Medium of Instruction Policy Change in Sudan: its Impact on the English Language Proficiency of Sudanese Medical Students

Abstract

The decline of English language standards among Sudanese university students and graduates has become one of the issues preoccupying public opinion in Sudan. Media, employers, parents, and school and university teachers are concerned about the falling standards of English language among Sudanese students and graduates. The present study investigated the impact of the medium of instruction on the English language proficiency of Sudanese medical students. An English language-writing test was employed to assess the English language proficiency of two groups of students; namely, a group that studied through the medium of English, and a group that studied through the medium of Arabic. The English-medium students were second-year medical students at Khartoum University, Sudan, while the Arabic-medium students were second-year medical students at Gezira University, Sudan. A sample of 151 students was chosen from the former group, and a sample of 155 students was chosen from the latter group. An independent samples t-test was conducted. The findings indicate that there is a statistically significant difference in the English language proficiency of English-medium students and Arabic-medium students (t =12.369, p =.000). Thus, English-medium students performed significantly better than Arabic-medium students in the English proficiency test.