The current state of writing Kiswahili essays in some secondary schools in
Tanzania leaves a lot to be desired. It appears that a large number of students do
not differentiate between writing as an activity and writing as a skill. Every
writing is an activity but not every writing is a skill. Failure to appreciate this
correctly causes some students to write Kiswahili essays the way they speak. The
differences between writing and speaking are discussed in section 2 below.
Examining writing problems in Kiswahili essays in some Teacher Training
Colleges and the University of Dar es Salaam, Mkude (1980), Qorro (1988) and
Msanjila (1990) note with great concern that students have writing problems in
expressing themselves systematically and logically. Not only that, students mix
English structures and expressions with those of the Kiswahili language. Under
these circumstances, comprehension becomes difficult and the intended meaning
is highly affected. How serious is the problem of writing now? Indeed, this is the
focus of the present study.