Contribution Of Teaching And Learning Kiswahili In Promoting Tourism Trade

The law establishing Kiswahili as an official language in addition to English, French, and local Kinyarwanda was passed by the Rwandan parliament in February 2017. In some parts of the country, particularly in Kigali and other towns, Kiswahili is one of the four official languages used along with Kinyarwanda, English, and French. (Ntawigira,2009). The history of Rwanda colonialism diminished the development Kiswahili Language in Rwanda (Wallace, 2017). Many students do not understand Kiswahili language and its important as means of communication like English language at school. Participating in a tourism industry where the language connects them with other EAC users, they discover the significance of Kiswahili. Numerous studies on the role that language plays in human interaction have demonstrated that language plays a significant role in communication. In this article, variety of perspectives presented by tourism teachers and students regarding to the contribution of teaching and learning Kiswahili in promoting tourism trade ware discussed. The purpose of this paper emphasized the contribution of teaching and learning Kiswahili in tourism trade, which was essential for developing communication with tourists from countries where Kiswahili is spoken. This study carried out at the Kibihekane TVET in the district of Nyabihu. Through interviews with tourism students and teachers who instruct in the trade, qualitative research will be used on 156 interviewees (126 students from level three to level five tourism and 30 teachers) who will participate in the data collection process through social learning theory, constructivism and Communicative language theory. The results indicated that, the promotion of tourism trade is greatly aided by the teaching and learning of Kiswahili, and efforts should be made to help students interact or communicate with East African members. In a nutshell, this study will encourage students and educators to promote the Kiswahili language in the tourism industry in order to compete with EAC nations on the labor market and improve tourism customer service. In order to encourage the use of the Kiswahili language, the government and educational institutions ought to develop simple language policies. Key words: contribution of teaching, learning Kiswahili, promoting tourism trade