Analysing the strategies used in the implementation of the new English curriculum at Grade 8 level and their effects in the learning and teaching in Epembe circuit

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyse which teaching strategies were used in the implementation of the new English curriculum at Grade 8 level and the effects that these strategies have in the learning and teaching in Epembe circuit. The study sought to answer the question: what are the strategies used in the implementation of the new English curriculum at Grade 8 level and their effects in the learning and teaching in Epembe circuit? The study was triggered by the fact that over the past two years in which the new curriculum for English second language has been implemented, the researchers observed with regrets that the English performance for Grade 8 learners in Epembe circuit has not been promising. The qualitative research approach was used to explore the phenomena under study. Cluster sampling was used to select five participants from five schools. Interview guide, observation guide and document analysis were used to gather relevant data from the participants. The findings of the study indicated that, English teachers of Epembe circuit used a total number of six teaching strategies to implement the new curriculum. These learning strategies were: whole class listening strategy, question and answer strategy, comprehension monitoring strategy, the Survey Question Read, Recite and Review Strategy (SQ3R), vocabulary building strategy and cooperative learning strategy. However, the scheme of work had recommended a number of teaching strategies such as role-play, dramatizing, prose summary, class discussion and dictation. Teachers ignored such beneficial teaching strategies, which could lead to learners’ favourable performance. The study also found that the “question and answer” strategy did not work in favour of Epembe circuit learners because it requires active participation from learners and time consuming. However, only few teachers found to use this strategy because it requires adequate teaching resources and Epembe circuit schools were in shortage of teaching resources. The study further found that learners did not perform well when the vocabulary building strategy was used because the learners of Epembe circuit were not self-driven to expand their vocabulary. The study also found that teachers of Epembe circuit did not use this very significant strategy often (the vocabulary building strategy). The findings of this study also found that when teachers use the “summary presentation” strategy, learners did not achieve favourable performance because teachers were using this strategy without facilitating learning. The study further revealed that some teachers did not use the “whole class listening strategy” at all. This was the only teaching strategy, which was recommended for teaching listening. The study recommends that the Ministry of Education should employ only qualified personnel so that failure among learners is reduced at all cost. The ministry should also give necessary training to unqualified teachers who were currently employed. Moreover, the school management should strengthen their supervision measures to ensure that teachers were using all recommended teaching strategies. The study further recommends that subject advisors should offer necessary support to teachers to enable them use various teaching strategies efficiently.