‘A Bale of Water?’ Influence of First Language Transfer on Spoken English in Secondary Schools in Mogotio Sub-County, Baringo County, Kenya

Abstract

There is a notable decline in the performance of spoken English in secondary schools in Mogotio Sub County. It is speculated that first language (L1) among other factors is responsible for this decline. Therefore, the objectives of the study were to identify the nature of errors in spoken English and to establish whether performance in spoken English influences students’ performance in written English in secondary schools in Mogotio Sub County. The study was guided by error analysis and inter-language theories. The study was based on a descriptive design. Purposive sampling technique was used to select the study population sample of 279 form two students from four secondary schools. Data were collected by means of a guided written composition and a reading proficiency test. The reading sessions were recorded and transcribed. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The study found out that the errors made were classified into phoneme deletion, phoneme oddity, syllable deletion, phoneme identification, phoneme segmentation, phoneme substitution, phoneme addition, inter-lingual errors and intra-lingual errors. The study also concludes that LI interference influenced students’ performance in written English in secondary schools in Mogotio Sub County. The study recommends that teachers should view students’ errors positively and not as the learners’ failure to grasp the rules and structures of English.