Sunday, April 18, 2010

WHY IS CREOLE SPOKEN SO POPULARLY?

1.It is the major vehicle of social and national solidarity, identity and the general population

2.It is the preferred language of popular entertainment eg.disc jockeys and poets. It is the language of choice for most cultural entertainment eg. Folk songs, Anancy Stories and Big Bwoy Stories. It is used for poetry, comedy, and roots play. It is used when giving examples in speech in order to put a point across effectively. Lastly it is used by street folks, in that being street smart requires the use of Creole, not Standard English.

3.Jamaican Creole is marketable, and is far more lucrative than Standard English. Eg. slangs and slogans used on personal items such as cars, cups, and clothes. It is used in advertisement, when soliciting sale for goods, when giving humour, jokes, description of person and their dress and appearance as well as on souvenir items.

4.Creole is used as the vernacular of socialization and creates a sense of familiarity in conversations and approaches to others.

5.In some learning situation it is the preferred language to be used.

For example:
a.When students at the primary or pre-primary levels find it easier to understand concepts taught using Jamaican Creole.

b.It gives students the sense that Jamaican Creole is an authentic language and a symbol of their culture.

c.Both students and teachers will recognize structural differences between English and Creole and are better able to correct them.

d.It helps the teacher to better understand students’ errors and to therefore make plans for delivering instructions more effectively.

e.It builds students’ self-confidence, self-esteem and knowledge.

f.Creole speaking children sometimes perform poorly in school because they do not readily join in discussions because they are often told that they (talk bad).

As a language the Jamaican Creole is used in public, private and informal situations. It is the language of the street, a vehicle for expression of our heritage and cultural identity; and despite what some persons might want others to think, the language is used in all strata of our society.

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