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The Role of the Standard Variety in Defining Sub-Varieties: a Study Based on Teaching English and Tamil

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The Role of the Standard Variety in Defining Sub-Varieties: a Study Based on Teaching English and Tamil 15 The role of the standard variety in defining sub-varieties: A study based on teaching English and Tamil Rukshaan Ibrahim Introduction The present government of Sri Lanka has launched a number of programmes aimed at enhancing knowledge of languages among the population. These include ‘Speak English Our Way’ and ‘English as a Life Skill’, launched in 2009 to encourage students to speak in English. ‘Speak English Our Way’ was intended to nativise the English language by dethroning it from its position as the emblem of a privileged class and transforming it into a useful tool. Through a third programme, aimed at bridging the gap between Sinhala and Tamil (the two national languages), the government also took the initiative to teach Tamil to Sinhala speakers. All of these programmes were conducted by the Ministry of National Languages and Social Integration and were intended to lead towards a national level attitudinal change and a national commitment to use the three languages in building the Sri Lankan state. This chapter begins with a brief look at the ‘Speak English Our Way’ campaign, then it moves on to consider the ‘Tri-Lingual Sri Lanka’ proposal. We then examine the respective histories of English and Tamil in Sri Lanka and note that there are several different varieties of Tamil in the country. This leads to a discussion of the politics of language standardisation. The chapter concludes by highlighting the dilemma that a government language policy – albeit designed with the best of intentions – cannot avoid re-creating hegemony since state sponsorship of a particular variety of a language re- creates another standard. ‘Speak English Our Way’: An overview The ‘Speak English Our Way’ programme was launched as part of the long awaited policy change that was needed to promote English education in the country. This programme was intended to make English available to 186 The role of the standard variety in defining sub-varieties 187 the mass of the population as a ‘link’ language between the Sinhala- and Tamil-speaking communities. In June 2009 the government launched an eighteen month ‘Road Map’ to promote spoken or communicative English throughout the country. The Road Map was designed by the Presidential Task Force on English and Information Technology and it was meant to mark a paradigm shift in the teaching of English in Sri Lanka (Fernando 2010). As a step towards the implementation of this programme, the Cabinet decided to change the school syllabus for English by putting a special emphasis on improving students’ spoken and communicative skills in the language and shifting away from writing and grammar. A ‘note’ on the Road Map was prepared by Dr Sunimal Fernando, Adviser to the President and Coordinator of the Presidential Task Force. According to him, the objective of this project was to challenge ‘the old, conservative, outdated, elitist Sri Lankan ideology of English that is still enjoying an un- warranted amount of social legitimacy and power.’ In his opinion, English has to be seen as a language, not as ‘an instrument of social oppression, the prized possession of a privileged class and an exclusive emblem of upper class status.’ He further states that English has to be given importance for its utility value and not for its social worth. Thus, under this programme, knowing English will be considered to be a skill for employment and a vehicle for reaching out to the external world of knowledge and learning rather than a marker of prestige and power (Fernando 2010). ‘Tri-Lingual Sri Lanka’: An overview The Tamil language has long been widely used in Sri Lanka, yet, for decades it was overshadowed by the monopoly of Sinhala, the language that represented the dominant ethnic group. Tamil was marginalised at many levels as the language itself was said to carry an ethnic baggage that was identified to be the political consciousness of a particular community. Yet, after the end of the thirty year civil war, it transformed itself into a language of healing: The state recognised the need to promote the language to the masses that were either consciously or unconsciously avoiding possible contact with the language. After the end of the war, there was a need to introduce the language at least in public spheres where the masses need to interact with one another using their own language. Accordingly, the government proposed to undertake this task through the establishment of a new ministry and thereby took an initiative to promote not only Tamil but also the other languages that existed in the country, Sinhala and English. As a result, the Ministry of National Languages and Social Integration was established in 2010 to promote Sinhala and Tamil bilingualism and thereby create a trilingual society. The Ministry conducts programmes to enhance the translation and interpretation skills of public servants so that they can provide better services to the public. It also carries out programmes aimed at raising popular awareness of the Official Languages Policy and related laws and regulations which in turn will lead to the propaga- tion and promotion of languages. 188 Rukshaan Ibrahim English and Tamil in Sri Lanka The English and Tamil languages have evolved in ways that reflect the important socio-political changes that have taken place in the country. The current dominance of the English language as an emblem of power can be traced back in history to the British Era, when English was the tool of British subjugation. The English language is often referred to as the kaduwa (later kadu or kadda), meaning ‘sword’. It is said that this term was first created about two decades ago, after Independence, by some hapless rural children who were studying in rural or semi-urban government schools; it was a response to the trauma and frustration that they experienced in their useless and ineffective English classes (Kandiah 1984). To speak in English for these students was to cut through and make one’s way using a sword. Speaking in English was referred to as kadden kotanawa/kapanawa (cut through using a sword). Even now this expression remains in its verb form kottanawa (to cut) and, in state universities, students often refer to their English classes askadu panthi (sword classes). According to Kandiah, English is symbolised by the term kaduwa because of the language’s association with the British Empire and the loss of in depend- ence in 1796. Accordingly, English is connected with all sorts of negative states of mind, including defeat, subjugation, humiliation and oppression (Kandiah 1984). The main reason could be the formation of a class system, centred on the English language, that privileged only a particular segment of society. Thus, in Kandiah’s view, these hapless students who did not belong to the class structure favoured by English saw the language to be a weapon that privileged its owner to ‘cut through’ various segments of the society and thereby exercise autonomy. Yet, during the British Era itself, English would not have been regarded as a kaduwa. Rather, it was a useful tool and a language of social elevation to at least certain segments of society, while the ‘others’ would not have had a voice in its discourse. Kandiah further states that the British government favoured individuals who were well-versed in English and they were often hired for administrative positions in the Empire. In this way, a class of local individuals was created who were Lankan but who spoke like the British. Thus, thekaduwa is not only an innocent symbol which describes the language, but ‘a pregnant and not necessarily a conscious symbol which encompasses the psycho-social anxieties of the user’ (Kandiah 1984). The nationalist revival of the country against British rule did not fail to draw the attention of the masses to the negative aspects of the English language. The privileged position enjoyed by the language itself was ques- tioned by these movements and its importance and superiority were rejected. Yet, during the British occupation of Sri Lanka, the word kaduwa – repre- senting the oppressive nature of the language – did not yet exist due to the prevalent social system and the education system which favoured English education (Kandiah 1984). Certain significant changes took place in the country during the independ- ence period and following independence with regard to the language policy The role of the standard variety in defining sub-varieties 189 of the country. The most striking was the restoration of the rightful place of the native cultures and languages. The Sinhala Only Act, adopted by the S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike government, was an attempt to dethrone English from its privileged position. English was no longer needed as the country was free to use its own languages. Also, it represented a shift of political power from the westernised bourgeoisie into the hands of the national bourgeoisie who lived in small towns and villages (Kandiah 1984). The independence movement was spear-headed by the bilingual, western- ised elite who evoked several principles of freedom, nationalism, equality, democracy and socialism in order to secure the support of the masses (Kandiah 1984). Yet despite these socio-political changes, the English language continued to play a significant role in the country. The Official Language Act of 1956 replaced English with Sinhala as one of the official languages while Tamil became a language for official purposes. English continued to exist and exercise dominance as it was still used at higher levels and most important spheres of society. This is because the Official Languages Act did not totally efface the prominence or the dominance of the English language and its ability to exercise power over the non-English-speaking social groups.
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