Language-in-education policy and boundaries in Botswana, Tanzania, and Zambia

Abstract

This paper discusses how boundaries are created, perceived, and reinforced within language-in-education policies in the African context, focusing on primary education in Botswana, Tanzania, and Zambia. While the linguistic and policy context is different in each country, they all adopt policies which are monoglossic, privilege English, and do not allow use of the majority of languages in the country. Within this context, tensions emerge when policies which adopt monolingual ways of doing language are imposed in spaces in which there is a lived multilingual reality. The paper discusses the findings from linguistic ethnographic work conducted in each of the three countries. The focus is on what the data highlights with regards to the different types of boundaries which are created through language ideologies and language policies. The main boundaries discussed are 1) languages as bounded, separate objects; 2) boundaries between the home/community and the educational space; 3) geographical boundaries between different areas. Across all contexts, language boundaries are imposed on classroom settings as multilingual language practices are stigmatised and learners are punished when they do not follow a monolingual way of languaging. There are also clear boundaries established between the home and the educational space. Finally, we see close connections being made between particular geographic regions and the language and cultural identity of the people within those regions.