A Study of Common Errors by Secondary School Learners of Arabic Language in Nairobi County

Abstract

Arabic is among the world’s oldest languages. Besides its predominance in the Middle East, Arabic is spoken in North Africa and some parts of Far East Asia. Considered the official Islam language, it is widely used as a communication tool by Muslim faithful across the globe. This is, of course, not without the common spelling mistakes witnessed among those new to the language, which sometimes causes communication breakdown. Consequently, this study was carried out to assess some of the common errors among secondary school learners of the Arabic language. The following specific objectives guided the research; (i) To identify common errors committed by secondary school learners taking Arabic as a foreign language, (ii) To establish and explain the source of such errors, and (iii) To propose a possible solution(s). The descriptive survey research design was adopted. Four Secondary schools in Nairobi County were identified for the research, targeting more than 148 students of both genders. The stratified sampling method was employed. First, Public and private schools were divided into several strata. Afterward, 44 Form Three and Form Four students were randomly selected from the strata, constituting 30% of the entire population. To identify errors, the researchers embarked on steps and procedures which included; (i) Collection of samples of learners’ languages, (ii) Conducting of written tests for students in forms three and four, (iii) Analysis of all errors according to language order and (iv) Carrying out a comparative analysis in regards to related studies. The study’s findings were that poor Arabic proficiency among Arabic learners resulted from the lack of a proper grasp of the language’s basic vocabulary and application concepts. Not only did this negatively affect their understanding, but also their ability to express themselves. It was observed that students struggled with the proper use of verbs and phrasal verbs in structuring sentences. In addition, the inability to properly apply pronouns and prepositions made it difficult to translate phrases from active to passive voices and vice versa. The study recommended that learners continue using print, audio and visual materials to enhance their grasp of Arabic’s basic vocabulary and application of concepts. Further, it was recommended that students develop a culture of communicating in Arabic more frequently, as this would greatly enhance their ability to express themselves. To generally improve the quality of Arabic language training in Kenya, this study recommends that the government, through the ministry of education, should facilitate the hiring of properly trained and qualified Arabic instructors.