In February, the editor posted an enquiry to the CreoList about the use of pidgins/creoles in education, requesting the following information:
1. Name of country
2. Name of pidgin/creole
3. Is there a standardized orthography? If so, what kind? And is it widely used?)
4. Is the pidgin/creole used at all in literature? If so, how?
5. Is the pidgin/creole used officially in formal education? If so, how?
6. Is the pidgin/creole used in informal educa-tion? If so, how?

The following replies later appeared:

Haiti
from: E Vedrine <evedrine@hotmail.com>

Through a 3-year intensive bibliographic research (covering publications on Haitian Creole from Colonial times to the end of the 20th century), I have documented a great deal of published books, articles, and theses/ dissertations, but there are more publications on HC than in HC.

In terms of KREYOL IN EDUCATION, that still remains something theoretical in Haiti where the state and the elite still consider French to be more important in this aspect (and it’s also more economical for them to use materials published in French 50 years ago rather than to spend $ producing new materials in Kreyol).

Also, keep in mind that most of the research on Kreyol are not supported by the Haitian government (such a shame!). In other words, you can ask yourself this question: how much does the Haitian government invest in linguistic research? The answer is ZEWO!

I also discovered that (from the late 1970s up to now) there are materials in Kreyol that cover up to junior high level. That means students up to this level could have an education only in Kreyol while taking French as a “second language” [but, this will still remain something theoretical unless there will be a group of concerned Haitian educators/ intellectuals to found a particular school as a model where these theories can be put into practice]. But, even people working for the state don’t realize what’s available to them in terms of teaching materials (and those that have been producing in the diaspora also)…

The question is: who really cares about KREYOL IN EDUCATION IN HAITI? And so far, most Haitian leaders prove clearly that EDUCATION is not an important issue for them; it’s rather a question of getting to power and how to fill their pockets as quickly as possible because “ou pa janm konnen, Ayiti se té glise” (‘you never know what will happen in Haiti the next day’).

So, it’s very nice that we can jot down nice ideas, spend time writing very nice research but in reality, what? Will that change the mind of those in power? Of the well-to-do? Our corrupted elite who love things the way they have been? Hell no! Nice questions to consider, Hmm! Are we going to keep up with our research? R - Of course yes! That’s part of our intellectual hobbies and most importantly for many of us, our pay checks depend on it, our grants depend on it, that’s the way we make a living. BUT, a big but, the real change remains in the hands of the government and laws (which in the case of Haiti are well written but never observed).

from: Hugues St Fort <Hugo274@aol.com>
2. The name of the creole spoken by Haitians is “Kreyol”. However, there is a tendency on the part of some Haitians based in the diaspora (mainly those living in The US and Canada) to call the language “Haitian”. My own research about this tendency shows that the Haitian speakers use this denomination only when speaking English; they do not call the language ayisyen (Haitian) when speaking creole.

3. Yes, there is a standardized orthography for Haitian Creole. Since 1980, HC has been equipped with an official orthography. It is a phonemic orthography that has a relatively long history. This official and standardized orthography is widely used by the majority of Haitian and non-Haitian writers both in Haiti and outside of Haiti.

4. Yes, there is a relatively substantial Haitian Creole literature, comprised of works produced in different genres (novel, theatre, poetry, history). The most important novel written in Haitian Creole dates from 1975; it is called Dezafi and is written by Franketienne, a very prolific Haitian writer.

5. Haitian Creole is used in formal education both in Haiti and in several bilingual English-Haitian Creole programs based in NY, Miami, Boston, maybe Chicago. Generally speaking, the information posted by E. Vedrine, two days ago about the state of education in Haiti is correct. But, I should add that in the past 20 years, Haitian Creole has penetrated into most institutions (church, schools, Parliament, media) in Haiti. In NY, there are more than a dozen radio programs operating in Haitian Creole and an equal number of TV programs. It is estimated that between 500,000 and 1,000,000 Haitians live in NY City. Both in Haiti and in the American diaspora, Haitian Creole is used as a medium of instruction and as a subject of study. I have taught HC for several years to native and non-native speakers at City College of New York.

