1. THE NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES OF LANGUAGE DIFFICULTIES ON FOREIGN STUDENTS’ STUDY OF FIRST YEAR ACCOUNTING AT THE UDBS IN TANZANIA Said Juma Suluo Assistant Lecturer University of Dar es Salaam Business School, Tanzania

2. Introduction  Foreign students come from Kenya, Uganda, Mozambique, Rwanda and China  They take B.Com in Acc, Fin, HRM, THM, Mktg, Bank&FinServ  Required to study Principles of Accounting 1 & 2 in Semester 1 & 2 respectively of first year of study  Motivation: FS – esp from Mozambique and Rwanda usually struggle much to cope with studies at UDBS esp in the first year of study – most of such struggle is associated with PoA courses

3. Prior Studies  FS face academic and social adjustment difficulties for being in a new country (Grayson, 2008)  Language proficiency is reported to be at the heart of academic adjustment difficulties (Kirby et al, 1999; Ramburuth, 2001)  Language difficulties cause failures in lecture comprehension, slow reading and writing, limited interaction with teachers and local students (Ramsay et al, 2009; Robertson et al, 2000; Holmes, 2004)

4. Problem  Prior studies associated with FS linguistic issues have mainly focused on ESCs only (Andrare, 2006) where English is both a language of instruction and local language.  In NESCs [e.g. TZ], English is a language of instruction in formal classrooms and there are local language(s) spoken within local communities  How does this NESC language phenomenon affects foreign students’ study of first year accounting at UDBS?

5. Methodology  Study made use of grounded theory approach  FGD followed by interview  Interviews were used to validate FGD findings and clarify emerging themes  All discussions were in English and were guided by certain discussion themes which were informed by literature and researcher’s experience  FGD and Interviews were recorded, listened and transcribed

6. Methodology  Preliminary Analysis involved coding the transcribed responses using the approach recommended by Corbin and Strauss (1998)  Initial 13 sub-themes were produced  Sub-themes were then linked to each other, classified, related, and those depicting similar and/or related issues were combined  Final 3 themes were produced which form the findings

7. Findings Theme 1: Language Difficulties  Rwandese and Mozambicans had relatively poor English proficiency at the time they join university  Few years of using English as an instructional language in secondary schools  Rwanda – between 0 and 3 years  Mozambique – never  Had difficulties to comprehend lectures and understanding textbooks  Inability to effectively “Study Personally” – run after study groups

8. Findings Theme 1: Language Difficulties  All FS involved in the study did not know Swahili – local language  Study group discussions mainly run in Swahili – dominated by locals  Had difficulties making friends and/or communicating with peers in the study groups  Inability to participate in the study groups effectively

9. Findings Theme 2: Course Study Strategies  Use of Study Groups Anyway – to counter poor lecture and reading comprehension  Use of Study “Buddy” – to counter Swahili language difficulties in large study groups  Study Individually – after failure to find local student to collaborate with  Learn Swahili – to manage study groups interactions

10. Findings Theme 3: Learning Outcome  Learning outcomes included performance or feeling of understanding the course content  Learning outcome was perceived to be influenced more by course study strategies than language difficulties  Those who studied alone reported poor learning outcomes  Better learning outcomes were reported by those who collaborated (in groups or with a “buddy”) or learnt Swahili

11. Discussion  Foreign student had difficulties studying the first year accounting courses due to incompetence in both English and/or Swahili language  Foreign students (in non-English speaking countries) needs a reasonable proficiency of both language of instruction – to manage study demands – and local language – to manage out-of-class study interactions.  This is consistent with previous studies findings except that in those studies English was both instructional and local language.

12. Discussion  FS developed several strategies to counter language difficulties  Learning outcomes were determined by students’ efforts to counter the language challenges and not by the challenges themselves  This is also consistent with some previous studies which did not find any significant relationship between language proficiency and performance  Emphasizes importance of students’ choice of proper strategies in influencing learning outcomes

13. Recommendations  FS were mainly EAs – linguistic issues in EA education systems need to be addressed as we head towards integration  Universities needs to set certain minimum English language proficiency as part of admission requirements

14. Limitations and Areas for Further Research  Complementing FGD and interviews with observation of study group discussions to corroborate the findings  Determine the influence of other adjustment factors on FS adjustment in a host country  Determine the influence of other course specific factors on FS adjustment in a host country

15. Thanks for Your Attention