Pidgin is often criticised and condemned as a spoken language mostly because of it’s tendency to corrupt English language and make one sound “unrefined”. Not withstanding, since pidgin is “the language of the street”, should children speak pidgin to be street smart? Being street smart is an important skill to have and a good way to take care of yourself.
LagosMums put up an opinion poll on twitter asking mums if children should be able to speak pidgin. We got really interesting feedback as some parents said yes, some said no and others were undecided.
Pidgin has now become the new “cool” among our kids, no thanks to Nigerian musicians, radio stations like wazobia FM and pidgin English social networking websites. It’s inevitable that children will learn and speak pidgin at some point.
Some people believe that Pidgin distorts your grammar and it doesn’t help children learn the English language properly. So what’s the essence to a kid? Why not learn a proper Nigerian language instead. But, Pidgin is a Nigerian Language too. So what’s all the fuss about.
Come to think of it, there’s nothing wrong with Pidgin, it can open some doors same as polished English can. There are some people that can speak Pidgin and in the next minute converse in very posh English. It is all about balance and a child’s intelligence. Kids can learn as much as 5 different languages without conflicting any.
If you watch some Nollywood movies, you’ll know that it’s quite hilarious to speak “British English “ to people who can’t even speak proper Nigerian English. They’ll end up making fun of you, especially on the streets of Lagos. You know, pidgin sometimes passes some core messages better than proper English. Infact, how else will you hail your “oga at the top”?
[what is new in parenting teens]
In some homes, No pidgin english, No errors, No mispronunciation, No text words e.g Gud, l8r etc and children must always use capital letters to start a sentence until you’re 18 and you start “growing wings”. In fact, parents encourage their kids to speak like the “whites”. This is where people usually argue that we should stop trying to be like the people who colonised us.( another topic for another day). Anyway, imagine your child speaking pidgin to you… The horror!
Mum: (shouts) Stephanie!! Stephanie honey, come here for a minute please
6 year old Stephanie: Mummy, wetin… e don do, I dey come
Mum:
Having a great command of English may not necessarily give them an advantage but it sure adds to their self esteem. Then again, the chances of our children speaking Pidgin is very high because they are always going to hear it.
In your opinion, Do you think it is wise to shield our young kids from the “corrupting influence” of pidgin English. I mean “who pidgin epp”? Or should they speak pidgin to be street smart “make their eye shine well well“?
