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Multilingualism's Effects on Teaching Science & Math at Upper Primary in Uganda

This survey examines the impact of multilingualism on teaching Science and Mathematics in upper primary schools in Uganda, focusing on the use of mother tongue alongside English. Findings reveal the number of languages used by teachers and the effects on learners in both rural and urban settings.

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Multilingualism's Effects on Teaching Science & Math at Upper Primary in Uganda

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  1. The Effects Of Multilingualism On Teaching And Learning Science And Mathematics At Upper Primary In Uganda A survey done in Mubende and Wakiso districts By Margaret Nankinga, President Luganda Lusoga Lugwere Commission 0712931549, mnankinga@hotmail.com

  2. Introduction: who we are The Luganda Lusoga Lugwere Commission was established in 2014 by the African Academy of Languages (ACALAN) The Academy is a body of the African Union that is mandated to work towards the development and use of African Languages in all domains Luganda Lusoga Lugwere Commission is presided over by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development . Key tasks of the commission include fact-finding, research and Advocacy.

  3. Background • Despite the fact that English is the only authorized language of instruction in upper primary, teachers continue to use mother tongue together with English in the teaching of pupils at upper primary. This research sought to establish the extent of this practice and its effects on the teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics which are technical subjects with technical language. • The survey also sought to find out the number of mother tongue languages used by the pupils in relation to the number of languages used by the teachers to teach and the effects to the learner in both rural and urban situations. • Uganda has introduced a thematic curriculum and the education language policy stipulates that mother tongue will be the medium of instruction from primary one to primary three and from primary four to primary seven English will be used as the medium of instruction.

  4. The thematic curriculum expectation Primary one to three- mother tongue as medium of instruction Primary 4: Transition to English as medium of instruction Primary five- seven- English as medium of instruction

  5. Background • Although research has confirmed that the use of local languages in instruction has contributed to the improvement of literacy skills, participation and understanding of content, pupils lack the required fluency in English after Primary four (MedadiSsentanda, 2013) leading to the continued use of local languages side by side with English. • The failure to wean the pupils off their local languages completely in teaching at upper primary has impacted on their learning both positively and negatively. • The concern for the poor performance of pupils in Mathematics and Science in the national examinations may best be explained by relating how children learn to how they are tested (Charles Opolot- Okurut, 2013). • Performance in these two subjects at the national examinations at the end of primary level has been generally low.

  6. Performance in Mathematics and Science at PLE • Year 2012: • 24.5% completely failed Mathematics (F9) • Science: • 14% failed the subject (F9 • Year 2014: • 14.5% failed Science (F9) • 14.2% failed Mathematics (F9) The national examining body, the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) record show that:

  7. What we set out to find • This study examined the number of languages used in the teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics at upper primary. • The study sought answers to the research question: What are the effects of multilingualism on the teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics at upper primary in Uganda?

  8. Methodology • The survey was done on teachers and pupils of primary five in selected schools of Mubende and Wakiso districts • The teachers were given a questionnaire of 25 questions about language use in the classroom, effect and language challenges. • The researchers also had group discussions with primary five pupils with a guiding questionnaire of 28 questions.

  9. Sample size • The sample consisted of 18 teachers and 429 pupils from nine schools in Wakiso and Mubende districts. • 172 of the pupils and 10 of the teachers were from Mubende. • Four of the schools sampled were UPE, one of which is an urban school. • The rest are privately owned.

  10. Teaching Science in mother tongue: Students of Janan Schools demonstrate to the Kabaka (left) how it is done in Luganda.

  11. Findings • Urban classes have a wider variety of mother tongues spoken by pupils in one class than rural classes. • One class had pupils with seven different mother tongues. • 89% of the teachers use two languages to teach Science and Mathematics in primary five. • 11% of the teachers use only English and these were urban based. • Teachers and pupils say learning is more effective when hard content is translated into the mother tongue. • 20% of the teachers surveyed in rural schools said they found problems expressing themselves in the local language of the area which was being used side by side with English to teach pupils.

