“National Language Curricula Reforms Underway”

Professor Atemajong Justina epse Njika, Inspector General of Education, MINEDUB.

How is the teaching of the mother tongue evolving in the Basic Education sector?

I will like to reiterate the value of mother tongue education to any human being. Language is a weapon and a tool. The more languages someone speaks, the better that person is to interact and evolve in any society. The teaching of the mother tongue in the basic education sector comes to buttress efforts made by our partners such as UNESCO in order to insist on preserving our linguistic diversity and the promotion of multiculturalism. The Ministry of Basic Education is working with ELAN Afrique for the teaching of four mother tongues in different schools in the country that is Fulfulde, Ewondo, Bassa and Ghomala. The first phase of the project which consisted in the experimentation of these languages was successful. We are about starting the second phase of the project in which one more language (Douala) has been added to the other four already taught in primary schools. But this does not mean that these are the only languages experimented in the basic education sector. These are the languages in which ELAN Afrique is particularly involved. Other communities that have developed their languages are also organising holiday classes and adult education classes on these languages. The Ministry of Basic Education with ELAN Afrique are currently carrying out a curriculum reform of its programmes as far as the teaching of the national languages is concerned.

What are some of the difficulties in implementing the teaching of the mother tongue in schools?

One of the key difficulties is from the parents who were resistant to the teaching of languages that are out of their own mother tongue to their childre...