TOP matric achievers for 2022 in Gauteng were given certificates for their outstanding performance in home language subjects, including South African Sign Language.
The award ceremony was held at Ekurhuleni School for the Deaf on Thursday, 16 February, in line with the commemoration of International Mother Language Day.
The occasion was organised by the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), Gauteng Department of Education and the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture.
Overall, 33 awards were presented to pupils from various public and private schools.
The recipients came from more than 33 schools, including Hoerskool Menlopark, Diepsloot West Secondary School and Filadelfia Secondary School.
Sisipho Dazana, a matric pupil at Kaalfontein Secondary School, got the top spot in Xhosa while Albert Wilsenach from Hoerskool Menlopark came first in Afrikaans.
Additionally, 30 other pupils also received recognition for their academic achievements.
ALSO READ | Mzansi stars having great time at NBA All Star GamesOpens in new window
This year's commemoration of International Mother Language Day, scheduled to be held on Tuesday, 21 February, will be under the theme: "Multilingualism education - a necessity to transform education."
PanSALB spokeswoman Ntombentle Huluhulu told Daily Sun that they were proud of the dedication shown by the pupils.
"We are reassured that our languages will not die, but will be used, preserved and celebrated," said Huluhulu.
Huluhulu said the PanSALB experienced issues such as that there were no registrations for Siswati at National Senior Certificate level last year.
"This is quite disappointing since Gauteng prides itself on being home to all the languages of South Africa," she said.
She said PanSALB takes this decline in the use of Siswati in Gauteng very seriously.
You must be SIGNED IN to read comments
"The Gauteng Provincial Language Committee will be devising strategies to mitigate the threat to the use of Siswati to promote it as a subject in Gauteng schools," said Huluhulu.
Education MEC Matome Chiloane said the event was part of their efforts to celebrate andpromote the use of mother tongues and cultural diversity.
"I will borrow words from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation 2019 brief which says, ‘when a language is lost, it is not only the words and their meaning that disappear'.
"It also involves a loss of unique cultural knowledge embodied in the language for centuries, including historical, spiritual and ecological knowledge," said the MEC.
