CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1. Introduction

The teaching and learning process is not all about teachers as most people will think. Teaching is not all about teachers and their role; the most important aspects of the teaching and learning process are the students and what they learn. This leads us to consider what we mean by teaching and learning. If we read more about education, literature, specifically, teaching and learning you will find many differences in theories and definitions.

Concept of Learning and Teaching

Learning as defined by oxford dictionary, is the acquisition of knowledge or skills through study, experience, or being taught. While Teaching on the other hand is the occupation, profession, or work of a teacher, or the ideas or principles taught by an authority. This can also be the change brought about by developing a new skill, or the change of attitude. The change is not merely incidental or natural in the way that our appearance changes as we get older. Learning is a relatively permanent change, usually brought about intentionally. When we are being taught, do research online, or read an article, we set out to learn. 

Other learning can take place without planning, for example by experience.  Generally, with all learning there is an element within us of wishing to remember and understand why something happened.

Main Learning Theories

There are five learning theories:

• Behaviorism learning theory
• Cognitive learning theory
• Constructivism learning theory
• Humanism learning theory
• Connectives learning theory.

The difference between a Trained and Untrained Teacher

Trained Teacher; a trained teacher or qualified teacher is anyone who has received the minimum organized teachers training, this could be pre-service or in-service, required for teaching at the relevant level. (as defined by https://inee.org/eie-glossary/trained-teacher on 11/20/2022 at 19:28).

Untrained Teacher; According to law insider (https://www.lawinsider.com untrained teacher), an untrained teacher is a person who has not successfully completed a recognized course of teacher training in a recognized tertiary institute. The national trade union governs the standards of teacher education in Cameroon.

Cameroon finds itself at the third phase of Industrial revolution as stated by (investtopedia.com). The change brought about by this revolution is impacting all disciplines, all economies rich and poor and all industries advanced and less advanced. This revolution is unavoidable; it is not optional. It does not wait for Cameroon to address basic literacy and numerical issues about its teaching and learning process and so its educational institutions needed to not only adapt to this new reality but also to be aware of the changing expectations of the students who want to be partakers of the benefits of this change. Having adequate levels of education and right skill capacity and capability is essential in ensuring that Cameroon maximizes and invest more in its educational system. The sooner Cameroon embraces and fully incorporates the education system, the sooner the teachers will realize and begin to teach its learners the critical skills that are crucial for them to remain relevant in this era. What does this mean for teaching and learning in Cameroon? Although the teaching and learning process is meant to support the development of a diversity of talents and abilities in the learners; it is true that equal importance can be placed on all such talents and abilities as we attempt to meet the challenges of the revolution. Within education it is evident that, the positive impact on a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) can be isolated mainly to education. For this reason, ensuring quality teaching and learning the quality of the teacher is considered a very important factor. That’s why the government has ensured the training of quality teachers from higher institutions every year. However, subjects such as English language, engineering, mathematics, History, chemistry all have equal importance. Teachers are trained for these disciplines on yearly bases.

The effects of untrained English teachers in the teaching learning process has been one of the issues affecting the educational system in Cameroon. We will be comparing the outcome of trained English teachers and untrained english teachers in our schools and how it has impacted the teaching learning process. It was earlier mentioned that learning is the acquisition of knowledge or skills through study, experience, or being taught, however, this knowledge can be impacted through various means of communication. We will be looking at modern means of impacting knowledge in our society. First there are various ways of teaching and learning. These are: visual, auditory, tactile, kinesthetic, sequential, simultaneous, reflective/logical, verbal, interactive, direct experience, indirect experience, and rhythmic/melodic. With these various means of learning the teacher is supposed to know which one will best fit for the student and how to use them to channel the knowledge to the said students. (investtopedia.com).

Furthermore, Knowledge is not only impacted by the teacher through classroom, but it can be considered as one of the primary source of learning, which is not only limited to trained teachers. Untrained English teachers have also contributed in the teaching learning process in their significant way. Example, the first person a child starts learning from is the parent. Some parents are experienced while others are not. The outcome of the child or student depends also on the parents and the willingness of the child to learn.

The qualification of teachers involved in teaching and learning has a great role in the performance of the student and it is this effect that this study is set out to accomplish. Chomsky (1972) states that “one cannot really teach language but can only present conditions in which it will develop spontaneously in the mind in its own ways. Language is something which internalized in the mind of the individual. The question of who should teach English effectively in a second language situation needs special consideration.

Additionally, the internet is another source of learning as it is widely available with all sorts of information. A student could be self-taught from a varieties of materials uploaded by trained and untrained teachers on the internet.

1.2. Problem Statement

Language teaching has been the primary focus of applied linguistics. Formal instruction does not work in vacuum. School environment, teacher qualifications, curriculum and instructional approaches, and many other factors interact to produce growth in student academic skills and knowledge. There is sufficient empirical evidence that suggests that the academic performance of students relies substantially on the teachers they are assigned. Classroom based research is valid enough to determine whether the learners are receiving appropriate content instruction or not. The quality of teaching must be considered in determining what results can be expected. Teachers make decisions about classroom management based on the achievement gains. Thus, findings about the relationship between teacher characteristics and student academic performance scores are important in determining the policy about the teachers. It is assumed that only those who have professional training in English teaching should teach English language. The English teacher should be the one whose competence and proficiency in all the language skills are in a good measure. The English teacher should have a good knowledge of current usage and the theoretical aspects of English.

It is assumed by Adekunle (1969) that only those who have professional training in English teaching should teach English language. The English teacher should be the one whose competence and proficiency in all the language skills are in a good measure. The English teacher should have good knowledge of current usage and the theoretical aspects of English in Cameroon today. Most students in secondary schools and in fact even in universities lack the ability to communicate efficiently in English.

Adekunle (1969) “maintains that it is in putting down their ideas on paper in grammatical English that most secondary school and university students have greatest difficulty”. This situation has persisted over the years. This is still the major problem faced by English students today. It is therefore important to find out if the qualification of the English teachers has any effect on the performance of the students in English language.

It can be confirmed that many schools are staffed with untrained English teachers as a result of rapid expansion to education. Therefore, Cameroon has embarked on teacher’s education reform as part of overall education reform, and the success of teacher’s education reform can only be achieved if Cameroon is able to produce adequate qualified teachers. The main issue is to show the impact of trained and untrained English teacher on students’ academic performance, and what it takes to produce the kind of teachers who can improve English language teaching and enhance students learning. If the teacher’s education is capable of meeting the teaching demands, it will fill the gap of untrained English teachers in both the public and private sectors.

1.3. Objectives of Study

This study intends to meet the following objectives:

• To examine the effects of qualification of English teachers on the performance of secondary school students.
• To determine the factors that can improve the academic performance of secondary school students in English.

1.4. Research Questions

The study will attempt to answer the following research questions:

1. What are the effects of qualification of English teachers on the performance of secondary school students?
2. What are the factors that can improve the academic performance of secondary school students in English language?

1.4 Research Hypothesis

H0: There is no significant effect of qualification of English teachers on the performance of secondary school students.

H1: There is a significant effect of qualification of English teachers on the performance of secondary school students.