6. As the language spoken by all Haitians, HC is used everyday to teach basic literacy to adults and kids. There used to be in the late 1980s and early 1990s an excellent weekly published in Haiti and written entirely in HC, called Libete. I don't know if it is still published.

Guadeloupe
from: Emmanuel Faure
<emmanuel.faure@sprachlit.uni-regensburg.de>

2. Name of creole: Gwadloupéyen/créole guadeloupéen (dialect of Lesser Antilles Creole).

3. (The following also applies for Martinique and St. Barts varieties of the Lesser Antilles Creole, though based mainly on personal fieldwork on Guadeloupe). There are basically two current proposals for orthography: (1) one by Jean Bernabé (in the GEREC publication Mofwaz no. 1&2, 1977; no. 3, 1980; also presented in Bernabé, Fondal-Natal, 1983), which is strictly phonetic/phonologic and, when facing two possibilities, generally prefers the “less French” one (écart maximum): e.g. gannyé rather than ga(n)gné, chyen rather than chien. The notation of nasalized vocals is more phonetic than phonologic: the transcription of (systematic) regressive nasalization could be avoided. Another problem is the phonemic status of [y] and [ø], as in [duri] (Les Saintes subvariety – not necessarily acrolectal!) vs. [diri] (“Mainland” Guadeloupe Creole), both spelled diri according to the GEREC orthography.

Hence (2) the proposals of Marie-Christine Hazaël-Massieux in Écrire en créole (1993). She tries to find a compromise between
phonological principles and reading habits of Creolophones whose language of literacy is French. She would for example adopt the spellings gagné, chien (nasal è is normally spelled in in her system, except in the trigraph ien), and proposes to note systematically the difference between rounded and non-rounded vowels (duri, laru), although she admits that most speakers do not make any phonic difference. Note that her orthography is NOT a basically etymological one…

It seems to me that the GEREC ortho-graphy is more common. It is particularly used by groups close to the independence movements, as well as in the experimental creole schools/classes (Lamentin, Capesterre Belle-Eau), sometimes with slight changes (ky and gy instead of tj/dj for instance). I never came across a Creole text written in the Hazaël-Massieux orthography. However, when Creole is written in “mainstream” newspapers, ads etc., the spelling is subject to a considerable amount of variation – no wonder, given that the majority of speakers has never been taught how to write their language.

4. Scarcely used in literature: some short dialogues in (Gwadloupéyen writer) Maryse Condé’s works for example, but there is a creole language literature. Best-seller novelist Raphaël Confiant from Martinique, himself a member of GEREC, started writing novels in creole, Hector Poullet from Guadeloupe has published poetry in Creole. The problem is that it doesn’t sell as well as (Regionalized) French literature!

5. There is an experimental (non governmental) elementary school run by Dany Bébel-Gisler at Lamentin (Basse-Terre). As far as I know (I haven’t visited this school yet), education is primarily in Creole, and French is taught as a foreign language from third (?) grade. There is also a very interesting experiment at the collège (junior high school? Age 11-15) of Capesterre-Belle Eau. It was launched by Hector Poullet, a pupil of Gérard Lauriette (who had run such an experiment during the 70s), and has been now continued by Sylviane Telchid. Creole language and culture are a subject of study in approx. grades 8 and 9 (quatrième and troisième), on a weekly 2 hrs. basis. Pupils are all volunteers and study this subject additionally to their 'normal' curriculum. I have heard of other experimental classes at lycée (senior high school?) level, e.g. in Petit-Bourg (Windward coast of Basse-Terre) but I haven’t been able to collect more information about them.

