Blasius Chiatoh

The resources of the internet have long served the English language teaching enterprise with varying levels of implementation and success. The Covid19-imposed lockdown in March, 2020 and the Prime Ministerial decision for higher institutions of learning in Cameroon to switch to online lectures fazed many staff, including those on the Use of English programmes in state universities. This study set out to describe Use of English teachers’ views about the place of the internet in English language instruction as well as their online teaching experiences during the Covid-19-imposed lockdown. A questionnaire survey was used to elicit data from thirty Use of English staff affiliated to the Universities of Buea and Bamenda. The findings highlight English language teachers’ firm belief in the potential of internet-based tools to facilitate not only English language learners’ display of 21st century learning skills but English language skills as well. However, not much success regarding the i...

This paper attempts a sociopragmatic analysis of selected menstrual euphemisms that girls/women in Cameroon employ when making reference to menstruation in public conversations. In the paper, we argue that, within national and international legal frameworks, the linguistic taboos imposed on public menstrual discourse by some cultures in the Cameroonian society constitute a serious threat to the freedom of expression as a fundamental human right. Data were collected through questionnaires administered to 127 female students at the University of Buea and Biaka University Institute of Buea. Data collected were analysed thematically, and the study was guided by Brown and Levinson’s (1987) Politeness Theory. Findings from our analysis of data collected reveal that the euphemistic expressions employed by girls/women in public conversations on menstruation evoke different themes that carry both positive and negative connotations. However, a large majority of the euphemistic expressions ide...

Although English is the official language of the University of Buea (UB), Cameroon Pidgin English (CPE) is quite commonly used on campus, particularly in extra curricula situations by Anglophones, who have it as their language of wider communication (LWC). However, Francophone students, some of whom meet CPE for their first time upon enrolment, tend to manifest much dislike for this language. Faced with the challenge of maximising the opportunities for learning and studying in English, a language in which they have limited spoken and written competence in, they view CPE as a sub-standard code, indeed, an impediment to the English language learning process. This paper surveys Francophone students’ attitudes towards CPE at UB with focus on the underlying motivations for these attitudes. Data was elicited from a questionnaire administered to first-year Francophone students. The findings evince that Francophone students harbour unfriendly attitudes towards CPE.

The intensification of reflections on ways and means to improve English Language studies in Cameroon reveals that there is a dire need to redress the falling standards observed in spite of modernization and increase in efforts of both the teachers and learners. In this paper we argue that sustainable English Language studies in Cameroon can better be achieved through the development and use of Cameroonian languages and methods that are culturally appropriate to the lifestyles and experiences of Cameroonians. The impact will be greater if pupils at the elementary level of (Pre)-Nursery and Primary education are allowed to study in their mother-tongues and in ways that are familiar to them.

Although multilingualism is the norm in Africa the degree of linguistic complexity varies from one specific national context to another. While some countries are highly multilingual, others have fairly few languages. Similarly, whereas in some countries a good number of languages enjoy majority status; in others, we have a myriad of primarily minority languages. All these considerations have a great impact on attitudes and policies towards mother tongue-based multilingual education. Such is the case with Cameroon, one of the most linguistically fragmented countries in Africa. Faced with about 250 languages, governments have been rather too cautious with decision-making concerning indigenous language-based multilingual education so that today, the country lacks a well-articulated language policy. Moreover, existing legislation primarily favours foreign language education and therefore cannot adequately address indigenous language promotion needs. In this article, I examine language and education planning practices in Cameroon and posit that in the present context, successful integration of indigenous minority languages into the school system can only be ensured through planned participation of local communities in the process. I present the twin notions of the community response framework as an alternative planning approach and the language committee, responsible for community-level language promotion, as the ideal vehicle for this alternative planning.

In situations of extreme linguistic diversity, language promotion can be a very challenging undertaking. Decades of educational colonisation and foreign language dominance have produced inferiority complexes so that local or indigenous languages (Cameroonian mother tongues), because of their unofficial status, are perceived as liabilities rather than assets. Governments are either cautious or lukewarm, while the general public is resistant and, quite often, hostile to local language use in education. It is in similar circumstances that the promotion of Cameroonian languages in formal learning and non-formal literacy has been conducted. For more than three decades, researchers have laboured to transform local languages into actual learning tools. Faced with the multiplicity of languages and coupled with government neutrality, researchers have resorted to a grassroots approach that places local communities at the centre of the language promotion enterprise. The establishment of language committees has been a major link in this process.

