Browsing by Author "Kamwi, Beven Liswani"

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    Student expectations and perceptions of the usefulness of their linguistic repertoires for achieving social integration and academic success at an international university in Namibia
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03) Kamwi, Beven Liswani; Southwood, Frenette; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of General Linguistics.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study examined the perceptions and expectations held by students towards the usefulness of their linguistic repertoires in helping them achieve social integration and academic success at the International University of Management (IUM) in Namibia. The general aims of the study were to establish the nature of the linguistic repertoires of the students at the IUM who do not have English, the IUM’s medium of instruction, as first language; to establish the extent to which students before entering the IUM expected such repertoires to assist them in their social adjustment and academic success; and to assess the students’ expectations and perceptions of the extent to which their linguistic repertoires indeed assisted them to achieve social integration and/or academic success at the IUM. It also takes a specific interest in the nature of linguistic repertoires that students expected to need to adjust to university life at the IUM, both socially and academically. The participants in this study were first-year students on the Windhoek campus of the IUM. The data was collected by means of a language background questionnaire, individual interviews and a focus group discussion. Questionnaires were completed by 44 participants, after which interviews and a focus group discussion were held with a sample of eight students who volunteered for these purposes on the questionnaires. The data of the study was transcribed, described, interpreted and thematically analysed to identify recurring patterns which ultimately informed the research questions. The findings of the study are that students at the IUM are multilingual, able to effectively communicate in an average of three languages – mostly English (the medium of instruction), the individual’s first language and another, third language. Also, IUM students employed different languages or language skill in different contexts to fulfil different purposes (e.g., communication or identification purposes). English is by far the most favoured language by the students, due its status as the medium of instruction at the IUM, the official language of Namibia, and the campus-wide lingua franca to interlocutors of diverse first languages, as well as the language of communication amongst different university stakeholders. The second and third most widely used languages on campus were respectively Oshiwambo, because it accounts for half of Namibia’s population, and Afrikaans, due to its status of former official language in pre-independent Namibia. Other African languages and some foreign languages (such as French, Portuguese and Dutch) also formed part of the students’ linguistic repertoires and were mainly used in informal domains. English, by contrast, was predominantly used in formal domains (such as in lectures, in offices and with university authorities), but also, to some degree, in informal settings (e.g., for conversation with strangers or at social gatherings). Finally, the study demonstrated that students have positive attitudes towards their linguistic repertoires helping them to achieve social integration and academic success at the IUM. Particularly competence in English was seen as a valuable tool in meeting the students’ social and academic needs, whereas first languages were seen as compensating in those academic areas where the students lacked sufficient proficiency in English.