Some Stakeholders’ Position on the Language Policy of Ghana

Abstract

African nations with theirmultilingual nature still face challenges in the language of formal education. With thecognitive and academic leveragesattachedto home language, language educationistsandlinguistic scholars believe that a child must be taught first in their mother-tongue, usually, their firstlanguage, in which theydisplay an appreciable level of competence,before any other language/s are introduced. Many studies have been conducted onthe language policy issues in Ghana but the current study adds a dimension from parents and even the learners who are key stakeholders and recipients of the policy. This study sought to find out the level of awareness of thestakeholders; teachers, parents and pupils,their position and the impactof their positionon learning outcomes. It also investigated stakeholders’position in using only English to teach at the lower primary. Using a survey descriptive research methodology, data was collectedvia both structured and unstructured interviews, andobservation. Both qualitative and quantitative methods wereused to analyze data.The research revealed that among the three stakeholders, teachers were more conversant with Ghana’s language policy. All stakeholdersendorsed the policy for teaching and learning purposes. Even though, most teachers preferred to blend English and alocal language, a fewcould speak the local language of the community, or have been trained in the use of the local language for instructional purposes. All stakeholders favoured a blend of English with the local languages.