Influence of English as a language of teaching and learning on learners’ academic performance

Abstract

Language is a communication system that humans use to share their opinions, thoughts, and feelings. Language plays a crucial role in teaching and learning in the global education landscape. This study investigates the impact of an additional language as a medium of instruction on academic performance. It argues that using an additional language that is not the learner's home language or mother tongue negatively influences their performance. It recommends using the mother tongue as the Language of Teaching and Learning (LoTL). The interpretivist research paradigm was employed, and the research design was qualitative. Thus, data were gathered from secondary sources, including internet engines such as Google Scholar, EBSCOhost, and ERIC, using keywords such as Language of learning and teaching, Additional Language, Mother tongue, and the like. Thematic data analysis was used to make sense of the collected data and identify emerging themes. This study concludes that, after an extensive investigation, it can be agreed that using an additional language, such as LoLT, does hurt learners' academic performance.