CULTURE IN A BILINGUAL KINDERGARTEN CLASSROOM : AN ETHNOGRAPHIC CASE STUDY

Abstract

The dissertation investigates a kindergarten by means of the Ethnography Of Speaking approach. The classroom is one of the many speech situations where we can uncover a set of rules of speaking shared by the teacher and pupils. Furthermore, since the classroom is situated within a larger· community, it makes sense to discover the relations between the community's values and those of the classroom. The bilingual English-Malay kindergarten classroom focused on in the study has been seen to emphasize that many of the values promoted in the classroom are rooted in the Malay culture. Importance is given to cleanliness, discipline and proper behaviour. The pupils are encouraged to help one another and share their food, a reflection of the Malays stress on gotong-royong (mutual self help) and kerjasama (cooperation). Competition is not overtly encouraged; rather the teacher prompts the pupils to complete any work by calling on them to persevere. Religion, which is one of the three indications of Malay identity, appears in its curriculum in the form of prayer recitals. Although it is not taught as a subject, the inclusion of prayers indicates the attempt to introduce the Islamic way of life to these children. From observing the conduct of the participants, we can deduce that individualism and competitiveness are not promoted. Individual answers, even though they are right, are never praised by the teacher. The teacher usually feigns ‘deafness’ and prompts for the whole class to give the answer in a chorus. The rules of speaking in the classroom also bear a resemblance to the communication pattern of child-adult interaction in the community. Firstly, she does not acknowledge unsolicited individual contributions that interrupt her speech. Secondly, the pupils are not required to "display" their knowledge. Both participants seem to acknowledge that it is the teacher who occupies the superordinate role in the interaction, who is to supply new information and to "display" her knowledge. Thirdly, the teacher takes the trouble to teach the pupils the polite form of answering questions, since a mark of respect to an elder addressee is politeness in response. Lastly, the children are never observed to question the teacher except in requests for assistance. Their questions are not for information, reasons or challenge, but for help. The correlation of classroom values, as reflected by the teacher's and pupils' speech and action, and the socio-cultural values of the larger Malay community in Singapore, suggests that the socio-cultural beliefs of the community affect not only the social proceedings, rules and organization of the classroom, but also its use of speech or language.