Among the focus of language policies addressing sign languages have been efforts to achieve official recognition for various national sign languages, coupled with the recognition of the language rights of d/Deaf people. The recognition of sign languages has most often taken place as a result of lobbying efforts by national Deaf communities,…

The concept "language legitimacy", which entails issues of social class, ethnicity and culture as well as those of dominance and power, is a very important one with implications for both educational policy and practice. This article begins with a brief discussion of the two major ways in which the concept of "language…

Provides a brief discussion of the historical use of language policy and language planning in the South African context and explores recent developments in South Africa with respect to language policy. Identifies and discusses possible lessons for efforts to promote linguistic diversity in multilingual settings. (Author/VWL)

Discusses sign language use in South Africa and the deaf as an oppressed community. The following issues are addressed: language planning and sign language, the role of sign language as the vernacular of an oppressed linguistic community, and the implications of sign language for other cultural and social issues that divide South African society.…

Provides an examination of the distinctions among different subgroups of less commonly taught languages, as well as some of the social, political, economic, cultural, and ideological elements that affect these languages, especially in terms of their presence of lack of presence in the public school curriculum. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the development of manual sign codes for use in the education of children with deafness as an example of language planning activity. Argues that the development of manual sign codes can be seen as a misguided effort that ignores the linguistic bases of natural sign languages and the language rights of the deaf community. (contains 84…

Examines the role of language policy in South African education. An historical overview of language planning is presented, and then several examples of current language policies are discussed, including the "Mother Tongue Principle," the introduction of Black languages into White schools, and the creation of a lexicon for the deaf. (CFM)

The "language struggle" has been a focus of disagreement throughout South Africa's educational history. In contemporary South Africa, the issue of the language used as a medium of instruction has been most controversial in black education, where the government's policy of initial native language instruction has been widely denounced as…