English in Ghana. M. E. Kropp Dakubu, ed. Accra: Ghana
English Studies Association, 1997
English in Ghana (EIG) is a very timely book on the "new Englishes"
and a welcome addition to many of its kind already published for other
countries. Much, for instance, has been written on Indian English, Nigerian
English, Cameroonian English, Singapore English, etc. Although the existence
of a Ghanaian variety of English has long been recognized, and several
articles have been written on different aspects of it (Gyasi 1990; Ahulu
1994; Owusu-Ansah 1994, etc.), this is the first comprehensive book
dealing with practically all facets of this variety of English, since
Sey's pioneering book: Ghanaian English (1973).
EIG is a compilation of 21 papers by language experts on English usage
in Ghanaian society--although a few of them deal with some other nations
of West Africa, such as Nigeria and Cameroon--and presented at the inaugural
meeting of GESA held at the University College of Education, Winneba,
June 13-15, 1996. The book is divided into four sections and concludes
on a futuristic note with Ayo Banjo's keynote paper entitled 'Language
Policy Implementation: the Way Forward'. The main body of the book is
preceded by an address from the Ghanaian minister of education and the
president of GESA.
The first section, "English and how we speak it," is a compilation
of five papers on usage and is introduced by eminent African linguist
Ayo Bamgbose whose research and publications on both Nigerian and African
languages and linguistics as well as English in Nigeria are well known
in Africa and internationally. His paper, 'Non-native Englishes on Trial'
is full of insights on some of the hot issues that confront non-native
varieties of English (NNVE), such as those of models, standards and
standardization, norms, descriptive issues, errors and innovations.
He unabashedly takes issue with scholars such as Prator and Quirk who
have vehemently opposed the idea of NNVE.
Next is the theory/methodology paper entitled 'Nativisation and the
Maintenance of Standards in Non-native Varieties of English' -- a logical
follow-up to Bamgbose's paper that deals with similar issues. In this
article, Owusu-Ansah grapples with one of the issues of concern in NNVEs:
how to distinguish between acceptable norm breaking/norm setting forms
and manifestations of lowering standards, one of the main concerns of
EL teachers throughout English speaking Africa.
Gogovi's brief, but interesting paper studies the use of collocations
and suggests that they be learned separately due to their complexity
and peculiar and selective nature. The next paper raises a perennial
concern of EL teachers all over English speaking Africa: the apparent
decline in EL competence among secondary and tertiary institution students.
Dako et al. blame this downward trend on inadequate teaching of grammar
to students and would-be teachers alike. Wiredu's paper, the last in
section one, takes a critical look at the syntactic behavior of EL catenative
verbs.
Section two is entitled "English in National Contexts" and
is made up of three socio-historical papers dealing with EL in Cameroon
(Simo-Bobda), in Nigeria (Funso Akere) and in Ghana (John A. Sackey).
Simo-Bobda's article is entitled 'English in a Multilingual Society'
and takes a close look at the linguistic complex called Cameroon, a
relatively small country with more than 200 indigenous languages co-existing
with three other 'imported' languages -- French, English and Pidgin
English -- two of which (French and English) enjoy prestige status in
the society. The writer begins with a brief review of the literature
on the status of EL around the world, beginning from its native soils
before focussing on the specific case of Cameroon. This paper is a beautiful
example of the complex chemistry that takes place when several languages
come into contact, as well as the competition that also comes with the
struggle for status and prestige, which, in the Cameroonian context
is one between French (the dominant language) and EL. He concludes by
noting that although one cannot deny that English has had a measure
of influence on the indigenous languages, the latter have had a much
greater influence on EL. This has therefore produced an EL that is distinctively
Cameroonian in flavor.
Akere's paper examines the corpus of Nigerian English, which is part
of the International Corpus of English (ICE) project. The aim of this
extensive research project proposed in 1988 by Sydney Greenbaum of the
University College of London is to compile and describe the different
varieties of standard EL used around the globe. Akere also looks at
the thorny issue of what constitutes standard Nigerian English.
The last of the articles in this section is Sackey's paper, which takes
a historical look at EL in Ghana. Sackey gives a brief account of the
route EL has taken from its original implantation on Ghanaian soil until
the present day and the social, political and educational pressures
that have shaped its course. This is must-read for the newcomer to the
Ghanaian English scene, as it outlines the historical development of
EL in this West African nation.
