PROMOTING SCOTLAND'S LANGUAGES AS CULTURAL EXPRESSIONS AND AS MEANS
OF ACCESSING SCOTLAND'S CULTURE
CONSERVING, PRESENTING, AND PROMOTING INTEREST IN AND KNOWLEDGE OF
SCOTLAND'S HISTORY AND CULTURAL HERITAGE
PROMOTING INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL EXCHANGE AND DIALOGUE.
Culture is not just another word for 'tradition'; to survive it must
be dynamic and relevant to life in Scotland today and, most importantly,
it needs to look forward and be responsive to national and global changes.
We believe that the arts and other expressions of culture have the power
to enrich everybody's day to day lives in significant ways. Our heritage
is as much about our future as it is about our past.
Promoting Scotland's languages as cultural expressions and as means
of accessing Scotland's culture
Language lies at the heart of any culture.
A diverse range of languages and dialects is spoken in Scotland. English,
as a dominant international language can be regarded as both asset and
threat. It enables Scotland's citizens to communicate readily with the
many English speakers from other countries while maintaining the identity
associated with the distinctive Scottish accents. However, the dominant
position of English arguably has a negative effect upon Scotland's other
languages and dialects and, more generally, upon people's motivation to
learn languages of other countries.
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An Example of Multilingual Multimedia:
Looking for Vikings; Air Lorg nan Lochlannach; Vikinger I Sigte;
Ar Thòir na Lochlannach
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A series of multilingual multimedia programmes has been produced
by the National Museums of Scotland's Multimedia Team Ltd. These
demonstrate the potential for combining language and material culture
as an effective education resource for formal and informal learning.
The CD-ROM Looking for Vikings, pressed in 1998, was produced in
English, Gaelic, Irish and Danish. It was distributed free to all
schools in Ireland, Scotland and Denmark and is retailed by each
of the museums at an educational price. The project was supported
by the National Museums of Ireland, Denmark and Scotland as an EU
Raphael Project. In Scotland, Comataidh Craolaidh Gaidhlig gave
additional support.
Looking for Vikings investigates how the historical Vikings are
regarded by the Irish, Scots and Danes today and how they were viewed
in the past. The programme looks at the hard archaeological evidence
and what it tells us about how the Vikings saw themselves. The programme
draws on the three museums' considerable expertise in Viking studies
and their unique collections of Viking resources.
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The Executive values language diversity. National Guidelines 5-14 for
schools recommend that all pupils should have opportunities to reflect
upon their own use of language and to develop 'a conviction of the worth
of their own accents and dialects'. They also recommend that teachers
should foster 'respect for and interest in each pupil's mother tongue
and its literature, whether English, Scots, Gaelic, Urdu, Punjabi, Cantonese
or any other'.
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Fèisean nan Gàidheal
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Fèisean nan Gàidheal is the National Association
of Gaelic Arts Youth Tuition Festivals. It was established in 1988
as the independent umbrella association of the Fèis movement.
Fèisean have existed in Gaelic Scotland since 1981, when
a group of people on the Isle of Barra organised a tuition festival
aimed at reversing the decline of traditional Gaelic music, song
and dance arts.
Today, 31 Fèisean are members of Fèisean nan Gàidheal,
including groups in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen. The movement
is community-based and has received support from both the Scottish
Arts Council and Highland Council. It offers grant-aid, training
programmes, insurance and many other services to its members, including
a regular newsletter entitled Faileas.
In 1998/99 3,500 young people took part in the Fèisean,
with 132 tutors employed to teach them. The communities themselves
raised about half the costs.
Fèisean nan Gàidheal currently has three members
of staff, a full-time development officer and a part-time development
director and administrator. Fèisean currently provide employment
for the equivalent of 15.1 full-time posts.
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Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic is unique to Scotland and is spoken by 1.4%
of the population. The Scottish Executive values Gaelic as an important
part of Scotland's living cultural heritage. It has a vigorous programme
to encourage the use of the language and its transmission to the next
generation. This involves specific grants for Gaelic-medium education,
grants to a number
of organisations concerned with Gaelic andwith Gaelic culture, and funding
for Gaelic broadcasting. As a result:
- There are now 59 primary schools offering Gaelic-medium education
- Improved teaching materials are being developed and steps are being
taken to increase the supply of Gaelic-medium teachers
- Sabhal Mor Ostaig, the Gaelic college on Skye, provides a programme
of courses related to and largely taught through the medium of Gaelic
- The Gaelic Broadcasting Committee currently funds about 160 hours
of Gaelic programmes annually
- Proiseact nan Ealan, successfully promotes Gaelic arts across a range
of media
- The Task Force on Gaelic Broadcasting, chaired by Alasdair Milne,
has recently proposed a set of measures for the development of a Gaelic
broadcasting service.
Scots
The Scots language continues to be widely spoken today and has a long
and important history. It is a living language, and is the subject of
increasing academic study and discussion. A group of university staff
and others concerned with both Scots and Gaelic have recently put forward
a proposal for a centre for the languages of Scotland. This could provide
a framework for the extensive data held on the languages by various bodies,
including the Scottish National Dictionary, supported by SAC, and the
dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue, supported by the universities.
