Language Policy and Practice in Tanzania and South Africa: Comparative Perspectives on Policy, Challenges, and Scholarly Debates.

Abstract

This article examines how language policies in Tanzania and South Africa shape the role of indigenous African languages and English as the language of learning and teaching. While both countries have made efforts to promote linguistic inclusion, English continues to dominate educational systems, creating persistent tensions between policy intentions and classroom realities. Drawing on a secondary qualitative analysis of existing scholarship, the study situates these policies within postcolonial and decolonization frameworks, while also engaging the concept of linguistic capital in the context of globalization. The paper argues that language policies in both countries reproduce forms of linguistic hegemony that limit equitable access to education, particularly for students from marginalized backgrounds.

In Tanzania, the transition from Kiswahili to English in secondary education creates barriers to comprehension and knowledge acquisition. In South Africa, despite a progressive multilingual policy framework, the continued dominance of English reflects an unresolved hierarchy of languages. By comparing these two contexts, the article highlights the structural gap between policy and practice and demonstrates how global economic pressures continue to privilege English over indigenous languages. It concludes that meaningful educational access depends on the sustained integration of indigenous languages as primary media of instruction, rather than their symbolic inclusion within policy frameworks.

Keywords: language of learning and teaching, indigenous African languages, linguistic hegemony, globalization, language policy, Kiswahili