Using Indigenous Languages for

Teaching and Learning in Zimbabwe

Juliet Thondhlana

The question of which language(s) to use for teaching and learning is a

crucial one in bilingual and multilingual contexts. In former colonial countries,
it is a question that has occupied the agendas of many governments since they
attained independence. Some countries have made strides towards addressing it
(e.g., Tanzania and Nigeria), although it continues to haunt others. As recently
as 1997, African state representatives gathered in Harare, Zimbabwe for an inter-
governmental conference on language policies in Africa hosted by UNESCO in
order to discuss the question of language planning and policy in Africa. The
meeting resulted in the Harare Declaration in which each country represented
declared its commitment to the vision for Africa as expressed in the following
statements:

• A democratic Africa that seeks to enhance the active participation of all

citizens in all institutions—social, economic, political, et cetera;
• A democratic Africa where development is not construed in narrow
economic goals but instead in terms of a culturally valued way of living
together; and within a broader context of justice, fairness and equity for
all; respect for linguistic rights as human rights, including those of
minorities;
• In broader terms, Africa that acknowledges its ethno-linguistic pluralism
and accepts this as a normal way of life and as a rich resource for
development and progress;
• A democratic Africa that seeks to promote peaceful coexistence of people
in a society where pluralism does not entail replacement of one language
or identity by another, but instead promotes complementary of functions
as well as co-operation and a sense of common destiny;
• Africa where democratisation in a pluralistic context seeks to produce
through sound and explicit language policies Africans who are able to
operate effectively at local levels as well as at regional and international
levels;
• A democratic Africa that provides the environment for the promotion
and preservation of an African identity as well as the cultivation of a
proud and confident African personality;
• Africa where scientific and technological discourse is conducted in the
national languages as part of our cognitive preparation for facing the
challenges of the next millennium. (Chimhundu et al., 1997)

The representatives made a commitment to seriously take positive steps

towards implementing language planning and policy that, among other issues,
takes into account the raising of the status and usage of indigenous languages. In
this paper, I raise arguments for the use of indigenous languages as languages of
Indigenous Languages Across the Community

learning and teaching, with special reference to Zimbabwe. The paper will give
a brief description of the language situation in Zimbabwe. It will then address
the question of why it is important to use indigenous languages as languages of
learning and teaching. It will also consider what steps Zimbabwe has taken
towards stabilizing its indigenous languages before and after the Harare
Declaration. The paper will conclude by putting forward suggestions as to how
Zimbabwe can implement the use of indigenous languages in education. It is
hoped that this discussion, although it will focus on Zimbabwe, will be relevant
to other countries in Africa and elsewhere that are faced with similar linguistic
problems.

Zimbabwe: Language Situation

Zimbabwe is a Southern African country. It has a population of about 13
million made up of broadly African and European categories of population. There
are also smaller groups of people of Asian origin. Zimbabwe is, therefore, a
multilingual/multicultural nation. There are three main national languages in
Zimbabwe. These are Shona, Ndebele, and English. Of the three, English is the
national official language; Shona and Ndebele are national languages. In addition
to the three main national languages, there are fourteen minority indigenous
languages as follows:

• Kalanga (predominantly spoken Zimbabwe but also spoken in Botswana)

• Nyanja/Chewa (predominantly spoken in Malawi)
• Tonga (predominantly spoken in Zambia; also spoken in Namibia,
Botswana, and Mozambique)
• Nambya (Zimbabwean)
• Hwesa (Zimbabwean)
• Shangani (predominantly spoken in South Africa; also spoken in
Mozambique)
• Barwe (predominantly spoken in Mozambique)
• Sotho (predominantly spoken in Lesotho, also Africa)
• Venda (predominantly spoken in South Africa)
• Chikunda (predominantly spoken in Mozambique; also Zambia)
• Xhosa (predominantly spoken in South Africa)
• Sena (predominantly spoken in Mozambique)
• Tshwawo (Khoisan) (also spoken in Botswana, Namibia, and Zambia)
• Tswana (predominantly spoken in Botswana and South Africa)

The minority groups constitute approximately 10% of the total Zimbabwean

population. Six of these minority languages, namely, Kalanga, Shangani, Chewa,
Venda, Tonga, and Nambya are officially recognized.
Zimbabwe, like many African countries, tends to follow the policy of using
the former colonial language (English in this case) as the official language of
much of parliament, trade and industry, the mass media, and education. Although
Shona and Ndebele are now accepted for use in some formal domains, such as in

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 Using Indigenous Languages for Teaching and Learning in Zimbabwe

the senate and as a language of instruction in lower primary education, English

continues to dominate as the national official language. In education, English
continues to be the dominant language. The latest Education Act (1987, as
amended in 1990) states that:

