This commentary was written by Barbara Trudell, Director of SIL Africa Learning & Development, and Peggy Dubeck, Senior Literacy Researcher at RTI International
One of the acknowledged benefits of standard global curricula for the primary grades is that they provide all students with appropriate and equal knowledge, facilitating each student’s academic development and readiness for further schooling. Yet millions—yes, millions—of children around the world are being expected to learn primary-grade curriculum content with no mastery whatsoever of the language being used to teach that content. This is not only vastly unfair but also pedagogically disastrous.
Students’ mastery of the language of instruction is a crucial component of successful learning, particularly when it comes to acquiring foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) skills. Communicating with and understanding the teacher, as well as reading and understanding texts and examinations, are central to successful classroom learning.
In the majority of classrooms in Africa, primary-grade children are forced to muddle through what is essentially a foreign experience, picking up whatever they can of the language being spoken by the teacher, and relying on rote memorization rather than actual comprehension to get by. The inefficiency of such classroom practices for learning is obvious—not to mention the cognitive, personal, and social costs for students trying to learn in such an environment.
Still, resolving the language-of-instruction question is not simple. From national education policies to household education choices, a web of attitudes and beliefs about language of instruction make the issue a complex one. While parents and communities may appreciate and use their first languages in daily life, introducing these less “prestigious” languages into the school system brings a degree of risk that many are unwilling to take. The cost and effort involved in getting one’s child through primary and—hopefully—secondary school is already high; why jeopardize it further by investing in local-language-medium learning? At the national level, the language policy choices of national decision-makers reflect issues of national identity and aspiration that may not include space for local languages. Further, where language diversity itself is perceived as a threat, the inclusion of local languages of instruction in the curriculum is not of interest at all—regardless of the pedagogical advantages it carries for students.
In this complex environment of possibility and risk, the challenge for implementers of FLN programs is to adopt language-of-instruction strategies that speak to the political and sociolinguistic realities surrounding early-grade learning and, at the same time, allow young students to succeed.
New Guides That Contribute to the Evidence on “What Works”
In this context, education programming that focuses on FLN must be based on a clear understanding of the language issues involved and a knowledge of “what works” in language of instruction. To support such an approach, RTI International and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have recently developed two easy-to-use resources for guiding language-of-instruction choices.
Practical Language Choices for Improving Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in Sub-Saharan Africa
This 15-page how-to guide provides a roadmap for policy makers, program designers, and program implementers who are navigating the complexity of language-of-instruction options for FLN programs. Set in the context of the immense language diversity found in African countries, the guide offers a four-step strategy for making effective language-of-instruction choices: (1) know the language and policy context; (2) build consensus around language-of-instruction choices at both the national and local levels; (3) design the program itself; and (4) ensure long-term commitment through continued engagement and consensus-building with stakeholders.
Informed by a substantial knowledge base regarding what makes first-language-medium (i.e., L1) FLN programming effective in Africa, the guide encourages the productive use of students’ home language for learning, while acknowledging the realities of policy and program implementation in African classrooms today. Access this and other guides on the Science of Teaching website: https://scienceofteaching.s3.eu-west-3.amazonaws.com/index.html
Language of Instruction in Foundational Literacy & Numeracy Programs: The Basics
Developed to accompany the how-to guide, this brief provides background information on critical issues surrounding language of instruction. It covers the central role of language in formal education, key issues and terms in writing systems and reading, recent research on language of instruction, and current models for the use of two or more languages of instruction in African classrooms. The brief concludes by looking at some key contextual issues that FLN program implementers should be aware of in order to increase the impact of their language-of-instruction choices. Access this and other guides on the Science of Teaching website: https://scienceofteaching.site/
Together, these two guides can help reduce the uncertainty and guesswork of language-of-instruction choices—decisions that, if made correctly, can significantly improve the effectiveness of FLN programming. As noted in the guides, developing and implementing successful language-of-instruction strategies requires professional assistance. In particular, ensuring the involvement of technical experts in African language research, second-language acquisition, and reading in African languages can considerably strengthen the language-of-instruction component of FLN programming.
The key to good language-of-instruction choices is knowing what works and how to implement one’s choices effectively. These resources can help!
