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Produce short books and other materials in the MT and sell or distribute them at the local market, churches, schools, shops and other places where people gather.
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If an MTB MLE programme has been established outside the community, encourage local officials to attend special events in which young students demonstrate their reading and learning abilities.
Parkari students demonstrate what they have learned at a Literacy Day celebration.( Pakistan) © Sindh Literacy and Development Program, Pakistan
Including the Excluded: Promoting Multilingual Education
Acceptable alphabets
Researchers have identified 7,097“ living languages” in the world( Ethnologue. 2016). Several decades ago that number was over 8000. Most of the languages that have been lost are“ nondominant” or minority languages. The quotation earlier in this booklet from the parent in Papua New Guinea describes the situation clearly: When schools focus only on the official language and culture, students lose respect for the language and culture of their parents. When that happens their language begins to die.
Researchers have also found that almost half of the languages that are still used for oral communication have never been put into written form. A strong MTB MLE programme is not possible in an unwritten language but that does not need to stop people who want MTB MLE for their children. The Booklet for Policy Makers in this MTB MLE Resource Kit describes the basic steps in developing an alphabet for unwritten languages or revising an alphabet that is no longer accepted by the local community or by the government.
MT speakers, supported by a linguist who is familiar with languages like theirs, can make decisions about which letters or symbols best represent the important sounds of their language. When the community has developed a tentative alphabet, they test it with as many MT speakers as possible and make the necessary revisions. In some countries, a designated government agency must approve alphabets for minority languages before they are officially accepted for use in school.
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