The Challenges Facing the Execution of Communication Skills Course in Higher Education Institutions. A Case Study of two Universities in Tanzania

Abstract

The paper examines challenges in the teaching of Communication Skills (CS) course in higher education institutions in Tanzania. Teaching of the course in Tanzania started in 1978 to date and aimed at helping students learn effectively using English language as medium of instruction. However, many students fail to communicate effectively using the language and exhibit deficiencies even after doing the course. The study was informed by relativist-interpretivist research paradigm which is consistent with the qualitative approach and case study method. It involved 55 participants including: students, lecturers, Heads of Departments and Academic Deans from one public and one private university in Tanzania as well as officials from the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training. The respondents were sampled purposively. The interviews, observations, focus group discussions and document reviews were used to generate data that were analysed mathematically. The key challenges revealed include: poor background of the students and lecturers, interference of other languages and lack of appropriate resources. In view of the findings, it is recommended that teaching of the CS course should start from the lower levels of education, among others.

Keywords: Communication, Communication Skills and Communication Skills Course