<div dir="ltr"><div class="">Analysis: Can Basic Education’s new language policy work?</div>
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<img src="http://static.dailymaverick.co.za/images/icon_journalist.png">
Rebecca Davis
</li><li class=""><a href="http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/section/south-africa/"><img src="http://static.dailymaverick.co.za/images/icon_category.png">South Africa</a></li><li class="">12 Jun 2013 01:31 (South Africa)</li>
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<div class=""><p>“A new policy will come into effect in 2014
mandating the learning of an African language in all schools,” announced
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga just over three weeks ago,
upon delivering her department’s budget speech. Since then, details of
what this might look like have been scant. On Tuesday, however, the
parliamentary portfolio committee on education heard a little more about
it – and it sounds like the policy may simultaneously be too much (in
terms of timeframes and teachers) and too little (in terms of the
intended effects). By REBECCA DAVIS.</p></div>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Few
details have been forthcoming up to now as to the Department of Basic
Education’s proposed new language policy. In response to questions posed
by the <em>Mercury</em> <a href="http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-06-12-analysis-can-basic-educations-new-language-policy-work/#.Ubdav5rfr4g">newspaper</a>
following Motshekga’s budget speech, the department said that an
African language would be introduced “incrementally” to students in
Grades R and 1. The department also said it would be phasing in the
policy already this year at selected schools in each province.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">In comments made to <a href="http://www.enca.com/south-africa/indigenous-african-languages-sa-schools">eNCA</a>
at the same time, department spokesman Panyaza Lisufi indicated that
the policy had been in the works for three years. Lisufi described the
policy’s purpose as being “for unity in our country”, saying that
“social cohesion is the reason we have started the programme”. The move
within basic education is paralleled by at least one initiative in
higher education, as the University of KwaZulu Natal has announced its <a href="http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-06-12-analysis-can-basic-educations-new-language-policy-work/#.Ubdv5Zrfr4g">intention</a> to make isiZulu language classes compulsory for all first-year students from 2014.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">At
Tuesday’s meeting of the parliamentary portfolio committee on education,
it fell to Mathanzima Mweli (Acting Deputy Director General:
Curriculum) to give an outline of what he called the IIAL: Incremental
Implementation of African Languages. The policy, Mweli said, is “long
overdue”, and he added that there was ample empirical evidence to
suggest there is a “desperate need” for it.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Explaining
the legislative background to the policy, Mweli said that it flows from
the constitutional provisions about languages: Section 6 requires that
“all official languages must enjoy parity of esteem and must be treated
equitably”. The South African Bill of Rights provides for everyone to
receive an education in the official language of their choice, Mweli
pointed out, though there are two caveats: in <em>public</em> institutions, where this is “reasonably practicable”.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Multilingualism in South African education has been policy on paper since 1996’s “Language in Education <a href="http://www.education.gov.za/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=XpJ7gz4rPT0%3D&tabid=390&mid=1125">Policy</a>”,
which clearly states that “being multilingual should be a defining
characteristic of being South African”, in order to “counter any
particularistic ethnic chauvinism or separatism through mutual
understanding”. As Mweli noted, the passage from policy in 1996 to
implementation in 2014 represents a “considerable period”.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">He
pointed out that there have been a number of provincial initiatives with
regards to raising the status of African languages running for some
time. In the Eastern Cape, for instance, a pilot project is testing the
introduction of Xhosa as the language of learning and teaching at the
intermediate phase (Grade 4 – 6) in 74 schools. Often, however,
well-meaning initiatives in this vein from schools have been left to the
support of governing bodies rather than the government. Mweli pointed
here to the Western Cape, where from 2006 a number of “former Model C
schools” voluntarily requested the introduction of African languages but
failed to receive backup from government. Similar situations have
played out in the North West province and Mpumalanga. In certain cases,
groups of schools have clubbed together to share the expenses of African
language-teaching.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">It
appears that the sense of urgency around the Department of Basic
Education’s move to accelerate the quality and quantity of African
language teaching at this point is due to an increasing belief that many
of the problems in the country’s education system can be placed at the
feet of a language issue. “Learning outcomes are poor because of poor
language proficiency,” Mweli said. “Research has confirmed this on
various occasions, but very little has been done by institutions or
civil society to address this problem.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">So
what’s the plan? Well, it’s to improve proficiency in, and the utility
of, previously marginalized African languages, by introducing learners
to learn an African language “incrementally” by Grade R.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">While
many may be on board with the principles behind the idea, Mweli was
least convincing when it came to laying out how, practically, this would
be achieved. The availability of teachers was not a problem, he said;
only the availability of paid teaching posts, which would have to be
budgeted for. This seemed a direct contradiction of a point made earlier
in the meeting by the Department of Higher Education’s Dr Green, who
stated that the South African education system had “huge difficulty”
attracting African language school leaders to work at the foundation
phase.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">When it
came to all the new textbooks which would be required – in a context
where, obviously, many of the old ones are not reaching their intended
learners – Mweli was similarly reassuring, stating that the department
had “developed capacity” to make the necessary workbooks available.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">The
policy is by no means set in stone yet; it will still be put out for
public comment. Mweli said they would also be launching an “aggressive
campaign” targeting parents and learners to win support for the measure.
