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UWI, Mona Graduates First Cohort of Haitian Creole Participants

Forty-three participants in the Certificate course in Haitian Creole were recognized at a presentation ceremony held at The UWI, Mona recently. The participants who consisted of medical personnel, law enforcement officers and members of the Jamaica Defence Force, represent the first cohort to take part partake in such a programme. The course is the first of two, delivered by the Jamaica Language Unit (JLU) in the Department of Language, Linguistics and Philosophy, UWI, Mona. They were designed to assist in the relief efforts in Haiti by bridging the language barrier between the disaster relief experts and the Haitian population.

The cohort has achieved basic proficiency in reading, writing, listening and speaking of Haitian Creole primarily for a work context. The course exposed the participants to vocabulary, grammar, spelling and basic written and oral expression. Participants were required to pass written and oral examinations to demonstrate their competence.

Twenty-one of the participants have now advanced to the six week Level Two component of the course which will expose them to further intricacies of Haitian Creole. The course will develop the participants’ competence in the comprehension and expression of complex ideas. In addition, the course will present real life scenarios in which the participants can improve their mastery of the language and will include oral and written examinations in Haitian Creole.  Level Two runs from June 16 to July 28.

The Haitian Creole course also honours the memory of Pierre Vernet; Head of the Centre for Applied Linguistics in Haiti who died in the January 12, 2010 earthquake along with his students. The Centre is the equivalent of the JLU in Haiti, and the offering of the courses at this time is the Unit’s way of showing solidarity and recognizing the work that Dr. Vernet carried out at the Centre to promote Haitian Creole and the rights of its speakers.

This is a part of the University’s initiatives to assist in the rebuilding efforts of Haiti. The University has also established a special account, NCB Savings Account Nr 404141538, to help fund rebuilding efforts in Haiti. Additionally, it will also facilitate a cohort of final year Haitian students towards the completion of their degree programme during the upcoming academic year.


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