[dropcap]L[/dropcap]anguage has played a dominant role in the survival of civilisations. The Bible, the holy book of Christians, records that thousands of years ago the ambitions of the man Nimrod was cut short when the unifying language was confused. That civilisation suffered a still birth.
Today, language continues to be a force that unites and breaks. In many communities, the strongest bond of unity is language. When you go to any local market, the ability to communicate in the local dialect is a bargaining chip. It is therefore not surprising that people who share the same language tend to trust, and are generally nicer to one another.
Educationists have long recognised the importance of lingustics to the learning process. One of the strongest barriers to learning is the inability of educator and learner to speak the same language, literally and symbolically. To resolve this conflict, it has often been recommended that learners be instructed in the language of their locality.
In fact, research has shown that it is far more advantageous for young persons to receive basic education in the vernacular of the environment. Professor Angelina Kioko, a professor of English and Linguistics at the United States International University in Nairobi Kenya submits that when learners are taught in the language of the environment, it is easier for them to interact with the learning process. The reason is quite obvious; people are more receptive to things they hear in the language in which they think as it is faster to assimilate. They do not go through the rigours of having to translate what they hear to another language before they respond.
Communication, more than talk
The communication process begins with encoding messages (in one dialect) and decoding it in another. When the language in which the message is encoded is the same in which it will be decoded then there is a smooth transition. When the languages are different, then the encoded language can turn out to be ‘noise’ to the decoder.
For many years, many African nations which adopted English as national dialects have made it the primary language of instruction in schools. One can argue that one of the biggest factors for the fallen educational standards in Nigeria is an inability of educators to communicate to the heart of the learners. This has birthed learning by rote and sometimes an insistence by educators that learners simply regurgitate verbatim what they have been taught by the teachers. One can argue that the wrong foundations were laid when the first set of teachers were taught by the British masters. And that a house built on a faulty foundation cannot stand.
Of course, the argument here is not that Nigeria has not produced great men who are able to communicate clearly in English but rather that the education of the masses requires a large concentration of individuals both within and outside the school system with a proven ability to communicate in the language of instruction.
Unfortunately, this has never been the case in Nigeria. Instead, we have had teachers who prohibit the primary language of communication in favour of the primary lingua franca. What this essentially means is that from the early years, children are forced to go through the process of decoding messages that have been encoded in a dialect different from their primary vernacular. Thus, most of the encoded message is lost as noise.
Policies in Conflict
Perhaps to reverse this trend, there is a policy in theory where teachers are expected to instruct students in the language of the environment for the foundational years. The National Policy on Education States, “Every child shall be taught in the mother tongue or the language of the immediate community for the first three years of basic education in monolingual communities.” (Emphasis mine)
Clearly, the NPE understands the importance of the language of instruction. But as mentioned earlier, this understanding seems to happen only in theory. To illustrate, let us pay attention to the “first three years of basic education”. What are the expectations for learners in terms of subjects they should receive instruction in? A look at the NERDC website shows that learners in Basics 1-3 are to receive instruction in the following subjects:
- English (NERDC lists this as “Medium of instructions in schools”)
- Mathematics
- Nigerian Languages (NERDC states, “NPE stipulates that the medium of instruction should be the language of the immediate environment of the child. Schools are free to select such Nigerian Languages to be taught.”)
- Basic Science and Technology
- Religion and National Values
- Cultural and Creative Arts
- Arabic (Optional)
We can choose to ignore the obvious conflict as to what should be the language of instruction. Is it the mother tongue or the language of the immediate environment as stipulated by NPE or English language as stipulated by the NERDC? However, what we cannot ignore is the fact that the “mother tongue” can be different from the “language of the immediate environment.” Also, the “language of the immediate environment” which is not the “mother tongue” may not be English. In essence, we have created a cacophony!
Let us also not forget the inherent issues that this policy has created.
- If the learners are to be instructed in their mother tongue, does this not mean that all subjects of instruction should be adapted to that language?
- Should we not have Basic Science and Technology textbooks in Efik, Igala and Nupe?
- What efforts have been made by State and Local Government Areas to have translation committees that will interpret these texts into the “mother tongue”?
- At the Federal Teacher Certification levels, what has been done about seminars and workshops preparing teachers to instruct in the “mother tongue”?
- Judging by the Federal Government’s assigning NYSC members to schools in various parts of the country to foster national integration, how will these “teachers” be able to instruct learners in a “mother tongue” that they do not understand? Are there language learning centers within the LGAs put in place to help these ones learn the language of the environment before they are forced into classrooms? Or is there a policy in place to ensure that NYSC “teachers” do not get to instruct learners within the first three years or Primary 1-3?
Mother Tongue, Language of the Environment or English?
