Seminar at the All-Ceylon Y.M.M.A. Conference on
June 26-28, 1959
Ceylon has one official language – Sinhalese – provided statutorily, two national languages – Sinhalese and Tamil – recognized historically and three instructional languages – Sinhalese, Tamil and English – approved administratively. As an integral part of the Ceylonese Nation, the Muslim Community is deeply concerned with all these three, besides Arabic, the language of its religion and the source of its culture. It is therefore axiomatic that all these four languages should be included in its curriculum. It should, however, be so planned that it does not in any way retard the mental development of the Muslim pupil or undermine the cultural individuality of the Muslim Community, depress its political status, endanger its economic future or weaken its communal solidarity. It is this complex problem – the framing of the curriculum in conformity with the above requirements – that the Community is called upon to solve satisfactorily and speedily.
In this context may now be examined the past contribution, the present position and the future status of each of these languages in relation to the Ceylonese Muslim Community which has been conditioned by its history and geography to attach the highest value to the ideal of national unity, a value even higher than that which prevails among all other communities of the Ceylonese Nation.
Sinhalese has been made the one official language of Ceylon by Act No. 33 of 1956. It will become fully effective from January 1, 1961. But Sinhalese at present is not the home language or the mother tongue of the Ceylonese Muslims even through of the total Muslim population, two thirds inhabit the seven provinces other than the Eastern and Northern. A fair number of them are no doubt bilingual in the sense they can carry on an ordinary conversation in Sinhalese. But they do not reach even the first stage of bilingualism as defined by Malherbe who carried out his investigations in South Africa. He makes it clear that a bilingualism that is good enough for a salesman is hardly sufficient for a teacher and that it is not easy to attain equal proficiency in both languages.
Malherbe outlines six stages of bilingualism : (1) In the first stage a man must be able to follow intelligently an ordinary conversation, speech or sermon in the second language both in its written and spoken form, e.g. newspapers. He need not possess the ability to speak the second language fluently. (2) In the second stage, he will be required in addition to converse intelligibly and fairly fluently in the second language. The accent may to be perfect and the idiom pure. He may not have the ability to write the second language but he will be able to read easy fiction and magazines. Here the second language begins to be an opportunity and new vistas are opened up and the life of the individual enriched. (3) In the third stage he will possess in addition the ability to write the second language correctly. He need not in writing the second language reach the height of literary excellence but whatever he writes must be free from grammatical and spelling errors and without gross violation of idiom. (4) In the fourth stage he should in addition possess a correct and convincing power of expression both in writing and speaking the two languages. (5) In the fifth stage he commands a greater facility and power in the use of both languages than 90% of the people who sue either of these languages as their mother tongue. (6) In the sixth stage he will posses the unapproachable ideal of a 100% perfection in both languages.
This term – "mother tongue" has generally been synonymous with home language and with "first language.” However in paragraph 356 (a) of the Report of the Special Committee on Education – Sessional paper XXIV of 1943 – a special definition has been given to 'mother tongue' in which the emphasis laid is more on the pupil's race than on his home. This is reflected in Sections 4 – 7 of the Schedule appended to the Education (Amendment) Act. No.5 of 1951. In terms of these regulations a non-Sinhalese pupil could be instructed through the medium of the Sinhalese language (and a Sinhalese pupil through Tamil in a primary school) if the parent so requests.
Mother tongue is defined as "the language which a person acquires in early years and which normally becomes his natural instrument of thought and communication." It has been pointed out in the UNESCO publication of 1953 – the Use of Vernacular Languages in Education – from which the above definition is cited that "it is axiomatic that the best medium for teaching a child is his mother tongue. Psychologically, it is the system of meaningful signs that in his mind works automatically for expression and understanding. Sociologically, it is a means of identification among the members of the community to which he belongs. Educationally, he learns more quickly through it than through an unfamiliar linguistic medium. But it is not always possible to use the mother tongue in school and, even when possible, some factors may impede or condition its use.
The nature of these obstacles to the use of a non-official mother tongue as a vehicle of teaching may be : political, linguistic, educational, sociocultural, economic, financial, practical….. It is important that every effort should be made to provide education in the mother tongue….. On educational grounds we recommend that the use of the mother tongue be extended to as late a stage in education as possible. In particular, pupils should begin their schooling through the medium of the mother tongue, because they understand it best and because to begin their school life in the mother tongue will make the break between home and school as small as possible.
