Language Advocate Tasks Parents To Teach Children Mother Tongue

Parents have been urged to take up the responsibility of teaching their Children and Wards mother tongue.

This was the submission of a Language Advocate, Josiah Egbilika during a Live program #LanguageHealth aired every Wednesday on NigeriaInfo 92.3fm, a renowned Radio Station in Rivers State.

Mr Egbilika stated that the child acquires language by hearing, urging that language should always be spoken in and around as the child picks the sounds and words from the language as he/she hears those around him/her speak.

He stressed that the parents are the most important actors in teaching the child language, noting that the parents are the first persons the child by nature relates with. He called on parents to ensure that they do not fail in the responsibility of speaking language often.

Speaking further, the Language Advocate lamented how schools see speaking the indigenous languages as vernacular and even ascribe some sort of disciplinary measure to those that communicate with it.

He stated that such policy only help to contribute to the extinction of the language, thereby destroying the people's heritage.

He appealed to government to create a level ground where language enacted policies can be implemented. He emphasized that government should consciously allocate fund to language development and implementation of the policies that can lead to sustaining the language in the State and nation.

Some callers into the program stated that mothers and the government hold the major role in teaching the child the language. They agree that there is a need to ensure a continuous transfer of the languages from generation to generation to avoid its extinction.

They stated that in some cases people are not allowed to express themselves with their languages. This they stated affects the language in a negative way.

The Advocate concluding his program by saying that there is no excuse if anyone fails to teach the child indigenous language. He mentioned that exposing the child to the language comes in various means, speaking it, through written materials, movies and more.

He also stated that the importance of sustaining the language cannot be over emphasized as it is the core of who we are, and onions of our cultural heritage.

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