150 likes | 345 Views
Danida’s policy and practice in relation to mother tongue and bilingual education. Stephen Carney & Marianne Schulz. UNESCO World Education Forum (2000) Dakar Framework for Action. Early childhood care and education Free primary education for all
E N D
Danida’s policy and practice in relation to mother tongue and bilingual education Stephen Carney & Marianne Schulz
UNESCO World Education Forum (2000)Dakar Framework for Action • Early childhood care and education • Free primary education for all • Learning and life-skills for young people and adults • 50% improvement in adult literacy by 2015; access to basic and continuing education • Eliminate gender disparities in primary and secondary by 2005; full equality by 2015 • Improved quality of education especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills
UN Millennium Summit (2000)Millennium Development Goals Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women
Danish Development Policy • Poverty reduction at the core: • Social and economic development • Human rights, democratisation and good governance • Stability, security and the fight against terrorism • Refugees, humanitarian assistance and regions of origin • Environment
Education Sector Policies 2001 • Access • Equity • Quality • Governance • Cultural identity, language & values • Mother tongue, ‘early exit’ or ‘laissez faire’?
New Development Context • New aid modalities (basket-funding) • Sectoral-level approach • Decentralised support
Support for Indigenous Peoples • ‘Self-determination’ • ‘Distinct peoples’ • ‘Fundamental rights’ • ‘Recognition of culture, language, religion’ • Respect for diversity, or rhetoric?
Challenges for Advisors • Need for conceptual and analytical work • Necessarily ambiguous • Resistance to mother tongue from parents Tension between rights ideology, resource constraints and lack of direct influence
Policies in Practice • Bolivia & Nicaragua • Zambia & Mozambique • Nepal • Diverse policies • Role of language differs • Danida support differs
Bolivia & Nicaragua • Intercultural bilingual education (IBE) • IBE as ‘right’ & strategy for ‘quality’ • IBE for citizenship • IBE for inclusion of indigenous groups
Zambia & Mozambique • Language factor absent! • Historic place of English • Primary Reading Programme • Lack of political will • English language teacher training • Capacity of education sector
Nepal • Mother tongue recognised • National strategy for Inclusive Education (2003) • Monolingual reality! • Translated materials but Nepali teaching • Danida complacence/ policy drift - ‘Linguistic imperialism’
Challenges • Politics and culture • Aid philosophy • Aid structures • Capacity • Infrastructure and resources
Other Reflections • ‘Quality’ as loose signifier Be analytical. Advocate! • Harmonisation requires new strategies & structures Civil society organisations?
Finally ‘Language policy is a pawn in the struggle for, or the preservation of, power and this is by no means a typically African phenomenon’. (Cummins 2000)