Abstract

This study examined ‘’strategies of teaching English as a second language to children from three to seven years in primary schools in Buea, specifically the study sought to find out the strategies, effects and challenges used and faced by teachers when teaching  English as a second language to children in primary schools from three to seven years.

The study sampled 30 teachers selected randomly from three accessible schools. The research designed used in carrying out this study was the survey research design and the instrument used for collecting data for this study was the questionnaire.

Data were analyzed descriptively using percentages, frequencies, and charts. The findings show that explicit instruction, deliberate, practice, reinforcing effort/ providing recognition, explicit teach thinking skills and problem-solving techniques and effective question techniques are all styles used in teaching the English language in primary schools in Buea.

The use of strategies in teaching English has helped the pupils in gaining more vocabulary, has enhanced the language of pupils, has boosted the rationality of pupils, has helped pupils to think easily, and has help pupils in their communication skills. it is seen that inadequate material for pupils like textbooks, class size, children’s laziness, the difficulty of pupils to adapt to a second language, and discouragement of children due to the time allocated for each subject period are all challenges faced by teachers in Teaching English to children of primary schools in Buea.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Introduction

English is one of the international languages used as a means of communication in international relationships and is widely used in all branches of knowledge (Oleh, 2008). Brown (2001), furthermore, states that English is not frequently learned as a tool for understanding and teaching the US or British cultural values.

English, however, has become a tool for international communication in transportation, commerce, banking, tourism, technology, diplomacy, and scientific research. Based on the above, it is appropriate that English is included in the local content of the school-based curriculum in elementary school (Oleh, 2008).

In the world, English is well thought out as the most vital and influential language (Fatah, 2016). Almost all top films, books, music, and even Internet content are published in English. It means that knowing English permits us to access an incredible amount of information and entertainment or in other words, knowing the world (Fatah, 2016).

However, Thompson (2012) stated that it can take up to seven years for learners who are using a language other than their mother tongue to attain the same levels of academic language proficiency as those expected for learners learning in a mother tongue.

According to Fatah (2016), nowadays, it has become obligatory for teachers to rethink and renovate their teaching strategies with the changing times. Since there has been a continuous transformation in the teaching methods and techniques all over the world in every subject, methods, and techniques for teaching vocabulary to need desirable innovation to fulfill students’ need for vocational learning.

This chapter is organized under the background of the study, problem statement, research questions, research objectives, the scope of the study, justification of the study, and significance of the study.

Background of the Study                

Historically, English spread through Africa during the period of exploration; Europeans (pre-colonial era) needed labour for their industries and numerous plantations. Explorers from all over the world especially the USA, Germany, and Britain came for different reasons, but mostly for slave trading.

However, some others came with the gospel of Christ. To be able to do a successful trade with Africans and evangelism in African, a language of communication was needed, since Africans spoke their different native languages different from theirs. To get a mid-point, the Europeans took middlemen whom they trained as interpreters.

They later opened up schools all over Africa in which these their different languages were taught including the English language.  Much later the colonialism fever followed and then, gave room to a widespread of the English language amongst the other European languages (Teke, 2002).

In Cameroon, when Rev. Alfred Saker and Rev. Joseph Merrick arrived in Cameroon in 1840, they found out that, indigenous languages were used naturally and quite conveniently within each linguistic group for official communication and education.  The question of whether to introduce English or study one of the many languages for communication and instruction became a serious issue (Anchimbe, 2005).

With their main purpose being evangelization, the missionaries understood that they could not convert the natives into Christianity if they could not read the Bible. Instead of introducing the English language, the missionaries began learning the local indigenous languages and translating educational materials and Christian literature from English into them. Joseph Merrick settled in Bimbia, where he opened the first school on Cameroonian soil in 1844 with about sixty children. He at once devoted himself to the study of the Isubu language. In their school, the curriculum was made up of the 3Rs (Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic) (Besong, 2005).

Following the reunification of British Southern Cameroons and La Republique du Cameroun on 1st October 1961, official bilingualism was instituted in the new Federal Republic. The Federal constitution of 1961 in paragraph 3 article 1 made it clear that ‘the official languages of Cameroon shall be French and English’ (Cameroon, 1961:1).

The government’s attention became fully directed to increasing the number of literates in the two official languages. With the assistance of UNESCO, the federal government funded a nationwide bilingual program. This programme had 7.500 literacy centres popularly known as “L’Ecole sous l’Arbre” (schools under trees) (Anchimbe 2006:134).

Unfortunately, by 1969 the programme had collapsed due to a lack of further external funding. The government also set up a Bilingual Grammar School in Man O War Bay (moved to Molyko-Buea) in 1962 and signed cooperation agreements with France, Britain, and the USA which amongst other things led to the promotion of English and French through the establishment of the Alliance Franco-Cameroonaise. In 1964 the President of Cameroon Ahmadou Ahidjo declared that;

When we consider English language and culture and French language and culture, we must regard them not as the property of such and such a race, but as an acquirement of the universal civilization to which we belong. This is in fact why we have followed the path of bilingualism since… it offers us the means to develop this new culture…and which could transform our country into the catalyst of African unity (quoted in Anchimbe 2005:36)

The most recent development has been Law No. 98/004 of 14 April 1998 on the General Orientation of Education in Cameroon. This law, like the 1996 constitution, makes a special emphasis on the teaching of national languages but generally, it simply repeats previous government positions on English and French Bilingualism. It states that;

The education system shall be organized into two subsystems: the English speaking subsystem and the French speaking subsystem, thereby affirming our national option for bi-culturalism… the languages of education, therefore shall be English and French… the state shall institute bilingualism at all levels of education as a factor of national unity and integration (Tambo, 2003:121).    

Contextually, Cameroon education is structured into 3 sections; primary, secondary, and tertiary education and with each of them having its ministries. At the basic level, the English language is a subject taught to pupils of primary schools alongside other subjects like maths and French.

Some teachers use diverse strategies in teaching English to these pupils including explicit instruction, deliberate, practice, reinforcing effort/ providing recognition, explicit teach thinking skills and problem-solving techniques and effective question techniques to enhance their performance in school.

However, other teachers are not skillful and dynamic with these teaching strategies which are detrimental to these pupils. Generally, teaching strategies in English has been proven to be helpful in pupils understanding and language power in Buea municipality wherein pupil at the basic level are able to express themselves in English language to their parents and other peers.

Statement of the Problem                                                                           

The teaching of English in primary schools has been carried out without considering the specific characteristics of the students; instead of teaching English through joyful activities, the teachers use translation without any context and give students too much tiring work (Bambang Sugeng 2000; Nafisah 2001 and Suyati 2002).

Some learners are actually discouraged because of the teaching strategies and most of the teachers do not understand their own learning strategies which also constitute a greater part of teacher’s success in teaching strategies.

In the Buea Municipality, some teachers of primary schools are not skillful, dynamic, and professional in the teaching of the English language in primary school. This has therefore affected students’ comprehension and performance in primary school in the study area. This study is therefore aimed at investigating the effects of English language strategies used in teaching English on the performance of children in Primary schools in Buea Municipality.

Research Objectives

The objectives of the study have been grouped under general and specific objectives.

General Objective of the Study

To assess the influence of the strategies used in teaching English as a second language on children in primary schools in Buea Municipality Specific Research Objectives of the Study

1. Investigate the strategies used in teaching the English language in primary schools
2. Assess the effects of the strategies used in teaching English on pupil’s learning in primary schools
3. Identify the challenges faced by teachers in teaching English to children of primary schools