Teaching in Two Tongues: A Multilingual Approach in Guyanese Classrooms

 

Introduction

In a country like Guyana, where multiple languages and dialects exist alongside Standard English, incorporating a dual language or multilingual model in Primary Education is both practical and empowering.

1. Realistic Classroom Strategies

·       Daily Dual-Language Routine: Begin each day with greetings, weather updates, or calendar activities in both English and a home language like Creolese or Patamona.



·       Math in Multilingual Mode: Introduce basic number concepts in both languages. For example, “one” (English) and “wan” (Creolese) helps bridge understanding and improve retention.

·       Role-Play Games: Use dramatizations and short skits where students take turns using different languages to build fluency and confidence.

2. Learning Materials

·       Posters & Charts: Display dual-language classroom resources, such as labels for items like "desk/meza," "chair/kyaar," depending on the local language.

·       Storybooks & Poems: Use bilingual versions of beloved folktales such as Anansi stories or Tiger tales, connecting language learning with cultural heritage.

·       Pamphlets for Parents: Send home bilingual newsletters or guides so that learning continues at home in both English and the home language.

3. Community Involvement

·       Language Days: Organize monthly "Home Language Days" where students present stories, songs, or proverbs in their native tongue.

·       Invite Elders: Involve local elders in storytelling sessions to share oral traditions and pass down language in an educational setting.

4. Teacher Support & Training

·       Teachers should be encouraged to attend workshops and seminars that explore language transfer theories, such as Cummins’ Interdependence Hypothesis, which states that skills learned in the first language transfer to the second.

·       Peer collaboration among teachers to share multilingual teaching techniques can also support success.

5. Classroom Model Examples

·       Language Buddy System: Pair students to help each other understand and translate content using both languages.

·       Rotating Language Leader: Assign a different student each day to lead a class command or activity in the home language.

Resources

·       Cummins (2000) – Language, Power and Pedagogy: Bilingual Children in the Crossfire. This work emphasizes that students learn best when their home language is used alongside the school language.

·       UNESCO (2003) – Education in a Multilingual World. This report advocates for mother tongue instruction as essential to inclusive, equitable education.

·       Vygotsky (1978) – Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. His theory explains how language supports cognitive development and learning through social interaction.

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