December 15th

Tok Ples Camp
For those who are curious what a Tok Ples Camp might be all about – let me enlighten you. The camp reminded me of the Bible conference that I attended when I was a kid (with the exception that there was no separate program for the children). There were about 4 different preachers, special guests, and a series of programs which were all to be conducted in the local language of Usarufa. The afternoon programs were supposed to be skill building activities in tok ples: learning how to sew, learning carpentry /construction, beginning literacy classes in tok ples, etc…
The reason behind the tok ples camp: The use of the local language is in decline, as many children in the area are able to understand the local language, but are not able to speak the language. The cause for this phenomenon is varied, but really, unless the language group does something significant to reverse the trend (such as teaching people to read and write in the local language, using the local language in their homes and communities, refusing to use Tok Pisin, etc…), the language will die with the current generation of adults. I do not know this for a fact, as I am not an expert on (or have I ever even experienced) language death, but it seems fairly evident that if the current youth are not able to speak the language or read it, they will not be able to pass it on to their children…