THE SUBSTANCE OF TEACHING AND LEARNING TIV LANGUAGE IN PRIMARY AND POST PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN BENUE STATE.

 

By

MACFRED AGEENDE UBI

macfredageende@g.mail.Com

 Tiv language is spoken by the Tiv whose population is some 6.5 million in Benue state middle Belt Nigeria. The Tiv nation comprises 4.5% of the Nigerian’s population making them the fourth largest ethnic group in Nigeria with 14 large local Government Areas. There are packets of Tiv population found in thousands in Taraba state, Plateau state, Nassarawa, Niger, Cross River and Enugu states and their quantum in central Africa and Cameroon. The language is spoken by their neighbours who live within and out of Benue state.

 

Tiv is a written language and served as a medium of instruction in Tiv schools in the past. The idea to develop and reduce Tiv into a written language was first introduced by the Dutch Reformed church missionaries (DRCM) who arrived in Tiv land from south Africa in 1911.

 

Following the South Africa racial policy which led to killings and unpleasant sharp vile incident of the 1961 which many black men smiled to death, the Dutch presence in Nigeria was handicapped, so the Dutch South Africa had to leave. Wherefore they handed over to the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) branch of the Sudan United Mission (SUM) November, 1961. The CRC was an American mission with its headquarter in Grand Raipids, Michigan.

 

 

 

The American missionaries introduced and encouraged the teaching of English in schools and maintained the use of Tiv language as a medium of instruction especially in the lower primary but post primary schools the emphasis was English Language. A few years later, the American Mission granted the indigenous Tiv converts known to be the NKST independence of Christian Reformed Church (CRC). The Tiv evangelist who were saddled the responsibility of education in mission schools initially took Tiv Language in high esteem but with time, like their counter parts in the Roman Catholic Mission, the language lost drastically in its impact. All the Tiv literature that were produce by the DRCM and SUM disappeared from the scene living the Tiv bible and the hymn book that could be read as sacred books and at leisure.

 

As the Tiv language is no longer taught at the early stages in our school, it is not surprising that many Tiv University graduates neither read nor write in it. Take more of the primary school pupils and secondary school students. The indispensable place of the mother tongue (MT) can’t be over emphasised. This because the child first forms and understands the concepts of his or her early experience in his or her mother tongue (MT) the mother tongue becomes the first language of instruction and should be encouraged. A child who starts education in a foreign language stands the danger of not understanding the basic details of both languages. Noting that, a people’s culture is engraved in their language the child does not know enough of the foreign language to belong to that culture, and neither does he or she know enough of his or her language to veritable belong to his or her people’s culture.

Such is the plight, puzzle and predicament of the modern tongue of men and women. Culturally they are neither Tiv nor English. From all indications, the Nigeria as a nation starts to gain nothing from such a product except a whiting confusion.

 

 

It is important to note that, lack of literature in the majority of our languages, will create unnecessary and baseless fear and suspicion that exist between and among our ethnic groups where there is no sufficient knowledge of the other person, is suspicion; where there is suspicion there is no real attraction and intimacy, this gives birth to lack of true love. Where there is no true love, it is impossible to expect true unity and co-existence. We have to work their out of from the grassroots.

 

 

Our schools and colleges and other high institution of learning in cooperating with the states and federal ministry of education have to encourage the linguistic and cultural understanding of ourselves. This will hopefully discard the base line of fear that exists among citizens out of ignorance.

 

Veritably, language is in dispensable in education and also as a vehicle of preserving culture. For this reason, the development and standardisation of the Tiv language should be a priority.

The emphasis placed by the National Policy on Education (NPE) should not just be a paper work only but implemented, the teaching and learning of the Tiv language both in primary and post primary schools in Benue and the nation at large.

Noting that this will assist the literates participates in the socio-economic and political life even as they fend for themselves. This will also reduce the case of certificate forgery in order to be accepted since the 1997 constitution of Nigeria as amended has made the provision for the use of local language in our legislative houses.

 

 

 

 

Therefore, literally in Tiv language will develop, standardised and create equal and higher for those trained.

 

“Our true identity rarely enjoys the freedom to emerge without first ending conformity, social modification or outright empression, peer pressure as well as parental expectations and demands of our circumstances all exert various amount of force on who we really are”

 

Teach us Tiv Language, it’s our heritage.