An investigation of a socio-culturally and linguistically responsive teaching model: a case of english as a second language (ESL) teachers in a senior primary school of ||Kharas region in Namibia

Abstract

This study aims to investigate a culturally and linguistically responsive pedagogy (CLRP) in the English as a Second Language (ESL) classroom. The pedagogy advocates for language instruction that is relevant to the learners’ frame of reference in terms of cultural and linguistic experiences. Namibia is a multi-cultural and multi-lingual society, and English is the language of instruction in schools from Grades 4–12 as well as the official language of the country. Studies on cultural and linguistic responsiveness are prominent in countries such as the USA due to the increasing number of culturally and linguistically diverse learners with limited exposure to the English language (Bellas, 2015). In Namibia, most learners have limited exposure to the English language, although it is the official language and the language commonly taught as a second language. Most of the Namibians’ mother tongue is one of the indigenous languages or one of the foreign languages (Hamakali & Mbenzi, 2016). This study deems it necessary to investigate a socio-culturally and linguistically responsive pedagogy in the diverse Namibian ESL classroom context where learners bring to the classroom a wealth of varied cultural and linguistic experiences that can serve as funds of knowledge in the learning of ESL.