Use ‘Diglossia’ as a theoretical construct to discuss the schooling experience of students in a

context with which you are familiar. Ensure that the discussion considers two (2) negative
implications of the experience discussed and two (2) changes you would recommend regarding
the language practices in the school given the implications. Include specific examples and make
reference to the academic literature. Prepare your response in no more than 1500 words.

Leonie Banton

Introduction
The majority of the Jamaican population has the Jamaican Creole as their mother tongue

and acquire Standard Jamaican English as their second language in the formal education system.

This is the case, predominantly with the poorer segment of the population. However, children in

the richer segment have Standard Jamaican English as their mother tongue and are also taught

using it in the formal education system.Thus, the Jamaican language situation can be considered

as diglossia and bilingual.

 This situation affects students, especially those from rural areas, who have difficulty at

school learning in the language of instruction that is not their mother tongue (UNESCO, 2016;

JIS, 2020). It results in low literacy rate and comprehension skills, poor academic performance in

other subjects, low self esteem and confidence among other things in these students

(Farquharson, 2018; Jackson-Miller, 2018). Thus, it is imperative that renewed interest be taken

in the implications of the Jamaican language situation on the schooling experience of Jamaican

students so that solutions can be crafted for the problems that it causes.

This paper presents a definition of diglossia and an assessment of the linguistic situation

of Jamaica using Ferguson (1959) distinctive features of diglossia. Also, the implications of

diglossia on the schooling experience of students in Jamaica will be highlighted, noting examples

of the negative implications of diglossia on Jamaican students. Finally, recommendations will be

put forward for solving the challenges outlined.

Diglossia
Ferguson (1959) defines diglossia as a type of standardization where two varieties of a

language exist side by side within a community and each language has a separate role to play,

also important is the fact that both languages are perceived to be genetically related. Thus

varying instances of diglossia can exist such as social dilectia, creole continua and creole

situation. In essence, any situation in which there exists functional differentiation in the use of

the languages can be considered as diglossic (Tollefson, 1983). Based on this definition, it is

clear that diglossia is a form of bilingualism. Where, bilingual is seen as a situation in which an

individual uses more than one code in a society. In fact, according to Bennett Justus (1958) it is

possible for diglossia and bilingualism to exist together. Further, Fishman (1972) cited in

Winford (1985) developed the concept of extended diglossia which takes into account situations
such as this and others where the high and low languages are not necessarily closely related

varieties.

Assessing Jamaica's language situation for Distinctive Features of Diglossia

In Jamaica, the majority of the population have the Jamaican Creole (JC) as their mother

tongue and later acquire the Standard Jamaican English (SJE), the language of instruction

through the formal education system. This is the case predominantly in the rural areas and among

the lower class citizens. The richer segment of the population are socialized with SJE as their

mother tongue in their homes and then continue with SJE as the language of instruction in the

education system. The SJE is the official language, it is used in formal education and formal

settings. There is prestige attached to the SJE which is seen as a marker of level of education and

high social class unlike the JC which is associated with a lower social status. Also, there is

functional differentiation in the use of both languages. The SJE is the preferred language for

formal settings while the JC is preferred for social settings and as a sign of ‘Jamaicanness’ an

element of Jamaican identity.

The table A, see appendix shows the use of Ferguson (1959) Distinctive Features of

Diglossia to assess the language situation of Jamaica. As can be seen from the table, the

linguistic situation of Jamaica meets all the features except for two sociolinguistic features

namely standardization and acquisition. In terms of standardization, steps are currently being

taken to standardize the JC as an official language alongside the SJE (Farquharson, 2018). With

regards to acquisition, increasingly, children are being socialized using SJE in the middle and

upper class households. Thus, these children have SJE as their mother tongue. One example is

Rodney Campbell, veteran broadcaster, who outlined that he did not learn JC until he was eleven

years old ( Jackson-Miller, 2018).

 The language situation of Jamaica is in transition, there is stable diglossia and unstable

bilingualism (Bennet Justus, 1958). Given, we will always have some people speaking the JC as

their mother tongue and acquiring the SJE as a second language later in the education system

while some students will have SJE as their first language and later acquire the soon to be

language of instruction, JC as their second language.

Added to this, the more things change is the more they remain the same, though steps are

being taken to level the play field and have both language used in the same settings , the reality is

that there is still a preference for the more ‘elegant language’, SJE as the language for formal

settings and JC to be used in more relaxed settings such as when socializing with people you

are familiar with and as an expression of Jamaican identity. Additionally, some things are just

better when expressed in JC. Thus, it is possible that diglossia will continue for a long time.

Implications of Jamaica’s Linguistic situation on the Schooling experience in Jamaica

The JC is to become an official language alongside SJE as the language of instruction

but it will take a long time before the change is realized. Thus, the notable negative impact of

diglossia on the schooling experience of children in Jamaica especially, students from rural

communities needs to be addressed now. The fact that students have JC as their mother tongue

and go to school to be educated in the SJE as the language of instruction results in the low

literacy rate and comprehension skills of Jamaican students. Also, experts say this is the cause of

students' poor performance in English and other subjects. It is seen that students can express

themselves and comprehend concepts easily in their mother tongue but struggle to develop

mastery to do so in the second language which is currently the language of instruction (Lodge,

2017). For example, if you ask students to use the word defeat in a sentence, some students,

predominantly those with JC as their mother tongue might use the word in the context of JC ( as

de feet) instead of its meaning in JSE. Also, often students in rural schools have difficulty
distinguishing when to use text talk instead of JSE. One popular example is ‘u’ instead of

writing ‘you’. Another case is when students attempt to spell words,they spell words as they

would pronounce them which is closer to the spelling rule of JC than JSE. For example ‘aks’

instead of ask.

