Abstract:

This paper focused on the support needed by the teachers to change their views towards English as the Language of Learning and Teaching (LoLT). The study was underpinned by the interpretative research paradigm since it is qualitative. The purposive non-probability sampling method was used to draw samples of participants for in-depth interviews. The school principal and two teachers were purposively selected in each of the two selected schools and two school principals. The participants were selected as the study wanted to explore the support the teacher get from the schools. The School Governing Body (SGB) was also selected in each of the two schools and they were interviewed. The face-to-face interviews were employed to get in-depth information from all the participants selected. The collected data were thematically analyzed to conclude the meaning and present the findings. The critical finding was that the teachers find it difficult to teach in English because they do not have enough support to master the language since it is their First Additional Language. This makes them code-switch regularly using IsiXhosa along with English while they are supposed to teach in English even during English lessons. Thus, this affects the performance in their academic work since they do not have a proper understanding of and grounding in the English language. The study also found out that the schools lack adequate support to ensure the effective use of English for learning and teaching. The study recommended that numerous support systems from the government are needed as this will change their views towards English as the Language of Learning and Teaching. In this regard, the participants assured that these would result in positive outcomes, as they would provide a quality education through government support. The study concluded that English is the preferred LoLT by both teachers and learners, thus, it needs to be prioritised.

Keywords:

Teachers, English, Language of Learning and Teaching, Public Schools.