior to that, I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (with majors in Asian Studies and International Cultural Studies) from Victoria University. In addition, I am in the process of learning Korean.

You can access all my channels at linktr.ee/brendenhiskins/, and you can also contact me at bhiskins.1984.2@proton.me if you have any questions on Asia literacy, or you can post on these channels.