1. The three main languages of Zimbabwe, namely Shona, Ndebele and

English, shall be taught in all primary schools from the first grade as
follows—
a. Shona and English in all areas where the mother-tongue of the
majority of the residents is Shona or
b. Ndebele and English in all areas where the mother tongue of the
majority of the residents is Ndebele.
2. Prior to the fourth grade, either of the languages referred to in paragraph
(a) or (b) of sub-section (1) may be used as the medium of instruction,
depending upon which language is more commonly spoken and better
understood by the pupils.
3. From the fourth grade, English shall be the medium of instruction
provided that Shona or Ndebele shall be taught as subjects on an equal-
time allocation as the English language.
4. In areas where minority languages exist, the Minister may authorise the
teaching of such languages in primary schools in addition to those
specified in sub-section (1), (2) and (3). (Part XI, Section 55, p.255)

As shown above, although all the major languages enjoy some small degree
of prominence under the Act, English continues to enjoy the central role, as
indicated in sub-section (3) and in the non-obligatory nature of the early primary
school mother-tongue instruction. Further, this recognition is largely in word
only. In Zimbabwe, most schools prefer to use English from the outset to ensure
their students’ proficiency in English, which is considered the language of power
and economic wellbeing. It should be noted that, when they start school, most of
these children have very low or no proficiency in English. Teachers and parents
are concerned that, after the third grade, when they have to switch to English,
the children’s low level of proficiency in English would make learning difficult
and detract from whatever they would have learnt so far in the mother tongue. In
the case of minority languages, it has been noted that implementation of this Act
is even more difficult because the few teachers who are proficient in the languages
are not deployed in the relevant areas. This is because deployment of teachers
does not involve consideration of the question of lower primary medium of
instruction.
Another fact that demonstrates the continued dominance of English is the
fact that the minimum pass level in Zimbabwe is five “O” (Ordinary) level
subjects, and one of these five subjects should be English. Generally, without a
pass in “O” level English, one cannot be considered for further education and
employment. It should be noted that Shona, Ndebele, or any of the other
indigenous languages are, currently, not acceptable substitutes. On the teaching

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Indigenous Languages Across the Community

of Shona as a subject, Chiwome and Thondhlana (1990) have noted that, even in
the teaching of Shona subjects, some teachers prefer to use English as the medium
of instruction and some Shona students prefer to write their essays about Shona
in English when they are given a choice. However, research has revealed some
degree of code switching between English and indigenous languages in
classrooms of grades and forms beyond grade three (Chitiga, 1994). The
significance of this practice is yet to be determined. There is also an added
problem. In Zimbabwe, as well as elsewhere in Africa, bilingualism has tended
to be subtractive because the socio-cultural attributes of indigenous languages
have been denigrated in favour of those of the colonial language, which is
considered to be more prestigious. This has even resulted in some Africans,
educated through the medium of a colonial language, shunning their mother
tongues (Sure & Webb, 2000). It is not surprising, therefore, that, in Zimbabwe,
English continues to dominate the education system. There has been, in many
cases, little or no conscious effort to promote students’ cognitive skills (memory,
ability to generalize, ability to grasp relationships such as cause and effect, ability
to predict consequences, ability to grasp the essential message of a text); their
affective skills (positive attitude to work, loyalty to one’s country, tolerance for
diversity); and their social skills (ability to work together with, communicate,
and support others) in their mother tongue. Consequently, there have been no
efforts to promote the use of the mother tongue in technological and intellectual
discourse.
The above situation has had some of the following serious consequences
for educational development in Zimbabwe:

• Indigenous languages have not been taken seriously as subjects of study.

• Too much emphasis has been placed on proficiency in English, which,
in many cases, is introduced to children from the first day of school.
• Proficiency in the mother tongue is, in some cases, jeopardized because
teachers and parents focus on learning English at school and home. It is
saddening that, in some cases, children come to school proficient in
their mother-tongues but soon begin to lose this as the focus is shifted to
developing proficiency in English both at school and home.

Despite what appears to be a negative picture regarding Zimbabwe’s

indigenous languages, some steps have been taken towards stabilizing them.
Notable are the following:

• The launching of the ALLEX (African Languages and Literature

Lexicography) project at the University of Zimbabwe, which, among
other activities, is involved in the development of dictionaries and the
creation of literary and technical terminology in indigenous languages.
So far, the project has seen the publishing of the first monolingual
dictionary in Shona, and another one is expected soon in the Ndebele
language.

