The language 'thing' (things my primary school should know)
I attended my youngest sister's prize-giving ceremony (they call it 'merit function' now) last night. It's exactly ten years since I've left so I was expecting some change, ten years is a long time,I could have gotten married and had babies in that time. Could have. To my disappointment, nothing much had changed.
In our years, it was abit acceptable and understandable that the school was still adjusting to being bilingual, but not today. The only English in all the speeches and presentations prior the handing out of the awards was in the quotes of the opening speech. Two quotes!
Then there's the program. The only English there is the title of the event and the instructions, die res van die program is in die boer se taal. I'm not being offensive nor defensive, believe me you, I am fully aware of the challenges of mixed languages (and the cultures that come along with them.) I had heard how the junior phase parents of the English medium had done wrong at the tables the previous night, and I in no way approve their selfish behavior. But do consider the picture you paint when the instructions are the ones in English and the program content in Afrikaans. Like it or not, what you're saying is: what's important for the English medium parents to fully understand is knowing what they should and should not do, what we do shouldn't be a worry.
Of course I had no problem following, I received awards for best performances in Afrikaans right through my high school career and it's one of my distinctions on my matric certificate. What concerns me is the negligence on the school's side. Regardless of the fact that some parents don't comprehend Afrikaans, you said you are accommodating English-speaking students (be they Black, Indian or Portuguese) so you have to go out of your way to make sure that they are not left behind in anything you do. This puts you and the image of your school in a good light (unless you couldn't care less about what these students and their parents think or feel).
My mentor taught me that when you have guests it's important that they be comfortable in your presence. I omit preaching in English when I see that the majority of my audience is black adults, I preach in both English and Zulu when the audience is mixed; when that is difficult, we interpret (en ek is seker dat ons kan in Afrikaans ook preek as dit nodig is.) This makes sure that everyone benefits from the gathering, that everyone is edified as Paul said when he explained the proper working of the gift of tongues and the advantage that the gift of prophesy has over it (Cf 1 Corinthians 14).
And no, it's not an issue of race. Earlier this year, we attended a funeral in Buchbuckridge where none gave a dime that the whole group of us that took up a section of the hall neither spoke or understood Tsonga. They were a literate people who could speak English but chose not to, just to show that they had the upper hand. So it's not a race thing. It's a responsibility thing.
Other than that and those open windows and fans blowing in full force on a freezing cold evening, it was a lovely evening, well planned and organized, as I've always known my school to do their events. I in no way intend to undermine their efforts, but as a leader, I've identified a lack that the leadership of the school should look into.
In our years, it was abit acceptable and understandable that the school was still adjusting to being bilingual, but not today. The only English in all the speeches and presentations prior the handing out of the awards was in the quotes of the opening speech. Two quotes!
Then there's the program. The only English there is the title of the event and the instructions, die res van die program is in die boer se taal. I'm not being offensive nor defensive, believe me you, I am fully aware of the challenges of mixed languages (and the cultures that come along with them.) I had heard how the junior phase parents of the English medium had done wrong at the tables the previous night, and I in no way approve their selfish behavior. But do consider the picture you paint when the instructions are the ones in English and the program content in Afrikaans. Like it or not, what you're saying is: what's important for the English medium parents to fully understand is knowing what they should and should not do, what we do shouldn't be a worry.
Of course I had no problem following, I received awards for best performances in Afrikaans right through my high school career and it's one of my distinctions on my matric certificate. What concerns me is the negligence on the school's side. Regardless of the fact that some parents don't comprehend Afrikaans, you said you are accommodating English-speaking students (be they Black, Indian or Portuguese) so you have to go out of your way to make sure that they are not left behind in anything you do. This puts you and the image of your school in a good light (unless you couldn't care less about what these students and their parents think or feel).
My mentor taught me that when you have guests it's important that they be comfortable in your presence. I omit preaching in English when I see that the majority of my audience is black adults, I preach in both English and Zulu when the audience is mixed; when that is difficult, we interpret (en ek is seker dat ons kan in Afrikaans ook preek as dit nodig is.) This makes sure that everyone benefits from the gathering, that everyone is edified as Paul said when he explained the proper working of the gift of tongues and the advantage that the gift of prophesy has over it (Cf 1 Corinthians 14).
And no, it's not an issue of race. Earlier this year, we attended a funeral in Buchbuckridge where none gave a dime that the whole group of us that took up a section of the hall neither spoke or understood Tsonga. They were a literate people who could speak English but chose not to, just to show that they had the upper hand. So it's not a race thing. It's a responsibility thing.
Other than that and those open windows and fans blowing in full force on a freezing cold evening, it was a lovely evening, well planned and organized, as I've always known my school to do their events. I in no way intend to undermine their efforts, but as a leader, I've identified a lack that the leadership of the school should look into.
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