Exploring Teachers' Perceptions of the Relevance of African Languages in the Digital Space

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24256/ideas.v11i2.3688

Keywords:

21st-century status, African languages, colonialism, digital learning., English language

Abstract

Digital learning is the future of education within the African context, and thus it is important to provide equitable access to educational content for all African language speaking students. By so doing, the quality of education and the relevance of African languages will be enhanced. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of teachers towards the relevance of African languages in the digital space.

 

The study adopted a mixed methods technique and chose a sample of 10 language teachers from four high schools for the online survey and semi-structured interviews. The online survey data was analysed using descriptive statistics, whilst the interview data was analysed using thematic analysis. The study’s key findings showed that while the teachers were happy to see African languages being used on a digital platform, they advocated further for the empowering of African languages. However, there was a sentiment amongst majority of participating teachers that while African languages are important, they are however not relevant in the 21st century and that their integration onto digital platforms might be nice-to-have, but in the larger scope of things they will not prepare students for the 21st century. The findings were explained against the theory of Colonial Mentality. 

Author Biographies

Calsile Khumalo, The Aurum Institute Implementation Research Department

I currently am employed at The Aurum Institute within the Implementation Research Department. I serve as Research Coordinator

Maglin Moodley, University of Johannesburg

As a natural born teacher, my passion lies in improving education, particularly in the area of professional development for pre-service and in-service teachers. My career has evolved in four distinct stages, each one building upon the previous.

During the first stage, I supported and served teachers at my own school, which led to coordinating a teacher professional development programme for the Tshwane South district office. In the second phase, I was recruited as National Manager, Teacher Development at McMillan Teacher Campus. In this position, I developed and coordinated various teacher development programmes across the country.

The third stage of my career saw me managing the development of a teacher assessment software for DBE at HSRC. I also developed training programmes and material for teacher development at a national level. In the final stage, I was appointed as a lecturer at the University of Johannesburg, where I engage with pre-service and in-service teachers, preparing students for the teaching profession. I also supervise in-service teachers at an Honours and Masters level from all over the country.

Overall, my journey as an educator has been defined by a commitment to improving the quality of education by empowering teachers to develop their skills and abilities.

References

Alexander, N. (1999). English Unassailable but Unattainable: The Dilemma of Language Policy in South African Education.

Anastácio, K. (2016). A view from the cheap seats: Internet and colonialism. Paper presented at the GigaNet: Global Internet Governance Academic Network, Annual Symposium,

Bamgbose, A. (2011). African languages today: The challenge of and prospects for empowerment under globalization. Paper presented at the Selected Proceedings of the 40th Annual Conference on African Linguistics, 1-14.

Bodó, C., Fazakas, N., & Heltai, J. I. (2017). Language revitalization, modernity, and the Csángó mode of speaking. Open Linguistics, 3(1), 327-341.

Buzasi, K. (2012). Does colonialism have an impact on the current language situation in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Chukwuere, J. E., Mavetera, N., & Mnkandla, E. (2017). Student’s Perception on Culture-Oriented e-Learning System: An Empirical Study. Open and Equal Access for Learning in School Management, 145-161.

Conner, B., & Johnson, E. (2017). Descriptive statistics. American Nurse Today, 12(11), 52-55.

Creswell, J. W. (2015). A concise introduction to mixed methods research. SAGE Publications.

Dascal, M. (2009). Colonizing and decolonizing minds.

David, E., & Okazaki, S. (2006). Colonial mentality: a review and recommendation for Filipino American psychology. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 12(1), 1.

Decena, A. M. (2014). Identity, colonial mentality, and decolonizing the mind: exploring narratives and examining mental health implications for Filipino Americans.

Dascal, M. (2009). Colonizing and decolonizing minds. In R. Wodak, R. de Cillia, M. Reisigl, & K. Liebhart (Eds.), The Discursive Construction of National Identity (pp. 45-60). Edinburgh University Press.

Etoundi, R. A., Onana, F. S. M., Olle, G. D. O., & Eteme, A. A. (2016). Development of the digital economy in Cameroon: Challenges and perspectives. The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, 76(1), 1-24.

Ebatamehi S 2020. Top 10 most spoken languages in Africa 2020. Available at Accessed 25 February 2023

Finlayson, R., & Madiba, M. (2002). The intellectualisation of the indigenous languages of South Africa: Challenges and prospects. Current Issues in Language Planning, 3(1), 40-61.

Galla, C. K. (2018). Digital realities of Indigenous language revitalization: A look at Hawaiian language technology in the modern world. Language and Literacy, 20(3), 100-120.

Glasow, P. A. (2005). Fundamentals of survey research methodology. Retrieved January, 18, 2013.

Gudhlanga, E. S., & Makaudze, G. (2012). Battling against marginalisation: Towards the elevation of indigenous languages in Zimbabwe. IFE PsychologIA: An International Journal, 20(2), 21-30.

Kaschula, R. H., & Maseko, P. (2014). The intellectualisation of African languages, multilingualism and education: A research-based approach. Alternation Special Edition, 13(1), 8-35.

Kamwangamalu, N. M. (Ed.) (2016). Language planning and the medium-of-instruction conundrum in Africa. In Language policy and economics: The language question

Khan, M. (2014). Indigenous languages and Africa's development dilemma. Development in Practice, 24(5-6), 764-776.

