Thinking in isiXhosa, Writing in English

Acknowledging the presence of multilingualism within the South African classroom is now an accepted norm. Both teachers and students acknowledge their own mother tongue, as well as the language of instruction and assessment, which is usually English. What is not acknowledged is the personal and individual student experience of language: what do students feel as they negotiate words, phrases, sentences and paragraphs into their spoken and written communication? What is their experience as they think in isiXhosa, translate into spoken English, then convert into English for academic purposes? This paper examines the personal narrative of four students who describe their experience of being mother tongue isiXhosa speakers trying to succeed in an education context where the language of instruction is English. It relates their achievements, strengths and fears, exposing an underlying teaching and learning crisis that is silently present in every multilingual South African classroom. Their experience relates directly to re-educating the teacher in terms of methodology, assessment and classroom interaction. Negotiating personal experience based on language has the potential for diverse pathways for education in multilingual contexts.