THE ROLE OF KISWAHILI IN ENHANCING COMMUNICATION SKILLS OF TECHNICIANS

The study identifies the absence of Kiswahili instruction for technicians, despite its potential benefits for communication skills. It aims to achieve four objectives: understanding required technician skills, analysing the Kiswahili curriculum in Rwanda's Technical and Vocational Education and Training, assessing teaching strategies at Rwanda Polytechnic, and evaluating their impact on trainee communication skills. Data collection via questionnaires was used and findings were statistically presented.The first objective revealed unanimous agreement among students regarding writing, oral, and interaction skills as essential for Rwanda Polytechnic apprentices. The second objective highlighted elements like language teaching purpose, methodology, and evaluation in the Kiswahili curriculum (98.3% agreement). Findings for the third objective indicated that strategies like using learned vocabulary and active participation significantly contribute to students' communication skills.In conclusion, the study recommends integrating a Kiswahili course across all departments at Rwanda Polytechnic to address the communication skills gap among technicians.