LL-L "Language education" 2008.01.13 (06) [E]

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L O W L A N D S - L  -  13 January 2008 - Volume 06
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From: Mark Dreyer <mrdreyer at lantic.net>
Subject: LL-L "Language education" 2008.01.11 (06) [E]

Dear Elsie, Bryan, Marcel, Gael & Ron:

Subject: L-Lowlands Language Education.

I have little to contribute to this string but share my shagrin. I might
also add that the lady's statement is in conflict with the Constitution &
with avowed policy, but you all know this. It is also in conflict with
socio-economic realities; consider:

If it is any consolation let me point out that the legislative &
administrative atmosphere over the whole of Planet Africa is so thin you
need a cultural rebreather. What policy dictates just isn't happening on the
ground, no less in this our republic than elsewhere. Elsie can probably back
me on this. Unofficially Afrikaans is slowly advancing, not merely against
English, but also against other native tongues, because it already has
general currency, it is economically useful, & easier to learn & to speak, &
doesn't have the deadly political burden that isiZulu & Xhosa to name only
two carry with them, spoken in the *wrong company *(sepulchral tone). Also,
most of the medium to small employers are still Afrikaners, & their staff
have a personal motivation to address them in their own language. Major
employers are leaving this country, expanding overseas rather than locally,
shrinking in number, reducing their staff, have a history of & are
increasingly employing expatriates. Bear in mind this country is in a state
of economic retreat.

Afrikaans is in any case a 'kitchen language' as it has been for most of its
history, & flourished best when spoken without official sanction (In my
opinion it is healthier now than it was in 1994). It is linguistically &
structurally far less vulnerable to Official hostility than for example
English, & with the retreat of English-speakers to other climes becoming
slightly more useful to employees of those Whites who remain. The Blacks who
take servants seek out those who speak their own language, so in their case
the labour market is more inclined to isolate than broaden chosen specific
language usage.

If you have any pity to spare, spare it for South African English (a fine
speech). The majority of those who speak it well have a stronger commitment
to their own home tongue in their own circles, Afrikaans.

As for Television; well, I don't watch, & without school-going children to
monitor have no motivation to. I know what a powerful educational tool
television can be. Elsie is spot-on there, but that doesn't apply here. Our
TV is not merely a poor medium of communication (even - dare I say it - of
propaganda) but a bad one, more of a hinderence than a help in the education
of the masses, even with the rather self-conscious 'subject help' programs,
& (apologies), piss-poor as entertainment. People talk about upgrading their
systems. For TV I recommend the half-brick. Until we get Scottish
Television, or Mabat Israel, I'm not interested.

Marcel:

They desparately need information in their own language. Of course, but it
was clear that we came from two different worlds: she wanted to stress the
socio-economic aspects of the question, whereas I, being a Dutchman,
stressed the Afrikaans cultural aspects. Your pdf-file, Elsie, now
demonstrates that Afrikaans empowerment could also have socio-economic
sides. Anyway, when she explained all this, she said that kids without
intact social networks (whose parents have died of AIDS) need to be
addressed in their native language. So I reminded her of the fact that Kid's
Newsroom has a show in Zulu, a show in Xhosa, a show in Tswana, a show in
Pedi and in English. I asked why English is included, whereas it is not a
native African language to the kids that belong to the target group. I think
she expected this, because she immediately agreed on that point, and quickly
suggested that the English show could be turned into show in both Afrikaans
and English: 50-50. She would suggest this to SABC-managers who were coming
to Holland soon, and the thing might just work, according to her. This
sounded very reasonable to all of us in the room. In July I read in the
Beeld newspaper that the show will be aired in Afrikaans as well, starting
September! So you can imagine how curious I am. Maybe Mark knows. Anyone?
;-)

Yrs all round,
Mark

•

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