Globalisation
and Languages
By Zubeida Mustafa
At a conference
on elementary education organized recently by the
Sindh Education Foundation in Karachi, an issue
which came under discussion was that of globalization
and language. In his well-researched and enlightening
presentation, Dr Tariq Rahman, professor of socio-linguistics
at the Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, pointed
out the snags in Pakistan’s language policy
in education. He also explained how globalization
was affecting the state of languages all over the
world.
Quoting Dow Templeton Associates, he said, “English
will become the universal language and capitalism
will become the dominant social system.” Dr
Rahman continued, “If this vision comes true,
most languages will die and English will be the
great ‘killer’ language. It is already
moving towards that role.”
One may further add that in Pakistan the situation
is worse because we are still so ambiguous about
which language we want to teach our children in
school. According to Dr Rahman, increased and rapid
communication, which is a by-product of globalization,
has given the English language a special status
as the most pre-eminent international language.
Therefore, English is perceived as the language
of power, and is the language of choice for most
students as an agent for self-empowerment. Students
are disowning their mother tongue and consider English
to be “the most useful, sophisticated and
superior language out of all they encounter in their
daily life”. This in turn fosters a feeling
of alienation from one’s mother tongue that
is deleterious for the self-esteem of a person.
How can a person who feels ashamed of his mother
tongue feel positive about his identity? Language
is also becoming an additional factor in the stratification
of our society.
In the last few years, there has been a widening
social, economic and political gulf between the
people who have studied in private English medium
schools and those attending public sector institutions
where the language of instruction is generally Urdu
or one of the regional languages. This had never
happened in the history of Pakistan before because
the gap in the academic standards of schools run
by the government and the private sector was never
so wide.
What should the solution be? Of course, the first
priority should be to raise education standards
in all sectors. It is also important that the government
should define its language policy clearly. The first
point that needs to be impressed on the people is
that at the school level language and academic standards
are not necessarily linked directly. To neutralize
the false esteem granted to English at the expense
of a child’s mother tongue it is important
that a concerted move is made to revive pride in
one’s own language and culture. Let the child
learn in a language he understands and is familiar
with. That will make learning a pleasurable experience.
There is also need to emphasize to parents and demonstrate
by example that good education can be imparted in
Urdu or Sindhi or any other language. It is more
important that the books are well produced and the
teachers well trained. If anything it will be found
that it is easier to teach children in the language
they understand. Thus the rote method will not be
so indispensable.
But it will not be possible to abandon English altogether.
It will have to be taught for its utility. This
should be introduced gradually over a period of
time in a system which accepts bilingualism. If
we stop perceiving a person fluent in English as
a socially superior being it may be possible to
convince parents that knowledge and academic excellence
cannot be equated with fluency in a foreign language
especially at the primary level.
Teaching English in a bilingual system requires
some preconditions. John Clegg, a British educationist
who has done research on language in education,
says that education through the medium of a second
language normally works if the children come from
an educated background, have a sound foundation
in literacy in their own language, have adequate
exposure to the second language and have a good
level of ability in the second language before it
is used as the language of instruction for other
subjects. John Clegg also advises that subject teachers
who teach in English should be provided language
supportive education in their subject.
In this context some questions that need to be honestly
asked are:
— Given the poor language skills of teachers
generally can they really impart knowledge to students
who are not familiar with English either?
— Can schools raise their standards by teaching
children in their mother tongue while appointing
a well-trained English language teacher to teach
English as a separate subject to the students?
Since we have been pretending that English is the
panacea of all evils the standards of schools are
falling and will continue to fall if this trend
is not reversed.
If a change has to come it will have to start with
the teachers. It will be easier to train teachers
who understand comprehensively the language they
teach in and are articulate in it. They can be familiarized
with the skills of pedagogy. The focus needs to
be on excellence in teaching and the first precondition
for this is proficiency in the language of instruction.
Secondly, we need to transform our approach to language
teaching. The main function of a language is to
enable the user to communicate. But children are
not being taught communication skills in any language.
Hence the falling standards of education. The fault
lies in the method of language teaching. In fact,
it is more likely that a child taught in his mother
tongue initially would be able to communicate better
and would enjoy it too.
So one can only ask what should be done about the
language dilemma in Pakistan. No one questions the
need for learning English if the country is not
to be left isolated in the globalization race. But
under no circumstances should the language and culture
of a people be allowed to be swamped by the forces
of globalism.
It would be wisest to introduce bilingualism in
the country — English along with the mother
tongue or Urdu — but it is imperative that
the child’s first exposure to learning and
knowledge should be in the language he understands
and is comfortable with. In other words, the first
step in his journey of a thousand miles should begin
in his mother tongue. Let another language be introduced
at a stage when he is firmly set on the road to
learning and is enjoying it. But let the learning
of the second language be a fun activity and not
a painful experience.
It is time some language experts studied this problem
scientifically and dispassionately to dispel the
misgivings that surround language teaching. It needs
to be made clear that language should not be equated
with academic standards which are determined by
the teaching methods, the training of the teachers,
the textbooks used and the curricula. It is also
important that all languages are taught correctly
and scientifically to optimize their use as the
medium of communication. If students are taught
English as a second language and gain proficiency
in it by the time they are ready to leave school,
they would enjoy all the advantages of knowing English
in global competition. It would also facilitate
the process of their higher education.
The advocates of English adopt the attitude that
if a child is not pushed into English from day one,
he will never be proficient in the language. That
is why we have the elite schools ordering parents
to speak only in English with their children. What
damage this approach does to a child’s psyche
we would never know. One cannot even be sure that
this raises their standards significantly because
there is no comparative yardstick for them to evaluate
the merits of teaching in the mother tongue or in
English. (Courtesy Dawn)
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