Tanzanian Students' Attitudes Toward English

Although much research has been conducted on language policy and its effects in Tanzania, few studies have focused directly on the attitudes and opinions of Tanzanian students and teachers. For this project, 153 secondary students and 28 secondary school teachers from three secondary schools in Dar es Salaam were surveyed. Overall, both students and teachers had positive attitudes about learning and teaching English in the school system and recognized English as an important tool for advancement in their careers and future studies. However, they also recognized the necessity for more English language education and training if English continues to be the medium of instruction for both secondary and postsecondary education. The article suggests that if Tanzania cannot dedicate more resources to developing an appropriate foundation in the English language for both students and teachers and improving teacher training, either using Kiswahili as the medium of instruction or changing to a bilingual model may be more a viable option for the education system. However, these changes would also necessitate both a shift in the general populations' perceptions of English language instruction and a change in the economic benefits of English, making this a complicated and difficult issue to address.