Traffic Light Tool

Participatory Methods Tools
Dialect Mapping Tool
Bilingualism Tool
Domains of Language Use Tool
Appreciative Inquiry Tool
Cause and Effect Tree
Stakeholder Analysis
Force Field Analysis
Community Connection Tool
Traffic Light Tool
Wheel of Vitality
Church Domains Tool

Purpose

The purpose of this tool is twofold

1. to isolate the community's perspective on ethnolinguistic groupings, the community identify the name for their vernacular and then which other communities also speak this language.
2. to assess which communities’ vernaculars are closely related irrespective of what labels they use, the community is helped through a process by which they rank perceived similarity of other community varieties

Materials

Although laminated labels can be used, banana leaves can be cut up on the spot to provide labels.

• blank labels for community to write their language name on
• pre-printed labels with local community names on (as many as the survey team are interested in plus some blanks for ones the community also mention)
• bold markers
• blue and green string circles each approx. 3 ft/1m in diameter
• yellow string circle approx. 5 ft/1.75m in diameter
• red string circle approx. 7 ft/2.25m in diameter

Procedure

Part 1: The Blue Circle (Ethnolinguistic Grouping)

A community at the blue circle stage of the tool in Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea, February 2012.

Step #	Ask/Say	What happens
1	What's the name of your village?	If the name is one of the labels you have pre-prepared, show them this card and hand it to them. If not, hand them a blank and ask someone to write the name of the village on the label. The label is placed on the ground.
2	What is the name of the language you speak here?	They write the name down on a blank label and place this next to the village name label on the ground. Give the volunteer the blue string and ask them to put it on the ground to form a circle.
3	Can you please put this blue string on the ground to form a circle. Put the label with your language on it on top of the circle and your village card inside the circle.	The community respond.
4	I'd like a volunteer to read out these names and put these cards on the ground.	Volunteers reads out remaining village labels and places them on the ground outside the circle.
5	Which other villages also speak your language?	The community place those village labels which they consider to share their vernacular inside the blue circle.
6	Now I'd like to check this.	Surveyor clarifies that those villages in the circle also speak language X while those outside do not. If the community agrees then Part 1 is finished. In preparation for Part 2, clear the labels and leave only the community's village name label on the ground.

Part 2: The Traffic Light (Perceived Similarity)

A community working through the Traffic Light Tool and at the green circle stage of identifying communities which speak exactly like they do. Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea, February, 2012.

A community in Morobe Province Papua New Guinea completing the Traffic Light Tool, February, 2012.

Step #	Ask/Say	What happens
1	Please put this green string around your village name in a circle. Put all the other village names outside the circle.	Community take the string and make a circle with their village label at the centre and all other village name cards outside it.
2	What other village speak exactly like you do? Please put them inside the circle.	Community place all other village cards where people speak exactly the same as them inside the green circle. Check this before moving on. If all cards are in the green circle at this point and the community confirm this, the tool is complete.
3	Please put this yellow string around the green circle. Put village name cards that are not in the green circle outside the yellow circle.	Community take the string and make an yellow circle outside the green one and move all cards that are not in the green circle to the periphery.
4	What other village speak differently from you but you can understand a lot? Please put them inside the yellow circle.	Community place relevant villages inside the yellow circle. Check that none of the yellow circle villages should be in the green circle and that none left outside need to be in the yellow circle before moving on. If all cards are in the yellow circle at this point and the community confirm this, the tool is complete.
5	Please put this red string around the yellow circle. Put village name cards that are not in the yellow circle outside the red circle.	Community take the string and make an red circle outside the yellow one and move all cards that are not in the yellow circle to the periphery.
6	What other village speak differently from you but you only understand a little? Please put them inside the red circle.	Community place relevant villages inside the red circle. Check that none of the red circle villages should be in the yellow circle and that none left outside need to be in the red circle before moving on. If all cards are in the red circle at this point and the community confirm this, the tool is complete.
7	As a double check, say: Look at the villages outside the red circle. Can you understand anything of their language? If you can understand a little, move them into the red circle. If not, leave them outside.	Community decide whether they can understand any of the peripheral villages even a little. If not, the tool is complete.

Download the Tok Pisin Traffic Light Tool Script (doc file @ 1.4Mb)

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