Academic literature on the topic 'Afrikaans language – Spoken Afrikaans – Study and teaching'

Abstract This study investigates the potential role of context-relevant sociolinguistic factors in explaining young L1 indigenous South African language speakers’ IAT (Implicit Association Test) scores towards two varieties largely associated with the white group: Standard South African English and Afrikaans accented English. To this end, a post-IAT sociolinguistic survey on participants’ linguistic background, language exposure and intergroup social distance levels (among other social factors) was used. Separate ANOVAS were performed using the IAT reaction times as a dependent variable and sociolinguistic variables as factors. Notably, the sociolinguistic approach revealed that more positive attitudes towards Afrikaans accented English are correlated with the language range of participants, the dominant languages spoken in their places of origin, and the type of school they have attended.

Imagology and the study of literary stereotypes in die teaching of Afrikaans as additional language Imagology is the study of national and ethnic stereotypes as represented in literature. These stereotypes are represented in literary images of identity and alterity when intercultural contact is portrayed in texts. The main concepts of Imagology are discussed to provide educators with a scientific framework in the teaching of Afrikaans as additional language, with specific reference to literature teaching. Learners from various cultural backgrounds bring with them their own stereotypes. Studying literary youth texts that portray images of national stereotypes can facilitate the process of intercultural understanding and reconciliation. Learners can be exposed to the representation of Self and Other in prescribed Afrikaans literary texts without their self-image being threatened, yet discovering the relativity of values, and learning respect for their own culture as well as for that of the target language. The background, scientific approach and principles of Imagology are described, as well as important concepts. By using Imagology as a literary tool in studying Afrikaans texts in the additional language classroom, literature teaching will include looking at the narrative and functions of youth literature to discern psychological and ideological focalisation, together with its influence on negative and positive representations of Self and Other.

The inclusion of a (multi-)cultural component in the curriculum for Afrikaans as additional language In this article the author pleads for a democratisation of Afrikaans as an additional language curriculum so that the teaching and learning of Afrikaans could contribute towards cross-cultural consciousness. Relevant definitions of the concept culture are discussed, as well as intercultural understanding, stereotyping and communication. The relationship between literature, culture and cognitive development as well as culture and nonverbal communication is perused. Several ways are indicated by which culture could be integrated into a communicative Afrikaans language programme, such as giving attention to different sociolinguistic speech routines, including authentic media texts, as well as the study of folklore and stereotypes in literary texts (with examples of each of these cultural components). Broadening the learning content in this way could assist in neutralising the negative effects of the political-historical past of the Afrikaans language. This aim can be reached if the non-mother tongue learner’s interests are stimulated and his/her needs are addressed. Being involved in and exposed to these kinds of cultural components in Afrikaans, the learners would feel at home in the additional language classroom. Consequently they would feel free to participate actively – both emotionally and cognitively – and would ultimately accept responsibility for their own learning.

The use of humour to stimulate creative writing in the teaching of Afrikaans: a case study This article reports on of a qualitative research programme in which humouristic material was used as part of an Afrikaans language teaching programme. The primary participants in this programme were education students at Stellenbosch University who intend to teach Afrikaans in secondary schools. The ways in which humour can influence the classroom atmosphere and form part of cultural experience are also discussed. Specific attention is given to the use of humouristic material to facilitate creative writing as part of the relevant teaching programme. The humour of adolescents is discussed, especially the use of sarcasm and non-sense humour which can possibly contribute to discipline problems in the classroom. Finally, the researcher reports on the analysis of one of the students’ parodies as a case study. Analysis and interpretation of the parodic text revealed several forms of creativity – parody as burlesque, dialogue between codes, postmodern metafiction, manifestation of divergent thinking, and play with words and boundaries.

