Language policy in Zimbabwean education: historical antecedents and contemporary issues

This article analyses issues pertaining to language policy in Zimbabwean education beginning with the establishment of formal education under colonial rule. English is the official language of business, government and education, and the dominant language in the media. Official policy, before and after independence, has been characterised by continuities, rather than change, providing limited support for the development of indigenous languages. Furthermore, the capacity to support the development of indigenous languages has declined in recent years. The curriculum policy has progressively served to provide avenues for engaging and locking into limited networks of opportunities within and outside the country.     

Culturally appropriate media and technology: A perspective from Zimbabwe

Summary and Conclusion The above discussion should make my position clear-that the issue of appropriate media is dependent on the quality of the personnel. Skilled personnel can perform a variety of tasks such as arguing the case for a more central role for media and technology in instruction, developing low-cost alternatives, giving support to the minority with “high tech”, selecting and adapting imported media and technology to fit local conditions, and exploring traditional non-technological options for the purpose of enhancing learning. In my view, the option of training personnel is a bottom-up approach to the question of media and technology. This approach gives the practitioners the knowledge which is required to make choices, to innovate, and to select. Given such power, the practitioners are in a position to argue the case for more media resources; they are able to generate effective and responsive learning environments, using the available media and technology. Such effectiveness and responsiveness is surely what cultural appropriateness of media and technology is about. The program of teacher education that we are developing at the University of Zimbabwe is intended to produce competent media producers and users. By offering courses in media and technology to prospective teachers, and offering training to key media personnel working in other training colleges, we hope to develop the skills of our teachers to a point where they can be innovators in the process of developing culturally appropriate media and technology.