Monday, August 8, 2011

Comprehension-Based Language Learning – A Missionaries’ Perspective

Last month we looked at comprehension-based language learning from a student's perspective. This month we will get a glimpse of what this method of language learning looks like on the mission field.

John Michael George arrived in Papua New Guinea a number of months ago. He is in the process of learning the national language of P.N.G. In a recent newsletter he wrote:

You may picture this as us sitting in classrooms all day, but in actuality we have yet to sit in a single classroom. In fact, aside from our periodic proficiency check-ups, it's pretty much up to us to learn the language. Now it's not that New Tribes Mission is lazy and doesn't want to teach us. In fact, it's just the opposite. You see, once we move into a tribal location there will be no classrooms, no teachers, not even a written language. It will be our job to be self-motivated enough to get out of the house and live life with the locals enough to gain exposure to their language. Also, it's important to build good and loving relationship with the people. What good would it be to speak their language if we don't have a close enough relationship with them and haven't earn the right to speak truth to them. That is why NTM doesn't really teach in a classroom type setting here in Wewak Papua New Guinea. This time here is vital for us to get a feel for what it will be like trying to learn a tribal language on our own. So now each and every day is spent learning language, just not in a traditional setting.

We go to the markets to buy our food and spend time asking about the different produce. "What kind of fish is this? (Wanem kain pis?);" "Is this ripe? (Em i mau?);" or "How do you cook this sweet potato? (Olsem wanem yu kukim dispela kaukau?)" We make local friends and go to their homes regularly and sit under their houses for a talk. We usually record them and at night listen to them over and over again on the computer. We take the public buses instead of using the base vehicles to learn what's customary and what's not.

This way of learning language seems a lot harder at first and seems like it is taking me much longer. However, I know this time will be invaluable once we move in with a tribe. We will have a framework of how to begin, and how to initiate learning.

Learning a tribal language is difficult work. The preparation our students receive here at the Missionary Training Center helps to make that job a bit easier.