Prácticas para Cultivar Emociones Positivas

The mother tongue is a language in which children are competent in day-to-day communication with their community from their early ages. It is the language that children constructed their knowledge, skills and experiences from their community. These abilities and experiences that they gained from their folklores, cultures, norms and values help them build links between what they know from their experiences and what they learn in the classrooms or school environment. As a result, they become successful in their academic achievement since they have strong foundations in their first language. For example, according to Kembo (2000) in Magwa and Mutasa (2007:64), cognitive and affective development of a student occurs most effectively in a language that the student knows best.

In this regard, Qorro (2008:13) and Bamgbose (2004:7) pointed out that educating both children and teachers through their immediate language enhances sustainable quality education. It also develops their skills and knowledge. Moreover, children become self-confident and can easily understand concepts of the subject matters they learn through their first language before they are introduced to learn the second or another language (Qorro, 2008:5 and Stubbs, 2008:82).

Thus, the successful implementation of mother-tongue education is imperative for successful learning and sustainable development of students’ skills and awareness. For effective

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implementation of mother-tongue education, support that both teachers and students may receive from stakeholders could determinately affect the quality education given through mother tongue. It can negatively affect the attitudes of students, teachers and stakeholders towards mother- tongue education. In its implementation, teachers also play a profound role and participate in educational reforms at the classroom level (Littlewood, 1981: 19 and Wright, 1987:6).

Moreover, children can easily understand concepts and contents of the subject they learn through their first language. In order to conceptualise content of the subject matters, in the first place, children have to understand the language of instruction. However, if they are exposed to learning through unfamiliar language they are apparently challenged to understand the contents of the subject matters. They may struggle with the sounds, the meaning of words, expression and cultural concepts used in the language they are exposed to learn through. As a result, they become unsuccessful in their learning and victims of the consequence produced by the policy. In this connection, Nieto (2000:189) explicated that one’s language “is a primary means by which people express their cultural values and the lens through which they viewed the World.” This would mean that students’ mother tongue is a tool in which their practices, knowledge, attitudes and skills are embedded because of their experiences. Thus, languages and experiences they brought to classrooms predictably affected their ways of learning and feeling. For instance, the research findings confirmed that children who were unable to master their mother tongue would come to the end without mastering any of the languages sufficiently for use in a school based learning situations.

Skutnabb-Kangas (2004: 3) also pointed out that the length of education in first language was the strongest forecaster of both the children's competence and gained in a second language, and of their school achievement. This means that the children may be weak and academically deficient in their general performances and they cannot even successfully compete in the job markets. For this reason, they become socially and economically dependent on their families as well as on their communities. Moreover, these sorts of children can be psychologically affected and they may exhibit disruptive behaviours in the local community. Similarly, Alidou, et al (2006:14) pointed out that:

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If a switch in medium of instruction occurs before learners have developed a high level of written as well as spoken proficiency in both the L1 and L2, then the learning process across the curriculum will be interrupted. Learners will fall behind their peers who have L1 or MTE throughout in other education systems.

From this quote may conclude that if a child has stopped learning in mother tongue or a second language before she /he had developed skills and proficiency in both the languages, she/he is unable to compete with other child who has developed her/his skills and proficiency in first and second languages. In this regard, Mutasa (2006:80) pointed out, “They [indigenous languages] have been the cornerstone in acculturation, that is, the processes of dissemination of accumulated knowledge, wisdom and values and the processes of assimilating new ideas into an existing cognitive structure”. Mutasa (Ibid) goes on saying that the assimilation of the new knowledge or current world technology into the existing knowledge and experiences is possible through mother tongues of the continent or Africans. In addition, education through children’s first language facilitates classroom participation. It also minimises children’s dropout and repetition rates. Particularly, female students are the users of the policy as they are allowed to learn through their language which they construct their socio-cultural norms and values.

Similarly, while children are educated through their mother tongue, their parents can actively participate in literacy development of their children. For example, parents can guide their children to do homework or school activities so that the children can easily learn and understand difficult concepts which may challenge their learning. In this sense, children’s literacy skills can be enhanced and developed to higher cognitive levels. Ogutu (2006:56) pointed out, “Mother tongue is very suitable for artistic, humanities subjects, such as: literature, music arts and culture”. In this sense, the children can develop their cognitive skills and basic literacy skills which enable them to be more successful in their future academic learning.

Thus, a language of learning and teaching can have positive or negative impacts on children’s literacy development. For example, if children are taught in their mother tongue, they can be successful in their academic performance and achievement. Their achievements in their academy can be effective if children’s learning through mother tongue is efficiently equipped with

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adequate and appropriate learning and teaching materials, quality learning environments, well- skilled and experienced teachers and the use of effective teaching methods. These issues can enhance children’s academic achievement and facilitate quality education taught through mother tongue.

In general, education through children’s home language is advantageous from the viewpoints of pedagogical, psychological and cognitive reasons. Children could easily understand the concepts, meanings and scientific implication explicitly or implicitly embedded in the contents of the subject matters they learn.