Educational language policy in an African country: Making a place for code-switching/translanguaging

Abstract

In Ghana, plurilingual language use is the norm rather than the exception. It follows that the multilingual linguistic practices of bilingual and multilingual Ghanaians should be reflected in language planning and languages-in-education policies. The study explores the nature of Ghana’s complex sociolinguistic ecology and details the shifts in language-in-education policies from the colonial era to the present. A closer look at the policies presents two opposing models: policies that draw on monolingual ideologies involving the use of English only as a medium of instruction from pre-school to higher levels, and policies that promote a bilingual approach where Ghanaian indigenous languages and English are used concurrently in the lower grade classes (grades 1–3), with a transition to English-only instruction from grade 4 onwards. The paper argues that instabilities in languages-in-education policies occur through the effects of ideology and policy formulation that do not take into account the linguistic ecologies of different communities, or indeed, the linguistic ecology of the Ghanaian classroom. It is proposed that rigid policies can be productively modified by recognizing the reality of code-switching in classrooms and shifting focus to the creative learning possibilities that translanguaging opens up.

Language policy in Ghana and Malawi: differing approaches to multilingualism in education

“…The minimal time spent using a familiar language is not sufficient for learners to be able to develop the language and literacy skills that are required to effectively learn in the new MOI (ibid.). Current policy and practice in much of SSA do not effectively incorporate learners' (and teachers') multilingual resources into education, and go against research evidence of the benefits of MTB MLE (Agbozo & ResCue 2020;Opoku-Amankwa & Brew-Hammond 2011). This is largely due to perceived disadvantages or challenges of adopting a multilingual approach.…”

“…Whereas the castle schools were meant to develop the local people into fluent speakers of the colonial languages, the missionaries, on the other hand, aimed to develop the language of the people while introducing them to the colonial languages. Studies such as Agbozo and ResCue (2020) and Ansah (2014) provide comprehensive historical insights into the various languages-of-education policies. These studies conclude that the historical evidence and the motivations for the previous policies on education have a great consequence for the formulation and implementation of future policies.…”

Perceptions of the use of IsiZulu Termbank Technology at University of KwaZulu-Natal.

“…Many students come from rural schools where teachers often utilize code-switching, employing multiple languages simultaneously, as a strategy to enhance students' understanding of complex concepts. Code-switching (also known as language mixing) is defined as the act of shifting between the learners' native language and other language, usually English with the purpose of making intricate concepts more understandable for students, including those in high school (Agbozo & ResCue, 2021;Maluleke, 2019). The consequence of this code-switching is that a large number of learners were unable to develop English proficiency, which is crucial for academic success at the university level (Adler-Greene, 2019;MacCann et al, 2020).…”