Introduction:
Multilingualism may be considered important for young South Africans for multiple reasons which include; cultural diversity and identity and prevention of globalization, for overcoming communication problems and language barriers, for enhancing cognitive ability, and in order to compensate for the inadequacies of South Africa's governing systems. All of these points will be discussed.
Ensuring linguistic and cultural diversity
Most of the world's languages have slowly faded from existence overtime and many languages today are also threatened with extinction (Lo Bianco, 2010). This may occur as a result of a particular language being used less and less as time goes by until it no longer exists, fundamentally as it is not considered “prestigious” or useful in today’s society.
This may occur for example, when a child’s first language - which is rarely accepted by the wider community - would likely be a language which the child struggles to maintain as it is not supported in educational systems (Lo Bianco, 2010). This would ultimately result in the child letting go of the language all together as it is not being practiced. This cycle would repeat for many children of the same language, eventually resulting in the language, along with the cultural elements, becoming extinct all together.
This is a devastating phenomenon as it would mean that the world is becoming more and more culturally integrated, contributing to the speeding up of worldwide interconnectedness known commonly as globalization (Lo Bianco, 2010). The disappearance of a large proportion of the world’s languages may therefore have a detrimental effect on cultural diversity (Lo Bianco, 2010).
For these reasons, it is important to maintain multilinguali...
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...broaden their post-secondary possibilities and options considerably (Babson, 2014).
The second reason is simply that if our youth is multilingual from the start then hypothetically, they would have the capacity to be educated in our monolingual education systems as they would be able to understand the language they are taught in because they are multilingual. Raising our youth as multilingual is therefore a means to compensate for our inadequate education systems.
Conclusion:
The points discussed have demonstrated why Multilingualism among South Africa’s youth is imperative in creating an easy, diverse, communicative and highly intellectual society making it possible for our youth to attain the ability to change South Africa for the better. Multilingualism is therefore extremely important due to these cultural, communicative, educational and intellectual reasons.
In “Why I Choose to Write in Irish, the Corpse that Sits Up and Talks Back”, Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill argued for the survival of minority languages, especially her own Gaeilge (Irish) language. She compared the issue of preserving minority languages as important as the issue of the “preservation of the remaining rain forests is for biological diversity”. She fears that the death of minority languages and the dominance of English would “reduce everything to the level of most stupendous boredom”. (53) The author did not bash on the English language, only that if all other minority languages died and it was the only one that remained then the lack of diversity will just be plain dull.
Even though the dominance of a language can allow for the loss of a culture, it can also bring awareness. In schools, local community centers and other various places, foreign languages are taught, not only do non-native speakers take on these languages but native speakers do as well to keep their culture. By doing so it “revitalizes cultures and cultural artifacts through foreign influences, technologies, and markets.” (Gerdes
Through reading this article, it has helped me understand the concept of language shift. In particular, this article has helped me to understand that as people code-switch, they instantly uphold that certain language as it becomes part of their repertoire and they become familiar with it. As this process evolves, there becomes a language shift within certain communities and it is this language shift that influences language endangerment and
In today’s society, especially in the United States, most people are monolingual English speakers. As a result, these monolingual speakers are at a significant disadvantage compared to those who speak more than one language fluently. This disadvantage is crucial to realize since it is important to learn how individuals and the nation can be enhanced. Multilingual speakers have an advantage in global affairs that involve countries that speak different languages. Speaking multiple languages makes it easier to communicate with people when involved in foreign affairs. Those who speak multiple languages are also more aware of other cultures in society. Monolingual speakers are not as exposed to other cultures and have difficulty understanding or even recognizing them. Furthermore, being multilingual increases your
This essay will discuss the causes of language death and if endangered languages are worth saving. This essay agrees that endangered languages are worth saving and that many factors contribute to language death. Firstly the essay will explain what language death is and the meaning of what is an endangered language. Secondly discuss language death and language birth. Thirdly discuss the causes of language death. Lastly, critically discuss if endangered languages are worth saving. The purpose of this essay is to show that language death is much higher than language birth.
Web. 23 Apr. 2012. . 7) Wilford, John Noble. "World's Language Dying Off Rapidly." Www.nytimes.com.
Multilingual Resources for Children Project . (1995). Building bridges: Multilingual resources for children. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
...thousands of years. Generally, bilingual education can mean any use of two languages in school, by teachers, students, or both – for a variety of social and pedagogical purposes. It also refers to the different approaches in the classroom that use the native languages of English language learners (ELLs) for instruction. These approaches include teaching English, fostering academic achievement, acculturating immigrants to a new society, and preserving a minority group’s linguistic and cultural heritage. Building on, rather than just discarding the students’ native-language skills, create a stronger foundation for success in English and academics. Also, if students learn languages at a younger age, it will be easier to remember and learn them, rather than if they were older. It helps to learn another language for students, and can later be useful in the future.
Mary Linn uses languages are becoming extinct to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of her argument. The author uses data such as”96 percent of languages are spoken by less than 4 percent of the population.” If we celebrate International Mother Language Day 96
Fishman, J. A (2001). Can Threatened Languages be Saved?: Reversing Language Shift, Revisited : a 21st Century Perspective. Multilingual Matters Ltd. p446.
Introduction There are roughly 7.4 billion people in the world, with over 6000 diverse cultures and societies. Within these cultures lie languages and dialects. Unfortunately, there are several hundred languages that have faded away from a cultures tounge. This research paper analyzes the factors that lead to the death and life of a language. Research Question
A decree issued by the Bantu Education in 1976 caused major upset amongst black South African students, leading to their opposition and ultimate protest of marching against this decree which imposed Afrikaans as the medium of instruction in half the subjects in both primary and middle schools. Not only that, but members at the time of the ruling National Party spoke Afrikaans which angered the students further as they saw it as the “language of the oppressor”. Both African teachers and students experienced the negative implications of this decree as neither had a grasp of the language. The frustration felt among students (and teachers) can be seen based on this example from an article from ‘The World’ newspaper, 18th May 1976 which basically reported students who “threatened to beat up their headmaster” because of the alleged sacking of the school board’s head for protesting against Afrikaans. Although other factors are considered, it was ultimately the introduction of Afrikaans as well as English by the Bantu Education system that was the im...
Does it matter whether a seemingly obscure language spoken by a few people in an isolated corner of the world goes out of existence?
Did you know that there are more than 6.000 languages and dialects in the world? We live in a multilingual world that is becoming increasingly globalized and where we connect with each other every minute. Learning a new language is not a waste of time as previously believed. It is essential nowadays at least speak two or more of the leading languages. There are three main reasons for being bilingual: an additional language can help you progress in your career, you gain an awareness of other cultures, and it helps increase our understanding and knowledge of our own language.
Research also confirms that children learn best in their mother tongue as a prelude to and complement of bilingual and multilingual education. Whether children successfully retain their mother tongue while acquiring additional languages, depends on several interacting factors.