Education in Africa 
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 Periodical article |
 Leiden University catalogue |
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| Title: | Language and communicative actions in Zimbabwean primary school environmental science lessons: implementing active participatory methodologies |
| Authors: | Shumba, Overson Manyati, Mirika |
| Year: | 2000 |
| Periodical: | Zimbabwe Journal of Educational Research (ISSN 1013-3445) |
| Volume: | 12 |
| Issue: | 1 |
| Period: | March |
| Pages: | 43-74 |
| Language: | English |
| Notes: | biblio. refs. |
| Geographic terms: | Zimbabwe Southern Africa |
| Subjects: | primary education languages of instruction education Primary schools Student participation environmental education |
| Abstract: | This article explores the issue of language of instruction, communication and conceptual development in primary school Environmental Science lessons in Zimbabwe. It gives indicators of the impact of in-service training on the teaching and learning of primary level Environmental Science, identifies language preferences among primary pupils in learning Environmental Science, and explores teachers' questioning strategies in seeking to develop communicative competencies among primary pupils. Results indicate that lack of proficiency in the English language presented many learning and communication difficulties for pupils and seemed to influence the level of cognitive functioning in lessons as evidenced in questioning strategies. In vernacular, pupils communicated more productively. Nonetheless teachers and pupils believed that instruction should be in English rather than in the local first languages. The fact that code-switching by both teachers and pupils improved frequency of contributions and level of understanding among pupils suggests that the process of instruction in Environmental Science and other school subjects in Zimbabwe should take on a more bilingual character and code-switching should be encouraged as a possible pragmatic compromise between national languages and mother tongue teaching. App., bibliogr., sum. |