Clearly, the first conflict to be resolved is to determine what languages should be used for instruction. In rural areas which are monolingual environments this is clearly evident. The mother tongue, that is the first language one learns as a baby, will be the language of the environment. It becomes tricky when one moves to semi urban and urban multilingual environments. A lot of people may say that we should then just assign them the use of the English Language as the medium of instruction. But, the question does arise, is the English language really the language of the environment?
Let us resolve the issue of language of the environment for a mass of urban Nigerians by examining some interesting facts.
One of the first sectors that directly respond to language needs of the people is the commercial sector led by popular entertainment. In 1992, one of the most populist pieces of advertising that can be said to have changed the face and shape of advertising in Nigeria was launched. It was the MKO Abiola campaign jingle. It was done in English and Nigerian Pidgin. Many can still remember and hum to the lyrics of the Nigerian Pidgin version.
The most popular musicians in Nigeria are those who have learned to infuse local languages into their songs.
The comedy industry in Nigeria which often sells out has Nigerian Pidgin as its primary medium.
Nollywood scripts which have been described as “relatable” are those scripts that contain dialogue in Nigerian Pidgin or our native languages.
In 2014, the first all Nigerian Pidgin radio station, Wazobia FM was launched. In the last years, it has risen to become Nigeria’s most listened to station nationwide.
Can we really say the English Language is the language of Nigeria’s urban environment?
A case for Educational Instruction in Pidgin
A lot of people have developed an attitude towards Nigerian Pidgin primarily because we have been taught to scoff at the language by our educators. In most schools, Pidgin is banned. However, this ban is hypocritical as the people who ban the language in schools use it in their homes, at market places and when talking to people in their immediate environment.
What really is language but a means to communicate?
As has been shown by Wazobia FM, Nigerian pidgin is a language with its own semantics. It must not be confused for Broken English. Broken English is an aberration that is neither here nor there. People who speak broken English often bastardise the English language by committing tense and grammatical errors. Nigerian Pidgin is not a bastardisation of English. It is a language with its own rules that speaks to the heart of a mass of Nigerians.
If learners are taught in this language, they may not need to decode into another language before they assimilate.
When we let go of our initial prejudices against Nigerian Pidgin, we begin to see the possibilities of instruction that it holds. One of the strongest factors is that a good majority of Nigerian teachers already communicate in Pidgin. All they need is to be trained on how to use pidgin as a language of instruction.
Of course, while the learners are primarily instructed in pidgin, they will also receive instruction on the subject called “English Studies.” In this case, we will only have people who have specialised in teaching English give such instruction. Learners will come to the English class with a different mind-set: They are to learn an internationally accepted commercially viable language and for them to be able to reap the benefits of speaking the language, they must learn the rudiments of the language. They will not begin with the conception that English is the “language of the Environment” because it clearly is not.
(Watch Abigail Anaba teach Photosynthesis in this short clip using Pidgin)
The Beauty in Multiplicity
Of course, for many Nigerian children, the English Language is not only their first language but the language of their environment. For them to learn, they will need to be instructed in the English language. It is proposed that in every local government there should be at least one school that begins basic education instruction with English. But to be admitted into such schools the child must at the age of entry prove that English is their primary language.
The fact is, a lot of educated Nigerians are prejudiced against Nigerian Pidgin because of the perception that it is the language of the poor. However, it is for this very reason that it should be considered as the best language for instruction. NBS 2016 report puts the population of the persons living in poverty as 67% of the total population or 112million people.
It also bears saying that making Nigerian Pidgin the language of instruction frees up teachers of English for specialisation. English will be taught as a “second language” which means that the mind-set, approach and methods of instruction will be different. It will reflect the fact that the learners are learning a language they can use because of its economic viability.
The NPE policy saying that in the early years of basic education, the medium of instruction should be either the mother tongue or the language of the environment is laudable. We should go a step further by outlining how this policy is to be implemented. Each of the Local Government Areas in Nigeria should adopt a language of the environment and install a translation team that will make the texts available to teachers and students in that language. They should also have a training team on ground that will facilitate teacher’s workshops/seminars in this language. When teachers apply or are posted to a school under their jurisdiction, the training department conducts workshops for them on how to use the language of the environment to instruct the learners. This approach will go a long way in resolving the skills gap that we have which is mainly foundational. When a child learns in a language which requires minimal decoding, they are better able to understand and apply the things they have learnt thereby creating better learners overall.
The aim of this article is to start a conversation that will move us in a new direction with regards to solving the problems of basic education in Nigeria. It does not in any way pretend to address all the issues but the specific issue that language barrier is causing in classroom management. It is the hope of this writer that the scope of the conversation will be expanded.
Abigail Anaba is an advocate for education.
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
