Papers by LAWRENCE BOSIWAH
A Spectrographic Analysis of Akan Word-Final Nasals
This study examines Akan nasals at different word positions, especially the alveolar and velar na... more This study examines Akan nasals at different word positions, especially the alveolar and velar nasals at word-final positions, so that both Akan and English language teachers could apply them in teaching. It finds out which dialect(s) of Akan use(s) the velar nasal [ŋ] at the word-final position, and also whether Asante Twi uses palatal nasal [ɲ] at CVN syllable (where ‘N’ is a nasal consonant). In all, 70 speakers were recorded, ten from each of the seven Akan communities, made up of five males and five females. The subjects were asked to repeat the words presented in a carrier frame “Ɔse {key word} anaa?” [ɔsɪ…anaa] three times, which were recorded and
Peace & Tolerance: Cultural Congruence Between Home and School in Rural Ghana
An etymological study of the word ‘aborɔfo’ (Europeans) and its impact on Akan Language
The Akan word ‘aborɔfo’ (Europeans) came into existence in Akan through a derivational process. H... more The Akan word ‘aborɔfo’ (Europeans) came into existence in Akan through a derivational process. However, two schools of thought exist concerning the actual meaning of the word ‘aborɔfo’. Those who perceive the colonial masters to be wicked (due to their activities in the country) interpret the word as aborɔ-fo(ɔ) ‘wicked people’. The other school of thought has it that the Europeans got the name aborɔfo because they came to the Gold Coast by sea, hence, a-borɔ-fo(ɔ) (i.e. from behind the horizon). This paper seeks to use both historical and linguistic evidence in support of the latter. For the historical evidence, the paper considers the behavior of the Europeans or what they did when they first set foot on the soils of our mother land that could possibly earn them the name ‘wicked people’. It also looks at when they got that name; and also before they were seen to be wicked what was their name. Linguistically, the word aborɔ-fo(ɔ) is compared with ɔbo-fo/abo-fo ‘wicked people’ to i...
A Spectrographic Analysis of Akan Word-Final Nasals
This study examines Akan nasals at different word positions, especially the alveolar and velar na... more This study examines Akan nasals at different word positions, especially the alveolar and velar nasals at word-final positions, so that both Akan and English language teachers could apply them in teaching. It finds out which dialect(s) of Akan use(s) the velar nasal ( �) at the word-final position, and also whether Asante Twi uses palatal nasal ( �) at CVN syllable (where 'N' is a nasal consonant). In all, 70 speakers were recorded, ten from each of the seven Akan communities, made up of five males and five females. The subjects were asked to repeat the words presented in a carrier frame " �se {key word} anaa?" ( �s�…anaa) three times, which were recorded and analyzed using Kay Elemetrics Computerized Speech Laboratory (CSL) model 4500 software. The study revealed that Iguae Fantse uses (n), as Akuapem Twi, Agona and Bremang Dialects use ( �). Gomua Fantse, Asante Twi, and Akyem Twi do not use alveolar nasal consonant at word-final position at all because there is n...
In recent years, the standard of English has been criticised as being low. The Chief Examiner’s R... more In recent years, the standard of English has been criticised as being low. The Chief Examiner’s Report on the 2001 - 2010 Basic Education Certificate Examination (B.E.C.E.) singled out poor spelling as a major cause of the poor performance by candidates during examination. This paper therefore investigates spelling errors among Junior High School (JHS) students in some selected schools in the Cape Coast Metropolis in the Central Region of Ghana. It also finds out if the type of school (social classification) has any influence on the performance of students and, to establish the correlation between gender and performance in English Language (L 2). The study employed both qualitative and quantitative approach. The data for the study were obtained using some test tools, questionnaire, and interviews. In all, 60 participants made up of 30 males and 30 females were used for the study. The result identified six error types – omission, addition, substitution, inversion, pronunciation and m...
