The attitudes of teachers and senior pupils towards Xhosa grammar in Alice and Zwelitsha schools
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Date
2014-05-27
Authors
Mdaka, Vivienne Nomafa
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Abstract
This study focussed on the attitudes of senior pupils and teachers
towards the teaching and learning of Xhosa grammar in Alice and
Zwelitsha schools, in the Eastern Cape Province. Its aims were to
establish the attitudes of teachers and pupils towards Xhosa gramm ar,
to investigate factors th at contribute to the formation of these attitudes;
and to suggest recom m endations for improving these attitudes if
necessary.
This study reviewed literature on : curriculum context (Grundy’s and
Cornbleths’ approaches to curriculum); factors th a t enhance or inhibit
successful language learning and teaching; and language attitudes with
the purpose of developing a theoretical framework tha t underpinned the
study. Using qualitative research methods, the study analysed the
responses of 28 participants.
The main finding of the study was that generally, the majority of
respondents had a negative attitude towards the teaching and learning
of Xhosa grammar. The frequently mentioned unpopular components
were morphology, phonetics and general knowledge, b u t the most
recurring was the last. W hat was striking w as that, although m ost
respondents recorded a negative attitude towards gram m ar, when they
were asked w hether it should be taught, the majority responded
positively. This inconsistency forms the basis of what can be regarded as
one of the core findings of this study, that the majority of the
respondents were fully cognisant of the importance of grammar in the
m astery of a language bu t certain factors em anating from the
educational and socio-cultural contexts were responsible for the negative
attitude formation towards Xhosa grammar.
In addressing the factors emanating from the socio-cultural context, this
study recommended that a democratic and an anti-linguistic language
policy should be formulated. Communicative language teaching, the
teaching of Xhosa grammar in the morning when students are still fresh
and alert, and empowering and re-skilling of teachers through providing
the necessary pre-service and in-service training were the
recommendations suggested to address factors emanating from the
educational context. This study concluded (inter alia) by suggesting
areas for further research.