IT IS UNFORTUNATE, MOTHER TONGUE IS NOT TAUGHT IN OUR SCHOOLS—PROF. FWATSHAK SATI, REACTS

 

Prof Sati Fwatshak: Former Dean, Faculty of Arts University of Jos

By: Nnabugwu Chizoba

Recently, Scoreline in a bid to deliver on its self-imposed mandate of doing the needful in promoting literacy in mother tongue in Nigeria via a specialized tool: the Culture and Creativity Empowerment Initiative in Schools. Scoreline engaged an erudite scholar, a Lawyer, Historian, former Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Jos, Professor Sati Fwatshak, to provide insight into the subject of promoting literacy in mother tongue.

Prof. Sati Fwatshak said “It is important that people understand and speak their mother tongue, not only for the basic subject but also for retaining their cultural identity. The mother tongue is part of our culture. We express our culture through our mother tongue. If we lose our mother tongue, we are losing part of our identity. He added “I think literacy in mother tongue, can be promoted at the family level and at the school level”.

Read the excerpts of the discussion between Scoreline and Prof Fwatshak Sati, the former Dean of the Faculty of Arts, University of Jos. It is presented below:

Good day Sir, please may we know you

Prof: My name is Sati Fwatshak, I teach history at the University of Jos,

May we know your thought, about mother tongue-based education?

From my perspective, it is a very important thing for everyone to know their mother tongue. Particularly, because of my own orientation, I was brought up in a village and in my Primary School, I was taught in my language, my mother tongue throughout my Primary 1; and that has been very useful for me because it helps me to understand a lot of the concepts that when they are translated into English Language they registered in my mind that this is what we are talking about.

It is important that people know their mother tongue, not only for the basic subject but also for retaining their cultural identity. The mother tongue is part of our culture. We express our culture through our mother tongue. Therefore, if you lose your mother tongue, you are losing part of your identity. Knowing your mother tongue is important. Everyone should know their mother tongue in order to retain their identity.

Your identity is who are you? Where are you coming from? What does your culture represent? The mother tongue is the best way to convey these.

I always ask my students, what is the word for television in your language? All of us don’t have it because television was not created in our environment. But what is the name of hoe in your language? All our communities that have hoes they made by themselves have the name for it, so it means that this thing: hoe is indigenous and it is conveyed through the mother tongue.

How can literacy in mother tongue be promoted, considering the fact that the mother tongue is not commonly used in formal education in most of the communities of Nigeria?

Prof: This is interesting. I think one way we can promote the mother tongue is to speak it frequently in our families. When we speak our mother tongue to our children in our homes, we help to grow and promote the language. This is an important thing to do. For the village schools, where almost everybody speaks the same language, I think the early learners can learn in their mother tongue.

I believe it is part of our national language policy that children of a particular age should be taught in their mother tongue. Unfortunately, this is not being practiced or implemented. I think literacy in mother tongue can be promoted at the family level and at the school level.

When we say at a certain age, is it at the early stage or after they have grown up?

Prof: At the early stage of their life. This is because when they have grown up it will be difficult to change their orientation.

What do you think is responsible for not implementing the policies?

I think it is the will by the people in authority to have those policies implemented that is lacking. If at my primary school we were taught in my mother tongue in the 1970s, I don’t know why it will be difficult to implement government policies in the 21st century. I think it is the will of the government to make things work. If they want things to work they will make them work because they will make the way for the policy implementers to make things work. Effective Monitoring and Evaluation will go a long way at ensuring that the educational policies are implemented. Effective Monitoring and Evaluation by the relevant authorities will ensure that gaps are identified where they exist and that the right steps are taken to bring deviations back on track and in line with the policy framework.

Is there anywhere you think you could have reached that you have not simply because you were taught in your mother tongue?

Prof: No, certainly none. I have gone to many places in the world and am proud to have come from my village. As a matter of fact my mother tongue has been very instrumental to my successes. The fact that I know, understand and speak my mother tongue fluently has never been an inhibition to me.

Are you saying that as a person who started his education by being taught with the mother tongue, you never had any challenge whenever you found yourself in those international communities, you mean you were able to adapt and properly too?

Prof: Oh sure. It doesn’t change anything. I have developed myself and ensure that I adapt into any system, and my mother tongue has not been any problem at all.

Have any of your contributions at any of the international meets ever been challenged based on the fact that you speak your mother tongue?

Prof: I have never encountered any inhibition, rather it has always been an advantage for me because when I translate things into English language, they give me the correct meaning of what exactly I want to express.

What do you think is responsible for people castigating their mother tongue?

Prof: Well, I think it is modernity. People want to identify with what they call modern, and then throw away their own. But it is quite unfortunate because we shouldn’t be losing what we have as our cultural heritage and where we are coming from, adopting things that are coming from other places. May be it is inferiority complex and I think it is not a good thing to have inferiority complex.

Talking about inferiority complex, which is one of the things that the schools are supposed to handle or eliminate, do you think that the schools are doing enough with regard to promoting literacy in mother tongue?

Prof: I have not worked at that level. I have been teaching at the tertiary level, the university to be précised, so I don’t know exactly what the people at the primary level are doing and so may not be able to speak about that.