A case for teaching English as a service subject at universities in Kenya

Abstract

Language plays an important role in teaching and learning activities whether the teachers and learners are conscious or unconscious of this. Thus language and communication are the most important components of the school curriculum (Lopez, 2000, p.1). This is because there is a very close relationship between language and thought. As Muthwii (2002, p. 1) notes, "special problems arise in multilingual communities where learners frequently join the school system equipped with home languages that are often different from the languages of education". A consequence of this is that the learner is expected to acquire and utilize skills using a language he or she is not quite proficient in. It is, however, usually expected that by the time students join university they have enough of the language of instruction to function effectively in their major areas of study and to interact with the acquisition and propagation of knowledge at that level. Recent studies on learner English have, however, shown that the language of high school graduates, (Nyamasyo, 1992) and even that of university students (Njoroge, 1996) have the same type of errors as those observed in the English of learners at lower levels of education. If many students entering the universities today have not attained the expected English level, what should be done to counter this challenge? Using an analysis of students' performance in an English Placement Test, this paper discusses the English language needs of Kenyan students at the time of entry to the university; appraises the programs which are put in place to address this need in the local universities; and makes recommendations on what universities in Kenya ought to be doing in order to produce students that can compete internationally and fit in the global academic field. The 'Foreign' Media of Instruction Why do we have a 'foreign' language medium of instruction in most Third world countries? This question has been the subject of debate for many decades and despite the many resolutions agreed upon in many national and international forums to promote indigenous languages for use as media of instruction, the practice has continued to be the use of a 'foreign' language even as early as lower primary. Most of the times we have sought the answer to this question in our colonial past: that the colonial masters brought modern education wrapped in their mother-tongues and colonized our minds to such an extent that we have been unable to separate the two.

Language Needs of Francophone Students in an English as a Second Language Context

“…In Africa, researchers have investigated English education policies, learning processes, curricula, academic writing, language needs, and challenges of learning English in nonnative English learning environments (Adika & Borti, 2014;Agbedor, 1994;Kioko, 2009;Lee & Norton, 2009;Owu-Ewie, 2006;Sibomana, 2014;Wagaba, 2010). For example, Kioko (2009) studied English language needs of first-year students in a Kenyan university by using a descriptive method to analyse their performance on the English Placement Test at the university. Using 240 participants' scores from September 2003, the findings revealed that students' needs regarding language structure and vocabulary development are crucial since students had difficulty answering questions in these language areas.…”