The New Age, Johannesburg, 2 January 2018

English skills backfire Many black children living in South African suburbs are not fluent in an African language SISANDA MADWANTSI

MANY black African parents in South Africa were determined to have their children learn the English language since 1994, but years later, it seems to have backfired. Large numbers of African children living in South African suburbs speak only English and are not fluent speakers of any African language. There are many reasons for this. They speak mostly English throughout their school day and often live in multiracial, multicultural neighbourhoods where English is mostly spoken among friends. Molteno Vula Bula Readers CEO Masennya Dikotla said it is important for children to speak an African language for various reasons. These include connecting them to their culture, heritage, family and sense of identity while boosting their self-esteem. “If you want to improve your child’s fluency and reading skills in an African language, the books in the Vula Bula reading series are a great way to start,” Dikotla said. “Published by the Molteno Institute for Language and Literacy, Vula Bula books are available for Grade 1 to 3 pupils and offer a range of engaging stories for children in Xhosa, Zulu, Ndebele, Sotho, Sepedi, Tswana, Tsonga and Venda.” Thembi Zikola, parent of 11-yearold Nhlanhla, said she did not have a problem with her daughter knowing her mother language. In fact, she is fluent in speaking and reading it. “In my house no one will speak English. We speak Xhosa, even when I am reprimanding her. She must know her mother tongue,” Zikola said. She said that even on the basis of African literature, authors who write in African languages needed to be supported and promoted. “Being able to speak, read and write English should not be a basis of measuring one’s intellect and intelligence,” she said.

FLUENCY: Black African parents are encouraged to improve their kids’ African language skills through reading.

Dikotla said the Vula Bula African language books offered numerous benefits for children. Through reading these books, children improve their language skills in an African language. They learn to identify letters and learn about the structure of words and sentences. He said they also learnt to read with understanding and about a combination of letters and sounds, while increasing their vocabulary.

In 2015, the Department of Basic Education launched the Incremental Introduction of African Languages policy for Grade 1 pupils. This policy will be introduced incrementally until 2026 when it will be introduced in Grade 12. The policy states that it is compulsory for all schools to offer previously marginalised official languages to pupils in schools not offering any African lan-

guage, other than Afrikaans. Molteno is a non-profit language and literacy organisation that was established in 1974. Its mission is to change our world by developing literacy through teaching and learning materials, as well as providing institutional training and classroom mentoring to developing communities in Africa. [email protected]