Bai Project background

This project operates as a cooperative venture between SIL East Asia Group and the Yunnan Minority Language Affairs Commission, with the active involvement of the Jianchuan County government through the Jianchuan Education Bureau and the Shilong village authorities. Work commenced under the current 6 year project contract in January 2004.
The objectives of this program include the development of an experimental bilingual (Bai-Han) education preschool program (2 years) continuing through to include language elements of Y1-Y2 primary school. It also includes development of a training program for adults to read and write Bai with special emphasis on women who have difficulty operating in the national language. All teaching elements incorporate modern teaching approaches specially adapted to be suitable to a rural village, as well as to be suitable for use by villagers who have not been beyond junior secondary school in their own education. The teaching material uses Bai songs and stories based around village life as a vehicle for teaching.
The first stage in this project was the development of materials for teaching adults how to read and write Bai. This was completed by mid-2004, with classes conducted in Shilong village in July and October 2004 and October 2005. The best young graduates were selected for additional training over 2005-2006 to become teachers in the program, as well as contributing their own songs, stories, and reports to the development of teaching materials and the publication of a village newspaper. In addition, Bai consultants have been gathered on two occasions, in 2004 and 2006, to refine rules associated with the Bai orthography. This is in response to issues that arose through the development of teaching materials.
More recently, a building has been erected at the Shilong Primary school that houses three classrooms and project offices. The site has been named the Xijing Shilong Baiwen School. Two classrooms are for use by the preschool and one for adult classes. During 2006 all material for the first year of the preschool was reviewed in detail by a panel established by the Yunnan Education Commission. Thirty one textbooks for use in the first year of preschool have been printed, and teacher training for the preschool teachers was completed by the end of August 2006.
The preschool started operations on 9 September 2006 with two classes – one for 5 year olds and one for 6 year olds. Work continues with the development of teaching materials suitable for 6 year old students who have completed the program already prepared. This additional material is intended for introduction from September 2007.

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