Lecturers’ preparedness to train teachers of literacy and language education in colleges of education in Zambia.

The issue of literacy in Zambia has been the subject of concern due to the continued
low literacy levels among Zambian pupils. Literacy should be the main focus if any
improvement in the education system is to be done. The focus of literacy education is
to improve the reading and writing skills of learners which should begin with teacher
preparation.
The purpose of this study was to establish whether Literacy and Language lecturers
were adequately prepared to train teachers in literacy and language education in
colleges of education in Zambia. The study sought to establish the preparedness of
literacy and language lecturers to prepare teacher trainees in literacy and language
education, establish whether the literacy and language teacher education programme
adequately responds to the pedagogical needs of a teacher and establish challenges
which literacy and language lecturers face in preparing trainee teachers in literacy and
language education.
The study employed a mixed method descriptive design which involved both
qualitative and quantitative methods. A purposive sampling technique was used to
come up with 49 respondents, that is, 45 college lecturers and four college
administrators while simple random sampling was used to select colleges of education
where data was collected. Data was collected through questionnaires and interviews.
The study found that while all literacy and language lecturers were professionally
trained either as primary school teachers or secondary school teachers, they were not
fully prepared to train teachers in literacy and language education. This was due to the
failure to interpret the literacy and language teacher education programme, the
literacy and language teacher education curriculum not being totally in line with the
school curriculum in most areas of literacy and language education and failure by the
ministry to update literacy and language lecturers on the latest developments of the
school curriculum and shortage of lecturers was among challenges.
The study recommended that literacy and language lecturers need to be inducted and
mentored upon appointment so as to prepare them to train teachers, the literacy and
language curriculum should always be updated in line with the school curriculum in
order for colleges of education to prepare students effectively, and there is need to
engage literacy and language lectures in the formulation and /or revision of literacy
policies.
Key words: Lecturers, train, teachers, literacy and language, colleges of education