English is a colonial language, and it continued to be the official language after independence in virtually all African countries that were under British rule. In some cases it was retained to avoid ethnic tensions; in all cases it was retained because of its prestige and association with power. In contrast, the vernaculars were viewed as backward and inferior so were not developed. Students of the African countries were made to feel ashamed of their mother tongue and punished for speaking it. Today it is difficult to use indigenous languages because they have not been codified and standardized. So there is a shortage of teaching materials and trained teachers in the vernaculars. And this has often been used as an excuse for not adopting the vernaculars in schools. Even the terms used to refer to vernacular languages are controversial. They include such terms as dialects, minority languages and undeveloped languages—all of which suggest that the languages are not rich in expression and are unsuitable for modern needs. The long-standing neglect of indigenous languages has resulted in the popular belief that they are incapable of imparting a modern education, including science and technology. The prestigious status of the English language and its dominant role in globalization, added to the absence of the political will to implement policies that promote the use of indigenous languages, have led to the almost complete marginalization of mother-tongue education in most of Africa.