Abstract L1 background is often described as the main factor accounting for variation in postcolonial ESL varieties. However, recent studies (e.g. Mesthrie 2009, 2017) suggest that variation patterns in ESL varieties can in some cases also be linked to identity factors rooted in local patterns of intergroup relations. This study examines the interrelation between L1 background and such identity factors in the phonetic patterns found in the English varieties spoken in Namibia. The data consist of a corpus of careful style elicited via sociolinguistic interviews from an ethnically stratified sample of L2 English speaking Namibian students with Afrikaans, Bantu languages (Oshiwambo and Otjiherero), and Khoekhoeghowab as L1s. Individual speakers tend to be related in their phonetic behaviors if they share the same L1. However, some features cannot be directly attributed to L1 background, so their distribution is best read against the background of Namibian inter-ethnic relations and ethnolinguistic vitality differentials.

AbstractAgainst the background of South Africa’s ‘official’ policy of multilingualism, this study explores some of the socio-cultural dynamics ofEnglish as a lingua franca(ELF) in relation to how cosmopolitanism is understood in South Africa. More specifically, it looks at the link between ELF and cosmopolitanism in higher education. In 2016, students at Stellenbosch University (SU) triggered a language policy change that enacted English (as opposed to Afrikaans) as the primary medium of teaching and learning. English has won recognition astheacademic lingua franca for at least two socio-political reasons: First, English is considered more ‘neutral’ than Afrikaans (which continues to be strongly associated with Afrikanerdom), and second, English is arguably associated with cosmopolitanism and an international institutional status. Despite English being the academic lingua franca, it continues to be caught in an ambivalent climate with tensions among policy planners, language practitioners, higher education managers, academic staff and students. Ultimately, this paper argues that ambiguity is one of the most defining features of English in South Africa and that a complex range of Cosmopolitan, Afropolitan and glocal African identity trajectories reflect the power dynamics of English in the country.

South Africa's history of segregation and the privileging of English and Afrikaans as the only languages of teaching and learning beyond primary schooling, make the post-apartheid period a complex one, especially in light of the Constitutional commitment to multilingualism in the 11 official languages. Research on literacy and language teaching contextualises the impact of curriculum and language policy initiatives aimed at improving learner performance. We review research concerning the transition from the study of first additional language (FAL) as subject, to the use of FAL as the language of learning and teaching (LoLT). Also considered are major studies on learner performance nationally and South Africa's comparability globally. The impact of home language (HL) literacy development on performance in English as the LoLT links to research on language development in teacher education programmes, and shows connections between the capacity of teachers to develop languages for literacy and LoLT and learner success. Research on the development of early childhood literacy in the HL demonstrates the positive impact on literacy development in the LoLT.