  12. Table 1: Rural schools: A comparison of the number of mother tongues that pupils speak with the number of languages of instruction used by the teachers • No. of languages of instruction Total of sampled pupils: 172 Total of sampled teachers: 10 12 Number of languages the teacher uses when teaching a subject

  13. Table 2: URBAN BASED SCHOOLS: number of L1 languages that pupils speak and number of languages of instruction No. of languages of instruction Total of sampled pupils: 257 Total of sampled teachers: 08 13 Number of languages the teacher uses when teaching a subject

  14. Findings • Teachers use one local language together with the formal language of instruction – English to teach • Teachers also find challenges trying to translate some mathematical and science concepts that are lacking in the local language vocabulary • They said they overcome this problem through prior planning and consultations with language resource persons before the teacher goes to class to teach. • Teachers of Science and Mathematics find themselves having to teach some basic English first before they can teach their subjects . • In examinations only one language is used and as a result, some pupils find it difficult to comprehend and interpret what is being asked. • “Examinations are always set in English and some pupils fail to read and interpret the questions correctly”. (Peter Mwesige teacher of Mathematics).

  15. Recommendations Teachers and pupils recommendations for improving language related problems in teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics • By Pupils • 30.4% of the pupils in rural and urban areas recommend the use of visual aids when studying science would reduce the language problems they currently face when studying the subject. • 17.7% of the sampled pupils in rural schools recommend that teachers should first teach in English and then repeat the same lesson in their mother tongue instead of using the two languages concurrently. • 15% of the sampled pupils recommend that assessment and examinations should give allowance for use of the mother tongue.

  16. By Teachers • 11% of the teachers recommend that using English as medium of instruction right from Primary one would solve the language problems faced by teachers and pupils in the classrooms today. • 72% recommended that practicals and visual aids should be used in the teaching of Mathematics and Science because they help to bridge the language barriers. • 16.6% of the teachers recommended remedial lessons for pupils while others (16.7 %) recommended provision of Science and Mathematics textbooks to schools • Only 5.5% of the teachers recommended refresher courses for teachers and another 5.5% recommended varying national examinations depending on experiences. • 5.5% of the teachers recommended emphasizing English language literacy skills and as one of the teachers put it, “Using local language helps pupils to understand better but we are in the era of dot-com so English still takes an upper hand”.

  17. Table 3: Teachers and pupils’solutions to solving the language problems

  18. Our recommendations • There is need for education planners to manage transition from mother tongue at lower primary to English only at upper primary well, by ensuring acquisition of the appropriate literacy skills in English before the pupils join upper primary. • As local languages continue to be used with English as languages of instruction, efforts should be made by linguists to upgrade them in scientific vocabulary and popularise it through writing mathematics and science books in local languages which will help in effective teaching and learning of the sciences.

  19. Conclusion • Multilingualism impacts on the teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics positively because the use of local languages and English in teaching helps the pupils to understand and comprehend what is being taught. • Meanwhile, the transition from mother tongue as language of instruction to English has not been properly managed leading to the failure of the English only policy at upper primary especially in the primary schools in rural areas. • However, the positive impact of multilingualism on teaching and learning does not rhyme with the examination achievement because of the examination structure that uses only English as the language of assessment.

  20. Conclusion • The problem is further compounded by the reality that some mathematical and scientific concepts cannot be translated into the mother-tongue because either the vocabulary does not exist or the teacher does not know it. • Multilingualism effects positively on the teaching and learning of science and Mathematics at upper primary although these gains need to be crystallized through improved literacy skills in both English and the local languages

  21. REFERENCES • Charles Opolot- Okurut (2013), Factors that hinder opportunities to learn Mathematics in Primary Schools in Uganda • MedadiSsentanda, (2013), Thematic curriculum and mother tongue education in Uganda: discrepancies between de jure and de facto language-in-education policy • MedadiSsentanda, (2013), Exploring connections: Reflections on mother -tongue education in post colonial Uganda • Ministry of education and sports, (2005), A comprehensive analysis of basic education in Uganda., Teachers’ work experience and pupils’ experience as determinants of achievement in primary schools • Uganda National examinations Board (2003), The Achievement of primary school pupils in Uganda in English Literacy and numeracy. • UNICEF, (2000), Defining quality in Education- A paper presented by UNICEF at the meeting of The International Working Group on Education, Florence, Italy, June 2000. • Ball, D.L (1991) Research on teaching Mathematics: Making subject matter knowledge part of the equations.

  22. This research will be published in the 2016edition of Kuwala , a journal of the African Academy of Languages. You can find Luganda Lusoga Lugwere Commission at: www.lugandalusogalugwerecommission.com

  23. End

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