Figure 9. “Is knowing how to read and write Yamphu important to you?” The lowest percentage of positive responses to this question came from Khoktak 67, while the
highest percentage of positive responses came from Devitar 92. Even though language use in Hedangna is arguably the strongest in all of the Yamphu area see chapter five, the three older women
interviewed were uneducated and correlate with the “No” answers. After compiling all of the “No” answers n=12 in all the villages, all but two of the respondents both young, educated people in
Khoktak were old, uneducated females.
4.2 Appreciative Inquiry participatory method results
This tool provides insight into the hopes and dreams the Yamphu community, interviewed in Hedangna, has for their language. When asked to describe things in Yamphu they were proud of, the group listed a
calendar, alphabet book, history book, and cassettes of folk songs. They hope that someday there will be a Yamphu FM radio station, song cassettes, stories, news in Yamphu, teaching in Yamphu, and books in
Yamphu. They listed the radio station, song cassette, and stories as being harder while their goals for news, teaching, and books in Yamphu seemed easier to achieve.
4.3 Multilingual education desires
In nearly every Yamphu village we visited, we had contact with the headmasters or teachers of local schools, sometimes both. Quite often these were the people who offered their help when we needed
translation assistance. As we interacted with those involved in education, we observed and recorded information that relates to the Yamphu people’s desire for language development in the education sector.
4.3.1 Presence of Yamphu teachers
In nearly every village we visited, there were Yamphu teachers who were interested in mother tongue education or multilingual education, using Yamphu as the medium of education and literacy in primary
level classes. In some cases, these teachers are already engaged in using Yamphu in the classroom, despite the fact that they do not have any Yamphu curriculum. In Uling village we only passed through
this all-Yamphu village on the way from Hedangna to Seduwa, we met a Yamphu teacher who was highly motivated for multilingual education and who was already teaching in Yamphu. Additionally, in
Ghadi village, just a 30-minute walk southwest of Hedangna, we met all of the teachers at the local school. Every one of them is Yamphu and expressed interest in using Yamphu in the school.
The presence of Yamphu headmasters in many schools also is an advantage in gaining support for language development through education. In Hedangna, Seduwa, and Devitar, the headmasters are
Yamphu and supportive of mother tongue use. In Rajarani bazaar we visited the local school, which has classes up to plus-two. The head
administrator there is Bantawa Rai. In the school, all students take a Limbu language class. We were also able to meet two Yamphu teachers who teach in the school.
4.3.2 Belief in education as a vehicle for language maintenance and development
One of the questions we asked on the sociolinguistic questionnaire was, “When the children of your v
illage grow up and have children, do you think those children might speak your language?” Following their responses, there was also room for them to comment on their answer. Regardless of whether or not
they said “Yes” or “No,” the comments they gave afterwards are interesting. Of those who commented, 57 1221 said that children will speak it only if they study or if they are taught Yamphu. Another
question we asked was, “How would you feel if your grandchildren do not speak Yamphu?” Of those who comment
ed, in addition to their answer, 46 respondents said that “We need to teach them” or “They should study.” We also frequently heard in the course of our observations, conversations, and
interviews, that the reason children and young people are speaking less Yamphu than the previous generation is because they have to use Nepali in school, and once they begin going to school, they do not
speak Yamphu anymore. Based on the comments from our informal interviews and other observations, it seems that many
Yamphu people make a strong connection between the medium of education and language vitality and use. We believe that based on this connection, Yamphu people see mother tongue or multilingual
education as an important means to language development and maintenance, and thus their motivation and desire for development is high in this arena.
4.4 Summary of desires for development
