LANGUAGE, EDUCATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS AND ECONOMIC OUTCOMES Prof. Vic Webb (University of Pretoria) & Dr François Grin (University of Geneva) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Motivation
The impetus for the project on "Language, educational effectiveness and economic outcomes" is the continuing socio-economic inequality between groups in South African society. This inequality, to a large extent, is the result of unequal conditions of access to education and training, resulting in an inadequate level of generic and technical skills among large tracts of the country's workforce.
Core idea
The core idea of the project is that unequal educational conditions (which themselves lie at the root of socio-economic inequality) can in significant part be traced back to language, because languages play a fundamental role in the educational process, both as instruments of learning and teaching, and as subjects in their own right. Language is, to a large extent, the key to educational effectiveness.
Educational effectiveness and the language of learning and training
First, the acquisition of knowledge and the development of cognitive, affective and social skills occur primarily through a linguistic communication process (between learner, educator and learning materials). This linguistic communication is a high-level process presupposing abstract, objective and symbolic thought. Therefore, considerable language proficiency is required if learners are to realise their individual potential fully.
In South Africa, the main language of learning and teaching is English. However, available information on the language proficiency of black learners indicates that for many, English is not an effective instrument of knowledge acquisition and skills development, and that improving English language skills for all learners, up to the point where high-level communication can efficiently take place in English, may not be an achievable goal within a reasonable time horizon. It follows that, for reasons of educational effectiveness (and the influence of the latter on occupational success and socio-economic equality) serious consideration should be given to the use of learners' first languages, in particular African languages, as languages of language and training. Learners already have oral fluency in those languages when they enter the education system, and there is no reason to presume that these languages cannot be effective instruments of learning and teaching.
Educational effectiveness and languages as subjects
Second, first and second languages ("L1" and "L2") constitute important subjects in the education system, and their importance is growing in a globalising, yet diverse world, with increasing strategic importance placed on communication abilities. First-language competence at a high level is essential to effectively develop superior skills such as negotiating meaning, managing information, identifying and analysing problems, formulating solutions, etc. Second-language proficiency, particularly in English, is an essential instrument for occupational success, inter-community relations and effective political participation, particularly in the case of South Africa.
However, available evidence indicates that even if oral proficiency in L1 is good, literacy in L1 is generally inadequate, thereby hampering the acquisition of high-level language-related abilities. At the same time, as noted above, proficiency in English is often too low for an effective use of this language in essential communication tasks, thereby significantly hampering effective participation in political and economic life. It follows that, along with an increase in the role of African languages as languages of learning and teaching, the teaching of African languages and English as subjects needs to be upgraded, as part of a general effort at increasing the effectiveness of the education system.
Application: the case of vocational education and training
In order to examine these issues more closely, the project will focus on vocational training, particularly in light of the strategic importance of this part of the education system, its closer relationship with the labour market, and the possibilities of immediate positive consequences in terms of matching between learners' actual skills and the skills required on the market.
The project therefore includes the development of experimental syllabuses stressing the role of African languages as languages of learning and teaching for selected subjects, as well as the upgraded teaching of L1 and of English as subjects. A pilot group of vocational school students will be invited to follow these experimental syllabuses, on a voluntary basis. Two technical colleges in the Pretoria region have agreed to co-operate in the project.
In addition to information about the overall effectiveness of alternative approaches to the roles of languages in the education process, the project is expected to generate highly valuable information on the didactics of African languages as languages of learning and teaching, the didactics of African languages as subjects, and the teaching of English as a second language in the educational and cultural context of South Africa.
Cost, cost-effectiveness, and policy implications
Available evidence from other countries indicates that: (1) the use of the first language as a language of learning and teaching improves educational outcomes; (2) the cost of using one more language as a language of learning and teaching is moderate, and is in the region of 5% of total per-capita spending on education; (3) offering education and training through the learners' first language usually generates a net gain; (4) the teaching of languages, including English as a second language, generates high rates of return, both at the private and the social level.
One important part of the proposed project is therefore devoted to the evaluation of the costs and benefits that can be associated with an increased role for African languages as languages of learning and teaching, and with an improved instruction of African languages and English.
The project will provide an information base and evaluation instruments to help assess different policy options regarding the role of languages in the South African education system. These results are intended as complements to the political perspectives on education and language issues, and as useful tools to improve the contribution to both effectiveness and fairness in South African society.
