Taalbeleidshersiening en die ontplanning van Afrikaans aan die Universiteit van die Vrystaat Translated title: Language policy review and the unplanning of Afrikaans at the University of the Free State

Abstract

Taalontplanning is 'n onderwerp wat nie dikwels in die taalbeplanningsliteratuur voorkom nie. Van die enkele studies op die terrein ondersoek weliswaar die reëlmatige 'ontdoening' van vorige 'doenings'-aksies, maar dié studies konsentreer op taalkorpusbeplanning. Die skynbare verskraling van Afrikaans se posisie as hoëronderwystaal van Suid-Afrika laat die vraag ontstaan of ontdoeningsaksies met betrekking tot taalstatus- en taalfunksiebeplanning ook as taalontplanning beskou kan word. Omdat die onderhawige geval met ingrypende taalbeleidshersienings verbind kan word, ondersoek hierdie studie die verband tussen beleidshersiening - soms die agilleshiel van universiteite genoem - en taalontplanning. Die kollig val op die Universiteit van die Vrystaat (UV) se uitfasering van Afrikaans as hooftaal sedert 2015. Daar word in die aangebode studie gesteun op 'n analise van gedokumenteerde bewyse van taalbeleidshersiening aan die UV sedert die dringende noodsaak daaraan in 2008 deur twee nasionaal-gegenereerde eksterne verslae uitgewys is. Na aanleiding van voorskrifte omtrent beleidshersiening vervat in die UV se 2005-metabeleid en voorskrifte omtrent spesifiek taalbeleidswysigings vervat in die 2003- institusionele taalbeleid word uitstaande momente in taalbeleidshersiening aan hierdie instelling saaklik behandel. Die studie bevind dat beleidskontinuïteit 'n sleutelbegrip is om te kan onderskei tussen twee duidelike fases in taalbeleidshersiening aan die UV, 'n post-2008 tydperk waarin sodanige kontinuïteit nagestreef word, ofskoon relatief ingrypende wysigings desondanks deurgevoer word, teenoor die tydperk vanaf 2015 waarin taalbeleidskontinuïteit doelbewus verbreek word. Dit blyk dat die verskyning van 'n interne transformasieverslag teen die einde van 2014 'n sleutelrol gespeel het om hierdie koerswysiging te bewerkstellig en daarmee die weg help voorberei het vir die georkestreerde stigmatisering van parallelmediumonderrig (en deur assosiasie daarmee ook Afrikaans). So kon 'n intellektuele klimaat geskep word om met ontdoeningsaksies op gang te kon kom waardeur die ontplanning van Afrikaans aan die UV taalbeleidsmatig geïnstitusionaliseer kon word.

Translated abstract

Language unplanning is a topic that seldom features in language planning literature. Studies in the field that investigate the regular 'undoing' of previous language planning actions largely concentrate on language corpus planning. The apparent attenuation of the position of Afrikaans as higher education language of South Africa leads to questions whether the undoing of language status and function planning could also be considered as unplanning language. As the given case could be linked to radical language policy reviews, this study investigates the relation between policy review - sometimes called the Achilles heel of universities - and language unplanning. The spotlight falls on the phasing out of Afrikaans as main language at the University of the Free State (UFS) since 2015. Essentially this study relies on an analysis of documented evidence of language policy review at the UFS, since the urgency of this was pointed out in 2008 by two nationally generated external reports. Based on the UFS's 2005 meta-policy requirements concerning policy review and its 2003 language policy requirements on language policy review, significant moments related to language policy review at this institution are discussed briefly. The study finds that policy continuity is a key concept in differentiating between two distinctive phases in language policy review at the UFS, a post-2008 period during which language policy continuity is pursued, although relatively radical changes are implemented notwithstanding, compared to the period from 2015, when language policy continuity was deliberately negated. It transpired that an internal transformation report released at the end of 2014 played a key role to effect this turn of the tide, paving the way for the orchestrated stigmatisation of parallel-medium teaching (and, by implication, also Afrikaans). Consequently, an intellectual climate could be cultivated that inspired undoing actions through which the unplanning of Afrikaans at the UFS could be institutionalised by means of a revised language policy.