Volume 2 Number 2 2004
ISSN 1740 - 4983
|
| Journal
of Language and Learning Volume 2 Number 2 2004 ISSN 1740 - 4983 | ||
| Abstract This article argues a case for bilingual education in the rehabilitation of street children in Kenya. These children are drawn from a variety of linguistic backgrounds. Too few of them are monolinguals when they are placed in rehabilitation centres where a four years non-formal education programme is run. The children mainly speak a mixture of Kiswahili, English and an urban youth variety called Sheng. Basing our study on the experience of Eldoret Children's Rescue Centre, we show that it is possible to achieve literacy through using the children's "home" language. The home language is the mixture of Kiswahili and English. The paper also highlights the challenges of adapting the approach. Key words: street children, bilingual education, language mixing |
About
the Author
Julius Jwan holds a M.Phil degree in Sociolinguistics
from Moi University, Kenya and another M.Phil in Education Communication and Management
from NLA, Bergen, Norway. His research interests include bilingual education,
education communication and management, among others. He is currently a lecturer
in the Department of Communication Studies at Moi University, Kenya.
Email: jjwan99@hotmail.com
Nathan Oyori Ogechi holds a PhD in African Linguistics from the Institute of African and Asian Studies, University of Hamburg, Germany. He is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Kiswahili & OAL, Moi University. His research interests and publications include bilingualism, language contact phenomena - codeswitching and Sheng - publishing, ethnosemantics, language rights and communication.
Email: ogechinathan@yahoo.com