Literacy in multilingual and multicultural contexts Effective Approaches to Adult Learning and Education United Nations Cultural Organization Published in 2016 by UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning Feldbrunnenstraße 58 20148 Hamburg Germany © UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) is a non-profit international institute of UNESCO. The Institute undertakes research, capacity-building, networking and publication on lifelong learning with a focus on adult and continuing education, literacy and non-formal basic education. Its publications are a valuable resource for educational researchers, planners, policymakers and practitioners. While the programmes of UIL are established along the lines laid down by the General Conference of UNESCO, the publications of the Institute are issued under its sole responsibility. UNESCO is not responsible for their contents. The points of view, selection of facts and opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily coincide with official positions of UNESCO or UIL. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO or UIL concerning the legal status of any country or territory, or its authorities, or concerning the delimitations of the frontiers of any country or territory. We would like to thank Christine Glanz and Francis M. Hult for their valuable contribution to this publication. We would also like to thank the following people for their support in developing case studies for the UNESCO Effective Literacy and Numeracy Practices Database: Ai Tam Le Pham, Alena Oberlerchner, Almudena de la Torre Cubillo, Andrea Díaz Hernández, Anne Darmer, Ayda Hagh Talab, Bernhard Oberngruber, Bo Zhao, Chung Dolma, Clara Bucher, Danchen Wang, Daniel Faltin, Dijana Avdagic, Edgar I. Félix Vargas, Francesca Lasi, Julian Kosh, Justin Jimenez, Kristin Erhard, Kwaku Gyening Owusu, Laura Fox, Lingwei Shao, Lyu Na, Mahmoud Elsayed, Malgorzata Torchala, Malte Jahnke, Maria Victoria Ferraz, Mariana Simoes, Maurice Shawndefar, Medaldo Runhare, Michelle Viljoen, Mihika Shah-Wundenberg, Mika Hama, Moussa Gadio, Nisrine Mussaileb, Qingzi Gong, Rouven Adomat, Ruth Zannis, Sarah Marshall, Seara Moon, Shaima Muhammad, Stephanie Harvey, Thomas Day, Ulrike Schmidt, Unai Arteaga Taberna. Edited by Ulrike Hanemann and Cassandra Scarpino Layout and design Teresa Boese ISBN 978-92-820-1207-9 This publication is available in Open Access under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC-BY- SA 3.0 IGO) licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content of this publication, the users accept to be bound by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Access Repository (http://www.unesco.org/open-access/terms-use-ccbysa-en). Literacy in multilingual and multicultural contexts Effective Approaches to Adult Learning and Education Contents FOREWORD Page 5 INTRODUCTION Page 7 AFRICA Burkina Faso Bilingual Education Programme Page 20 Chad Mother-tongue Literacy in the Guera Region Page 26 Cote d’Ivoire I am learning your tongue, you are learning my tongue, we are understanding each other, tomorrow belongs to us Page 33 Ethiopia eBooks and Family Literacy Programme Page 39 Mozambique Literacy in Local Language, a Springboard for Gender Equality Page 45 Senegal The Tostan Community Empowerment Programme Page 57 South Africa Kha Ri Gude Adult Literacy Programme Page 65 Uganda Mother Tongue-based Education in Northern Uganda Page 72 ARAB STATES Morocco Functional Literacy Programme of Women of the Argan Cooperative through Amazigh (Berber) Language DVDs Page 80 ASIA AND THE PACIFIC Indonesia Isirawa Language Revitalization Programme (ILRP - Papua) Page 85 New Zealand Wãnanga Embedded Literacy Page 89 Pakistan Parkari Community Development Programme Page 94 Thailand Patani Malay – Thai Bilingual/Multilingual Education Page 102 Thailand Bilingual Education Programme Page 109 EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA Sweden Family Learning Page 113 Switzerland Tell Me a Story Page 121 USA Plazas Comunitarias Page 126 LATIN AMERICA Ecuador Proyecto de Educación de Jóvens y Adultos Page 136 Mexico Bilingual Literacy for Life Page 143 Paraguay Ñane Ñe´˜e Page 153 Peru ATEK Reading Comprehension Page 162 5 Foreword Ensuring lifelong learning opportunities for all involves The examples of literacy programmes showcased ensuring that diversity – including ethnic and linguis- in this publication range from governmental adult tic diversity – is no cause for exclusion. Respecting cul- l iteracy programmes offered in all national languages tural and linguistic rights will be essential for achiev- or in main minority languages to programmes run by ing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. civil society organizations that help