Whatever the reason, underachievement in mathematics in South Africa is endemic and tantamount to a national disaster. Despite the transformation of education in South Africa, failure rates in mathematics at school and university remain unacceptably high, and the number of learners who leave Grade 12 with a pass mark in both mathematics and physical science is unacceptably low. Relatively little has been written about inadequate performance of Grade 4 to 7 learners in mathematics in South Africa, and even less about possible solutions to the problem. South African primary school learners’ lack of basic mathematics and vocabulary skills in particular is a source of major concern. In the first national systemic evaluation of learners’ skills in English, mathematics and science in 2001 Grade 3 learners achieved an average of 30% in mathematics. In the follow-up studies, Grade 6 learners achieved a national average of 27% in mathematices, in 2004, while nationally eighty percent of Grade 3 and 6 learners achieved less than 50 percent for mathematics and Languages in 2008. The finding that so many primary school learners today are not numerate or literate has a direct influence both on the teaching and the learning of mathematics. Everything possible needs to be done to change this situation. During the past 15 years, the research focus in mathematics has shifted to an examination of the influence of social, cognitive and metacognitive, conative and affective factors on achievement in mathematics. In this regard, it is of particular importance that an ongoing investigation into “other” aspects that impact on achievement in mathematics is launched, rather than to restrict the investigation to mere assessment of objectives that are aimed at continually evaluating cognitive progress in mathematics. There is sufficient empirical evidence that an adequate orientation to the study of mathematics correlates positively with high achievement in mathematics on secondary and tertiary levels. The aim of this research was to investigate the extent to which the performance in study orientation (Study Orientation questionnaire in Mathematics (Primary)) and knowledge of basic vocabulary/terminology in mathematics (Mathematics Vocabulary (Primary)) (vocabulary as one aspect of language in Mathematics) of Grade 4 to 7 learners predict performance in mathematics (Basic Mathematics (Primary)). Three standardised questionnaires were administered, namely the Study Orientation questionnaire in Mathematics (Primary), or SOM(P), Mathematics Vocabulary (Primary) or (MV(P), and Basic Mathematics (Primary) or BM(P). The participants consisted of learners in Grade 4 to 7 (n = 1 103) in North-West Province with respectively Afrikaans, English and Tswana as their home language. Results from the data, by calculating intercorrelations and stepwise regression, confirmed that learners’ performance in mathematics (BM(P)) can be predicted through their performance in the knowledge of basic vocabulary in mathematics (MV(P)), their “maths” anxiety, study attitude towards and study habits in mathematics (SOM(P)). The results can be implemented to improve learners’ performance in mathematics when teachers identify inadequate knowledge of basic vocabulary in mathematics as well as study orientation (for example, “maths” anxiety, study attitude towards and study habits in mathematics) in the early years of schooling. Learners’ scores can be checked to identify those requiring aid, support, remediation and/or counselling. An analysis of individual answers (particularly those where learner’s replies differ significantly in respect of the answers usually given by good achievers in mathematics) could be extremely useful. Enculturing learners to the vocabulary of mathematical language is an aspect of instruction that needs specific attention. The three questionnaires, which are administered in this research, provide mathematics teachers with standardised tools with which to make a simple systematic analysis of a number of important background particulars, feelings, attitudes, habits and customs with regard to the learner’s academic orientation in mathematics, as well as to their knowledge of basic vocabulary in mathematics that could be remedied when inadequate.

In the search for the roots of Afrikaans, early linguists focused on similarities between Afrikaans and Dutch. The influence of non-European languages received little attention. In the course of time, the focus of this field of study changed. Closer attention was paid to language in contact situations in different regions where non-Dutch speakers, as well as Dutch speakers were involved. Data gained from these studies contributed to a better understanding of the origin and history of Afrikaans, and gave more answers to earlier unsolved questions. Discussed here are the details and importance of the contact and the interchange of languages among groups in the interior border area. Khoi-Afrikaans and stock farmers’ Afrikaans were both spoken in this region and gradually modified between 1700 and 1800. This could easily have been the most important phase in the history of Afrikaans, in which there were fundamental changes in the way the language was spoken. The circumstances under which contact took place and the change in social roles of these two languages are also discussed. Forms that were at first stigmatised as Khoi-Afrikaans, later became part of the general Afrikaans vocabulary and grammar. The central question is: How did this happen? The shifting of the norms regarding the spoken language in the interior border area can be understood when the sociohistorical situation in which these varieties of Afrikaans were used, is studied closely. One of the results of this contact and interchange between languages, and the gradual shifting in norms that followed, is discussed by way of illustration: the Khoi usage of ‘ons’ as subject and its integration into everyday Afrikaans.

AbstractThis study generally looks at indigenization in languages historically introduced and promoted by colonial regimes. The case study that it presents involves Namibia, a Subsaharan African country formerly administered by South Africa, where Afrikaans was the dominant official language before being replaced by English upon independence. Afrikaans in Namibia still functions as an informal urban lingua franca while being spoken as a native language by substantial White and Coloured minorities. To what extent does the downranking of Afrikaans in Namibia co-occur with divergence from standard models historically located in South Africa? To answer this question, the study identifies variation patterns in Namibian Afrikaans phonetic data elicited from ethnically diverse young urban informants and links these patterns with perceptions and language ideologies. The phonetic data reveal divergence between Whites and Non-Whites and some convergence among Black L2 Afrikaans-speakers with Coloured varieties, while suggesting that a distinctive Black variety is emerging. The observed trends generally reflect perceived ethnoracial distinctions and segregation. They must be read against the background of shifting inter-group power relations and sociolinguistic prestige norms in independent Namibia, as well as of emergent ethnically inclusive Black urban identities.