“They Even Speak Tsotsitaal with Their Teachers at School”: The Use (and Abuse) of African Urban Youth Languages in Educational Contexts

Abstract

African Urban Youth Languages (AUYLs) are increasingly coming under the spotlight of linguists and sociolinguists across the continent, who are investigating their relationship to standard and/or vernacular varieties. Simultaneously, they are being discussed by educators and education researchers, although little has yet been published in this critical area. The difficulties for educators posed by students speaking “non-standard” varieties has been highlighted by recent studies investigating literacy and language in the classroom. This article presents an overview of some of the challenges posed to education by AUYLs. It considers recent studies of AUYLs in educational contexts from around the continent. It then presents data from South Africa which highlights different orientations towards the South African AUYL “Tsotsitaal” in educational domains. The argument is made that the position of both teachers and pupils is vulnerable, and that the legitimacy of the distinction between standard language and urban vernacular language needs to be reconsidered.     

高中文理分科:问题实质、利弊分析及改革路向

文理分科(或合科)问题的本质是知识中心主义、基础主义、二元对立思维和应试主义教育思想的现实表现;我国普通高中目前普遍实行文理分科这一教育模式有其存在的合理性和优势,也有一定的弊端,但基本判定结果是利大于弊。解决这些弊端的方法不是简单地抛弃"分科"选择"合科",而是在关注解决问题思维方法的基础上,渐进地改革和完善"文理分科"模式。未来改革与发展的路径和策略是:兼顾知识、能力与个性培养,注重学生科学与人文素养的整合,多维立体地改革高考制度。