Bantu languages in education in South Africa: an overview.Ongekho akekho! – the absentee owner

The (dis)ownership of English: language and identity construction among Zulu students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal

“…Contrary to what the constitution proscribes, official languages are far from enjoying 'parity of esteem' and equal treatment. While there is no doubt that inroads have been made in the promotion of African languages since 1994 (Mesthrie 2006;Deumert 2010, 15;Ndhlovu 2008, Webb et al 2010, the gatekeeping effects of the dominance of English in South Africa are well known. The mastery of English remains a precondition for professional employment (Heugh 2000;Paxton 2009), access to higher education (Lafon 2009) and political participation (McLaughlin 2006).…”

The viability of individual oral assessments for learners: Insights gained from two intervention evaluations

“…However, despite their official status, the standardisation of African languages is subject to a complex debate between linguists, educators and policy makers. Although there is insufficient space here to give this debate due consideration, it is worth noting that the resultant controversy has further diminished the use and perceived value of African languages in education (see Webb, 1999Webb, , 2004Webb, , 2010Barkhuizen, 2002;Wa KabweSegatti, Lafon & Webb, 2008;Webb, Lafon & Pare, 2010). Despite this complex situation, the EGRA tool is able to overcome this challenge by virtue of its design and the fact that it can be adapted to accommodate local varieties/dialects of the home languages, besides already having been translated into the official African languages in South Africa.…”

The grammatical structure of Sowetan tsotsitaal

“…Women, in general, and adults who recently immigrated from rural areas usually do not speak tsotsitaal (Ntshangase 2002). Recently, however, it seems that tsotsitaal is starting to spread to other groups of speakers as well, such as children in certain townships and (lesbian) women (Rudwick, Shange and Nkomo 2006), and that the situations in which tsotsitaal can be spoken are expanding to include classrooms (Webb, Lafon and Pare 2010), and even the home, under certain circumstances (Bembe and Beukes 2007: 465). This spread of tsotsitaal may be explained in the view of tsotsitaal as a stylistic continuum (Hurst 2009;Hurst and Mesthrie 2013), where the prototypical young male speaker may choose to use more and stronger tsotsitaal elements with his peers.…”