Browsing by Author "Nhlengethwa, Nomvuyo Phangisile."

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Principals and teachers’ responses to the official language policy and directives in Eswatini.
(2023) Nhlengethwa, Nomvuyo Phangisile.; Amin, Nyna.; Philipp, Anja.
The study is located in a country that has a monarch as its ruler and he governs in his own right. At any given moment, without forewarning, a policy can be changed or a directive can be announced with the expectation that the policy and directives will be implemented. This inquiry explored principals and teachers‟ responses to the promulgation of the official language policy and subsequent directives. Studies suggest that there is need to regulate the use of languages in schools and support mothertongue education. However, there is no study which has explored the responses of the implementers of the language policy and directives in Eswatini. Teachers under the supervision of principals are expected to implement the language policy and directives without question, the same way they do not interrogate their formulation, modification and subsequent publishing. The purpose of the study was to document the principals and teachers‟ responses to the state‟s language policy and directives. The participants teach in five primary schools in the Hhohho region (government, mission, private, community and company school). The schools were purposively sampled on the basis of their location. A qualitative approach (a case study design) was used. Data was gathered through semi-structured interviews with each participant, and focus group discussions – one with teachers and another with principals. Data was analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. The findings, informed by Althusser‟s theory of ideology, revealed who knew about the official language policy and directives but both principals and teachers were non-compliant and did not implement the language policy and directives. Various reasons, aligned to, for example, globalization, pedagogical logic and dilemmas faced were proffered by the participants. Additionally, their non-responsiveness to the language policy and directives, which promoted cultural homogeneity, localization and isolation, was compounded by indecision and the lack of support to implement the changes to the language curriculum. Participants also expressed concerns about the lack of consultation during the language policy making process and the timing of pronouncing the directives. In essence, the study found that non-compliance was a form of quiet resistance to the state ideology.
Teachers' experiences with task-based learning on English language teaching at secondary school level : a case study of selected schools in the Lubombo region, Swaziland.
(2016) Nhlengethwa, Nomvuyo Phangisile.; Kamwendo, Gregory Hankoni.
The study sought to document teachers’ experiences of teaching English language through taskbased learning at secondary school level in the Lubombo region in Swaziland. The following were research questions: what are the teachers’ experiences of teaching English language through task-based learning at secondary school level; what factors influencing the teachers’ experiences of teaching English language through task-based teaching at secondary school level; and what are the teaching methods that have influenced the teachers’ experiences of teaching English language through task-based teaching at secondary school level? The study was qualitative in design. The sample was drawn from secondary schools in the Lubombo region. Questionnaires were filled by teachers of English. Focus group discussions for teachers were held as part of the data collecting technique as well as document analysis in the form of the teachers’ daily preparation books. The findings were that teachers have distinguishable experiences, varying from favourable to not so pleasant encounters and impartial ones with the use of TBLT; lack of libraries, books, and not being able to access the internet were some of contributing factors to the learners’ negative attitude towards TBLT; and the fact that there are other strategies which the teachers of English are not fully utilizing, yet learners enjoy them, these being in-school and class debates, watching videos, or listening to educational radio programs. There is need for in-service programs to encourage and equip teachers with different approaches to TBLT. The introduction of an English language budget in schools is highly recommended so as to buy visual aids like educational videos and other materials and to even construct well-resourced libraries in schools with part of the money.