preserve the lan- Meeting the Sustainable Development Goals’ literacy guage and culture of only one or a few ethnic minori- target (i.e. target 4.6) will therefore involve paying ties. This compilation also includes programmes for special attention to the role played by learners’ first migrants and refugees with a strong focus on equip- language in becoming literate and as a medium of ping them for integration into mainstream society instruction. Meeting the target will also entail pay- while strengthening their literacy skills in their home ing close attention to cultural diversity and learners’ language. A number of programmes featured in this culture. The Education 2030 Framework for Action compilation use family learning and intergenerational calls for the provision of context-related bilingual and approaches to literacy, language and numeracy learn- intercultural literacy programmes as an effective way ing. While some programmes emphasize the devel- of achieving target 4.6. opment of language competences, others focus on culture. One of the important lessons that emerges UNESCO has a strong commitment to protecting cul- from all of these experiences is that the success of tural and linguistic rights, and it recognizes the inher- multilingual and multicultural approaches to literacy ent value of cultural and linguistic diversity. It has depends on participatory decision-making and the developed a normative framework for education in involvement of local communities in all stages of a multilingual world that supports the principles of programme design and implementation. Optimal use mother-tongue instruction, bi-/multilingual education of all existing knowledge, skills and resources also and intercultural education as a means of improving reflects good practice. educational quality. These principles are particularly relevant to teaching and learning literacy, since lan- It is my hope that this publication will help meet the guage, culture and literacy are closely related. ongoing demand for best-practice examples of literacy programmes that successfully use multilingual and The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) uses multicultural approaches to teaching and learning. I research-based advocacy to make a case for mother- am confident that the challenges and lessons shared tongue-based literacy instruction. A number of related by the providers of the programmes presented in this publications testify to many years of experience in this volume will help build a more solid knowledge base field. This new compilation of literacy programmes adds of what works. This knowledge base will in turn con- valuable insights into good practice in multilingual and tribute to the development of innovative strategies for multicultural contexts. It also provides essential lessons improving the quality and relevance of literacy pro- on how existing challenges can best be addressed. All grammes in multilingual and multicultural contexts. the case studies included in this compilation have been selected from the Effective Literacy and Numeracy Practices database (LitBase), which UIL develops on a continuous basis in fulfilment of UNESCO’s mandate to make information on effective literacy policies and pro- Arne Carlsen, Director, grammes available worldwide. UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning INTRODUCTION 7 Empowering through culture and language: Literacy in multilingual and multicultural contexts The use of a learner’s mother tongue, their first or HOW DO INTERNATIONAL home language,1 as the language of instruction has FRAMEWORKS ADDRESS THE ISSUE OF been found to have a positive impact on learning LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY across the board. Evidence of this impact informs the IN EDUCATION? key messages of a Global Education Monitoring Report policy paper released to mark International Mother The Education 2030 Framework for Action, unani- Language Day in February 2016 (GEMR, 2016). Adult mously adopted by member states at the November literacy teaching and learning in a language of which 2015 UNESCO General Conference, provides guidance neither the learners nor the facilitator has a good for the implementation of Sustainable Development command clearly does not work. Yet while this state- Goal (SDG) 4 over the next fifteen years. It builds on ment may meet with general agreement, it remains the following vision: the case that many learners around the world – some 40 % of the global population – still have no access All people, irrespective of sex, age, race, colour, eth- to education in a language they speak or understand nicity, language, religion, political or other opinion, (ibid.). This particularly affects learners in multicultur- national or social