We consider that the shock which the young child undergoes in passing from his home to his school life is so great that everything possible should be done to soften it, particularly where modern methods of infant teaching have not yet penetrated to the school. He passes from being one of a few children under his mother's eye to being one of a large group under a teacher. Instead of running about and playing and shouting he is usually expected to sit still and be quiet to concentrate, to do what he is told instead of what he wants to do, to listen and learn and answer questions. New information and ideas are presented to him as fast as he can possibly absorb them, and he is expected to show evidence that he has absorbed them. Almost everything is different from home and it is not surprising that many children find difficulty in adjusting themselves to their new surroundings. If the language in which all these bewildering new communications are made is also different from the mother tongue, the burden on the child is correspondingly increased.
Even when the child has been at school long enough to be familiar with school life, he still has to cope with the incessant stream of lessons in many different subjects. He will find a lesson in geography or almost any other subject easier if he is taught it in his mother tongue. To expect him to deal with new information or ideas presented to him in an unfamiliar language is to impose on him a double burden, and he will make slower progress. There may, however, be circumstances which justify abandoning the mother tongue very early in the child's formal education. For example, the mother tongue may be closely related to a more widely used language, and the practical convenience of being able to use this language as a medium of instruction may be so great as to justify a small burden on children who find some difficulty at first in using it. In such cases as these, we urge that everything possible should be done to help the children to pass over to the new medium. Even though they must ultimately learn to think and speak and read in the second language, this goal is, we believe, psychologically and pedagogically as a rule best achieved by two short jumps (that is, from illiteracy to literacy in the mother tongue, and from literacy in the mother tongue to literacy in a second language) than by one long jump (that is, from illiteracy in the mother tongue to literacy in a second language). As a general principle, however, we hold that the child should not begin to learn two foreign languages at the same time; where a third language is taught, its introduction should be delayed until the second is well under way. Control of vocabulary is especially important. No language can be successfully used as a medium unless the student has previously acquired : an active working command of the essential nucleus of the language, consisting as a rule of about one 1,000 words, the main grammatical forms and the most necessary idioms; a semi-active, semi-passive command of an additional vocabulary; and a technique of expansion, through a dictionary using a controlled defining vocabulary. This method demands that this essential nucleus of the language be determined.
"It is important that the subject matter of the course used in the teaching of the second language should be closely related to the social, economic, and other needs and interests of the pupils or students to whom it is being taught.."
In view of the dominant position that has been secured for the Sinhalese language by Act. No. 33 of 1956 (date of assent: July 7, 1956) it could be accepted without much argument that the spoken Sinhalese so far acquired by a fair number of the Muslims of South Ceylon is no longer adequate for the Community's needs. Even the Muslims of North Ceylon, unless they deliberately decide to confine all their activities to the Northern and Eastern provinces forgo all forms of Government employment and also deny themselves opportunities of their harmonious integration into the general life of the Country cannot ignore the status recently gained by the Sinhalese language and its assured future. Therefore Sinhalese must find a satisfactory place in the curriculum of the Ceylonese Muslims. While on this it is necessary to stress the possibility of some Muslims of South Ceylon adopting in course of a few or more years Sinhalese as their first language. To what extent this will take place would depend among other factors on the quality and the quantity of Islamic literature produced meanwhile in the Sinhalese language. There are at present a few Muslim children already attending schools where Sinhalese is the medium of instruction. The problem of religious instruction to be imparted to them is proving an intractable problem.
It is thus evident that syllabuses and schemes in respect of Sinhalese shall have to be varied in character, differentiating between the needs of those to whom it is a second (or third) language and of those to whom it is the first language, and also distinguishing between those Muslim pupils who have and who have not acquired a colloquial knowledge of Sinhalese.
