Minorities within a minority: If home language is different from the school’s local language, what is the impact?

• In Event: Challenges of quality primary education in varied multilingual contexts in Africa: Eritrea, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia

Proposal

In Africa the use of mother tongue, or a familiar language as the medium of instruction in government schools is now common. However, the interpretation of this policy depends on what is meant by these terms. Zambia selected seven familiar languages which cover over 80% of children’s first language. Uganda, when specifying ‘a familiar’ language, initially stated that if 80% in a school spoke that language as a first language it should be the language used. Eritrea, announced that every child ‘had a right to be educated in their first language’ but gave no consideration to children whose parents, often as a result of war, had migrated from one language area to another. Thus, due to insecurity, economic migration and intermarriage, we have a growing number of children learning in a local language that is not the language they use at home.

The value of using a local language is not in question. However, insufficient attention has been given to those who find themselves in a school using a different language to their home language, i.e. the 20% under Uganda and Zambian definitions,- the Muganda learning in Teso, the Tonga learning in Cinyanja etc.. What is the impact on performance of learning in a language that is not the home language and what is the impact on social cohesion? Does it increase inequalities?

Assumptions are made about these minorities, both in policy statements and in training documents. It is assumed that children know or can pick up the local language well enough to learn in it because:
1. It is the language of the area so they know it.
2. It is their language of play. Listen to them in the playground.
3. They are bilingual, speaking one language at home and
another with their peers.
4. The local language is easier for them than learning in English.

Although the last point is probably indisputable, the others are less so. Just because a child lives in an area doesn't mean she learns that language particularly well. Playing in a language is not the same as learning in a language because play has a restricted and colloquial use, academic language has a much wider range of functions.
Thus, this piece of research will investigate the accuracy of the assumptions and whether children suffer or benefit from learning in the ‘wrong’ local language.
The research is set in rural Maasai-land where schools are using Maa as the first language. However, many schools have upto 20% non-Maa speakers. They are children of traders, employees and migrant families, speaking a variety of languages, the most common being Kimeru and Kikuyu. As an NGO, AET has been supporting the nursery and lower primary teachers in the use of Maa as the first language of literacy and instruction since 2012 and have collected a significant amount of base line and impact data to analyse and, where necessary, supplement in order to inform and assist implementation at local levels. The paper will answer the following research question

'Has AET's program supporting mother tongue as the language of instruction disadvantaged minorities who do not speak that language at home?

If the answer is yes, then we need to consider what remedial steps are necessary. The research we wish to report on at CIES 2017 is at present on-going but will be complete by the end of 2016 and will be based on the following data samples.

a. Data 1. Compare learning outcomes for Maa and non-Maa speakers who are in the same class using EGRA and EGMA results for Literacy in Maa, English and Numeracy and their competence in spoken Maa.

b. Data 2. End of term school tests with results disaggregated by gender and home language and related to the different subjects they learn.

c. Data 3. Recording children at play in the playground, including language used and friendship networks and groupings.

d. Data 4. Focus group discussions with children and parents compare attitudes to language policy and social/ economic status with the language they use at home, be it Maa or another language.

The paper will draw conclusions on how minority language speakers perform and suggest realistic low cost remedial actions that can be taken where necessary.



Preliminary References:

1. 'Mother tongue matters: local languages as a key to effective learning' UNESCO 2008 Dorthe Buhmann and Barbara Trudell
2. All Children Can Read, Creating an Enabling Environment
for Early Grade Reading in Uganda Presented at CIES 2012
Rod Hicks Creative Associates International
3. ' School access for children from non- dominant ethnic and linguistic communities.' By Carol Benson UNESCO 2015
4. 'Mother Tongue Education in Kenyan Schools: Which way to go'? Dr. Elizabeth K Ngumbi (PhD) & Dr. Paul M Maithya (PhD) in International Journal of Education and Research March 2016

Authors

• Roderick B Hicks, Africa Educational Trust

• Lucy Maina, Africa Educational Trust