A feasibility study is planned.
Other languages
A wide range of languages other than English, Scots
and Gaelic is spoken in Scotland, representing the culturally diverse
nature of the population and recent patterns of settlement. It is important
that there are opportunities for all Scots to celebrate their language
and traditions and to participate fully in the cultural life of their
own community and of Scotland. The different languages and dialects spoken
in Scotland provide clear links with the family and community traditions
which enrich our culture. We shall establish an action group to investigate
how the languages and cultural traditions of Scotland's ethnic minorities
can be supported.
>>Actions to promote the languages spoken in Scotland
We shall:
- Continue to support, where demand is sufficient, Gaelic-medium pre-school
and primary education
- Examine the feasibility of a centre for the languages of Scotland
covering Gaelic and the varieties of Scots which could incorporate the
Scottish National Dictionary
- Ensure that through their initial training and continuing professional
development, teachers are well prepared to promote and develop all pupils'
language skills
- Continue to support the production of education resources which encourage
language diversity and learning about all the languages spoken in Scotland
- Establish an action group to consider how the languages and cultural
traditions of Scotland's ethnic minorities can be supported and how
their contribution to Scotland's culture can be recognised and celebrated.
CONSERVING, PRESENTING AND PROMOTING INTEREST IN AND KNOWLEDGE OF
SCOTLAND'S HISTORY AND CULTURAL HERITAGE
The way in which Scotland's heritage is presented and celebrated has
a continuing effect on how we see ourselves as national and world citizens.
Heritage encompasses both the modern and ancient, myth and reality. History
is both a facet of national culture and a means of its transmission, particularly
through the process of formal education and the presentation of Scotland's
heritage to a wider public. The education system has a key role to play,
as do national agencies with the responsibility for conserving and presenting
the evidence of Scotland's past.
History education
It is unrealistic to expect that every school can provide a comprehensive
history of Scotland. There are many other pressures on the curriculum.
It is, however, reasonable to assume that children and young people in
Scotland should gain from formal education an overview of Scotland's past
which allows them to set their own society in context. By studying Scottish
history, they can be made aware of the influences that have affected the
development of their communities and of Scotland as a whole. The history
of Scotland should not be seen in isolation or studied from an ethnocentric
or parochial perspective. Cultural and economic relationships can be identified
between events and developments in Scotland and the rest of the United
Kingdom, Europe or the wider world. Experience has shown that with the
right materials and good teaching, children can derive lasting enjoyment
from learning about Scottish history. Our strategy is to continue to promote
interest in the history of Scotland and its people and to ensure that
all young people have an experience of Scottish history at school that
will stand them in good stead as citizens of Scotland.
The Scottish higher education institutions make a major contribution
to the cultural life of Scotland. Not only do they have a key function
in education and research, but they are also repositories of knowledge,
collections of books, manuscripts, artefacts and works of art. Most have
extensive extramural programmes, often credit bearing, which cover a wide
range of subjects. Widening access is a key priority for the higher education
sector, and current initiatives focus on the socially and economically
disadvantaged.
The natural and built heritage
Our historic environment surrounds us. Our landscape, both in the countryside
and in our towns and cities, is the product of people's activity within
the natural environment. Scottish architecture is diverse and its character
is largely determined by the local stone of the area. We conserve our
historic buildings for a variety of reasons, whether they are great houses,
ecclesiastical buildings, archaeological remains, vernacular buildings
or others. Apart from providing us with a context for our daily lives,
they are of key importance to the tourist industry, and can offer benefits
for regeneration, particularly in urban areas.
Recently, the Scottish Executive published a consultation document in
support of its commitment to develop a national policy on architecture.
The strategies for architecture and culture share much common ground and
need to be closely aligned to ensure that the contribution of bodies such
as the Scottish Arts Council can be maximised. Although the policy on
architecture is subject specific, much of what it says is relevant in
other areas which are priorities for the Scottish Executive.
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The development of a policy on architecture for Scotland
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In September 1999, the Scottish Executive published a consultation
document, the Development of a Policy on Architecture for Scotland.
This sets out the Executive's views on the social, cultural, environmental
and economic benefits of architecture; it describes the potential
role of the Executive in the promotion of policy; and it sets out
a framework for action for policy development.
The document asserts the link between architecture and culture
and sets out 3 principal reasons why the Executive has an interest
in architecture and a responsibility
for its promotion. Architecture is:
- Part of, and contributes to, a nation's heritage
- A cultural phenomenon and an important manifestation of the
cultural life of a nation
- One of the key delivery mechanisms for policies aimed at improving
social development and modernising the nation's services and infrastructure.
The document suggests that the Executive has three principal means
to affirm and promote the value of good architecture and building
design:
- Legislation, through the statutory framework that regulates
development
- Example, when commissioning its own buildings for the public
estate
- Ensuring a favourable climate in which good architecture can
flourish.
The details of the policy and a strategy for its implementation
will be announced in early 2001. It will be important to maximise
the positive interaction between that strategy and this cultural
strategy.
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