SOCIOLOLINGUISTIC SURVEYS - Centre for Language Studies

case for Nkhata Bay is that Chitonga comes second, English comes third, and
Chitumbuka occupies the fourth position.
4.5.3.2 SUMMARY OF SECTION
The data approved above presents the following crucial facts:
(i)
that the majority of pupils encounter difficulties learning English. A
staggering 70.75% said they encountered problems and isolated failure
to understand and vocabulary as being the main areas of difficulty.
(ii)
that 78.4% of pupils from the five districts have no problems studying
in Chichewa
(iii)
that 58.7% of pupils said they do not want to learn in Chitumbuka
(iv)
that the majority of those who indicated that they want to learn in
Chitumbuka said they would prefer to learn in Chitumbuka in
standards 1 to 8.
(v)
that the majority of the pupils who did not want to learn through
Chitumbuka wanted to be taught in English, followed by Chichewa.
(vi)
that 57.9% of pupils said that they would find science easier if it were
taught in the mother tongue.
The fact that the pupils face considerable problems in English (cf.point (i) ) and yet they
still want to be taught in English (cf.point(v) ) and not in Chitumbuka shows the great
value they attach to English.
4.6 SOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS
The survey sought to find out, in addition, whether or not there are correlations between
certain categories. An interesting correlation was revealed between sex and the ability to
read and write Chitumbuka. This correlation is shown in Table 67:
Table 67:
Ability To Read And Write Chitumbuka Vs Sex
67