6. I don't know about pre-elementary education. As for the attitudes of speakers towards instruction medium, I just happened to hear a radio interview of discontented parents from Bouillante (Leeward coast) last fall. Their main concern was that the teachers of the first year came from the Métropole (France) and as such, they did NOT speak Creole, which the parents thought to be such a problem that they went on strike to have the educational authorities change their decision.

In addition, Hector Poullet and Sylviane Telchid published a Creole Handbook in the popular Assimil Series (the French Berlitz) in 1990 (Le créole sans peine), and a small pocket introduction (Le créole de poche) with the same publisher in 1998. Both books are primarily intended for tourists visiting the island. I don't know about adult courses.

Jamaica
from: Peter Patrick <patrickp@essex.ac.uk>

2. Name of creole: Patwa (to speakers); Jamaican Creole (to linguists).

3. Yes; phonemic orthography, developed by F. G. Cassidy in the 1960s. Widely used by linguists, rarely by anyone else.

4. Widely used in literature as dialogue; more recently (1990s) as voice of 1st- or 3rd-person narration. Much poetry, including regular use in newspapers (“dialect” poetry) since the 1940s. Also widely used in cartoons and comics – probably the single most visible use of written Patwa for most Jamaicans – ads, etc.

5. As far as I know it is still not used in formal education, though reading of literature may have changed this.

Belize
from: Ken Decker <ken_decker@sil.org>

2. Name of creole: Belize Kriol.

3. Orthography: Somewhat Phonemic and Compromise. It is used in a weekly newspaper column and in the Bible translation project and most anything else that anybody is writing in Kriol; it’s just that not many are writing anything.

4. Either the entire document is in Kriol or used for dialogue only in some documents

5. Subject of study in grades 5-6, etc).

6. Re the written form, I doubt that it is used much, but it is growing. At least one of the teachers at the university teaching “Teaching Methods” includes material on how to write Kriol and how to include Kriol in teaching methodology.

Colombia (San Andres Island)
from: Ron Morren <ron_morren@gial.org>

Name of creole: San Andres Creole, sometimes referred to as Islander Creole or just Creole. (There are other names as well, but not as frequently heard.)

Stage of Orthography: An orthography committee has been formed, but only two members of the committee are actively working in the language and following the guidelines that the committee established. It is a modified English orthography. It is becoming more widely used since a tentative glossary has been begun and educational materials are being developed using this orthography.

Use in Literature: Yes, see above. Also, a small number of other Creole speakers have written stories and poems in the Creole language, but have not followed a standardized orthography. (All such written materials that I am acquainted with were written before the orthography committee made some standardization decisions.) Sometimes such literature is completely in Creole while other authors have chosen to use Creole only in dialogue, etc; the rest of the story being written in “standard” English.

Creole used in Formal Education?: Yes, as an experiment. Three schools are experimenting with Creole language educational materials. To date such materials have been developed for Preprimary and First Grades. The plan is for some use of Creole in second grade for certain subjects, but also for instruction to be given in English for other subjects. Creole use (not necessarily study) would be allowed to continue through 5th grade. Spanish would be introduced in grade three. By grade six instruction could be continued in either Spanish or English, whichever is available and/or chosen by the students and his/her parents.

Suriname
from: Jacques Arends <arends@mail.hum.uva.nl>

2. Name of creole: Sranan.

3. Yes, there is an official, (largely) phonemic orthography; however, in practice some people stick to older practices, eg (Dutch spelling based) oe for /u/.

4. Yes, extensively, especially in poetry; some short stories, one novelette, some drama.

5. No (Dutch is the (only) official language, including in education.)

6. Sranan is often used unofficially in formal education, because many pupils do not know Dutch upon entering primary education. I know this happens (at least) in lower grades in primary education, especially in the interior; for other groups I have no information.

Netherlands Antilles
The following story also appeared on the CreoList:

Perils of Papiamento
by DAN PERRY

WILLEMSTAD, Curaçao, April 29 (AP) – For years Roxanne Tore has pushed the use of Papiamento, arguing that for dignity’s sake the local language should be taught in Curaçao’s schools instead of Dutch. Now, with her 6-year-old boy at a linguistic crossroads himself, she finds herself strangely undecided.

