Why we need kids at the frontline to save Nigerian languages – Mrs. Dumebi Ononye
What is the idea behind your initiative? This is an idea borne out of lack and needs in our youngsters and growing children of today. The spirit and culture of reading and communicating in our indigenous languages is gradually being phased out. Brainstormer is here to encourage and build in our young children the art […]
What is the idea behind your initiative?
This is an idea borne out of lack and needs in our youngsters and growing children of today. The spirit and culture of reading and communicating in our indigenous languages is gradually being phased out. Brainstormer is here to encourage and build in our young children the art of reading and writing. This is meant to bring out those hidden talents in youngsters in other to awake the great deposits of talents in them, thereby reviving our dying cultural heritage in an atmosphere that will interest and excite them. Our emphasis is on improving children’s skills in our local languages as well as in the creative Arts, principally writing. I have noticed that most of our children hardly speak our indigenous languages and yet, the UNESCO recognizes language as important human resources. This lack of aptitude comes largely from city lifestyles of parents who hardly have time for their children and sometimes from cross-cultural marriages and a desire to play neutral by choosing to communicate with children in English solely. Brainstormer is a program of extracurricular study aimed at correcting this by exposing our children to the major indigenous languages in Nigeria; Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo. This will be done based on our knowledge of child psychology and a program of study developed to interest children in a very interactive manner. Thus, we are saving our indigenous languages by getting our children to speak them. Children are very adaptable as can be seen from the Indians who on the average speak at least four languages, all picked up in the formative stage that is childhood. We have done this by breaking language study into a course of twelve modules.
This sounds interesting, but what is your background? Do you have a background in working with children?
Oh yes, I do on a number of levels. Formally, I have an NCE in Theatre Arts from College of Education, Agbor. So I am a trained teacher. Added to this is the Bachelor in Education I picked up from the Lagos State University in the year 2000. Still on my formal educational pursuits, I got a Masters in International Relations and Strategic Studies from the University of Jos, two years ago. Even more practically, I have two children aged eight and three so I can say I am a hands-on teacher where it counts, to my own children.
How advanced are your preparations?
The idea is to hold a module each Saturday and this will last for three hours. These three hours will be split into contact periods for Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo and creative writing. The contact periods are designed In such a way that the basics of the languages are taught in simultaneous periods; by these we mean the languages will be treated in a comparative way such that the children can easily draw the basic principles of each language and how they relate to each other – from basic subject-verb relationships to more complex ones. At brainstormer, our approach is interactive in a manner to bring out full child participation by using simple to understand modules as well as instructional materials and audio visual aids which achieves our objectives while the children have fun. Our first workshop will run from the 6th of November this year to 5th February 2011 and response has been very encouraging.
You need a conducive atmosphere and some funding for this project; how are you going about this?
We have a serene and secure environment at the Pastoral Centre, Bishop’s Court, at Riyom Close in downtown Jos. It’s just off J. D. Gomwalk Way. It is a very conducive environment suitable for learning markedly different from the school environment which is excessively formal. We have a well stocked library with over 300 books which we will be giving out to help improve our participant’s writing skills. On funding, while we do not want to quantify the value of the workshop or consider how much has been expended in getting books, materials and audio visual aids, we intend to charge parents N 20, 000 per child in order to cover basic running costs.
What has the reaction been like?
Oh well, the reaction has been rather mixed but on the whole, encouraging. We are pioneers in this field of child learning and lots of people have had many questions bordering on how the workshop will affect the children’s capacity to understand these languages. We have assured them that the modules are designed with the child as the focal point and have pointed out severally that contrary to popular assumption, childhood is the best period for young persons to pick up languages and do so most easily. Important research has shown this and it is this that lies at the heart of most western education systems. But largely, reactions have been positive and we already have a number of children scheduled for the workshop. As with most things new and innovative, the idea is getting more popular by the day and is increasingly greeted with enthusiasm.
Do you have any last words?
I am very appreciative of the support I have gotten in surprising quarters, especially in the media. It has helped our agenda a great deal. It is my desire that as many parents as possible sign up their children for our program. Language is an important human cultural resource and UNESCO has admonished us that the only way to save your language is to use it. We aim at a holistic appreciation of indigenous languages in a way that aids national integration; we aim to have a Hausa boy who has not been to the east transport us to Nsukka with his skill in speaking and writing the Igbo language. We are at the forefront of saving the future of Nigeria in a manner that most education administrators overlook. I know we can achieve this.
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