Milingimbi is an isolated, traditionally oriented Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory of Australia. A bilingual program in English and Gupapuyngu was started at Milingimbi School in 1973. For four years, children from both English-only and bilingual classes were tested for achievement in academic subjects. By Year 7, the children from bilingual classes were performing better in seven out of ten tests than the English-only children.Bilingual education is not a new idea, but is virtually as old as formal education itself. The last half century, however, has seen a renewed interest in bilingual education for a variety of reasons. It is maintained that, especially for minority groups who do not have a strong schooling tradition, bilingual education produces better academic results than monolingual education in a second language.

Background Family caregivers of seniors and disabled adults frequently bear the responsibility of aiding in instrumental activities of daily living and locating resources, often while raising their own families. As the demand for care rises, caregivers may experience declining physical health and increased social and emotional stress compared to their noncaregiving counterparts. This study aims to better understand the journey of unpaid family caregivers and identify opportunities for improvement across organizations, policies, systems, and teams. Research design and methods: A purposive sample of 28 current and former unpaid caregivers of seniors or people with disabilities (26 females and 2 males) participated in four separate focus groups. Recordings were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using open coding. Results Six major themes surrounding the experience of caregiving emerged from the coding process: Ambivalence, “Boiling Point,” Coping, Acknowledgment and Acceptance, Family Dynamics, and Interaction with the System. Focus groups indicated an urgent need to identify and support unpaid caregivers earlier in their trajectory of caring for a senior and to provide consistent, right-time resources over the trajectory of the senior’s lifespan. Discussion and implications: The rational, emotional, and relational components of caregiving represent distinct but overlapping themes within the experience of giving care. Each theme influences another, creating an experience that is complex, fluid, and sensitive to change. The system surrounding caregivers must proactively identify caregivers as equal members of the care team for a senior or disabled adult early in the patient’s disease trajectory.

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