By Thabo Ditsele
I read with interest The Sunday Times article on “School kids reject African languages” (8 November 2008) . As far as most schools in the suburbs are concerned, I disagree that the option to study African languages is available to learners at English-medium schools. This might be the case at some schools, but certainly not at others. The reality is that most learners at English-medium schools are introduced only to Afrikaans as an Additional Language at Grade 3.
One might argue that such schools do not want to introduce African languages because they will be compelled to employ teachers from different cultural and/or racial backgrounds; they would want nothing to do with changing the racial make-up of staff. Some schools, who teach African languages, would rather have a teacher from their own ranks teach an African language, than employ a qualified teacher from outside. The criterion to select such a teacher would be based on an introductory communication course that they passed at first year level at university. As for English and Afrikaans, the criterion would be completely different; nothing less than a three-year diploma/degree with full proficiency would be acceptable.
A niece of mine, whose home language is Setswana, passed Grade 12 not so long ago. She said that she was taught Sepedi by a “clueless” teacher who confused Sepedi with Setswana and Sesotho. What the teacher did not know is that, even if these languages are mutually intelligible, they are different. How will learners take African languages seriously when the school system does not? Perhaps as a starting point, Ms Vinjevold, the Deputy Director-General for Education and Training, should find out how widespread this practice is.
I find it disingenuous for some principals to claim that there is a shortage of African language teachers at primary school level. Which country do they live in? If it is South Africa, then there is no such shortage; there are many unemployed graduates who studied African languages and would be willing to be offered employment.
As much as it would be illogical and unfair to expect learners whose home languages are Portuguese, Greek or French to “out of nowhere” choose those languages at high school after having studied English and Afrikaans from the Foundation Phase, it is illogical and unfair to expect learners whose home languages are Setswana, isiXhosa or Tshivenda to “suddenly” opt for these languages at high school level. Who in their right mind would risk doing that, when the stakes are so high at Grade 12?
As much as Portuguese, Greek or French home language learners who have not studied these languages in any formal setting, would find the grammar of those languages difficult, the same would hold for Setswana, isiXhosa or Tshivenda home language learners. I cannot agree with Professor Carstens from the North-West University that Afrikaans is “much easier to learn”. Strictly speaking, every language is easy to learn; what makes grammar of any language appear easy is that at the pre-puberty stage, the learner had been sufficiently exposed to the morphology, syntax, etc of that language. So, to those who have been exposed to Afrikaans at school for many years, it would be much easier for them to grasp it further. English and Afrikaans are also difficult languages to those who were not exposed to them particularly from an early age.
It is thus shallow to state that learners reject African languages. How does one arrive at that assertion when learners did not make a choice; it is the school system that decides for them long before they are old enough to do so themselves. They are victims of the system. The statistics we saw are a reflection of the system. Give the learners a choice to study one language. Most of them will desert Afrikaans. Change the system, mindset and approach of the teaching and learning of African languages from primary school; I can tell you that the picture will be completely different twelve years after doing so.
Editor’s note: An edited version of this letter was published by The Sunday Times