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 Using Indigenous Languages for Teaching and Learning in Zimbabwe

• The institutionalization of the ALLEX project as the ALRI (African

Languages Research Institute) at the University of Zimbabwe. This
institute is, in general, responsible for the systematic studying,
documenting, and developing of the languages of Zimbabwe.
• The setting up of a national policy advisory panel in 1997. This panel
has since submitted its recommendations to government concerning how
a comprehensive national language policy should be formulated.
• There are moves to make Shona and Ndebele national official languages
along with English as well as to officially recognize all minority
indigenous languages of Zimbabwe. This has yet to be gazetted and
implemented.
• Development of fictional literature and language books in indigenous
languages, particularly in the case of Shona and Ndebele.
• A significant increase in the teaching of Shona and Ndebele as second
languages to a variety of learners, both foreign and local (especially in
predominantly native-English speaking schools—though the teaching
is still unsatisfactory).
• The introduction of a Shona-Ndebele newspaper (though more should
be introduced).
• Some, though limited, use of some indigenous languages in parliament,
business, education, and media.

Although these are steps in the right direction, it seems obvious that Zimbabwe
needs to give the question of the status and usage of indigenous languages some
very serious thought. In the next section, I look at why it is important to introduce
indigenous languages in education as the languages of teaching and learning
and as subjects of study.

Indigenous Languages in Education

On the question of the status and usage of indigenous languages versus
those of an ex-colonial language, arguments have been put forward for
maintaining the exclusive official status and usage of the ex-colonial language.
Sure and Webb (2000) observe that, although the use of colonial languages in
education has led to serious problems, it has also brought with it “enormous
advantages such as access to knowledge, creativity and entertainment of the
entire western world, as well as global trade and commerce” (p. 126). They
further argue that “European languages have become an integral part of the lives
of the African people, and are indeed resources to be nurtured and developed”
(Sure & Webb, 2000, p. 126).
There is also the argument that learning a former colonial language does
not necessarily involve taking on a new cultural identity. This is attested to by
work coming out of English schools world-wide, which has shown that it is
possible to adapt a language to give expression to the cultural and intellectual
peculiarities of another world. Yet, as noted by Williams and Snipper (1990, p.
50), language encompasses not only communication, but also heritage, culture,

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Indigenous Languages Across the Community

and feelings. It is, therefore, important to note that maintaining a speaker’s native
language has an affective dimension, that of enhancing the speakers’ self-concepts
and their pride in their cultural background and identity.
There are other reasons why it is important to use indigenous languages as
the languages of teaching and learning. First, as argued by Kembo (2000),
cognitive and affective development occurs more effectively in a language that
the learner knows very well. This is particularly important because, as reported
in the literature, most children from Zimbabwe and elsewhere who are learning
through a former colonial language are not proficient in the colonial language
when they enter school since their exposure to the school language is often
minimal in the home. Second, it is argued that learning in general (including
second language learning) occurs more effectively if the required cognitive
development has already taken place through the use of a first language as a
language of learning. Cummins (1984) argues that “optimal first language
education provides a rich cognitive preparation for the acquisition of a second
language” (in Kembo, 2000, p. 289) and that the literacy and cognitive skills
already acquired in the first language provide easy transition to second-language
medium education.
The above points underscore the importance of using indigenous languages
in education. There are steps that Zimbabwe can take to achieve this goal. This
paper concludes by listing some of these in the following section.

Conclusion: The Way Forward

Bilingualism/multilingualism is a reality for most people living in bilingual/
multilingual environments. Any solution to linguistic problems that plague
bilingual/multilingual societies has, therefore, to be sought in the context of
bilingualism/multilingualism. There was a time when, owing to ignorance,
bilingualism/multilingualism was viewed with suspicion. It was thought that
bilingualism creates more tasks for the brain than is necessary, leads to mental
confusion as the child tries to work out which language to use in a particular
communicative situation, slows down acquisition of the second language, leads
to a split personality, and creates cultural and political division (Sure & Webb,
2000). Concerning the last point, writing about language and colonial power
with specific reference to Belgian Congo, Fabian (1986) observes that, in colonial
Africa, multilingualism was viewed as a threat to order. Use of many languages
was equated with confusion. Even use of two languages was perceived as making
the “orderly exercise of government difficult” ( p. 48). It was, therefore, suggested
that attempts be made to remove such disorder by radical “unification,” that is,
exclusive use of one language. Failing that, it was suggested that there be
established hierarchical relations among languages. This was because freedom
of coexistence, interaction, and competition amongst languages was seen as a
threat to authority. The colonial language came out “naturally” on top as the
exclusive language of the highest levels of administration.
Recent research, however, has revealed that, contrary to earlier beliefs,
bilingualism has a number of advantages. Peal and Lambert (1962, in Sure &

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 Using Indigenous Languages for Teaching and Learning in Zimbabwe