She could send Denzel to the sole private school that teaches in his mother tongue. Or there are the regular schools, where he would suddenly be immersed in the language of the Dutch colonizers who enslaved his African ancestors -- but who currently provide the elite of the island with nearly free university education in the Netherlands.

“Emotionally I’ve decided for Papiamento,” said Tore, a radio producer in her 30s. “But intellectually, I haven’t yet made the leap!”

As elsewhere in the Caribbean – where African-descended populations often retain emotional ties to former colonial powers – language has become a symbol of national identity in Curaçao. The use of Creole and dialects at the expense of an arguably more practical colonial tongue is a matter of pride…

But Papiamento remains a largely spoken language – by perhaps 300,000 people in the Dutch Caribbean, the former colony of Suriname in South America and the Netherlands itself – and many here fear that abandoning Dutch-language schooling is unwise considering the reliance on Dutch universities.

The Netherlands basically subsidizes about 350 students from this autonomous Dutch territory who go to Holland annually for various levels of higher education, said Yvette Michel of SSC, the quasi-governmental foundation that administers scholarships.

Could Dutch be sufficiently mastered if studied merely as a foreign language? Curaçao’s government thinks so, and is pushing to convert the island’s schools -- especially the Roman Catholic schools that educate most pupils -- from Dutch to Papiamento.

Charine Isabella, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education, said a government committee is preparing to begin shifting schools to Papiamento next year. The change will be made one grade at a time, over 12 years.

Parents will be allowed to choose Dutch or bilingual schooling, too, but the government plans a publicity campaign on “why they should choose for their own mother tongue.”

The debate has divided and unsettled a normally placid society. The teachers union supports Papiamento, blaming difficulties with Dutch for relatively high dropout rates.

“We think Dutch had its time here in Curaçao and now it’s time to move on,” said union president Bicho Justiana. “You have to let a child feel himself at home.”

“I cannot agree with this,” said Ingrid de Maayer, director of Amigoe, a Dutch-language newspaper with a Papiamento name. “I already speak Papiamento at home to my kids. We have to be sensible. Who will pay for all those new books?”

Isabella said one possibility is the Netherlands itself, but there’s a certain lack of enthusiasm from that quarter.

Frank Wassenaar, spokesman for Gijs de Vries, the undersecretary for kingdom relations in The Hague, the Dutch capital, said Papiamento “is a matter for the Netherlands Antilles to figure out.”

But he cautioned that “someone who speaks only Papiamento will not be able to get along very well in the labor market” and that Antillean arrivals under 25 must take a “naturalization course” in which Dutch language classes are central.

The Catholic school system also is lukewarm.

“Papiamento isn’t developed enough for secondary education,” said Ronald Statia, superintendent of Curaçao’s 103 Catholic schools, noting the language lacks many scientific terms. “Papiamento will always have its limitations.”

Still, the Catholic schools are offering a compromise: They would teach pupils in Papiamento for the first four years, then switch to Dutch.

Tore’s husband, an Internet buff, dismisses the university issue as irrelevant in tomor-row’s virtual world.

But Tore has trouble with this concept. As she struggles with her choice, she condemns her conservative instinct for sticking with Dutch.

“It’s a matter of how you think of yourself, your self-worth. It’s thinking more of the colonizer, looking up to the Dutch, consider-ing them in some way superior.”

Her boss, radio station owner and prominent local commentator Orlando Cuales, is more upbeat about the prospects for Papiamento. “This place moves in Papiamento,” he says. “Dutch is dead here.”

Outside the 19th century mansion housing the station lies the main route for the annual carnival, an explosion of color and revelry and thumping local “tumba” music. The songs are in Papiamento. The signs are in Papia-mento.

The beer – Amstel and Heineken – comes from Holland.