During the British period of Ceylon History, Sinhalese and Tamil enjoyed parity of status – in adversity. Both were recognized, though not statutorily, as official languages for limited and local purposes. This position was radically changed by the enactment in July 1956 of the Sinhala Only Bill which left the status of Tamil undefined and uncertain. The Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Act No. 28 of 1958 – date of assent : September 4, 1958 – however has given official recognition to Tamil as a medium of instruction, as a medium of examination for admission to the Public Service, as a medium of communication between the Tamil educated and any official in his official capacity and as a medium of administration for prescribed purposes in the Northern and Eastern Provinces. The provisions of these two Acts are of extreme relevance to the curriculum of the Ceylonese Muslims.
Tamil is the home language of the preponderant majority of the Ceylonese Muslims whether of the North or of the South; No doubt the Tamil of the Muslim home both of South and North has its peculiarities on account of the several Arabic words which have displaced their pure Tamil equivalents, and in the South on account in addition of the Sinhalese words incorporated in their spoken language. As a result of the refusal on the part of the pundits and purists to admit these Arabic words into the Tamil vocabulary, the term Arabic-Tamil gained currency with a special meaning attached to it. At one time Arabic-Tamil was mostly written in Arabic characters and that was unintelligible to the Tamils. These characters have since been generally discarded in favour of the Tamil alphabet with or without diacritical marks.
In Ceylon, Tamil has probably been spoken for over two thousand years and has existed side by side with Sinhalese. The symbiotic existence of these two languages during the eras preceding the Portuguese period in Ceylon history is still an unexplored field of research. Today outside Ceylon the Tamil language is spoken by over thirty million persons in India and over one millions persons in Malaya, Vietnam, Fiji, Maurtius, Madagascar, Africa, Trinidad and Martinique Islands. 9 to 10% of these, it may be reasonably guessed, are Muslims. In the words of Rev. Father X.S. Thani Nayagam – in his brochures entitled Tamil Culture with Special Reference to Ceylon.- "If English be the language of commerce, French the language of diplomacy, Italian the language of love, and German the language of philosophy, then Tamil is the language of devotion." To this extensive literature of faith and fervour Islam has made due contribution. This has sustained over a period of several centuries the attachment of the Muslims to this language classical in its origin and yet modern in its outlook. This affection is deep-rooted on account of the Theological Institutions catering for the needs of the Ceylonese Muslims using Tamil as their medium of instruction, and the learned ulemas employment of Tamil as their medium of communication in 'kutbas' and 'hathees' in their religious discourses. In view of these special features, the Community of necessity has at present to build its educational structure on the foundation of Tamil – a requirement that is reflected in the establishment and vigorus growth of Addalaichenai and Alutgama Training Colleges.
English, no doubt, will not continue to occupy the position it did during the British period when the elite of the Country experienced the magic of its literature and endeavoured to speak the language with the Englishman's accent and idiom. Yet English is a world language spoken by the largest number 250,000,000 persons if Chinese, all dialects, spoken by 450,000,000 is excluded vide page 32 of UNESCO Courier No. 1 of 1954. Besides, English is the language of commerce, of science and technology with a wealth of literature and resources so far unparalleled. That the Muslim Community should acquire an adequate knowledge of this language need not therefore be canvassed.
Arabic is the language of Islam, which forms the very base of the Community. For this reason the Macaulayan conception of Education never had any attraction for the Muslims, even though in the recent past the elite among the sister communities of Ceylon adopted an entirely different attitude. Arabic is the language of the Book – the Holy Quran – the language in which God All-mighty in His Infinite Wisdom revealed Himself. It is the Community's language of daily prayers, of its names and salutations and of its sermons and ceremonies. If the Muslim Community were to lose Arabic which is so indissolubly associated with its moral foundations, with certainty shall be lost the priceless legacy proudly inherited by the Muslims of Ceylon and would soon find themselves isolated members of a community that is rootless and dying, unable to preserve that continuity with the past so essential for its spiritual vigour and sound judgement.
Arabic is both a classical language of extreme sublimity as well as a modern language of international import. It is one of the world's great link languages spoken by 50,000,000 people spread in more than one Continent with several other millions closely and affectionately associated with it as the language of the Holy Quran.
