@Linguist_CIOL
FEBRUARY/MARCH The Linguist 11
Space has also been a big problem. With one teacher
per 100 pupils there was no time to correct work,
including errors in the French, which made it hard for
pupils to progress. More importantly, despite the
teachers doing a stellar job of controlling the classroom,
it was almost impossible for children at the back to hear.
Extra teachers were available but there were not enough
classrooms. Thanks to crowdfunding, and an incredible
construction effort from the entire village, we were able
to build three new classrooms. This means that classes
have been split in half, which has made a big difference.
It is still important to fill the gaps in teaching in order
to improve pupils' understanding of French, thereby
increasing their chance of success in terms of state
exams and job opportunities. Every Tuesday, I get up
at the crack of dawn to go to the school (I have to wait
for it to be light enough to drive). My first task is to
conduct the daily mental maths test. At first, I didn't
want to do this as I was faced by a sea of concerned
faces, and could hear mutterings in Ewe: "What did Miss
say?" Simple questions would throw them, for example:
Si une banane coute 50 CFA, combien faudrait-il pour
acheter un régime de 10 bananes? ('If one banana costs
50 CFA, how much would you need to buy a bunch of
10 bananas?') Understanding the word 'bunch' is not
essential to the task, but when I put this question to my
students the majority spent the entire time trying to work
out what régime could mean and therefore failed to give
an answer.
I now try to reword any questions that cause difficulties,
and at the end of the test we discuss strategies for
understanding and solving the maths problem without
necessarily understanding every word. This 'concession'
isn't a luxury they will have in the real exam, but we can
at least provide them with methods that will help them
overcome linguistic barriers to completing the test.
Pupils still struggle with my European accent, but both
the teacher and I believe that getting used to it will help
them in the long run. In job interviews, for example,
'good' (mainland France) French is preferred to French
spoken in a Togolese accent with local idioms. This is a
shame as pupils do not have adequate means of
JOINT EFFORT
Pupils receive study
packs at the school in
Davie-Tekpo (main
image); and (left)
children help to cut
down a tree to build a
new classroom. The
whole community
worked on the build
improve the way Ewe-speaking pupils are taught French
go