Webb, 2000) concluded that bilinguals perform better in intelligence tests than
do monolinguals, that they have greater mental flexibility and superior abstract
thinking and concept formation, and that bilingualism stimulates further IQ
development. It is noted, however, that bilingualism can only be positive when
children are trained to a level of stable bilingualism, where competence in the
mother tongue is comparable to that in the second language, what Cummins
calls the “threshold level” (1979, in Sure and Webb, 2000). Bilinguals with a
high level of bilingual proficiency showed positive cognitive effects while limited
bilinguals, weak in both mother tongue and second language, showed negative
cognitive effects (Toukmaa & Skutnabb-Kangas, 1997, in Williams & Snipper,
1990, p. 55).
In seeking to stabilize Zimbabwean languages, it should be noted that, in
Zimbabwe and in Africa in general, multilingualism is a norm. Many children
grow up in environments where more than one indigenous language is spoken,
and they develop proficiency in one or more of these (Sure & Webb, 2000, p.
122). Also, as noted earlier, colonial languages have become an integral part of
the lives of most African people and should be nurtured and developed. It appears
here that the way forward should be to turn a bad past into something positive,
and bilingual education seems to offer acceptable possibilities. The term bilingual
education is used to describe “any system of school education in which, at a
given moment in time and for a varying amount of time, simultaneously or
consecutively, instruction is planned and given in at least two languages” (Hamers
& Blanc, 1992, p. 189).
Hamers and Blanc (1992) have identified three categories of bilingual
education as follows:

• Instruction is given in both languages;

• Instruction is given first in the first language, and the pupil is taught
until such time as he or she is able to use the second language as a
medium of learning;
• The largest part of instruction is given through the second language, and
the first language is introduced later—first as a subject and later as a
medium of instruction.

In my view, in the spirit of promoting bilingualism, the first option, instruction

given in both languages, would be most desirable. However, in the Zimbabwean
context and elsewhere in Africa, one has to be realistic and consider the
practicability of such a move, in view of the multiplicity of languages within
most countries. Governments would need to set aside vast amounts of money
for the development of dictionaries, teaching materials, and bilingual teacher-
training programs. That kind of money may not be readily available, and the
process takes time to plan and implement.
A more practicable alternative in the short term is the second option above.
Initially, a local indigenous language would be used throughout the primary
grades while English would be taught only as a subject. I suggest here an increased

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Indigenous Languages Across the Community

period of mother tongue instruction to allow adequate time for the acquisition
and development of cognitive, affective, and social skills through the mother
tongue. This would be in line with the Language Transferability Theory
(Cummins, 1981, in Williams & Snipper, 1990, p. 54). According to this theory,
languages have a common underlying proficiency, and the concepts understood
in one language are transferable to the other. Indigenous language instruction
would continue until the indigenous languages were sufficiently developed to
be used effectively alongside English. I envision a situation where, in a Ndebele-
English environment, for example, a teacher could choose to use either of the
two languages in his or her class or could just code-switch as necessary.
Furthermore, students could be free to write their assignments and examinations
in the language of their choice. There is, however, a need to carry out more
research to determine factors underlying bilingual education typologies. Social,
historical, ideological, and other factors need to be examined in the context of
Zimbabwe.
In conclusion, listed below are some suggested steps that need to be taken
towards stabilizing indigenous languages in Zimbabwe:

• The Zimbabwean government should, with guidance from the National

Policy Advisory Panel, consider seriously the recommendations of that
panel and set in motion the formulation of a comprehensive national
language policy that takes into account the use of indigenous languages
in education.
• There must be a stronger move towards strengthening mother tongue
education in order to provide a firm foundation for later education in
both the indigenous and English languages. In this case, lengthen the
period for mother tongue instruction in order to give adequate time for
skills development and consolidation. In this regard, Cummins (1981,
in Williams & Snipper, 1990, p. 54) suggests that languages have a
common underlying proficiency. He argues that when concepts are
learned in the stronger language, they can later be expressed in the second
language without having to be relearned. The concepts known in the
first language are, therefore, transferable to the second language.
• Teachers must be provided with solid bilingual training.
• Language planners must give the former colonial language and
indigenous languages equal functional status. If indigenous languages
are used in teaching and in school subject exams, they will gain prestige,
which will increase the need to study them seriously.
• The Zimbabwean government and educational planners must put money
into the development of indigenous languages—for lexicography work,
development of grammars, translation, teaching materials production,
and bilingual teacher training.
• African governments should be encouraged to harmonize African
languages. Many African languages are spoken across borders. In many
cases, what is a minority language in one country is a majority language

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 Using Indigenous Languages for Teaching and Learning in Zimbabwe

in another. Countries like this do not have to duplicate efforts in terms

of materials development, for example. African states should, therefore,
work together to share materials and manpower training just as in the
case of English across borders. This would reduce the cost of developing
indigenous languages.
• Bilingualism/multilingualism should be nurtured. As observed by Sure
and Webb (2000), first, a person trained in his or her own mother tongue
is likely to have a more positive self-image. Second, a bilingual is more
culturally and linguistically flexible and has respect for other languages
and their speakers. This is particularly important because there is now
increased interaction among nations.

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