In the environment of the Ceylon Muslim, Arabic has no special advantage, political or economic except to a few isolated individuals who may belong to Ceylon's Overseas Service or seek special commercial contacts in the Arab world. The Ceylon Muslim is thus constrained to emphasize Classical Arabic for his culture. His teachers of Arabic are trained in Classical Arabic and have not specialised in the modern or spoken form. In these circumstances the place of Arabic in the curriculum bears closer resemblance to that of the Indian, Pakistani or Indonesian Muslims than of the Arab Muslims to whom Arabic is the mother tongue. This is a point of special significance in the framing of syllabuses of Arabic studies and schemes of work as well as in the preparation of text books planned to match the needs of the Community. A certain measure of strain on the Muslim pupil cannot be avoided owing to each of the four languages – Sinhalese, Tamil, English, Arabic having a different script with a distinct background of religion, linguistics and history.
These difficulties confronting the Ceylon Muslims are unfortunately aggravated by the attitude that prevails generally among the Country's political parties with regard to the Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Act. No. 28 of 1958, some claiming that the Act goes too far, and others not far enough. In these circumstances the possibility of an acrimonious controversy raging with regard to the status of the Tamil language on the eve of the next General Election cannot be entirely ruled out.
That this problem of multi-lingualism, however, is not peculiar either to Ceylon or the Muslims will be clear from a careful perusal of Chapter 5 of the Report of the Secondary Education Commission, October 1952 – June 1953 – published by the Government of India. From this the following extracts are quoted :-
"We realise that there are five distinct groups of languages which have to be taken into consideration :- (1) The mother-tongue; (2) the Regional language when it is not the mother-tongue; (3) the Official language of the Centre more commonly called the Federal Language; (4) the classical languages, Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian, Latin, etc., and (5) English which has come to be recognised as an International Language. In those areas where the mother-tongue and the regional language are the same, the number of languages to be taken into consideration will be limited to four and in those areas where the regional language, the mother-tongue and the language of the Union are the same, the number of languages to be taken into consideration will be limited to three. So far as the Federal language or the official language of the Centre is concerned we feel that the areas in the different pats of the country may be divided into three regional groups (1) regions where Hindi is the mother-tongue, and therefore is the regional language as well as the language of the Centre; (2) regions where although it is not the mother-tongue, Hindi is spoken by a large number of people of the region; (3) regions where Hindi is neither the mother-tongue nor the regional language nor spoken or understood by the vast majority of the people. These are generally spoken of as non-Hindi speaking areas. The question has often been raised in the course of our discussions as to the number of languages that can be learnt by pupils in the secondary schools and at what stages the study of these languages should be commenced. Some maintain that we should, while considering this problem, take into account the purpose which is to be served by the study of each of these languages. We do not wish to dogmatise on such very important issues which should be treated on the academic plane and on the principles of pedagogy. But we agree that there should be a clear perspective of the purpose of the study of each of these languages. It is ordinarily accepted that the mother-tongue is the most suitable as a medium of instruction for the child beginning its study. If the same advance had taken place in regional languages as has taken place in many foreign languages, mother – tongue or regional languages would have been the medium of instruction at all stages of the educational ladder. As the regional language is likely to be the language used by the majority in the region it is dispersible to acquire knowledge of this language. In view of the difficulties in particular regions to cater to the needs of very small groups and the paucity of teachers of the particular language, linguistic minorities isolated in different regions who would not come under the provisions of the Resolution passed by the Central Advisory Board of Education in this behalf may have to adopt the regional language as the medium of instruction. However, we have already referred to the provision in some States for linguistic minorities to be given the option of having their children taught through the mother-tongue, and we believe this is a wise policy in the general interests of all concerned. In the light of all these observations and with the conflicting opinions that have been expressed on occasions with so much of vehemence, our task in approaching dispassionately a consideration of the place of languages in secondary schools has by no means been easy. We have therefore sought light on this subject from other countries. We recommend that in regard to other languages also, whether the mother-tongue or regional language, there is need for a reorientation of the methods adopted in teaching the language. To try to cram into the young pupil, a number of abstract terms and definitions of grammar and syntax, long before the student has learnt to read fluently simple prose, is to create in the young mind an aversion for language classes. A contributory factor is the dearth of simple and entertaining reading matter in the language capable of creating in the pupil a desire and an eagerness to peruse such books. With the emphasis now placed rightly on the mother-tongue or regional language, we hope that (a) teachers of languages will be given training in the methods to be adopted in such teaching, and (b) that every encouragement will be given to well qualified persons to produce books in prose and poetry suited to the different stages of education of school children.”
