Approaching micro-level planning from an intelligibility perspective: a case study from Pentecost Island, Vanuatu

Title
Approaching micro-level planning from an intelligibility perspective: a case study from Pentecost Island, Vanuatu
Publication Date
2017
Author(s)
Schneider, Cindy
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8308-5729
Email: cschnei3@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:cschnei3
Gooskens, Charlotte
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
Routledge
Place of publication
United Kingdom
DOI
10.1080/01434632.2016.1212865
UNE publication id
une:22163
Abstract
The Vanuatu government has recently implemented a policy of vernacular literacy. Children are now to receive the first three years of schooling in a vernacular language. Needless to say, in a country with less than 300,000 people [Vanuatu National Statistics Office 2016 Accessed January 4, 2016. http://vnso.gov.vu/] and more than 100 indigenous languages, some classrooms have more than one L1. In such cases, the language policy recommends that the variety with the most native speakers should be promoted. This is a good solution for those speakers of the larger language, but what impact does such a policy have on the children whose L1 is not included in the curriculum, and who are instructed in a vernacular language that is not their own? To answer this question, we conducted intelligibility tests across closely related varieties of northern and central Vanuatu. We conclude that in villages where children already receive a good deal of exposure to other language varieties in their daily lives, implementation of the government's language policy is a viable option. However, we make this point with the caveat that what is practical and beneficial for literacy education is not necessarily optimal for the preservation of small endangered language varieties.
Link
Citation
Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 38(6), p. 530-544
ISSN
1747-7557
0143-4632
Start page
530
End page
544

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