Using the Mother Tongue as a Bridging Language of Instruction in Cambodia Un Siren Vice Chief of the Special Education Office, Primary Education Department Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport Cambodia

 About 20 languages are spoken in Cambodia and the Khmer: national language  The Creation of the SEO and SEO’s responsibility  SEO visit and activities were discussed and planned.  Local NGOs implemented activities as literacy classes which were a part of the Non-Formal Education system.  ICC was the first group to begin the process.  CARE joined ICC to further the program.  MoEYS completed the collaboration of the BE Project.  Planning workshop for BE

11/20/2016 Key factors encouraged MoEYS to replicate the programme:  Open new education horizon for ethnic minority group.  Adaptation of stakeholders.  Sustainability.

BE Situation Continue to implement: Ratanakiri and Mondulkiri: The POE Ratanakiri expanded to 04 community schools and 06 state schools. There are four community schools in Mondulkiri, the one using the state school will be moved to locate in the village of the ethnic minority group

Organizing Steung Treng: Late start implementing the program. 1)Too few key personnel in the POE 2) the language barrier. The POE Steung Treng sends their community teachers to Ratanakiri to be trained by CARE-POE.

Stop implementing Preah Vihea and Kraties stopped implementing their programme after only one year. However, there is evidence to indicate that some children were able to begin learning the national language after one year of using their mother tongue in a learning situation.

Lessons Learned Difficulties  Not enough teachers come from the community. Good things:  The community needs schools using the mother tongue (native language):  The community collaborated on many activities.  Parents want their own community teachers using the mother tongue for their children.  An educational system was made sustainable in their own community.

 Parents involved in their school activities as community social events and are proud that they learn from their children.  Pupils gained more understanding of the value of education. The PITs gain more experiences: The PITs realize the potential of the native language and culture for enhancing reading comprehension. Teachers become resourceful and creative in their teaching.

Curriculum development:  The MoEYS textbooks have been translated into the mother tongue using national script.  Five dialects have been developed and additional reading books are being prepared in competence reading and literacy skills. PITs gain more understanding on implementation: PITs have turned the difficulties in the project into opportunities for change: Teacher selection, Assistant Teacher and Teacher Training

Recommendations:  Increase the number of teachers in the ethnic minority areas.  Coordinate and collaborate with education partners to continue the BE project.  Encourage government teachers to be placed in the BE areas in the community schools.

Conclusion: The community needs the mother tongue to be used in the classrooms, The MoEYS and RGC are wanting the ethnic minority group to achieve EFA goal on time. Neither of these goals are exceptional. The BE should be reducing the length of the bridge (from three grades to one or shorter is the best), otherwise the students continue to learn their own dialect more than the national language. Therefore the goal of learning the national language is not achieved.

Thank you