BUILD-ing the case for language of instruction decision-making across Africa

• In Event: Laying the bricks for foundational learning through effective language of instruction decision-making

Proposal

There are very complex dynamics that dictate language of instruction (LOI) policy and practice decision making in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). These complexities include lack of evidence of what languages are best for improving student learning in some cases, a lack of commitment or will from governments and/or communities to accept or apply existing evidence in other cases; and more often than not, the lack of a clear, intentionally supportive plan and roadmap to meet governments where they are in their journey and goals for improving student learning in any language(s) they deem necessary for their society.
To help countries navigate their linguistic journeys and priorities, AIR and the Gates Foundation will develop the Blueprint for the Use of evidence In LOI Decisions (BUILD) Framework. AIR and in-country consultants will work closely with education decision makers in the selected countries to develop LOI country road maps based on their current realities (evidence realities, political realities, and economic and resource realities) and goals. AIR will help articulate where each country is in their journey and then strengthen their capacity to design the most effective steps moving forward to achieve their educational goals. The main purpose of developing the BUILD Framework is to guide national education stakeholders in bi- and multilingual settings to make step-by-step decisions on how to improve learning outcomes for their students. In this stage of work, AIR proposes to develop the framework, populate it with existing data for a select set of countries, and identify gaps in data that are needed to make LOI policy decisions.
The BUILD countries include Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, and South Africa. This presentation will highlight the BUILD Framework development, country contextualization and application specific to the Rwandan context. Rwanda is a rich example for the BUILD Framework due to the shifting language of instruction decisions over the past decade. Recently, in 2019, the government changed its LOI policy from Kinyarwanda to English beginning in grade 1. Despite the policy change, approximately 90% of grade 3 learners cannot read a simple sentence in English. In addition, many primary school teachers are not proficient in English. In fact, only 38% of P1 – P3 teachers were fluent in English in 2018, and as of 2022, English was not widely utilized as the LOI across the country (Rwanda Foundational Learning Strategy, 2023).
Through BUILD, AIR and the Gates Foundation seeks to strengthen language of instruction decision-making across Sub-Saharan Africa with the ultimate goal to ensure country-level LOI policies link to providing all students with equal access to achieving foundational learning outcomes. We will also explore digital ways of collecting and analyzing data through BUILD, for example through digital language mapping analysis and artificial intelligence modalities.

Authors

• Pooja Nakamura, American Institutes for Research

• Michael Tusiime, University of Rwanda