ERIC Number: EJ1028083
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1466-4208
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
On Medium of Instruction and African Scholarship: The Case of isiZulu at the University of Kwazulu-Natal in South Africa
Kamwendo, Gregory; Hlongwa, Nobuhle; Mkhize, Nhlanhla
Current Issues in Language Planning, v15 n1 p75-89 2014
After the demise of apartheid in South Africa in 1994, 11 languages (English, Afrikaans and 9 indigenous African languages) were given official status. In the higher education landscape, English remains the dominant language of scholarship. At the University of KwaZulu-Natal, English is the main medium of instruction but the institution's language policy provides for the use of isiZulu (one of the indigenous African languages) as an additional medium of instruction. The paper discusses how three of the four colleges of the University are employing isiZulu in this role. This use of isiZulu is analysed through the following four theoretical perspectives: African scholarship, Africanization of higher education, the African Renaissance, and transformation. Whilst there are obviously some challenges in using isiZulu as a medium of instruction, it is very clear that the project deflates the myth that indigenous African languages can only serve in lower levels of education (such as primary schools) and not higher education. The paper is of relevance not only to South African universities, but also to other African (and even non-African) universities that plan to use indigenous languages as media of instruction.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Language of Instruction, Native Language, Second Language Learning, Educational Policy, African Languages, Scholarship, Universities, Language Role, Language Attitudes, Multilingualism, Social Change, African Culture, Case Studies, Humanities, Departments, Institutional Cooperation, Health Education, Legal Education (Professions), Management Development
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: South Africa
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A