Abstract
In 2006 the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) initialised the Language Transformation Plan (LTP) as a strategy to implement the longstanding national Language in Education Policy (DOE 1997). If serious efforts were to be made to expand the transformation plan to all schools across the province, detailed language related information was needed, on various levels of the institution. There is an established use of geographic information systems (GIS) for planning and policy making in fields more traditionally viewed as geographical. Increased accessibility to computer hardware and on-going efforts to create user-friendly software have paved the way for GIS to enter into disciplines such as sociolinguistics in ways that extend beyond simply mapping the distributions of languages in space. This article explores how mapping language-related variables at school level, using GIS, can support language planning and policy implementation from below, by drawing on concepts such as ‘public participation GIS’ (NCGIA 1996) and ‘counter-mapping’ (Peluso 1995).
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
