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<h2 class="">African language policy to be introduced next year</h2>
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<img src="http://www.destinyconnect.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Bulelwa-300x300.jpg" alt="Bulelwa Dayimani" class="" height="60" width="60"> <span class=""> By <span class=""><a class="" href="http://www.destinyconnect.com/author/bulelwa-dayimani/" title="View all posts by Bulelwa Dayimani" rel="author">Bulelwa Dayimani</a></span></span> <a href="http://www.destinyconnect.com/2015/06/17/african-language-policy-improve-learning/" title="2:43 pm" rel="bookmark">June 17, 2015</a> </div>
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<img src="http://www.destinyconnect.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Teacher-in-a-classroom--690x450.jpg" class="" alt="Shape Msiza won the top Gauteng teacher award in 2012.(Photo by Gallo)" height="450" width="690"><span class="">Shape Msiza won the top Gauteng teacher award in 2012.(Photo by Gallo)</span>
<p class="">As part of a new African languages policy
by the Department of Basic Education, South African schools will now be
offering African languages as part of the curriculum </p>
<p>From 2016, the Department of Education will make it
compulsory for all SA schools to offer one African language as part of
their school curriculum. The aim is to improve and expand the teaching
of African languages, enhance learning and promote social cohesion.</p>
<p>“Currently, the National Curriculum Statement requires schools to
offer two languages, one as a language of learning and teaching, and the
other as an additional language. One of the two languages should be
offered at Home Language level, and the other at either Home Language or
First Additional Language (FAL) level,” the department said in a
statement.</p>
<p>The department says that of the 25 000 schools, only 3 700 don’t
offer African languages as part of their curriculum, and those schools
will now do so.</p>
<p>“We’ve done our homework, [being] particularly conscious of the
importance of languages and communication in promoting social cohesion
and nation-building. An investigation was conducted to determine
properly how this should be done.”</p>
<h3><br></h3>
<p>Based on a Global Monitoring Report, which discovered that the choice
of language of instruction and language policy played a vital role in
effective learning, the department found it necessary to introduce
African languages to the curriculum.</p>
<p>“The Incremental Introduction of African Languages policy intends to promote and develop the previously marginalised languages.</p>
<p>“We hope this will raise confidence of parents to choose their own
languages as languages for learning and teaching. We believe, also, that
the policy will increase access to languages by all learners, beyond
English and Afrikaans.”</p>
<h3><br></h3>
<p>The department, however, admits that more teachers will be needed to teach the African languages.</p>
<p>“Four provinces (Free State, Limpopo, Northern Cape and
KwaZulu-Natal) have provided African language teachers in all former
Model-C schools, two provinces (Mpumalanga and Gauteng) have teachers in
some schools, the Eastern Cape and North West have put plans in place
to provide the teachers for African languages, in the Western Cape,
schools share an African language teacher.”</p>
<p>The Department of Basic Education will be working to provide more qualified teachers for African languages in all provinces.</p>
<p>“However, the post provisioning norm to promote African languages
will differ from one province to the other. It would be simpler in
provinces with few official languages and more complex in those with
more official languages.”</p><p><a href="http://www.destinyconnect.com/2015/06/17/african-language-policy-improve-learning/">http://www.destinyconnect.com/2015/06/17/african-language-policy-improve-learning/</a><br></p><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/" target="_blank">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
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