Factors influencing grade 12 learners' performance in English second language in two selected senior secondary schools in the Omusati education region

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Date
2015
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Namibia
Abstract
According to the National Examiners’ Report for ESL for 2007 to 2011, Namibian students performed poorly in the Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate Ordinary level (NSSCO) ESL examinations. The poor performance of Grade 12 learners in the ESL NSSCO examinations in the Omusati education region (OER) has been noted in the DNEA reports. The number of ungraded ESL learners in 2011 final examination at the NSSCO level at one of the selected senior secondary schools in this study was relatively higher. The majority of the learners received low grades in the ESL compared to the better performing schools which had above 50 per cent pass mark. This study therefore, investigated the factors that influenced the grade 12 learners’ performance in ESL in one poor performing school and one better performing school in ESL in the OER. The study adopted the mixed research design. The qualitative approach was used to elicit the views, beliefs and experiences of teachers, learners and school principals on the environmental factors that influenced the learners’ performance in ESL. The quantitative approach was used to show similarities and differences in the responses from the participants from the two schools. The population of this study consisted of all Grade 12 learners, school principals and ESL teachers at the two selected senior secondary schools in the OER. The schools were selected through extreme case sampling. Purposive sampling was used to select four classes in the two schools to respond to the questionnaires. Two classes were selected randomly from each school. A total of 151 learners from four classes participated in the study. All 3 ESL Grade 12 teachers and the two principals of the two selected schools participated in the study also. The questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data from the sample. The researcher took notes during the interviews and audio-tape recorded the interviews upon being granted permission by the respondents. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the quantitative data. Qualitative data was coded into emerging themes and categories. Data was also synthesized and summarised. The analysis of questionnaires and interviews showed that low English proficiency for learners and teachers, lack of resources, ineffective teaching strategies, negative teachers’ and learners’ attitudes toward ESL, low socio-economic status of learners, lack of parental involvement and lack of motivation and support contributed to poor performance in ESL. The study recommends the inclusion of compensatory classes and early intervention programmes to be initiated by the ESL teachers in schools to address learners’ learning difficulties, educating parents about the importance of education in order to be actively involved in their children’s education and conducting similar but larger studies in other schools in both the Omusati and other educational regions in Namibia.
Description
A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Education (Literacy and Learning)
Keywords
English second language, Omusati
Citation
Nkandi, S. (2015). Factors influencing grade 12 learners' performance in English second language in two selected senior secondary schools in the Omusati education region. University of Namibia, Windhoek.