In order for this to be possible, the majority of these communities had to create a written system for their languages from scratch, participating in “ Alphabet Design Workshops” co-sponsored by the Department of Education, national universities, and NGOs (particularly SIL International). Through the efforts of communities, churches, NGOs and the government, over 400 vernacular languages were gradually phased in for use in local elementary schools. Soon officially recognized by the provinces, this approach had attained national technical and financial support by 1986. With support from churches and NGOs, they developed local-language pre-primary schools called “Viles Tok Ples Priskuls”. However, some communities began to feel that English-language schooling was resulting in children’s cultural alienation. Since 1976, schools were legally allowed to use the vernacular in Grades 1 and 2 when necessary for specific explanations-but government funding was only available for English-language teachers and materials, making English medium of instruction the norm. Papua New Guinea’s Constitution (1975) treats the nation’s cultural and linguistic diversity as a source of strength.
As of independence in 1975, the vast majority of these languages were still unwritten. In addition to its three official languages, Papua New Guinea has over 800 living local languages, spoken by small communities scattered across the islands’ diverse ecological settings. In Papua New Guinea, more than 400 local languages have been used for initial mother tongue instruction, but there has recently been a turn back towards English.
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