Set of Learning Materials

Facts concerning dialect variation, usage, and a standard literary language can lead to determining how many sets of learning materials will be required. Where possible, this information has been included, along with an indication of the dialect(s) on which such materials should be based. However, since this is the first compilation of its type and because complete data are lacking in many instances, it should be viewed as suggestive, as grounds for discussion rather than as absolutely definitive.

Resources

Our aim has been to include as resources all individuals and institutions carrying out work in some way pertinent to the teaching of these 82 language headings. Pertinent includes, but is not limited to, theoretical and social linguistics, language teaching, translation, and language planning.

To identify these individuals and institutions, we assembled a list that included universities, government agencies, and private organizations (including missionary societies) throughout the world which in our opinion might possibly be involved in the study of African languages. We wrote to determine whether in fact they were, and if so asked them to complete a questionnaire (see Appendix D) concerning the nature of those activities.

Specifically we wanted to know with which of these languages they were working, the nature of that work (teaching, materials development, evaluation), the names of other individuals doing similar work, and the names of other individuals and institutions outside the United States, especially in Africa, involved in the same area.

This procedure produced direct information and also provided the names of individuals and institutions we could then question in the same way. In addition, we took other steps to help ensure thorough coverage. (1) We combed through membership lists of the Modern Language Association and the Linguistic Society of America (here we were especially interested in names with African addresses). We also had access to the membership lists of conferences likely to attract individuals with an interest in African languages, such as the 1983 Conference on African Linguistics held in Madison. (2) We culled surveys of African language instructional materials for authors, including those compiled by the Center for Applied Linguistics and ACCT, which focuses on the languages of Francophone Africa. (3) We consulted general reference works, such as the Bibliographic Linguistica, looking particularly for authors of pertinent technical articles written within the last five years. (4) We announced in journals and at professional meetings the purpose of our project and our interest in obtaining names of individuals and institutions in this regard. We would like to express here our appreciation to the editors of Studies in African Linguistics and Journal of African Languages and Linguistics for publishing these announcements.

These procedures led to the construction of a sizable list of individuals. As in the case of institutions, we sent questionnaires (see Appendix E) asking about the nature of their work and also requesting referrals to other individuals and institutions, especially in Africa, doing similar work.

Although we feel we have made every effort to be thorough we do wish to apologize for any omissions. Anyone interested is invited to fill out a copy of the revised questionnaire ( see Appendix K) and send it to us at the address indicated on the form.

Since the information requested was quite extensive, sorting and systematizing it turned out to be a very demanding task; the database system "crashed" once during the project, necessitating a complete reworking of the data. An additional problem concerned how much information to include in the listings, especially in light of the variability in responses (in some instances, for example, we received conflicting information). We decided to list any individual or institution for whom or which there appeared sufficient information to suggest that work (teaching or research) was being carried out with respect to that language. Also, because of space limitations, the list is restricted to a brief indication of areas of current activity. Needless to say, further information can be acquired by contacting the institution or individual.

Materials Evaluations

While draft versions of this handbook did contain evaluations of the materials given in this document, the evaluations were omitted from this version because of considerations of space and the unevenness of the evaluations.

Materials Available

The intent of the materials section was to include literature (mainly of book length) relevant to the language(s) in question. This category was broken down into (1) learning materials, both basic texts and supplementary materials; (2) descriptive materials, with preference given to reference grammars; (3) dictionaries; (4) readers and reading materials; and (5) other, which included miscellaneous materials of possible value.

Because the depth of coverage varied among languages, the criteria governing what to include varied as well. For those language headings for which such materials were scant, the criteria were somewhat relaxed.

Our procedure for assembling the bibliographies began with collecting entries from known African language bibliographies (such as Johnson et al. (1976)), those on individual languages (such as Duthie and Vlaardingerbroek (1981)), and those sent by individuals contacted during the project. These raw data were fed into a computer program to be sorted by language heading, type of material, and alphabetical order. This listing was then transferred to a word processor for editing. The edited copies were sent, along with evaluations, to the materials evaluators for correction and updating. An additional updating of the bibliographies was undertaken in 1990.

While every effort has been made to provide a complete listing of relevant material, we fear it is not yet complete, since we continue to discover entries that ought to be included.

Updating the Handbook

This handbook is a first attempt to assemble in one volume a listing of the institutional, individual, and material resources for the study of African languages of the highest priority (from the standpoint of their teaching and learning in the United States). Such a task, as a first step, will inevitably have omissions, inaccuracies, and errors; for these the author, despite the assistance of literally hundreds of scholars around the world, takes full responsibility. We would appreciate hearing from those using the forms in Appendices K and L so that additions or corrections may be made in the event this project is updated.

Originally, the directory also included a ninth category - materials evaluations - which has been omitted here.

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