Khumalo, L. (2017). Intellectualization through terminology development. Lexikos, 27, 252-264.

Léglise, I., & Migge, B. (2007). No title. Language and Colonialism.Applied Linguistics in the Context of Creole Communities.

Lieberman, A. E. (2003). Taking ownership: Strengthening indigenous cultures and languages through the use of ICTs. Retrieved February 11, 2008.

Lusekelo, A. (2018). Lexical borrowing in Africa with special attention to outcomes of languages in contacts in Tanzania. Mgbakoigba: Journal of African Studies, 7(2), 1-22.

Maseko, R. (2021). Marxism, decoloniality, and the plight of mineworkers in South Africa. Marxism and Decolonization in the 21st Century (pp. 355-371). Routledge.

McPhail-Bell, K. (2014). We have a lot to learn yet: A postcolonial lens in health promotion. Paper presented at the AIATSIS National Indigenous Studies Conference-Breaking Barriers in Indigenous Research and Thinking: 50 Years On,

Muswede, T. (2017). Colonial legacies and the decolonisation discourse in post-apartheid South Africa-a reflective analysis of student activism in Higher Education. African Journal of Public Affairs, 9(5), 200-210

Ndebele, H. (2014). Promoting indigenous African languages through information and communication technology localisation: A language management approach. Alternation Special Issue, 13, 102-127.

Ndimande-Hlongwa, N., & Ndebele, H. (2017). Embracing African languages as indispensable resources through the promotion of multilingualism. Per Linguam: A Journal of Language Learning= Per Linguam: Tydskrif Vir Taalaanleer, 33(1), 67-82.

NÄ›meÄek, R. (2010). The Role of English as a colonial tool through the ages-with an especial accent on Africa.

Nürnberger, K. (2012). The neglected context: The growing impact of modernity on the South African population and its spiritual, economic and ecological consequences. Verbum Et Ecclesia, 33(2), 1-11.

Ocheni, S., & Nwankwo, B. C. (2012). Analysis of colonialism and its impact in Africa. Cross-Cultural Communication, 8(3), 46-54.

Oliver, E., & Oliver, W. H. (2017). The colonisation of South Africa: A unique case. HTS: Theological Studies, 73(3), 1-8.

Omojola, O. (2009). English-oriented ICTs and ethnic language survival strategies in Africa. Global Media Journal-African Edition, 3(1), 33-45.

Osborn, D., & Osborn, D. Z. (2010). African languages in a digital age: Challenges and opportunities for indigenous language computing.

Phaahla, P. (2010). Multilingualism in a global village: What is the future of a local language (eg Northern Sotho) in an increasingly globalized world? South African Journal of African Languages, 30(1), 52-65.

Prah, K. (2007). Challenges to the Promotion of African Languages in South Africa. Cape Town: The Center for Advanced Studies of African Society.

Prah, K. K. (2018). Challenges to the promotion of indigenous languages South Africa. Litnet. https://www.litnet.co.za/challenge-language-post-apartheid-south-africa/

Rwantabagu, H. (2011). Tradition, globalisation and language dilemma in education: African options for the 21st century. International Review of Education, 57, 457-475.

Shorten, A., & Smith, J. (2017). Mixed methods research: Expanding the evidence base. Evidence-Based Nursing, 20(3), 74–75.

Sithole, E., & Yola, Z. (2020). 5 African languages in transformation. In the transformative power of language: From postcolonial to knowledge societies in Africa (p. 109). Cambridge University Press

Venkatesh, V., & Sykes, T. A. (2013). Digital divide initiative success in developing countries: A longitudinal field study in a village in India. Information Systems Research, 24(2), 239-260.

Wierenga, R., & Carstens, W. (2021). Digitising Afrikaans: Establishing a protocol for digitalizing historical sources for Early Afrikaans (1675–1925) as a possible template for indigenous South African languages. Journal of the Digital Humanities

Wanjiru F 2020. Fifteen most spoken languages in Africa 2020. Available at https://www.msn.com/enxl/news/other/15-most-spoken-languages-in-africa2020/ar-BB10F8v4. Accessed 26 February 2023

Wijaya, H. (2019). Resource-based learning: a paradigm shift in materials design. Paper presented at the 6th International Conference on Educational Research and Innovation (ICERI 2018), 391-397.

World Bank Group. (2021). Teaching young children in the language they speak at home is essential to eliminate learning poverty. World Bank. https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2021/07/14/teaching-young-children-in-the-language-they-speak-at-home-is-essential-to-eliminate-learning-poverty

Yaman, İ. (2015). Digital divide within the context of language and foreign language teaching. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 176, 766–771.

Yu, K., & Dumisa, S. (2015). Community support-the missing link in indigenous language promotion in South Africa? Per Linguam: A Journal of Language Learning= Per Linguam: Tydskrif Vir Taalaanleer, 31(1), 60-73.

Zeleza, P. T. (2009). African studies and universities since independence. Transition: An International Review,110-135.

Downloads

Published

2023-08-09

Issue

Vol. 11 No. 1 (2023): IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning, Linguistics and Literature

Section

Articles

Citation Check

License

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under an Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See the Effect of Open Access)