This paper contests Butler’s theory of gender performativity established on the premise that gend... more This paper contests Butler’s theory of gender performativity established on the premise that gender is made real through the constant enactment of certain behaviours that are learnt. Butler posits that, gender can be defined as something people do rather than a biological quality they possess. The theory ultimately supports the principle of gender neutrality often argued by gay and lesbian activists and queer theorists. Using evidence from Akan constructions of masculinity, the paper supports the conventional view that gender is primarily biological and that people perform their social roles based on their biological make up. A major highlight of the paper is the events leading to the election of Barima Kwame Kyeretwie as Asantehene Prempeh II in 1931 and the resolution of destoolment charges brought against him by some Asante youth in 1935. The paper concludes that in gender categorization, social construction is not abstract but is premised on biology which should be the primary d...
Verbal threat is a speech act which forms an integral part of human behaviour. It is one of the f... more Verbal threat is a speech act which forms an integral part of human behaviour. It is one of the face threatening acts that confront people in their day-to-day activities. It is a language phenomenon that can generate quarrel, fight and chaos among people. Despite the controversies which verbal threat causes people, it still remains one of the most language phenomenon or speech acts which have not been given much attention in our part of the world, Africa and Ghana to be specific. Pertaining to the use of language among individuals, the way people use language differ as a result of certain social factors which characterize the use of language in every society. This study finds out how sociolinguistic factors such as gender, age and occupational status have any influence on how an individual issues a verbal threat among the Fantes in Ghana using the people of Apewosika in the Cape Coast Metropolis as case study. The research employed a qualitative and a case study approach in collecti...
Teacher Accountability and Student Responsibility: A Cross-Cultural Comparison of American and Ghanaian Schooling Practices, Policies and a Reflection on NCLB
Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue, 2012
In the age of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in American schooling, we wonder about the effects of t... more In the age of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in American schooling, we wonder about the effects of the accountability narrative on school children. With such an emphasis on teacher accountability, might we be deemphasizing student responsibility? This article utilizes qualitative data from a year-long ethnography conducted in three village schools in Ghana to contrast the American school context of teacher accountability as enacted through NCLB. The purpose of the research was to investigate home and school cultural congruency in rural schools in Ghana. What we found, in short, was that the responsibility for schooling in Ghana rests with the children. This finding will be contrasted with the American emphasis on teacher accountability, as delineated in the NCLB Act. The aim of this article is to question how the emphasis on teacher accountability, which is both outlined in policy and enacted in schools, affects American students' responsibility. INTERNATIONALISM VERSUS INTERNATION...
Acoustic Evidence of [m] and [n] as Syllabic Consonants (Ç) in Akan
Education Journal
Conceptualizing Farm Product Immaturity in the Mfantse Dialect of Akan, Ghana
International Journal of Innovative Research and Development
International Journal of Elementary Education
Children come to school with emergent literacy which teachers need to build on to enhance early l... more Children come to school with emergent literacy which teachers need to build on to enhance early literacy acquisition in both the first language (L1) and the target language (L2) which in the case of Ghana is English Language. One of the supporting systems used to enhance effective teaching and learning is meaningful gestures such as iconic, metaphoric, deictic, and beat. The aim of the study is to find out how teachers use meaningful gestures to enhance effective teaching and learning of literacy in early childhood centres. Ten early childhood centres in the Cape Coast Metropolis in the Central Region of Ghana, consisting of 5 public and 5 private schools were selected. Observation and interviews were used for the data collection and analysed. The result indicated that most teachers use meaningful gestures only when they are teaching recitation. Little attention is paid to the use of gestures in other literacy lessons such as storytelling, reading, listening and speaking, and community circle time. Based on the findings, it has been recommended that early childhood education teachers should be educated on the use of meaningful gestures alongside speech in promoting early literacy acquisition.
