I knew of the efforts that were ongoing to edit lower primary
language books to our mother-tongue through Kwambulana group that met every Tuesday
at Hemara Hotel in Chavakali. The group was composed of able and renowned
people whom I had in the past made friendship with. Their experience and
previous activities to preserve language and culture did put them at a better
place to participate in editing the books. It is also a requirement of the new
competency based curriculum by the Kenyan government to have young learners
taught in their mother-tongue too.
I was taught mother-tongue in lower primary school and I
relish the memories. We read the TKK series books edited by J. Lugadiru et al.
At the school level, a learner is able to internalize and look at what is
normally spoken as something worth developing interest to and know more. And as
I grabbed my copies of Kusangaal’le
Lologooli on the very hour of launch, I had the desire of knowing what
beneficial learning issues our young learners would be exposed to as a way of
increasing their participation in understanding and use of mother-tongue to
interpret their responsibilities, roles, pride and rights as they grow to be productive
citizens.
After my reading, I classified my feedback in three main
components;-
- - Grammar
- - Content
- -Art
1. Grammar
Maragori language lacks clear orthography. Those interested
in the language have always gambled on the standard way of the linguistics involved.
Most have gone ahead to write as spoken (ascent). Some have had a second
thought and withdrew a few ‘original’ letters in words, some are still unsure
on what to do. The editing group did not have an orthography first developed in
great study and brainstorming of maragori language linguistics and the books
edited may therefore not be error proof like those that came prior to them. With
an orthography in place, we would settle on mistakes. But without, it is
errors, sometimes perceived that partly are included in this brief review.
The use of ‘l’ instead of ‘r’, still stands major at the
conflict of speech and sound as phonetics is concerned. It is said that
Maragori language has neither ‘l’ nor ‘r’ but if a child was asked to choose
what is ‘heard’, he or she would take on an ‘r’ in speech. Writing ‘l’ when you
speak ‘r’ is a phonetical conflict because what is spoken should be so written
and so read. Instances of ‘b’ replacing
‘v’ and ‘ts’ for ‘z’ have been ironed out with time for the better. Why not do
away with ‘l’ too? (G1 pg 5 instead of litivula write ritivura, instead of
lulala write rurara. G2 pg 40 instead of liali write riari, instead of vulahi
write vurahi. G3 pg 9 instead of zivili write ziviri, instead of tigala write
tigara among many others)
The morphology of maragori linguistics is similar to Swahili.
Maragori however largely employs letter ‘r’ in its rolling sound, hard to
always pick in speech when verbs are coughed (mnyambuliko) hence the fall to
sound ‘l’l’ when two successive ‘r..r..’ is involved and assuming either the
first or last r where three successive r’s are found. A word as korererwa can
either be spoken as kol’lerwa or korel’lwa depending on the intended meaning.
This is to mean the use of ‘l’ or ‘l’l’ should be restricted and only be
accepted in direct speech (or reading) where the shortening happens. (G1 pg 1
instead of kuhul’liza write kuhuririza, pg 19 instead of kuzizagil’la write
kuzizagirira. G2 pg 13 instead of sinzihul’la write sinzihurira, pg 46 instead
of mul’lina write mu ririna. G3 pg 47 instead of kwisingil’la write
kwisingirira, pg 70 instead of alamwimil’la write aramwimirira and many
others.)
Dialects have also found themselves in the books. The
standard language should be free of dialects or accent. It is in dialect that a
person can be easily recognized as a new learner or of a prior dialect of a
different language. It is in a dictionary that homophones can be distinguished
from one another by pronunciation sound and supported in sentence context other
than independently structuring a word (with double vowels) while avoiding
conflict with another. A word that would otherwise sound of a long vowel would
not necessarily be so with a rewrite of the very sentence or a reread by
another person. Here, I advocate for
dropping of double vowels between consonants and only adoption of double vowels
in ongoing participle tense. (G1 pg 2 instead of voolela write vorera, instead
of ovoole write ovore, pg 35 instead of kusangaalila write kusangaririraa. G2
pg 20 instead of gaduukana write gadukanaa, pg 31 instead of mbeezanga write
mbezanga, pg 51 instead of kwaduukila write kwadukirira. G3 pg 11 instead of
kohoonga we write kohonga, pg 61 instead of alamukoonya write aramukonya.)
