BITING THE TECHNOLOGICAL BAIT? TEACHERS’ VIEWS ON THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY OF SECONDARY SCHOOL LEARNERS IN ZIMBABWE
Journal Title: Educational Research International - Year 2017, Vol 6, Issue 3
Abstract
The study was propelled by the zeal to establish the views of English language teachers on the linguistic capabilities of secondary school learners in Zimbabwe. Theoretically, the exploration was grounded in psychology focusing specifically on Bandura’s social learning theory, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. The descriptive survey research design was employed with questionnaires and focus group discussions as data collection instruments. A purposively chosen sample of 25 English language secondary school classroom practitioners with a post-teacher training teaching experience of at least five years participated in the study. The study established that English language secondary school teachers rated the English language proficiency of the current cohort of secondary school learners as comparatively inferior to that of the learners in the preceding cohorts of at least one decade ago. The respondents attributed such a generational difference in English linguistic abilities to a myriad of factors. From the respondents’ viewpoint, a multiplicity of variables such as lack of reading role models, the prevalence of various forms of entertainment ushered in by technological innovations and limited parental involvement can be incriminated for aggravating secondary school learners’ linguistic prowess in Zimbabwe. It was recommended that stakeholders such as parents, guardians and teachers should deliberately foster the culture of reading and endeavour to avail a variety of materials which learners can regularly read so as to sharpen their linguistic proficiency. Recommendations were made to other researchers interested in language issues to replicate the current study with variations in geographical context or academic discipline.
Authors and Affiliations
Moses Kufakunesu, Kudzai Chinyoka
Keywords
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