Therefore the inclusion of these four languages – viz: Sinhalese, Tamil, English and Arabic, in our schools should command a universal assent. This should not blind us to the onerous task of devising with dispatch suitable syllabuses and schemes for use in the schools where Muslim pupils are instructed. In view of the Community's geographical distribution and other factors, unity and not uniformity should be the goal desired in respect of the curriculum,
In the memorandum that has been circulated to the participants of this Seminar it is stated that
"The Seminar will, inter alia, discuss the following problems :-
(a) What should be the first language or the medium of instruction in schools,
(b) what should be the second, third and where necessary the fourth language, and
(c) at what stage and to what extent should these languages be taught having regard to the needs of the community and in the light of the current trends both political and cultural.
The Seminar will endeavour to formulate on educationally acceptable scheme of teaching languages to Muslim children. We are aware that experiments in this sphere are being carried out in the various Muslim educational institutions. This Seminar would, therefore, afford an opportunity to pool together the experiences of these institutions with a view to the adoption of a coherent and unified system which will be in the best interest of the community. The Seminar will make recommendations after an objective study of the problems, the implementation of which will be left entirely to the various organisations and institutions that are functioning to the benefit of the Muslims of Ceylon. Thus there will be no resolutions passed binding either the All-Ceylon Y.M.M.A. Conference or any other organisations or persons participating in the Seminar. It is, however, hoped that the proceedings of the Seminar when published will prove useful to all concerned."
It would therefore be appropriate at this stage to describe briefly the present curriculum of Zahira College, Colombo. This has, in a few essentials and in several details, superseded the previous ones and will naturally be modified from time to time in the light of the experiences gained yearly since 1949 when Tamil medium was first introduced in the Lower Kindergarten class. In view of the largely increasing numbers and the extremely limited space available, the present scheme envisages only English medium classes in the primary school. In the junior and senior (secondary) schools, both Tamil and English media are available. Sinhalese medium in Form I will be introduced at the earliest possible opportunity. At present Sinhalese or Tamil is introduced as a second language in Std. 2 and Arabic in Std. 3 . It is being felt that this practice should be reviewed early. In Form I, Sinhalese or Tamil is introduced as the fourth language, and the students of Zahira are thereby enabled to take up Practical Sinhalese or Practical Tamil at the G.C.E. examination. Zahira College, Colombo, so far is the only institution successfully preparing candidates for the Arabic papers of the University of Ceylon Entrance Examination. In these circumstances, special attention is being paid in the curriculum to Arabic which is made a compulsory subject throughout the junior school. It is an optional subject in the senior and collegiate schools.
"Swabhasa" has often been used to indicate Sinhalese or Tamil and is therefore a convenient term to use in this paper. At one time the Muslims disregarded English when they could ill afford to neglect it. In consequence the Muslim Community had to forgo many advantages. There is now the danger of the Muslims similarly over looking the importance of Swabhasa. A serious view has to be taken of the poor results in Swabhasa of the Muslim candidates taking up the G.C.E. examination because of (a) the discontinuation a few years back of the G.C.E. Lower Papers in Swabhsa (b) the introduction in 1958 of compulsory Swabhasa as a subject in the University Entrance Examination of Ceylon (c) the discontinuation of the special papers in English and Arabic for Muslim candidates taking up the H.S.C. examination and (d) the present regulations prescribed for the G.C.E. Examination which enable a candidate to obtain the S.S.C. certificate without English but not without Swabhasa.
