Parents, students and children: Should and can they do something to ensure the future of Afrikaans?
3 May 2022
Afrikaans has often been in the news lately. Unfortunately, this has not always been good news. On the contrary. Those who love Afrikaans frequently feel despondent when reading reports about one university after the other abolishing Afrikaans as language of instruction. Many schools are also involved in an intensified struggle to retain Afrikaans as their language of instruction.
The Afrikaans Language Board (Afrikaanse Taalraad, or ATR) and civil rights organisations such as AfriForum and the DAK Network are involved on an almost daily basis in heated debates, submissions to the government and the South African Human Rights Commission (HRC), or even in protracted court cases in an effort to protect and promote the status of Afrikaans.
The ANC government is often blamed for the steady decrease in the use of Afrikaans in various sectors. Yet every speaker of the language plays a significant role in this regard. As far as primary and higher education are concerned, it is primarily the parents, learners and students who play a key role by means of the language choices they exercise. They vote with their feet ‒ or rather with the language they choose ‒ for or against Afrikaans. As a result, principals and university authorities often proffer the argument that the majority of parents, learners and/or students prefer English tuition and that this is the reason for the abolition or reduced offer of tuition in Afrikaans.
Some people may also ask whether the endeavours of language activists really are worth the effort. English ‒ according to popular belief ‒ in any case is the predominant language of the world, as well as the language of globalisation and the global market. They therefore accept that it is better for children and students to study in English. In addition they also believe that English-speaking youths are better equipped for the professional world and that their proficiency in English will help them to get good jobs and to progress faster in their careers.
However, most of these assumptions are based on misperceptions and myths. In academic circles, such misconceptions are typified as globalism. Globalism implies that people (erroneously) believe that globalisation is a powerful and inevitable process that cannot be evaded ‒ individuals, groups and communities have virtually no choice but to adapt to globalisation and even welcome it. By choosing English, people believe they are preparing to become part of the globalised world and that they will be able to participate in the global economy.
Instead of allowing their thoughts and language choices to be influenced by myths and false ideologies, people should rather look at the findings of reliable research on the impact of language in education. Mother-tongue education is probably one of the most researched topics worldwide. International institutions such as UNESCO, for example, have launched large-scale research programmes to investigate the impact of language of instruction. Time and time again, the findings are the same. Mother-tongue education is simply the best! In fact, there is undeniable evidence to prove the wide range of benefits of mother-tongue education.
First of all, mother-tongue education not only promotes the acquisition of knowledge and comprehension, but also the development of cognitive, affective and social skills. Learning implies a complex process and involves learners acquiring new knowledge; integrating such new knowledge with existing knowledge; gaining insight into the principles and processes of a particular field of study; understanding subject-related concepts; mastering the technical terms related to these concepts; and using this knowledge and these insights to solve problems and reason about the content of a subject.
A high level of conscious, abstract and cognitive thinking is required for all of these processes. However, knowledge acquisition does not just happen spontaneously. It results from the successful interaction between the learner, the teacher or lecturer, and the learning material. Effective communication is therefore a core element of successful learning. Language ‒ as the most important means of communication ‒ therefore plays a pivotal role.
Learners learn faster and better in a language they are exceptionally familiar with, such as their mother-tongue. They acquire a higher level of functional literacy faster and have better learning and communication skills. As a result, they can communicate more clearly and convincingly about learning material, for example when asking questions, answering questions (such as in exams) and voicing their own opinions.
The opposite is true when learners study in a language they do not know very well. They learn at a slower pace and often do not perform according to their ability. In the end, they may develop a backlog that may be very difficult to eradicate.
Learning a second language is also promoted by the improved learning and communication processes that are facilitated by the use of the mother-tongue. Children who attend school in their mother-tongue will consequently be able to master English (or any other second or third language) much faster. Another surprising fact is that knowledge and skills are not language-bound. Learners who have mastered complex concepts and the associated processes in their mother-tongue are able to transfer them to a second (or third) language with relatively little difficulty.
Many people may argue that it is nowadays easy for children to switch to English education as they are constantly being exposed to English via television and social media. However, the language used in education differs significantly from everyday colloquial language used in, for example, television programmes. Language of instruction is characterised by the use of academic and technical terms, as well as abstract expressions, complex morphology and syntactic structures that are rare in everyday usage. Even mother-tongur learners do not start schooling already equipped with these language skills.
One may ask whether it really matters if tuition in higher education ‒ in other words at colleges and universities ‒ is mainly in English. One could argue that by the time learners have completed high school, they would have developed sufficient cognitive, affective and social skills, as well as adequate language skills to switch to tuition in a second language. However, research by UNESCO has shown that the benefits are enhanced by successive years of mother-tongue education.
In short: the more years of mother-tongue education, the better. In this regard, Afrikaans-speaking students at the University of South Africa (Unisa) who received instruction in Afrikaans testified that they understood the work better, that they were able to communicate better about the learning material, and that they were able to express themselves more easily in Afrikaans in stressful examination situations. They also confirmed that once they had mastered difficult concepts in Afrikaans, they were able to communicate about these constructs in another language such as English .
A further myth that influences language choices is the notion that tuition in English automatically implies quality education. This simply is not true. The quality of education is not predominantly determined by the language of instruction. Factors such as the content of the curriculum, the availability of well-trained and dedicated teachers, funding, the availability of teaching facilities and the quality of management at educational institutions also play a significant role.
In addition it must be borne in mind that language also fulfils psychological, social and cultural functions. It plays an important role in the development of personal identity, a sense of self-worth and self-confidence. Research conducted at the University of Cape Town, for example, indicated that students who did not speak English as their first language, often lacked self-confidence to participate in class discussions because they were afraid that they would be laughed at. As a result, they were for all intents and purposes silenced in the academic conversation.
Another vital psychosocial function is that language is an important symbol of ethnic and/or cultural group identity. Victor Webb mentions that research has proven that effective learning only takes place in an environment where learners’ cultural identity ‒ as symbolised by their mother-tongue ‒ is recognised and respected. On the other hand, learners often feel culturally excluded in environments where they are not part of the majority culture.
The transition to tuition in English at higher education institutions is furthermore often justified with arguments that English is a “neutral language” that would promote national cohesion and nation-building. Quite the opposite is true, though. The large-scale use of English as a language of instruction rather deepens inequalities between the elite (in other words those who are more proficient in English) and the masses who speak English poorly or are not familiar with it at all. South African research has also found that Afrikaans-speaking students at Unisa who studied in Afrikaans not only identified strongly with their own ethnic group, but also more strongly with South Africa and Africa, as well as with all groups in South Africa.
Therefore parents, learners and students should not be fooled by all sorts of myths. They should rather base their language choices on considerations aimed at the maximal educational development of learners and students. In consequence, their future successful participation in the economy will be best served. There can be little doubt that teaching in any mother-tongue, including Afrikaans, is the best choice to ensure the realisation of these ideals.
