Bilingualism, language of instruction, and “language disability”

Abstract

In a bilingual/plurilingual community, the choice of a language of instruction not well understood by students and most teachers can lead to a linguistic handicap. The language of instruction can either facilitate or inhibit learning depending on the students’ level of proficiency. The language handicap thus results from a knowledge deficit due to the lack of familiarity with the language of instruction. By choosing a language of instruction that is not generally well understood, the school is imposing a disability. As the title would suggest, this contribution does not deal with bilingualism per se. However, we cannot discuss the language of instruction in Haiti without taking into account the school bilingualism promoted by the educational reform of 1979. Although textbooks are produced in French, teachers mostly use Creole to teach. Books in French means French is the language of formal instruction. However, the fact that teachers use Creole for teaching makes Creole the language of learning. The chapter also deals with the situation of students with deficiencies who become a disability from the perspective of society.