Literacy micro planning in a Papua New Guinean community, SOAS, University of London
Channel: SOAS University of London
Date: 2014-11-18

This seminar by Dr Cindy Schneider, University of New England, Australia was given at SOAS, University of London on 29 October 2013 as part of the Linguistic Department's Seminar Series (http://bit.ly/1uDOZFg)
You can find out more about studying linguistics at http://www.soas.ac.uk/linguistics

Abstract:
In 1989, the government of Papua New Guinea (PNG) enacted educational reform. It officially abandoned its English-only policy in favour of community languages (either a vernacular or a local lingua franca) at elementary school level (Preparatory through Year 2). 

In response to this reform, the Kairak (Baining /Papuan) community of East New Britain Province mobilised to develop a literacy program for its local classrooms. 

This paper discusses the viability of Kairak vernacular literacy in the context of the community’s broader literacy practices. While mother tongue literacy (as opposed to lingua franca literacy – Tok Pisin or Hiri Motu in PNG) is regarded by many linguists and policy makers as a best-case scenario, this approach can also pose a variety of practical challenges for teachers and students alike. 

This paper contends that in rural elementary schools with mixed linguistic populations, PNG’s (northern) lingua franca, Tok Pisin, could in fact be a more sensible choice for the teaching of initial literacy. 

It also argues that while micro language planning is ideal for meeting the linguistic needs of local contexts, the agents of micro planning must be wary of applying, wholesale, the policies of neighbouring communities to their own situation.