In the preceding paragraphs I have attempted to analyses some of the more important aspects of the complex problem of the curriculum as it confronts the Muslim Community today and the urgent necessity that has arisen, as a result of recent events, to evolve a single but not uniform curriculum to serve the diverse needs of the Community and the various groups within it, without any impairment of its culture or ill effects on its future. In bracing itself for this task the Community should not under-estimate the efforts involved in planning an integrated curriculum with a multiplicity of languages and the consequential strain on the Muslim pupil. This is made more difficult by the divergent views that are being entertained by psychologists in regard to multi-lingualism and by the various attitudes that exist towards language itself in general and the first language in particular whether languages is "a mere tool or instrumentality or means of communication", or whether it is something that "creates thought and moulds the habits of the people concerned, their emotions, feeling and cogitation – everything that constitutes the spiritual aspect of man." The problems of the changing pattern of Ceylon's society and the contrary solutions offered by the various political parties, that hope to capture power, with regard to the two national languages of Ceylon undoubtedly aggravate these difficulties. A solution cannot, however, wait till all possible conflicts are resolved and all divergencies reconciled. A satisfactory curriculum has therefore to be devised now and revised as often as necessitated by the circumstances that are current and that could be envisaged. Only thus can the Community redeem itself and justify its endeavours to the generations to come.
e m e n d a t i o n s
Page 7. The figure of 250,000,000 in respect of the English Language is quoted from UNESCO Courier No. 1 of 1954 which has reproduced it from The Story of Language of Professor Marie Pei of Colombia University.
Page 8. The figure of 50,000,000 in respect of the Arabic Language is also from the same source. But a different figure viz : about 80,000,000 – is given in the Islamic Review of January 1956 at page 22.
addendum
At the Plenary Sessions of the Seminar held on the 28th June, 1959, presided over by Dr. Mahmood Hassan, M.A., LL.B. (Cal) D. Phil (Oxford), Bar-at-Law, the following resolution was adopted unanimously :-
'This Seminar, on "The Languages in the Curriculum of the Ceylonese Muslims", organised by the All-Ceylon YMMA Conference in its plenary sessions held on the 28th day of June, 1959, approves of the recommendations submitted by the Special Committee appointed by the Seminar with Dr. T.B. Jayah as Chairman and contained in the annexed schedule and presents these recommendations to the Hon'ble Minister of Education, the Heads of Educational Institutions concerned and Organisations that are promoting the welfare of the Muslims for their careful consideration and implementation.'
s c h e d u l e
Recommendations of the seminar
1. That the curriculum of the Ceylonese Muslim pupil shall include Arabic and three of the following languages namely; Sinhalese, Tamil, English and Malay.
2. That in view, among other factors, of geographical distribution, cultural individuality and linguistic difficulties of the Ceylonese Muslims, the choice of the medium of instruction made available to them by the present regulations included in the Schedule to the Education (Amendment) Act No. 5 of 1951 should continue.
3. That the Heads of Muslim Schools – Government, Assisted and Unaided – do share their experiences and the results of their experiments in regard to the curriculum of the Muslim pupil including the medium of instruction, and the second language, with others similarly engaged for the better promotion of education among the Muslims.
4. That while the teaching of Islam shall begin in the Infant Classes, Arabic shall permeate the education of the Muslim pupil; and the formal teaching of Arabic shall commence not later than in the third standard and in view of the special competency of Arabic teachers to teach Islam the Department requirement that these teachers should have fifteen hours of Arabic teaching should include the teaching of Islam within these fifteen hours.
5. That recognised Arabic Colleges be requested to include modern Methods of Teaching as a subject in their curriculum.
6. That provision be made in the Training Colleges at Addalaichenai and Alutgama and other Muslim Training Colleges to be established in the future for the effective teaching of Sinhalese as an optional language to every trainee so that the trainees will be in a position after completion of training to teach in Sinhalese if the need arises.
7. That a few places for Muslims be reserved in the Government Sinhalese Training Colleges.
8. That in view of the preponderence of Muslims in Government Schools and in view of the Muslim pupil having to cope with four languages, three of which are not his home languages and in view of the lack of suitable text books to ease the strain thereby caused, the Government do appoint a Committee of Muslims with a view to the production of suitable text books for Muslims in all the languages included in the curriculum.
9. That in the choice of text books for the GCE and HSC books with Islamic background be prescribed alternate to books with other religious backgrounds.
10. That there by more extensive use of supplementary readers with Islamic background.
11. That Islamic History by included as a subject for the HSC and the University Entrance Examinations and as an alternate section in the GCE History paper.
12. That Islamic Philosophy be made an integral part of the course in philosophy in the University of Ceylon.