Cultural congruence and unbalanced power between home and school in rural Ghana and the impact on school children*
Comparative Education, 2016
Teacher Accountability and Student Responsibility: A Cross-Cultural Comparison of American and Ghanaian Schooling Practices, Policies and a Reflection on NCLB
Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue, 2012
International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, May 13, 2015
Verbal threat is a face threatening acts that confront people. It is a language phenomenon that c... more Verbal threat is a face threatening acts that confront people. It is a language phenomenon that can generate quarrel, fight, confusion, chaos, etc. This study investigates causes, aims and effects of verbal threat, among the Fantes using Apewosika as a case study. The research employed a qualitative and a case study approach. In all, 30 participants made up of 12 male adults, 12 female adults, 3 male children and 3 female children were randomly selected using the purposive sampling technique of which their responses from the interview and the observation to the research topic problem were presented to content analysis. The results indicate that there are four main causes (ill-speaking/gossiping, insults/invectives, falsewitnessing against someone, and wrongly nicknaming someone), for which one issues out a threat among the Apewosika people. Also, the research reveals that there are three main aims for which an individual seeks to achieve when he/she issues out a threat and these are: to prevent the offender from repeating the same mistake, to deter other people from committing similar mistake and to present oneself as very fearful to an offender so as to demand some respect from the offender. Further, the study reveals that verbal threats have some negative effects on individuals. Thus, it breaks the smooth relationship between people, it puts so much fear in an offender and also makes one feel so worried and disorganized. The paper concludes that verbal threats are not meant to preserve the face of an individual since it is a face threatening act.
Peace & Tolerance: Cultural Congruence Between Home and School in Rural Ghana
International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 2015
This paper investigates into various ways by which native speakers of the Akyem Twi dialect of th... more This paper investigates into various ways by which native speakers of the Akyem Twi dialect of the Akan Language of Ghana make polite request and how social variables such as age, gender and socioeconomic status influence their request making. An ethnographic research approach to qualitative design was employed and the research participants of twenty were randomly selected using the purposive sampling technique of which their responses from the interview and the observation to the topic problem were submitted to content analysis. The findings indicate that the strategy for polite request is the indirect strategy. Comparatively, the Akyem speech community equally prefers the conventional indirect strategy as the most polite strategy of request speech act as the other speech communities in Ghana. Also, social variables such as age, gender and socioeconomic status influence request making yet equal status contradicts some findings in relation to familiarity. Again, Ghanaians have one condition that warrants request which is not part of the existing one; they believe that the individual granting the request should be trustworthy. Moreover, there were new interesting findings in this study.It was foundout that non-conventional indirect strategy has some natural features which make it different from the conventional strategy and more like the direct strategy, even though they are all indirect strategies.
International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 2015
This study aimed at finding out why and how students employ the use of sarcasm. The students of U... more This study aimed at finding out why and how students employ the use of sarcasm. The students of University of Cape Coast served as a case study. It also discussed how the social variables-gender and age influence the employment of sarcasm. The sampled size was eighty undergraduate students representing forty males and forty females with ten males and ten females in level hundred, two hundred, three hundred and four hundred respectively. The study used questionnaires. The study revealed that the aim of using sarcastic comments is to correct and tease. The study also revealed that gender has an influence on the issuing of such indirect strategies. In terms of age, it was revealed that students barely pass sarcastic comments towards people older than them. This shows their respect for the elderly as the culture demands in Ghana.
International Journal of Language and Linguistics, Mar 27, 2015
This paper investigates into various ways by which native speakers of the Akyem Twi dialect of th... more This paper investigates into various ways by which native speakers of the Akyem Twi dialect of the Akan Language of Ghana make polite request and how social variables such as age, gender and socioeconomic status influence their request making. An ethnographic research approach to qualitative design was employed and the research participants of twenty were randomly selected using the purposive sampling technique of which their responses from the interview and the observation to the topic problem were submitted to content analysis. The findings indicate that the strategy for polite request is the indirect strategy. Comparatively, the Akyem speech community equally prefers the conventional indirect strategy as the most polite strategy of request speech act as the other speech communities in Ghana. Also, social variables such as age, gender and socioeconomic status influence request making yet equal status contradicts some findings in relation to familiarity. Again, Ghanaians have one condition that warrants request which is not part of the existing one; they believe that the individual granting the request should be trustworthy. Moreover, there were new interesting findings in this study.It was foundout that non-conventional indirect strategy has some natural features which make it different from the conventional strategy and more like the direct strategy, even though they are all indirect strategies.
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Papers by LAWRENCE BOSIWAH