Scientific background
The project is a novel and interdisciplinary one. However, it rests on strong scientific bases, principally from the following areas of research: (1) the linguistics of language education; (2) the economics of education; (3) the economics of language. The project director and the regular project consultant are recognized specialists of these fields. They will, additionally, work in close co-operation with other specialists from South Africa and overseas.
Research team
The project will be led by Prof. V. Webb, Director of CentRePoL (Centre for Research in the Politics of Language at the University of Pretoria), and will have the regular participation, as principal consultant, of Dr. F. Grin, Deputy Director of the European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI, Flensburg, Germany) and Lecturer at the University of Geneva, Switzerland). The project leader will be supported by two assistants at the University of Pretoria. At the same time, other researchers will be involved in the realisation of the project, particularly at the University of the North and at Vista University. Partners from these two universities have been regularly associated to the development of this project since 1998.
Capacity building
Capacity building constitutes an important element of the work plan for this project. In addition to regular co-ordination meetings and evaluation seminars, training workshops will be organised in each project year, targeting in particular researchers in South African universities, school administrators and trainers, and officers from national and provincial education departments. The workshops will offer capacity-building training in strategic areas such as education economics, diversity governance in education, communication skills and school-to-work transition.
Relevance for South Africa and the region
The project intends to make a valuable contribution to policy development regarding language and education in South Africa, with a view to improving both the effectiveness and the fairness of the system, whether at the level of the operations of the system or at the level of broader socio-economic consequences. In addition, the investigation into an upgraded role for and teaching of African languages in education, apart from being fully compatible with an improved teaching of English as a second language, constitutes an important political and cultural statement reflecting the principle of equity of languages put forth in the South African constitution.
However, the relevance of these issues extends far beyond the national borders of South Africa, and the project can yield highly valuable insights for education and language policies, particularly with respect to educational effectiveness, in other countries in the region. INFORMATION PAMPHLETWebb, V N. 2001. Information pamphlet on the research project Language, Educational Effectiveness and Economic Outcomes.Pretoria: University of Pretoria, CentRePoL. PLANNING DOCUMENTWebb, V N. With the collaboration of Prof K Van de Poel & T Brunfaut (University of Antwerp). Oct 2001. LE3O task planning document.Pretoria: University of Pretoria, CentRePoL. RESEARCH TEAMCore team:Project leader: Prof V Webb (University of Pretoria, South Africa)
Principal consultant: Dr F Grin (University of Geneva, Switzerland)
Project manager: Ms T Brunfaut (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Research assistants: Ms L Gangla & Mrs L Netshitomboni (University of Pretoria, SA)Co-operating researchers:A number of researchers are co-operating in the project and deal with specific aspects of the research theme.Mrs A Jordaan (University of Pretoria, South Africa)
Dr Luanga Kasanga (University of the North, South Africa)
Mr B Lepota (University of Pretoria, South Africa)
Prof S Mmusi (University of the North, South Africa)
Ms S Moathlodi (University of the North, South Africa)
Ms R Ramagoshi (University of Pretoria, South Africa)
Mr J Rammala (University of the North, South Africa)
Ms J Read (University of Pretoria, South Africa)
Prof D Serinjeive (Vista University, South Africa)
Dr S Simango (University of the North, South Africa)
Prof K Van de Poel (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Ms A Van Lancker (University of Antwerp, Belgium) LE3O WORKSHOPS / CAPACITY BUILDING ACTIVITIES12 Sep 2002:Meeting on African Languages and ESP subprojects. University of the North.28 Aug 2002:Meeting on African Languages subproject with Department of African Languages. Pretoria: University of Pretoria. 26-27 Nov 2001: Capacity building workshop of the project 'Language, educational effectiveness and economic outcomes':
1) Webb, V N. Information pamphlet on the research project Language, Educational Effectiveness and Economic Outcomes.
2) Brunfaut, T & J Read. Presentation of pre-final language proficiency assessment instrument. Pretoria: University of Pretoria, CentRePoL.22 Jul & 5 Aug 2000:Workshop: Research Proposal of the project 'Language, educational effectiveness and economic outcomes' - Prof Vic Webb (University of Pretoria, CentRePoL) & Dr François Grin (University of Geneva, Switzerland). CONFERENCES29-30 Oct 2002LE3O Opening Conference. Pretoria: University of Pretoria, CentRePoL. RESEARCH REPORTS
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