The way African language courses are offered at South African universities keeps social divisions in place.
- Professor of African Language Studies, University of the Western Cape
The new policy is an opportunity to promote equity and redress the past politics of language.
It is important to embrace all the nation’s languages in a multilingual and multicultural society. This will ensure they are used, developed and mainstreamed.
English has failed often as the main language of court in proceedings - this impacts testimony and must be addressed.
Police officers are also not, and are not expected to be, sworn translators or interpreters. This has serious implications for justice.
Research has shown that African immigrants in South Africa refrain from speaking their own languages and try to speak local languages to blend in.
Most of the accused in criminal cases in South Africa would not be able to understand the record of their court proceedings.
Forensic linguists are called as expert witnesses in court cases to provide linguistic analysis of legal documents and other forms of oral and documentary evidence – including emojis.
A much more flexible and open teaching and language policy would help teachers and pupils to enable a meaningful learning environment in a multilingual and diverse classroom setting.
Vocation specific language courses can encourage both linguistic and cultural awareness. They can equip students with the basics they need to communicate.
Forensic linguistics can play a valuable role in interpreting evidence.
South Africa must be seen as a country for speakers of all its official languages rather than an English-only elite.
There is a new potential coloniser on South Africa’s linguistic block. From 2016, Mandarin will be taught in schools – and this will see African languages bumped even further down the pecking order.
African universities need to boost local languages onto the same exalted platform as English before they can be considered truly transformed.
Contact Russell for
- General
- Media request
- Speaking request
- Consulting / Advising
- Research collaboration
- Research supervision
- Location: Grahamstown, South Africa
- Website
- Article Feed
- Joined
