Opinion / Columnist
Local languages risk extinction
22 Mar 2022 at 05:49hrs | Views
MAY I through your edition bring to the fore the advent of vernacular language extinction.
In my view, I would like to point out the problem of poor governance as evidenced in the education sector, particularly the curriculum. We have come to a situation where you can hardly hear people talking in their mother languages. The worst part of it being that Early Childhood Development children are taught to be more eloquent in English than either Shona, Ndebele or any other local languages.
These are tomorrow's fathers and mothers, who then shall teach their children our languages? I have nothing against English but can we not strike a balance and ensure survival of our local languages instead of creating black Americans in Zimbabwe.
Parents are even proud to converse with their children in English while the time we grew up it was straight from herding cattle to school, but we are equally good in all languages. What's wrong with this generation that it can spit in the face of its origin to allow foreign languages to rule.
If by the grace of God, Citizens Coalition for Change takes over power, we will appoint a proper Primary and Secondary Education minister because Zanu-PF appointees are a disaster.
They say they fought colonialism but lead this country into a mess by employing double standards.
Give Zimbabwe a few more years from now and we will be like black Americans.
Black Americans did not choose to be what they are. Were it not for slavery probably most of them would be here, speaking local languages.
In my view, I would like to point out the problem of poor governance as evidenced in the education sector, particularly the curriculum. We have come to a situation where you can hardly hear people talking in their mother languages. The worst part of it being that Early Childhood Development children are taught to be more eloquent in English than either Shona, Ndebele or any other local languages.
These are tomorrow's fathers and mothers, who then shall teach their children our languages? I have nothing against English but can we not strike a balance and ensure survival of our local languages instead of creating black Americans in Zimbabwe.
Parents are even proud to converse with their children in English while the time we grew up it was straight from herding cattle to school, but we are equally good in all languages. What's wrong with this generation that it can spit in the face of its origin to allow foreign languages to rule.
If by the grace of God, Citizens Coalition for Change takes over power, we will appoint a proper Primary and Secondary Education minister because Zanu-PF appointees are a disaster.
They say they fought colonialism but lead this country into a mess by employing double standards.
Give Zimbabwe a few more years from now and we will be like black Americans.
Black Americans did not choose to be what they are. Were it not for slavery probably most of them would be here, speaking local languages.
Source - NewsDay Zimbabwe
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