ipl-logo

English Language In Kenya Essay

919 Words4 Pages

The second factor that is crucial in determining who can master the English language is the social class: children from a low-class background are more likely to do poorlier in school than upper or middle class students. Bunyi (1996) argues that, considering that the teaching resources and the physical facilities are unequally distributed between schools and that teachers have different academic backgrounds, students belonging to the elite community have an evident academic asset over other pupils. In addition, as stated by Michieka (2005), being English in Kenya a "mark of class", the elite families uses the language at home, in churches and in other society events (p. 181); thus, Bunyi´s conclusion (1996) is that elite family background children …show more content…

The KCPE exam is a compulsory examination that every Kenyan pupil has to pass at the end of the primary school in order to gain admission to the secondary level of education. Performing well in this exam is essential for the student´s academic career: the mark defines the quality of the secondary education. While the lower grades remain in second-choice schools, students with high marks are selected for the best schools of the country. At the KCPE exams, students of upper class perform much better than children that come from the rural areas and belong to the poor class (Jagero, 2013). The Kisii district is exemplar: generally, students from rural Kisii perform poorly in both the primary and secondary examinations (Michieka, 2009, p. 360). This is not surprising if we consider the fact that KCPE exam´s results are mainly based on the student´s knowledge of the English language. As a matter of fact, Michieka (2005) explains that regardless of the subject (with the exception of Kiswahili), all the exam´s questions are posed in English, and even if students do excellently in other subjects, they are not admitted to the secondary school if they fail in the English paper

Show More
Related

  • Summary Of Ain 'T No Makin' It By Jay Macleod

    1422 Words  | 6 Pages

    Moreover, differences in cultural capital makes the structures of inequality extremely stable as working class individuals struggle to match the syntactic and lexical constructions of the upper socioeconomic classes. While the those on top utilize elaborated codes that express unique perspectives, the working class grow up learning a restricted code that is context dependant. Schools also enforce an elaborated code, causing working class students such as the Brothers to struggle in school, lacking the cultural capital

    Read More

  • Common Core Standards Argumentative Essay

    748 Words  | 3 Pages

    Argumentative/ Persuasive Essay Molly Killen March 29, 2018 “The starting point of all achievement is desire.” – Napoleon Hill. All states have a course standard to follow to set goals for teaching and learning (West, 2018). Teachers use these standards as a guide within their classroom to provide the best learning for their students.

    Read More

  • Class In America By Gregory Mantsios Summary

    1237 Words  | 5 Pages

    All Americans want their future generations to be well educated—at least, all Americans should. When it comes to the topic of education, critics attack it by claiming that there are issues with how our American students are being taught. Some believe that education is too focused in an argumentative culture and that environment narrows our perspective, while some argue that the issue is in the commercialization of our educational system. Collectively, educational value is destroyed. Authors Benjamin Barber, Deborah Tannen, and Gregory Mantsios all agree that our educational system is flawed.

    Read More

  • Becaus Gerald Graff Hidden Intellectualism

    1067 Words  | 5 Pages

    The way we view each other in terms of finance, education, and family aspects depends on a person’s social class. Students from lower backgrounds usually experience difficulty in the educational system. The educational standards of their family’s life differ from those in the higher classes because teachers teach according to the student. Meaning, not only does having a particular social class already separate you in terms of the educational system, but it also determines how and what you learn. From personal experience I’ve learned how to see from the perspective of a student who is of a lower social class than majority of his peers and teachers.

    Read More

  • Essay On Social Class In America

    1419 Words  | 6 Pages

    Ascribed characteristics (like race, age, family composition, gender) decides the one’s class. For example, generally, high class family’s children have high social class. Family under female householders are poorer than male householders. Education, job opportunities, health, family life, political participation are influenced by social class. The people from lower class family face hard time staying in primary education, when people from high class family easily get

    Read More

  • James Loewen The Land Of Opportunity Summary

    515 Words  | 3 Pages

    In James W. Loewen’s “The Land of Opportunity,” he states that social class affects the way children are raised. He discusses the inequality in today’s society and how the textbooks in high school do not give any social class information. The students in today’s time are not taught everything they should be taught. He states that your family’s wealth is what makes up your future. Loewen discusses that people with more money can study for the SATs more productively and get a better score than someone who has less money.