Studies show that in societies where the mother tongue is different from the language of

instruction that the academic performance of children is hampered, especially children from poor

households (UNESCO, 2016). Also, Devonish and Carpenter (2007) in assessing the Bilingual

Education Project (BEP) in Jamaica found that when mother tongue instruction was used

students experienced good performance in comprehension and literacy skills in addition to doing

well in other curriculum areas. Additionally, UNESCO recommends that all children be given

mother tongue instructions for at least six years (UNESCO,2016).

The language policy of Jamaica incorporates the importance of mother tongue

instruction. It recommends the use of code switching and the use of the oral language in

instruction in schools (MOEYC). However, such recommendations are not being implemented in

the majority of the schools especially in rural areas where the intervention is crucial.

Recomendations

The importance of mother tongue instruction should be communicated to all key

stakeholders such parents, students, Jamaica Teaching Council (JTC), and Teachers. It should be

discussed in parent teacher conferences and JTC webinars.. Also, include a course in all teacher

training curriculum to train teachers how to use JC as the language of instruction and also have

on-going professional development for in-service teachers. At staff development sessions,

teachers could be sensitized about the benefits of mother tongue instruction and be trained to

implement it. This will reduce some of the resistance to change and improve the confidence of
teachers in writing and spelling JC. Also, given that the textbooks will be a long time coming,

worksheets in JC for each subject should be created for use not only in the primary schools but

also at the early secondary level.

Conclusion
The Jamaican language situation can be seen as a special case of diglossia.This affects

the academic performance of students especially where SJE, the language of instruction, is not

their mother tongue. Though steps are being taken to make JC of equal status with the JSE, what

is crucial is that students be taught in their mother tongue language in the early years of formal

education so that they can develop the skills to advance academically in later grades and other

subjects. Additionally, the importance of mother tongue instruction should be communicated to

key stakeholders and teachers should be trained to implement it.

Reference

Bennett Justus, J. (1958, January). Language and National Integration: The Jamaican Case.
Ethnology, 17(1), 39-51. https://doi.org/10.2307/3773278

Farquharson, J. (2018, October 25). A Language Policy For Jamaica by Professor

Hubert Devonish. [Video] . Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAq5tEBP2gc

Ferguson, C. A. (1959). Diglossia. Word, 15(2), 325 -340. DOI:

10.1080/00437956.1959.11659702
 Jackson-Miller, D. (Producer). (2018, November 15). The use of Patois "Patwa" in
Schools (All Angles) November 14 2018. [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/6IM-
GWU_4Vo

James W. Tollefson (1983) Language policy and the meanings of diglossia,

WORD, 34:1, 1-9, DOI: 10.1080/00437956.1983.11435733

JIS. (2020, January 29). The Value of Patois | Studio 58A. Jamaica Information Service
(JIS). [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/CN7xN90Nauk

Lodge, W. (2017). Science Learning and Teaching in a Creole-Speaking Environment. Cultural

Studies of Science Education, 12, 661-675. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-016-9760-6

MOEYC. (2001, November). Language Education Policy. Ministry of Education Youth

and Culture (MOEYC).
http://dlpalmer.weebly.com/uploads/3/5/8/7/3587856/language_education_policy.pdf

UNESCO. (2016). If you don't understand, how can you learn? | Global Education
Monitoring Report. Unesco. https://en.unesco.org/gem-report/if-you-don%E2%80%99t-
understand-how-can-you-learn

Winford, D. (1985, September). The Concept of "Diglossia" in Caribbean Creole Situations.

Language in Society, 14(3), 345-356. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4167664?read-
now=1&refreqid=excelsior%3A8c4d53963a4535aed6107ec6ae4b2104&seq=1

Appendix

Table A : Assessment of

The Jamaican Linguistic Situation using Ferguson (1959) Distinctive Features of Diglossia

Linguistic Features

a. Generic relationship The JC and the SJE are perceived by the speech Yes
 communities to be from the same language.

b. Stability Though the perception of the JC has increased, there is Yes

still a clear opposition as to the status of each variety.

c. Lexicon The bulk of the vocabulary of JC and SJE is shared with Yes
variation in form and differences of use and meaning.

d. Grammar The grammar structure of SJE is more complex than JC. Yes

e. Phonology The sound system of the SJE and the JC constitute a Yes
single phonological structure of which the JC is the basic
system.

Sociolinguistic Features

a. Specialization of SJE and the JC have complementary functions. However, Yes

functions with standardization of the JC this will change in the
future.

b. Prestige SJE is considered superior to JC in several ways by Yes

speakers in the community.

c. Literary Heritage There is a sizable body of written literature in SJE which Yes
is held in high esteem by the community. However,
more and more literature is being produced in the JC
such as the bible, dictionary, Miss Lou Poems and
teaching resources .

d. Standardization SJE is codified but JC is not. No

Steps are being taken to make JC an official language.

e. Acquisition JC is the first language of all speakers. SJE is not native to No

anyone and is acquired through education.
Children of middle and upper social class are being
socialized in the SJE as their mother tongue.
(Source: Adapted from Ferguson, 1959)