PROMOTING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MOTHER TONGUE AS THE 2017 INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY IS MARKED ON TUESDAY FEBRUARY 21
Today,
the world over is commemorating the 2017 International Mother Language Day. The
day was proclaimed by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in November 1999. The date –
February 21 –represents the day in 1952 when the Pakistani students who
demonstrated for recognition of their native language, Bangla, as one of the
two national languages of the then Pakistan, were shot and killed by the Police
in Dhaka – the capital of what is now Bangladesh.
On 16th May 2007, the United Nations General Assembly in its
resolution called upon Member States to promote the preservation and protection
of all languages used by peoples of the world. By the same resolution, 2008 was
proclaimed as the ‘International Year of Languages’, to promote unity in
diversity and international understanding through multilingualism and
multiculturalism.
A language can be defined as a
system of sounds, written symbols, and/or signs used by the people of a
particular country, geographical area, tribe, or status as the case may be, to
communicate with each other. It can also be described as the human ability to
acquire and use complex systems of communication.
There are several forms of languages in existence, such as spoken
language, sign language, computer language, and animal language. Estimates of
the number of languages in the world vary between five thousand (5,000) and
seven thousand (7,000). However, any precise estimate depends on a partly
arbitrary distinction between official languages and local/mother languages.
Mother language or Mother tongue, which is also widely known as dialect
or native language, is the indigenous language of one’s parents which is
usually the first language learnt by him/her. In the same vein, it is also
referred to as the language of one’s ethnic group. Suffice to say that, one’s
Mother tongue is an apparent indication of where he/she hails from.
Mother language is often regarded as one’s ‘first language’. Therefore
by contrast, a second language is any language that one speaks other than his
or her first/native language. The Mother language is noted as ‘first’, because
it is regarded as the most important language spoken by anyone due to its
hereditary value as well as its cultural impact on the concerned individual.
No doubt, Mother language or first language contribute immensely in a
child’s personal, social, cultural, intellectual, educational and economic
life. Personal; in the sense that a child’s first (native) language is critical
to his or her identity. Social; in the sense that when the native language of a
child is not maintained, important links to family and other community members
may be lost. Cultural; in the sense that sustaining a child’s Mother tongue
would help the child to value his or her culture and heritage, which
contributes to a positive self-concept.
Furthermore, the intellectual aspect of it is that, when students who
are not yet fluent in their second/official language such as English or French,
but have switched to using only the said official language, would have the tendency
of functioning at an intellectual level below their age thereby resulting to
academic failure. Educational wise; students who learn second language and
continue to develop their native language would have chances of higher academic
achievement in later years than those who learn their second language at the
expense of their first language. More so, economically; there are available
better employment or job opportunities in Nigeria and in the disapora for
individuals who are conversant with their official language as well as another
language – probably a native language.
As the global community celebrates
the Int’l Mother Language Day, I call on every Nigerian, both home and abroad,
to join in the ongoing crusade of promoting the significance of Mother tongue
by acknowledging that Mother languages are the most powerful instruments
required to preserve and develop our respective tangible heritages.
To this end, I also call on the
National Assembly to enact a law that would ensure that every citadel of
learning in Nigeria, ranging from primary to tertiary level, offers at least
one native language relevant to the area or community where the institution is
situated. In addition, the proposed law ought to also mandate the various
existing examination boards in the country including the West African
Examination Council (WAEC), the National Examination Council (NECO), and the
Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), to ensure that the students
compulsorily enroll as well as sit for the said native language or subject as
it concerns their respective schools or the institution where they are seeking
for admission, as the case may be.
Indeed, considering the singular fact
that Mother Language helps to create full and thorough awareness on cultural
traditions coupled with its role in promotion of solidarity among members of
any given community thereby uplifting the level of moral, social and intellectual
values of our young ones, it is of no gain reiterating that the ongoing crusade
regarding uplift of various Mother languages is a task that awaits all and
sundry. Think about it!
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