The translation of physics, chemistry, and mathematics textbooks into the Hausa language by the Bayero University Kano (BUK) has sparked a series of debates on social media.

WuzupNigeria earlier reported that a Twitter user Muhd El-Bonga Ibrahim/@El_bonga had quoted the team of translators led by Professor Aliyu Mu’azu as saying a total of eight textbooks in the field of science were translated to help primary and secondary school students to learn well especially in the northern region.

Books in the field of science and technology were reportedly translated in a move that is believed would aid learning and teaching.

Reacting to the report, a Nigerian linguist and writer, Kola Tubosun described the development as a challenge to the rest of Nigeria and implied that it could make Hausa speakers outpace the rest of the country in the sciences and innovation.

Tubosun who led a team that gave Google Maps and other Google products a Nigerian voice accent, however, said it would make more impact if it begins from the primary school level.

In a thread of tweets via his handle he wrote:

“When, in a couple of generations, Hausa speakers begin to outpace the rest of the country in the sciences and innovation, let no one blame anything but our own refusal to set the same smart and solid foundation.

“Change comes from doing things differently. The early African kings who sent their servants/slaves abroad, instead of their own children — because they were suspicious of the motives of the foreigners — regretted it in a few generations. That’s how I think about it.

“After the January 1966 coup, Northern Nigerian families started sending more of their children into the military. A seemingly insignificant idea changed their place in Nigerian leadership for decades. This is one of those types of ideas. It also happens to be a smart one.

“A caveat: This would make sense to begin at the primary level (as the National Policy on Education recommends) rather than university. But certainly a move in the right direction.”

However, popular economic analyst Feyi Fawehinmi has disagreed with Tubosun’s stance on the development.

READ ALSO: Bayero University translates physics, chemistry and maths textbooks to Hausa, Twitter reacts

Fawehinmi described as a “big lie” popular saying that it is ‘easier’ to teach in indigenous languages.

“A country has not made ANY serious attempt at boosting teaching has found a silver bullet of teaching in indigenous languages,” he said as he counters Tubosun’s stance.

Fawehinmi wrote in a thread of tweets via his handle @DoupleEph:

“It’s been 200yrs since the Germans wrote down the Hausa language. Just do your Yoruba nationalism with your chest so those of us who have no time for that narrow world can attack you properly for it. Instead of this ‘innovation’ fake news

“cHiLdReN lEaRn bEtTeR wHen tAuGhT iN lOcAl LAnGuAgeS.

“Control for culture of literacy and come back to us. But don’t worry, Babs Fafunwa researched this decades ago so the matter is ‘closed’

“A country has not made ANY serious attempt at boosting teaching has found a silver bullet of teaching in indigenous languages. May your children never be victims of African intellectuals. There is no fantasy they see they don’t fall in love with. Bring back Ujamaa and they’ll

“Many years ago, we sent my grandmother to adult literacy classes in Yoruba. With hindsight it was a mistake – the only thing she ended up reading was the Yoruba bible. Imagine if she had learnt English. A whole world would have opened up to her.

“Yesterday I wanted to buy a few fiction books. I don’t buy much fiction and i was just amazed at how cheap books were. Books that won all sorts of awards can be had for less than £5. With £100, you will read for a year and not finish them

The biggest lie they’ll tell you is that it is ‘easier’ to teach in indigenous languages. Big lie. Children will pick up any language in a short amount of time. The key variable is the quality of teaching

“What’s required is simply to get kids over the line with reading English. All the material is already available and in a language that opens up the world to them. But you want to teach them to read in a language of a culture that’s been oral for centuries

It makes sense to teach a Jewish kid in local languages. Why? Because the Talmud alone is over 2,700 pages printed. Plus thousands of other materials WRITTEN DOWN over thousands of years.

“But without this body of documented instruction, somehow lets use children as guinea pigs for this local language fantasy. Which will then transfer power to the gatekeepers who will choose what to translate and how to translate it

“Kind of like putting Onye Nkuzi in charge of education…lol. Good morning class! What did we learn yesterday? “China good! Western conservatives bad!”

“Let me go and continue my Born On A Tuesday. Thank God it was written in English so I can access a culture I would have known nothing about.”

 

 

See Fawehinmi’s tweet:

It’s been 200yrs since the Germans wrote down the Hausa language. Just do your Yoruba nationalism with your chest so those of us who have no time for that narrow world can attack you properly for it. Instead of this ‘innovation’ fake news https://t.co/r4LhUCkgPM

— tyro (@DoubleEph) January 8, 2020