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Accepted Paper:
Limits to what educational systems can achieve and medium of instruction – what’s decolonisation got to do with it?
Bert van Pinxteren
(Leiden University)
Paper short abstract:
This presentation aims to set the scene for the panel, giving an overview of what educational systems can be expected to achieve given specific medium of instruction policies. It will point to the link between medium of instruction and the colonial history of educational systems.
Paper long abstract:
The panel description shows the relatively weak performance of African educational systems compared to other world regions. Even though education has expanded rapidly over the past decades, learning poverty is very high and participation in tertiary education is low. This presentation will present some key data on both aspects. It will then move beyond that, by demonstrating the link between the achievements of educational systems and medium of instruction. It will point to existing literature arguing that a gradual transition to using African languages is both unavoidable and practically thinkable. The paper will end by showing the links between decolonisation, medium of instruction and the effectiveness of education.