Dilemmas of language choice in education in Tanzania and Ghana

Abstract

This chapter addresses the language issue in classrooms in Ghana and Tanzania. It is premised on the belief that language and the issue of a good quality education are inseparable. Language is also relevant to democracy because different stakeholders have views on which languages should be used for what purpose in the educational system of a given country. In Tanzania, where only secondary education is conducted through English, there are persistent reports of low levels of achievement, which are related to learner language ability. The observation schedule was developed to capture evidence of classroom processes which the research questions focus on, namely: teacher speaking time, language choice and language competence; teacher strategies; opportunities for individual work, pair work, group work, reading, writing; variation in responses of boys and girls with reference to language of instruction (LoI). The ability of both learners and teachers in the LoI has an impact on the effectiveness of classroom practice.

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