When Language Isn’t a Choice
We often consider our native language as the language we learn unconsciously, surrounded by friends and family who are constantly speaking to us and reinforcing certain sounds we make over others. However in many cases, one’s “native language” and “home language” can be completely different things. In the case of immigrants or ethnic families, not being fluent in your surroundings’ official language can cause great difficulties, both social and cultural.
While you generally would not see problems like this in more homogenous countries, it is a common phenomenon in more linguistically diverse nations. In China, where 56 different dialects are spoken, anyone who grew up speaking something other than Mandarin is liable to be held back by the language barrier between them and their so-called “native language.”
For example, people who grow up speaking Cantonese at home can find themselves at a disadvantage if they move to an environment that speaks only Mandarin. While there are similarities between the two dialects, their tonalities, grammatical structure, and written systems are quite different. Especially for children attending international schools where English is the lingua franca, Cantonese speakers often find opportunities to improve their Mandarin scarce. And in addition to the communicational handicap, there is also a considerable amount of prejudice from Mandarin speakers, particularly against foreign-born Cantonese who are viewed as interlopers trying to pass themselves off as Chinese.
This is a common problem in western countries as well, particularly in the United States, which has a long history of immigration but in many places is of the mindset that newcomers have the responsibility to adapt to American culture. Children of ethnic families can struggle between loyalty to their heritage and pressure from a society that often withholds opportunities from non-English speakers. Hispanic immigrants not fluent in English are often denied jobs cleaning and in childcare that they were counting on, simply because they are assumed to be deficient or disabled in some aspect. And even those who are able to obtain jobs higher than menial labor are often paid less than an English-speaker would be.
In 2010, nine states had laws stating that to obtain a driver’s license, you need to pass an English-only written test, claiming that speakers of other languages would be incapable of understanding traffic laws. With children, the social repercussions of not speaking their community’s official language are similar, with students who struggle with adapting to a new language often deemed less capable than their peers. All in all, should people have to choose between a domestic language and the language of the exterior world? When is pressure from family, many emigrating with the assumption that they’ll eventually return to their home country, overcome by pressure from society to fit in and succeed in the workplace? If you agree that no one should have to compromise between their native tongue and their personal lives and career aspirations, send us an inquiry about the variety of English courses we offer, or try one of our free online language level tests.
Wakati lugha si chaguo, mara nyingi tunaona lugha yetu ya asili kama lugha ambayo tunajifunza bila kujua, tukiwa tumezungukwa na marafiki na familia ambao wanazungumza nasi kila wakati na kuimarisha sauti fulani tunazotoa juu ya zingine. Hata hivyo katika visa vingi, mtu <unk>s <unk> lugha ya asili<unk> na <unk> lugha ya nyumbani<unk> inaweza kuwa mambo tofauti kabisa. Katika kesi ya wahamiaji au familia za kikabila, kutokuwa na ufasaha katika mazingira yako <unk> lugha rasmi inaweza kusababisha matatizo makubwa, wote kijamii na kitamaduni. Ingawa kwa ujumla huwezi kuona matatizo kama haya katika nchi zenye lugha moja, ni jambo la kawaida katika mataifa yenye lugha mbalimbali. "Kwa mfano, watu ambao wanakua wakizungumza lugha ya Cantonese nyumbani wanaweza kujikuta katika hali mbaya ikiwa wanahamia mazingira ambayo huzungumza Mandarin tu. """ Ingawa kuna mambo yanayofanana kati ya lahaja hizo mbili, sauti zao, muundo wao wa sarufi, na mfumo wao wa kuandika ni tofauti sana. Kwa watoto wanaosoma lugha ya Kiingereza, hasa katika shule za kimataifa, lugha ya Kiingereza ni lugha ya kawaida, na mara nyingi wana fursa ya kuboresha lugha yao ya Kimandarini. Kwa kuongezea, kuna ubaguzi mkubwa kutoka kwa wasemaji wa Mandarin, haswa dhidi ya Wakatoni waliozaliwa nje ya nchi ambao wanaonekana kama wavamizi wanaojaribu kujifanya kama Wachina. Hii ni tatizo la kawaida katika nchi za magharibi pia, hasa Marekani, ambayo ina historia ndefu ya uhamiaji lakini katika maeneo mengi ni ya mawazo kwamba wageni wana jukumu la kukabiliana na utamaduni wa Marekani. Watoto wa familia za kikabila wanaweza kupambana kati ya uaminifu kwa urithi wao na shinikizo kutoka kwa jamii ambayo mara nyingi huzuia fursa kutoka kwa wasemaji wasio wa Kiingereza. Wahamiaji wa Hispania ambao hawajui Kiingereza kwa ufasaha mara nyingi wanakataliwa kazi za kusafisha na utunzaji wa watoto ambao walikuwa wakihesabu, kwa sababu tu wanadhaniwa kuwa na upungufu au walemavu katika hali fulani. Na hata wale wanaoweza kupata kazi za hali ya juu mara nyingi hulipwa mshahara mdogo kuliko ule wa mtu anayezungumza Kiingereza. Mwaka 2010, majimbo tisa yalikuwa na sheria zilizosema kwamba ili kupata leseni ya kuendesha gari, unahitaji kupitisha mtihani wa maandishi ya Kiingereza tu, ukidai kuwa wasemaji wa lugha nyingine hawatakuwa na uwezo wa kuelewa sheria za trafiki. Kwa watoto, athari za kijamii za kutozungumza lugha rasmi ya jamii yao ni sawa, na wanafunzi ambao wanapambana na kukabiliana na lugha mpya mara nyingi huonwa kuwa na uwezo mdogo kuliko wenzao. Kwa ujumla, je, watu wanapaswa kuchagua kati ya lugha ya nyumbani na lugha ya ulimwengu wa nje? Wakati shinikizo kutoka kwa familia, wengi kuhamia kwa dhana kwamba wao hatimaye kurudi nchi yao ya nyumbani, kushindwa na shinikizo kutoka kwa jamii ya kuendana na kufanikiwa katika mahali pa kazi? Ikiwa unakubali kwamba hakuna mtu anayepaswa kuhalalisha kati ya lugha yao ya asili na maisha yao ya kibinafsi na matarajio ya kazi, tutumie uchunguzi kuhusu aina ya kozi za Kiingereza tunazotoa, au jaribu moja ya vipimo vyetu vya kiwango cha lugha vya bure mtandaoni.