ENG2601 - Applied English Language Studies: Further Explorations
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ENG2601 ASSIGNMENT 2 S1 2023
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Course
ENG2601 - Applied English Language Studies: Further Explorations
Institution
University Of South Africa (Unisa)
The document provides a well-structured and persuasive analysis of Nompumelelo Mohohlwane's article titled "Policy options to crack the mother tongue versus English riddle in South African schools." The analysis focuses on the purpose, diction, and style of the article, highlighting its call for pr...
ENG2601 - Applied English Language Studies: Further Explorations
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LOLA JACOBS ASSIGNMENTS 0618151315
ENG2601
Assignment number: 02
Year: 2023 (SEMESTER 1)
PREVIEW:
Question 1: Write a well-structured persuasive essay of 1000-1200 words in which you discuss
this text in relation to its purpose, diction, and style.
Title: Promoting Multilingual Education in South African Schools: An Analysis of Policy Option
Introduction: The purpose of Nompumelelo Mohohlwane's article "Policy options to crack the
mother tongue versus English riddle in South African schools" is to explore the language-
instruction policies in South African schools and discuss various options to strike a balance
between mother tongue and English instruction. Through an examination of the article's purpose,
diction, and style, we can understand the author's intent and the significance of multilingual
education in South Africa.
, LOLA JACOBS ASSIGNMENTS 0618151315
Read Text B below and answer the question that follows.
TEXT B
Policy options to crack the mother tongue versus English riddle in South African schools
Author: Nompumelelo Mohohlwane
Published: July 26, 2020 11.52am SAST
Internationally, education theory favours mother-tongue instruction and recommends that schooling should begin in
the language the child knows best, often their mother tongue. Even with limited studies in Africa, evidence in
Botswana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa supports this.
In South Africa mother-tongue instruction is maintained until the third year in most schools. The language of teaching
and learning changes to English from Grade 4 and then mother tongue is taught as a subject rather than used as the
language of instruction.
However, the Language in Education Policy allows schools to extend the years of mother-tongue instruction until
Grade 6. This shows an inconsistency between the language policy and the schooling experience.
Implementation and education researchers have been calling for the extension of mother-tongue instruction beyond
the current status quo in line with the policy. But parents seem to be requesting an even earlier transition to English.
When asked which language should be the main language of instruction in the first three years of school, respondents
have increasingly favoured English in the South African Social Attitudes Survey.
In 2003 the response was 55% in favour of English, but this increased to 65% in 2018. This is incompatible with the
demographics of South Africa. In the last census less than 10% of the population identified English as their home
language.
This article discusses three policy options drawn from my research on language in education in South Africa. I’ll
outline what’s necessary to implement these options and what can be done to make progress in policy and society.
Policy options
The first policy option is maintaining the status quo and teaching in the various African mother tongues while also
introducing English, and then transitioning to English from Grade 4.
This is the most supported policy option in terms of teacher and learner resources. The curriculum statements – which
set out what should be taught and when – are available in mother tongue only until Grade 3. These are an important
teacher resource used across the country. In addition, the educational culture of this option has been established.
But there are gaps which show that this option still needs further investment.
Firstly, few university courses adequately equip teachers with the skills of successfully teaching home languages.
Secondly, the education system needs to develop reading materials for successful home-language teaching. Efforts
towards this are already underway but more resources and additional investments from universities, publishers,
linguists and education specialists are needed.
The second policy option would be to delay moving to English as a medium of instruction until Grade 6, in line with
the language policy. This option builds on the first. Similarly, it would also need material development for reading.
But in addition, it would require the development and reviewing of previous science, geography and maths textbooks
into South Africa’s 11 official languages in line with the current curriculum for Grade 4 through to Grade 6. This
assumes that academic and scientific terminology exists across all 11 languages to aid textbook revisions or
development.
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