Abstract:
The study investigated the methods as well as the challenges of teaching English as a
second language in the Bawku Municipality. The objectives of the study were to
examine the methods of teaching English Language, to examine the challenges to
effective teaching and learning of English language in the Municipality, and to
examine measures of improving teaching and learning of English language in the
Bawku Municipality. The study adopted the qualitative design, using questionnaire,
observation and interviews to obtain data from 200 teachers who were randomly
sampled. The findings revealed that teachers lack the knowledge of the methods of
teaching English. Most teachers adopted the Grammar-Translation method in
teaching and none employed the Communicative Language Teaching Approach. The
findings further indicated that lack multimedia resources, first language interference,
inadequate pedagogical and content knowledge of teachers and lack of in-service
training as challenges in teaching English. Other challenges also identified were lack
of textbooks available for teaching, teachers’ poor pedagogical and content
knowledge of the English language, and large class sizes. To improve the teaching
and learning of English, measures such as the provision of in-service training to
teachers, motivation of teachers, provision of infrastructure, ensuring equal pupils
and teachers’ ratio in the class, provision of learning materials, and intensification of
supervision were suggested. Further measures include mixing the mother tongue and
English in the introductory classes, exposing students to lots of words and books, and
integration of the four skills. Based on the results, it is recommended that the
Ministry of Education, Ghana Education Service, and relevant stakeholders in the
educational sector should provide in-service training for teachers of English to
improve their skills. Adequate teaching and learning materials should also be made
available together with adequate classrooms in order to put an end to the problem of
overcrowded classrooms.
Description:
A Thesis in the Department of Applied Linguistics, Faculty of Foreign Languages
Education and Communication, Submitted to the
School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfilment
of the Requirements for the award of
Master of Philosophy
(Teaching English as a Second Language)
in the University of Education, Winneba