The third section of the book centers on pedagogical issues affecting
the teaching of EL in Ghanaian classrooms. The first two papers by Davies
and Angmor et al. focus on the teaching of literature and the important
role it plays in the teaching and acquisition of EL. While the first
paper is concerned with the importance of teacher training, the second
emphasizes the importance of using literary texts to teach EL. Dzameshie's
paper proposes a communicative approach to the teaching of English as
a second language (ESL) as an alternative to the traditional grammar-based
approach.
Edu-Buandoh's paper is a preliminary report on error patterns common
among students in Ghanaian Senior Secondary Schools (SSS). It proposes
error analysis as a means of correcting recurrent errors among SSS students
and concludes with a list of recommendations on how to improve EL usage.
The last paper by Adika and Denkabe proposes a linguistically based
framework for literary text analysis.
"Expressing the Self in Society" is the title of the fourth
section which comprises six papers, each dealing with different self-expressions
in the Ghanaian society. The first paper by Opoku-Agyemang explores
recent female literary voices and invites literary critics to begin
to consider the works of female writers whose works have been either
ignored or forgotten in critical circles. The article takes a critical
look at four contemporary Ghanaian women writers -- Yeboah-Afari, Gyamfuaa-Fofie,
Cudjoe-Swayne and Aggrey and encourages criticism of their works for
the benefit of the larger society.
Whereas Sekyi-Baidoo's paper explores the importance of using background
information in the teaching of literature to students at the secondary
level, Dako's is an assessment of the competence of graduates of EL
at the tertiary level of education. His conclusion is that much still
needs to be done to bring graduating students to a desired level of
competency in EL. The third article in this section by Kropp Dakubu
entitled 'The Trope of the Nation in Kojo Laing's Poetry'. Using two
poems of Laing's, Dakubu teases out what she perceives as the former's
concept of the Ghanaian nation -- an unrealized yet real and ideal community.
Denkabe's paper takes a critical look at the Ghanaian print media and
concludes that although the chief players in this sector of society
have a good command of the English language, the actual language used
in print, in the final analysis, is still shaped by the reality of Ghanaian
society. This is a good paper on how language is shaped by society,
while society itself continues to be shaped by language. The last paper
'A study of the Embattled Heroine in two African Films' by Yankah deals
with gender issues in African film and proposes the use of film to enhance
the teaching of language and literature at all levels of education.
The last section, "Into the Future", comprises only one paper
by eminent linguist Ayo Banjo, author of several articles and books
on the English language in Nigeria. Banjo delves into the often volatile
and thorny national language issue and language policy formulation and
implementation -- an area of major concern in most of the ex-British
colonies of Africa and Asia. Also at issue in this paper is the often
ambivalent, if not ambiguous, role of EL in these so-called anglophone
nations. According to Banjo, well thought out language policy has been
neglected, with all the obvious implications on the educational and
governmental institutions of the countries concerned. He calls for the
replacement of the exoglossic EL with endoglossic languages as national
lingua francas. Banjo believes EL will still maintain a co-official
role with the chosen indigenous official languages (due to its international
role), he suggests an endonormative, rather than an exonormative model
of usage. In conclusion, Banjo calls for a working partnership, collaboration
and information sharing among linguists and language policy makers within
the West-African sub-region in order to achieve a more lasting solution
to what is a sensitive issue for all the nations concerned.
Although the various papers in this collection differ in quality and
accessibility, one must look beyond the individual articles to appreciate
its overall significance. This is a high-quality volume that will be
of interest to linguists, language specialists, students, teachers and
educationists, journalists and policy makers, as well as anyone who
wishes to familiarize themselves with the history, development, role
and significance of EL in the Ghanaian society and the wider context
of West Africa. It also is useful as a superior reference source for
students of ESL and language variation and change.
T. Temi Ajani
Dept. of African & Asian Languages and Literatures
University of Florida
REFERENCES
Ahulu, Samuel, 1994. How Ghanaian is Ghaanaian English?.
English Today 38: 25-29.
Gyasi, I.K., 1990. The State of English in Ghana. English Today 23:
24-26.
Owusu-Ansah, Laawrence, 1994. Intertextuality in Ghanaian English Texts.
Papers in Ghanaian Linguistics. 10: 1-25.
Sey, Kofi, 1973. Ghanaian English: an exploratory study. London: Macmillan.
