Information Bulletin
19 March 2007
Shetland Dialect in Pre-School Education
The Shetland Dialect should be used more widely and more frequently as an integral part of pre-school education.
This is one of the findings of a recent survey of Shetland dialect in Local Authority Nursery Classes and Partner Providers carried out by the Schools Service by Frances Tait, Graduate Placement, as part of the Creative Links Project.
All pre-school staff interviewed during the survey considered the promotion of Shetland Dialect as an important element of pre-school education in Shetland. “It is part of Shetland’s heritage,” said one nursery teacher “it would be awful if the dialect was to disappear in one generation.” Despite this consensus, dialect resources are in short supply and dialect is not integrated regularly into topics and projects across the curriculum.
Figures gathered during the survey suggest almost half of children in pre-school education at the present time, speak the dialect to varying degrees. This is based on estimates but provides an indication of how widely it is used by young children in everyday conversation. Many pre-school staff interviewed described the children as speaking a “mixture of Shetland and English”.
It was also found that almost three quarters of all pre-school staff speak the dialect. The extent to which they use the dialect when speaking to children is dependant on the individual, the child or group and the situation.
This survey of Dialect in Pre-schools follows the Dialect Survey of Shetland Primary Schools, 2005 carried out for Shetland ForWirds. Together the findings of these surveys help to reveal details about current practice and attitudes with regards to dialect in education. Recommendations were made following both surveys to help ensure teaching staff, including non dialect speakers, are provided with support and resources to enable them to use the dialect more confidently and more frequently as an integral part of the curriculum.
Developing and improving the provision of dialect resources suitable for pre-school education is now the main objective. Rhymes, poems, stories and songs in dialect are used within pre-school settings but not regularly. The Education Service produced Dialect Resource Packs in 1996, but these are not widely used within nurseries and playgroups. One member of staff who used the pack said “the bairns do enjoy it” but many felt the material was irrelevant to children in today’s society and should be up-dated.
During the survey of dialect in pre-schools, staff showed great enthusiasm and willingness to use and develop dialect resources. New resources are now being developed with teacher’s participation through a series of workshops, to ensure the material is relevant and useful. It is hoped that dialect resources will be developed and distributed to pre-school settings throughout Shetland in the near future.
Nationally the importance of learning about culture and language is being recognised. Children should have the opportunity to learn and enjoy their own cultural heritage and in Shetland dialect is an important part of this. As suggested in the Shetland Cultural Strategy, cultural participation is beneficial to both individuals and the community. It can raise confidence and self esteem, contribute to children’s understanding of place and community and encourage links across the generations.
For more information contact Noelle Henderson, Shetland Islands Council’s Creative Links Officer at noelle.henderson@shetland.gov.uk, or Frances Tait, at frances.tait@shetland.gov.uk, or call 01595 744941.
Ends.