Breaking new ground : introducing an African language as medium of instruction at the University of the North : New developments and research

Though additive multilingualism has been the long-nourished vision of applied linguists and multilingual specialists worldwide, it has not yet become a reality in South Africa. African languages are used in the informal domains of communication and are restricted in formal education to being learnt as a subject (L1 or L2), but rarely as an official medium of instruction and assessment. As a result, English continues to displace African languages both symbolically and functionally. In this article we describe a small step we have taken at the University of the North to use Northern Sotho (Sesotho sa Leboa) as a medium of instruction. Northern Sotho will be used for instruction, classroom communication, reading materials and assessment in the Multilingual Studies programme of a new undergraduate qualification: the newly endorsed BA degree in Contemporary English Language Studies (CELS) and Multilingual Studies (MUST). The degree aims to develop students into bilingual specialists who will be enabled to compete effectively for careers and jobs in South Africa's multilingual society.