The vowel prefixes on nouns should be reviewed in writing
because they are only a product of accent and much as some are inplace, others
are not. Umwana for instance, is mwana. The ‘u’ prefix will lead us to the ‘a’
in plural which is not necessary (a-vana).
Amaduma and uvuswage were best written as maduma and vuswage
respectively. Other words that should avoid the vowel prefix are, G1 pg 7
ikirasi, ikitabu, pg 46 ikiduma; G2 pg 21 iriengu, pg 28 umusomi; G3 pg 38
amungu, pg 48 ikihiu. Nouns as enzoka, ikaramu, itaya, inguvu, are justified
for the vowels indicate singularity.
The mentioned are among the grammar considerations if given
an eye can assist in discovering more mistakes and work to improve the language
flow.
 |
| The three books |
2. Content
Here, I read each grade book individually trying to discern
lessons critical to the social and psychological development of a young
learner. I was in the blind as to the content in the teacher’s guide because
there were contents I could grasp and others I found missing.
In Guredi (Guredi?) 1 book, the content in my view is largely abstract
unless the teacher’s guide is well equipped or the teachers themselves are
passionate enough to drive the hanging/elite messages home, to the brain of the
young learner. Instead of availing objects and simple vocabulary, the book goes
direct to classwork of questioning and need for answers. Comparing to TKK books, I find the TKK ones
more enriching in attitude and behavioural setting than the PKK series. In most
instances pupils are asked in the book to listen to the teacher of ask one
another one or two. It must be a young active and concentrating brain to do so
well or a good teacher to win the conscious of the young mind.
I say so because in grade 1, a child is 7-8 years and their
grasp of reading/writing alittle crude. Listening skills should be the
priority. They are more interested in interesting stories of good and bad acts,
relevant to their surroundings. What they ‘see in a picture’ or how they should
‘fill in the blanks’ makes them passive. It throws the learning back to the
young child whereas at that time learning should be mainly teacher propagated.
The absence of a teacher means play or drooling. The lack of ‘objects’ to keep
the mind activated and at play will make them forget what they learnt at first
class.
In Guredi 2 book, preference should have been on speaking and
reading skills. Here, the very attitude shaping stories are built on in the
sense the pupil can read them by themselves and go ahead to speak of them and
others in memory or imagination of others. People, relationships, and modes of
interactions should have largely entwined in the speaking and language skills.
All in one, two or three long story forms spiced with images.
It is in Guredi 3 book, not different from the other two,
where ideas, places and adventure should be propagated through writing skills.
Questions can start. Group works can take form. Creativity of writing can be
explored in the learners and their general interest and performance examined.
Unfortunately the book is full of topics, titles, subtitles and mini titles
only breaking with an image and a few questions.
I did not fail to note the continuous attempts to mention
Christianity in most cases. We are pursuing secular education that outside it
there are free choices to adopt or deny while mature of age. There are ways of
packaging ethics without necessarily introducing religion to the young
learners. More often young minds are introduced to societal status quo and
gradually indoctrinated by its ways which inhibits their curiosity and spur of
imagination critical to future development of communities.
In conclusion, I found the books without an emotional
attachment. No questions and no story would make me curious, remember to tell
and or ask more about. Unless there will be other supplementary books which
would only add educational baggage to the young learner. One well packaged book
is enough for a subject.
3. Art
Art’s intention, for a
young learner, is intended to present beauty or cultivate imaginary or
emotional attention. In the three books, there are drawings and pictures on
each page. I was interested in aesthetics in all of them because that is what
makes it beautiful. I found out that majority of the images were ‘static’ and
one picture separated from another in form and context only a few sentences below.
In few of them, the backgrounds were relevant while the rest appearing
superficial due to colour used. Relevance with the child’s surrounding was not
there and learning reading took to turbulence.
Art must not necessarily be in forms and images but also in
words which maragori is rich of. Rhyme and prose can be well developed on and
serve the purpose. More of the songs should have been included. A paragraph can
explain well what a picture paste could not just as a creative facilitator in
class can assist more.
Conclusion
The presence of the books and their start for class work in
schools is a great step towards our desire for the preservation of Indigenous
Knowledge. It is language that carries the knowledge and everyone sources pride
not only in the spoken language but the identity that comes with it. The review
above is in aim to better the process of making maragori language advance from
simple writing and translations to complex literature. Because it can.
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