Spoken L1 Language: Western Frisian

Comments on subclassification

Markey, Thomas L. 1981: 174-175 Heeringa, Wilbert 2005 Klaas F. van der Veen 2001

AES status:
not endangered
Source:
Campbell, Lyle and Lee, Nala Huiying and Okura, Eve and Simpson, Sean and Ueki, Kaori 2022
Comment:
West Frisian (10425-fry) = At risk (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available) (Preschools are mainly in Dutch, but Frisian is allowed as well. Some 20% of the preschools are joined in the SFBO, the Association of Frisian-language Childcare. These preschools are usually bilingual Dutch and Frisian. In primary education Frisian has been a mandatory subject in all school years since 1980. Attainment targets for proficiency, vocabulary and language attitude have been prescribed by the government. However, inspections have shown that primary schools generally do not meet these targets, even after they were lowered in 2006. Official regulations do not specify how much time per week ought to be dedicated to Frisian. On average, primary schools spend some 40 minutes a week on Frisian, either by using the provincially sponsored learning method, using own materials, or by watching Frisian television. 55% of all primary school teachers are qualified to teach Frisian and in 40% of the primary schools Frisian is taught by unqualified teachers. The position of Frisian is much stronger in trilingual primary schools, where Frisian, Dutch and English are languages of instructions. Typically, Frisian has a share of 50% of the curriculum in the first six years and 40% in the years 7 and 8 (next to 50% Dutch, and 40% Dutch and 20% English respectively). Of all primary schools in the province 17% are either certified as trilingual schools or in the process of attaining the certification. Unlike normal primary schools, trilingual schools to tend to meet the attainment targets set by the government. According to law, Frisian is compulsory as a subject in the first half of secondary education. However, in practice, it is generally confined to a single hour in the first year. Frisian ought to be an optional subject in the second half of secondary education, but only some schools in fact offer this possibility. The number of pupils doing an exam in Frisian at the end of secondary school has risen from 46 pupils in 2011 to 85 pupils in 2015. In addition, there are three trilingual secondary schools, in which Frisian is language of instruction in at least one group for at least subject. At the university level a Frisian programme is offered within the bachelor programme of Minorities and Multilingualism at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen. The programme teaches Frisian writing proficiency as well as Frisian linguistics, literature, cultural history and Old Frisian. The University of Amsterdam offers a smaller programme (minor) in Frisian language. A teaching education programme for Frisian is provided for as an optional trajectory at the Stenden University for Applied Sciences in Leeuwarden. The AFUK provides adult education in Frisian language for native speakers and beginners at different levels.)

(see Hilton et al. 2015)

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References

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