Indigenous Languages in the Secondary Curriculum in Bangladesh
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View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by UC Research Repository Indigenous Languages in the Secondary Curriculum in Bangladesh: A Study in Khagrachari District. Niger Sultana Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Education College of Education University of Canterbury, Christchurch June 2011 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to thank and dedicate this thesis to my parents, for their support and encouragement throughout this research study when overseas. I am especially grateful to Dr Baljit Kaur for her active encouragement, guidance and support during the initial stages of this research. My greatest gratitude goes to my supervisors, Dr Kathleen Quinlivan and Dr Sylvie Gagnon for their continuous advice, direction, understanding, enthusiasm, encouragement and friendly dispositions. I have greatly appreciated the students of three tribal groups (Chakma, Marma, and Tripura) and the teachers at the school where this investigation took place for their enthusiasm in sharing opinions, and thoughts. Without their contribution, this investigation would not have been possible. My vote of thanks goes to community leaders from the three tribal groups for their eagerness of sharing experiences, beliefs, and opinions about the role of tribal languages in their children's learning. I am also thankful to the curriculum planner for his perceptions about the significance of tribal students' mother language in learning, and giving the hard-copies and electronic copies of curriculum documents. Niger Sultana Page 1 I would like to thank to my brother (Kazi Shah Mohammad Fazle Alim) and my friend (Jishu Acharjee) for their sincere support and company while I was moving from Dhaka to Chittagong and Chittagong to Khagrachari to carry on my data collection process. Without their words of encouragement and cordial company, my journey for data collection would have been troubled. I would like to thank to Dr Missy Morton, Senior Lecturer and Professor Dr Janinka Greenwood, Associate Dean, Postgraduate Studies. I have not enough words to thank both for their undeviating encouragement and support. They have been the sources of inspiration and motivation behind every step of my study in New Zealand. Last but not least, my grateful goes to Ministry of Education, Bangladesh and TQI-SEP (Teaching Quality Improvement for Secondary Education Project), Bangladesh for the financial support to complete my study in New Zealand. I am also thankful to Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE), Bangladesh for its administrative support to study in New Zealand. Niger Sultana Page 2 ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to provide a rich description of the role of languages, especially indigenous languages in the secondary curriculum in Bangladesh. Through this research I seek to identify the role of mother language in education. The role described from the perspectives of the Head Teacher/ Principal, Bangla language Teacher, Curriculum planner, Community leaders (from Chakma, Marma and Tripura community), and Tribal Students from the three tribal groups. Drawing on an understanding of curriculum as a tool for the social control of knowledge, I show how the secondary language curriculum promotes social inequality by the intellectual domination of Bangla and English over less prestigious tribal languages by not including indigenous languages, culture and values. This is particularly important for my position as a teacher educator in Bangladesh, and working along with school teachers. I used qualitative methods to interview tribal leaders, students and their teachers and analyse curriculum documents. My findings show that because the medium of instruction in schools is Bangla, it is difficult for tribal students to speak or understand Bangla language, as it is not the language used in their homes and communities. Tribal students are often unclear about school lessons, and the knowledge they acquire in schools cannot be related to their family and social life. Indigenous students do not involve themselves in classroom activities and quality education is not achieved for their life success. Findings reveal that the role of mother language is important in identity and learning for tribal students, and needs to be encouraged and valued both in policy and practice for the educational achievement of tribal language students to improve. Niger Sultana Page 3 Table of Contents Page No. Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ 1 Abstract .......................................................................................................................... 3 Table of Contents ........................................................................................................... 4 Definition of Key Terms ................................................................................................ 9 Chapter-1: Introduction ........................................................................................................ 11 1.1 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................................... 11 1.2 Rationale of the Research ................................................................................................... 12 1.3 Languages of Bangladesh. .................................................................................................. 15 1.4 Language Policy and Ideology ........................................................................................... 17 1.5 Research Objectives ........................................................................................................... 20 1.6 Research Question .............................................................................................................. 20 1.7 Significance of Research .................................................................................................... 21 1.8 Organization of the Research ............................................................................................. 22 Chapter-2: Literature Review ............................................................................................... 24 2.1 History of Bangla and English Language Development in Bangladesh ............................ 24 2.2 Significance of Instruction in One's Native Language ....................................................... 28 2.3 Language and Identity ........................................................................................................ 29 2.4 Addressing Indigenous Language Losses in India and New Zealand ................................ 32 2.5 What can Bangladesh Learn from Other Countries? .......................................................... 40 Niger Sultana Page 4 Chapter-3: Theoretical Frameworks .................................................................................... 44 3.1 Post-structuralism ............................................................................................................... 44 3.2 Understanding the Dominance of Languages ..................................................................... 45 3.3 Understanding Curriculum as a Political Text ................................................................... 47 Chapter-4: Methodology ........................................................................................................ 52 4.1 An Overview of Qualitative Research .................................................................... 52 4.2 Rationale for Choosing Qualitative Research Approach ........................................ 53 4.3 Research Design – the Case Study Approach ......................................................... 54 4.4 Participants and Settings ......................................................................................... 56 4.5 Data Collection Tools .............................................................................................. 59 4.5.1 Semi-structured interview ................................................................................... 61 4.5.2 Focus groups ........................................................................................................ 63 4.5.3 Document analysis............................................................................................... 64 4.6 Data Analysis .......................................................................................................... 65 4.6.1 Transcripts ........................................................................................................... 66 4.6.2 Analytical memos ................................................................................................ 67 4.6.3 Document analysis............................................................................................... 68 4.7 My Position as a Researcher ................................................................................... 68 4.8 Rigour and Trustworthiness .................................................................................... 69 4.9 Ethical Issues ........................................................................................................... 70 Niger Sultana Page 5 Chapter-5: Findings and Discussion – 1 ............................................................................... 72 5.1 Disjunctures between Tribal Students' Home Knowledges and School