Advocating mother tongue education implies recognising the centrality of linguistic and cultural diversity in quality and accessible education planning and delivery. In minority linguistic settings, this need becomes particularly urgent. Decades of exclusive promotion of foreign languages have rendered the educational system incapable of guaranteeing maximum quality, accessibility and equity. Also, due to long periods of marginalisation and disempowerment, most indigenous communities are unable to undertake viable self-reliant educational initiatives. As a result, planning and management of education is not adapted to the needs and realities of target populations. What such an educational approach has succeeded in achieving is to cultivate a culture of near-total dependence and consumerism. In minority language situations where mother tongue education is still primarily in the hands of private institutions and individuals, successful planning also means influencing the perceptions and attitudes of indigenous people and systematically integrating them into the educational process. This paper discusses grass-roots mother tongue education in Cameroon. It focuses on the inter-community self-help initiative as a local response framework and argues that this initiative is a strong indication of the desire of communities to learn and promote learning in their own languages.RésuméEncourager l’enseignement dispensé dans la langue maternelle : cadre intercommunautaire d’auto-assistance au Cameroun – La promotion de l’éducation en langue maternelle implique de refléter le rôle central de la diversité linguistique et culturelle dans la planification et la réalisation d’une éducation accessible et de qualité. Dans les contextes linguistiques minoritaires, cette nécessité revêt une urgence particulière. Plusieurs décennies de promotion exclusive des langues étrangères ont rendu le système éducatif incapable de garantir un maximum de qualité, d’accessibilité et d’équité. En outre, en raison de longues périodes de marginalisation et de désautonomisation, la majorité des communautés autochtones sont impuissantes à entreprendre des initiatives éducatives viables et autonomes. En conséquence, la planification et la gestion de l’éducation ne sont pas adaptées aux besoins et aux réalités des populations cibles. Ce que cette approche éducative a par contre réussi, est d’avoir créé une culture de dépendance presque totale et de consumérisme. Dans les situations de langues minoritaires, où l’enseignement en langue maternelle est aujourd’hui encore entre les mains d’institutions privées et de particuliers, une planification prometteuse implique aussi d’influencer les perceptions et comportements des autochtones, et de les intégrer systématiquement dans le processus éducatif. L’auteur de cet article présente l’enseignement en langue maternelle dispensé sur le terrain au Cameroun. Il expose l’initiative intercommunautaire d’auto-assistance qui constitue un cadre d’intervention locale, et affirme que cette initiative signale fortement que les communautés concernées souhaitent apprendre et promouvoir l’apprentissage dans leurs propres langues.ZusammenfassungMuttersprache als Unterrichtsmedium: ein gemeindeübergreifendes Selbsthilfeprogramm in Kamerun – Wer den muttersprachlichen Unterricht befürwortet, hat erkannt, dass die sprachliche und kulturelle Vielfalt für die Planung und Umsetzung hochwertiger und allgemein zugänglicher Bildung von zentraler Bedeutung ist. Besonders wichtig ist dies im Umfeld sprachlicher Minderheiten. Nachdem jahrzehntelang ausschließlich Fremdsprachen gefördert wurden, ist das Bildungssystem heute nicht mehr in der Lage, maximale Qualität, Zugänglichkeit und Gleichheit zu gewährleisten. Außerdem sind die meisten indigenen Gemeinschaften heute aufgrund langjähriger Marginalisierung und Entmündigung nicht mehr in der Lage, praktikable eigenverantwortliche Bildungsinitiativen in Angriff zu nehmen. Dies hat unter anderem dazu geführt, dass Bildungsplanung und Bildungsmanagement den Bedürfnissen und Wirklichkeiten der betreffenden Bevölkerungsgruppen nicht mehr entsprechen. Das Ergebnis eines solchen Bildungsansatzes ist die Entwicklung einer Kultur der fast vollständigen Abhängigkeit und des bloßen Konsumismus. Im Kontext von Minderheitensprachen, wo die muttersprachliche Bildung immer noch vorwiegend in der Hand von privaten Einrichtungen und Einzelpersonen liegt, bedeutet erfolgreiche Planung auch Einflussnahme auf die Wahrnehmung und die Einstellungen von Ureinwohnern und ihre systematische Integration in den Bildungsprozess. Gegenstand dieses Artikels ist die selbst organisierte muttersprachliche Bildung in Kamerun. Im Zentrum steht die gemeindeübergreifende Selbsthilfeinitiative als lokaler Aktionsrahmen, eine Initiative, die als deutliches Zeichen für den Wunsch der Gemeinschaften gewertet wird, Lernen in der Muttersprache zu ermöglichen und zu fördern.ResumenPor una educación media en la lengua materna:…

Observation of early childhood education in Cameroon reveals that children on their first day at school have not acquired sufficient oral competence in their L1. They go to school at the age of two when the language acquisition phase is still in its initial stages. The result is systematic separation of the child from the family. Among educated and working families, this separation becomes almost total and communication significantly reduces between parents and their children who are either under the care of the school mistress or that of the caretaker. This has a serious effect on the development of oral communication competencies as an essential phase in language acquisition and learning. In this paper, I examine oral competence in the classroom as an important phase in the successful development of children’s reading and writing skills. Based on the Cameroonian situation, I argue that efficient mother tongue-based bilingual education must consider oracy as a primary link in overa...