Lessons from Outside School: Opportunities for Learning Ghanaian Languages with Community

• In Event: Exploring sub-national disparities in learning outcomes: understanding variation in Ghana's basic education system

Proposal

In recent decades many Ghanaian students and scholars bemoan the marginalization of Ghanaian languages in schools. Both current and former students have reported having no teachers of Ghanaian languages when they were in primary and junior secondary school (Bonney & Campbell, 2022). Some students shared that they believe schools never take seriously Ghanaian languages subjects and as such pay no special attention to Ghanaian language. In the past, students were punished and felt excluded for speaking Ghanaian languages in schools when interacting with their peers both in and outside the class (Opoku-Amankwa, 2009). Scholars continue to call for intentional language policies that centers Ghanaian languages and cultures as part of educating Ghanaian students (cite). However, educational leaders insist that students can only excel in education when they are able to learn and embody literacies and proficiencies in English (Bonney, 2022; Edu-Buandoh & Otchere, 2012; Opoku-Amakwa & Brew-Hammand, 2011). Research, however, has shown Ghanaian languages and culture rather than English leads to more engagement in lessons (Owu-Ewie & Eshun, 2015, 2019), more complex and advanced writing skills, achievement in English and Math later on (Casely-Hayford & Hartwell, 2010). For us, the study of Ghanaian languages cannot be separated from the learning of Ghanaian cultures and ways of being. We argued that when schools fail to center Ghanaian languages as part of teaching and learning, they signal to students that not only are Ghanaian languages not valuable to society but their associated cultures, histories, and ways of knowing. In our most recent study (Bonney & Campbell, 2022), we learned about the many negative experiences students have had related to learning in Ghanaian languages in schools. In addition to the absence of Ghanaian language teachers in schools, their peers, teachers, and family members questioned the use of learning Ghanaian languages today. As scholars we wondered how schools can becomes sites of anti-oppressive language practices in Ghanaian several times as we listened to the stories of students. We believe answering that question would re-open the conversation about cultural wealth of Ghanaian languages as a tool for learning. In order to reimagine Ghanaian schools as capable of centering Ghanaian languages, we highlight a site of anti-oppressive Ghanaian language practices outside of the school and within the community. We share a single case based on lengthy interviews with a director of a literacy community-based organization, Lahibali Theater Arts (LBA) in the Northern Region of Ghana. LBA centers Ghanaian languages, specifically, Dagbani, cultures, histories, and knowledge in their work. We share findings from LBA including their work drawing on Yosso’s (2005) community cultural capital as a tool for decolonizing spaces. Lesson detail how Ghanaian languages and cultures are fostered in community to inform how schools, educators and leaders can center Ghanaian languages in schools to embrace more anti-oppressive language practices. Initial findings show how elders in the community enjoyed sharing the history of the community in their indigenous language, Dagbani, and contrary to unspoken assumptions, the youth wanted to learn more about their history, culture, and language.

Authors

• Edwin Nii Bonney, Clemson University

• Akua Asantewaa Campbell, University of Ghana Legon, Accra