    Read More

  • Class In America By Gregory Mantsios Analysis

    1126 Words  | 5 Pages

    Being born into a particular family determines how well off you are. Class in America determines the people that influence you, and the better opportunities you are exposed to. In Gregory Mantsios writing of “Class in America” you can understand the many differences between class and how one might have better success. Mantsios shows three profiles of three different people born into different classes. One of the profiles shows how the lifestyle might be born into a wealthy family.

    Read More

  • Social Class School Anyon Summary

    1093 Words  | 5 Pages

    I was amazed to read that in the affluent school, some of the children mention they will rather not be rich. Rich meant that they could not work and they will rather work since they liked working. In the executive school, I was bothered by the comment that a teacher stated. A teacher associated low-income children with discipline problems. I think that teacher generalized an observation he

    Read More

  • Social Inequalities In Education Essay

    732 Words  | 3 Pages

    They think that for that technology have the ferules and there are a lot of education inequalities. Also, family background influences cultural knowledge and perceptions. Middle class knowledge of norms and customs allows students with this background to better navigate the school system. Parents from this class and above also have social networks that prove to be more beneficial than networks based in lower classes. These connections may help students gain access to the right schools, activities, etc additionally, children from poorer families, who are often minorities, come from families that distrust institutions.

    Read More

  • Essay On English Language Learners

    1421 Words  | 6 Pages

    The United States is a place of freedom. We are a mixing pot that unifies as one. Many religions, cultures, and languages make their home in the Unites States. Many foreigners see the U.S. as an opportunity to seek better lives and education, but when it comes to foreigners and native-born non-English speakers that do not yet know English, it becomes a little more difficult to go about an average day let alone make a better future. Children in school often become English Language Learners, or ELL, to assimilate to the American standards.

    Read More

  • Essay On Early Childhood Intervention

    826 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the contemporary times, great importance is given to the significance of early years of a child’s life. It is widely acknowledged now-a-days that the early childhood years are a predominantly receptive phase in the developmental process. This stage is responsible to lay a foundation in early days and later years for cognitive functioning, learning process, physical wellbeing, and self-regulatory capacities in both personal and social lives. In simple words, “the period from birth to age 5 is one of opportunity and vulnerability for healthy physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development” (Karoly, Kilburn & Cannon, 2005). However, it is also a fact that many children go through several stressors during their developmental years due to which their healthy development may be impaired.

    Read More

  • Contextual Factors Affecting Childhood Development

    943 Words  | 4 Pages

    Language skills Language skill is one of the milestone achievements of the first two years of life. Children are born with innate schema of communication, such as body language or facial expression to communicate with parents or caregiver. The acquisition of language starts from phonology, which is an important skill for a child to master where he or she is to absorb the sound and identify the sounds form one language to another. This was nurtured both at home and in school where Alexander has to absorb sounds from native (Cantonese) and foreign languages (English).

    Read More

  • Essay On Meritocracy And Education

    1205 Words  | 5 Pages

    Education is affected by social class; directly and indirectly. Looking at directly first we can see that individuals from higher social classes are more likely to have the resources to attend the elicit schools, and as a result have a better chance of receiving high exam results and continuing to third level. While indirectly, people who benefit from these higher educational opportunities are more likely to acquire the top jobs which in turn will result in the highest salaries. Thus education and social class closely connected and one impacts the other. This paper will explore how ones’ social class affects their educational experience and outcome particularly focusing on working-class students.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Standardized Testing

    1098 Words  | 5 Pages

    A standardized test, according to W. James Popham of ASCD.org, is “any examination that is administered and scored in a predetermined, standard manner.” In standardized testing, examinees are instructed to precisely answer a specific set of questions, which are usually multiple-choices. Although standardized testing is believed to be an objective method to grade students, administers should understand that these tests are not only a waste of time, but also a waste of money. Standardized testing is irrelevant to a student’s education because it is an unreliable way to measure a student’s knowledge, causes stress, and hinders a student’s overall learning potential.

    Read More

  • Essay On Advantages And Disadvantages Of Standardized Testing

    1068 Words  | 5 Pages

    Standardized testing may be able to save time and consume less effort but this is an unfair way of measuring one’s intellectual and academic capability. There are many factors—the student’s background, the external factors affecting him/her, the non-academic factors and the like—to be considered in evaluating such performances especially in the forming years of a child. Standardized tests may be unbiased but it is not the perfect yardstick for

    Read More

More about English Language In Kenya Essay

Open Document