The DA’s Shadow Minister for Basic Education Annette Lovemore expressed
skepticism over the timeframes, given that the policy is supposed to be
implemented in 2014: it’s already mid-year, she pointed out, and the
draft policy still has to be released for public comment, a final policy
decided on, and only then can implementation begin.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">In
general, most of the MPs present expressed cautious approval for the
idea, though one expressed confusion over one element of Mweli’s
presentation. It appeared, she said, that one of the African languages
from which learners would be permitted to pick would be Afrikaans.
Stressing that she did not mean her point to sound “racist”, she
nonetheless asked: if Afrikaans is counted as an African language, what
will meaningfully change in the current situation?</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">It is
certainly a valid question if one of the policy’s stated aims – as has
been repeatedly stressed – is “greater social cohesion”, as well as the
need to raise the status of “previously marginalized” languages. If
Afrikaans can indeed be substituted for a majority language like
isiXhosa or isiZulu, in the policy’s parameters, then the department
will open themselves up to the suggestion that they are not meaningfully
shifting the status quo. Mweli provided little clarification after the
fact, however, saying only that the department was grateful for the
committee’s “sound advice”, and that they hoped to return soon with a
more concrete policy.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Any
move to foster multilingualism in as socially-fractured country as South
Africa should presumably be welcomed. But a question which will need to
be addressed is as follows: how will the additional teaching of African
languages escape the wider systemic problems of the education system?
During Tuesday’s meeting, portfolio committee members consistently
lamented the quality of teaching more generally.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">One
problem raised was the low status accorded to teaching as a profession
in South Africa, which was suggested as a reason for an inability to
attract many desirable candidates. The DA’s Lovemore pointed out that
the countries which consistently fare best in educational measurements
worldwide – like Finland and South Korea – aggressively target top
graduates to move into teaching. The profession cannot be seen as a
“fallback option”, more than one committee member said: serious thought
needs to go into new strategies for teacher recruitment.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Another
concern mentioned was that certain provinces have far less difficulty
attracting teachers: Gauteng, for instance, is a desirable employment
location and therefore depletes the pool of teachers available for other
provinces. This has to be addressed, and teacher education scaled up in
provinces like the Eastern Cape and Limpopo.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Without
the wider problems of the image of the teaching profession, the quality
of teachers and the availability of teachers being resolved, then, it’s
hard to see how a scaled-up language teaching initiative can hope to
succeed – however worthy it may be. Mweli ended his presentation by
quoting Mandela: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, it
goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, it goes to his
heart.” <strong><span style="text-decoration:underline">DM</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Read more:</span></p>
<ul><li><span style="font-family:georgia,palatino;font-size:14px">Tongue-tied on language policy, in the <a href="http://mg.co.za/article/2013-03-22-tongue-tied-on-language-policy">M&G</a></span></li></ul><p><a href="http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-06-12-analysis-can-basic-educations-new-language-policy-work/#.UbnO1djAETA">http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-06-12-analysis-can-basic-educations-new-language-policy-work/#.UbnO1djAETA</a><br>
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