Kogi Introduces New Curriculum for Indigenous Languages

In a bid to protect some languages against extinction, the Kogi State government has approved a curriculum for the teaching and learning of Igala and Ebira languages. This was stated at 45th yearly convention of Yoruba language teachers in the basic, secondary and tertiary institutions across the country.

While commending the initiative, the state’s Commissioner for Education, Mrs Rosemary Osikoya, enjoined participants to marry language and culture for the development of the society.

Speaking while receiving the report of the committee on the incorporation of Igala and Ebira indigenous languages into the curriculum, she noted that the essence of education was to transform the society, stressing that the national policy on education, which was first convened in 1977 as a result of some grievances for the mode of the colonial master’s education system for the country came out with resolutions for states to use indigenous languages as means of transmitting instructions to children at the basic education level.

Osikoya explained that the promotion of indigenous languages and culture aims at bringing about the total development of the characters and personality of the child. She said to this end, the state government had constituted a committee to draft a curriculum for Igala and Ebira languages, adding that Okun had already been captured under a wider Yoruba language within an already established curriculum.

She commended the committee for a painstaking assignment, saying it was able to accomplish the task within a record time due to their passion for mother tongue.

She assured that the government would forward the report to the Nigeria Education Research and Development Council (NERDC) for ratification while calling on the committee to make the needed textbooks on the subject matter available.