We argue that local languages, coupled with modern pedagogy and technology, are necessary,
though not sufficient, ingredients for universal access to quality education. Our case study is Haiti,
where French is the primary language of school instruction, though it is spoken by only a small
percentage of the population, while Haitian Creole (aka ‘Kreyòl’), the language fluently spoken
by all Haitians in Haiti, is mostly excluded from the formal discourse and written documents that
create and transmit knowledge (and power) in schools, courts, state offices, and so forth.