Browsing by Author "Ayieko, Gerry"

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    An X-Bar Theoretic Account of Jenjo Noun Phrases
    (Daystar University, 2020) Benson, Peace; Ayieko, Gerry
    This paper gives a theoretic account of Jenjo noun phrase structure in an Xbar convention. The name ‘Jenjo’ is variously used to refer to the language and the ethnic group of the Jenjo people. Dza is the actual name but they are commonly known as Jenjo. Other names are Jen and Janjo. Jenjo is spoken in Taraba, Adamawa and Gombe States, North-east, Nigeria. In Taraba State, the speakers of Jenjo are found in Karim-Lamido, Lau, Jalingo, Ardo-Kola, Bali, and Ibi Local Government areas. The Jenjo people are also found in Numan and Lamurde Local Government area of Adamawa while in Gombe State, they are found in Balanga and Akko Local Government areas. In Language Ethnologue written by Paul, Simons, and Fennig (2015), Jenjo is classified as a Niger-Congo, Atlantic-Congo, Volta-Congo, North, Adamawa-Ubangi, Adamawa, Waja-Jen, and Jen.
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    Convergent and Discriminant Validity of the English Prosodic Phonology Processing Test (EPPPT): A Multi-Trait Multimethod Approach
    (Linguistics and Literature Review (LLR), 2022-06) Ayieko, Gerry
    Most of the prosody perception tests do not capture how listeners perceive and interpret stress, tone, and intonation in the process of listening comprehension. The current study developed the English Prosodic Phonology Processing Test (EPPPT). A sample of 240 Luo speaking high school students were tested using Confirmatory Factory Analysis (CFA) in a multi-trait multimethod matrix. Four traits were measured including word prosody, sentence prosody, juncture, and discourse prosody. Three methods were used including the picture selection task, stress assignment task, and chunking task. CFA confirmed the current taxonomy of the diverse traits of English prosodic phonology: word stress, sentence stress, open and closed junctures, and discourse. The methods yielded statistically significant differences among the discriminant validity of these traits. The model fit was better when the different prosodic traits were specified (convergent validity), while the methods of testing yielded distinguishable, unique types of information about prosodic phonology processing. Using a battery of five tests, the results of EPPPT showed that the traits are quite independent of each other and the method effect is not significant.
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    Ekegusii Phonemic Inventory Constraints on Borrowing: An Optimality Perspective
    (The International Journal of Humanities & Social Studies, 2019-06) Ayieko, Gerry; Edinah, Mose Gesare; Nandelenga, Henry Simiyu
    Sound adaptat ion is a phenomenon that languages cannot escape in bor rowing. This is because phonemic inventor ies differ significant ly. This paper explores how Ekegusii nat ive speakers map foreign segments from English so that they conform to the inventory const raints of Ekegusii. In this paper , couched in Opt imality Theory (OT) , it is demonst rated that English vowels are mapped to Ekegusii front and back vowels respect ively const rained by shared features while consonant adaptat ion is guided by shared features as well. This is to ensure that segments that are unmarked cross linguist ically are adapted over the marked ones. OT’s markedness const raints largely dominate the faithfulness const raints because modificat ions must occur when English loanwords are different from their Ekegusii counterpar ts in the mapping process.
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    Ethical Awareness of University Students in Online English Language and Linguistics Classes During COVID-19 Era in Kenya
    (East African Journal of Education Studies, 2022-04) Ayieko, Gerry
    The advent of Corona Virus Disease (Covid-19) has disrupted the teaching, learning, and research process in Kenya in an unprecedented manner. Many of these learning institutions resorted to online teaching-learning processes due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A number of the education institutions installed or reactivated their already existing learning management system (LMS) to continue with remote learning. Data was collected using questionnaire and a regression test was run that shows low level of ethical awareness by e-learning students. The study used pluralism as a theoretical framework and this showed that there is need to raise the students’ ethical awareness and change the model from looking for students who ‘cheat’ to empower them as moral agents to make the correct ethical choices.
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    Influence of Schema Theory on Reader-Responses to Soyinka’s The Interpreters (1965): A Case of Kenyan University Undergraduate Students
    (Hybrid Journal of Literary and Cultural Studies, 2020-11) Ayieko, Gerry
    This study investigated the effect of the story schema teaching model on Kenyan university undergraduate reader-response to Soyinka’s The Interpreters (1965). Schema theory describes the interaction readers’ background knowledge in reading tasks. Most researchers using schema theory have established that instruction of story grammar improves the reading comprehension of narratives, however, there is a dearth of studies that have investigated the effect of teaching strategy on the comprehension of psychological novels such as The Interpreters. A true experimental design which is the post-test only control group treatment with random assignment. The experimental group received experimental treatment: instruction on the story schema while the control did not. Three tests measured the dependent variable: a multiple-choice test story recall and story frame test of the selected passages from The Interpreters. One-way ANOVA tests show that the experimental groups were significantly better than the control group in all the three tests: story recall, the story-grammar, and multiple-choice questions. The story mapping theory can be adapted as a model for teaching narratives in order to enhance text comprehension by University undergraduate students.
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    Morphotactics in Ekegusii Borrowing: An Optimality Perspective
    (International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 2020-07) Ayieko, Gerry; Edinah, Mose Gesare; Nandelenga, Henry Simiyu
    Language morphotactics which encompass morphological constraints that determine what is permissible and impermissible in given language are very crucial in determining linguistic borrowing. This paper explores morphological adaptations, based on McCarthy and Prince’s Generalized Alignment (GA), that is embedded in OT’s constraints. It is demonstrated that to a large extent, loanwords undergo inflectional integration as opposed to derivational, both of which are highly constrained by Ekegusii’s morphotactics
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    Occurrence and Co-occurrence of Verbal Extensions in Lulogooli
    (The International Journal of Humanities & Social Studies, 2020-10) Abaya, Karen Vudembu; Ayieko, Gerry; Kebeya, Hilda
    This article examines four verbal extensions and their or der of co-occurrence in the same verbal unit in Lulogooli, a Bantu dialect of the Luhyia language spoken in Western part of Kenya. A verbal extension refers to a suffix attached to a verb to effect a given meaning. The verbal extensions under this study include passive, reciprocal, applicative and causative. A Minimalist perspective is employed to determine the extent to which the extensions fit within the Pan-Bantu default template by Hyman (2002). The position of the suffixes in the template is directly determined by either syntactic or semantic considerations and the order of the verbal derivations is determined by the morphotactic constrains. Findings reveal that the Lulogooli verbal extensions fit within the Pan-Bantu default template by Hyman (2002), save for the Causative2-Applicative co-occurrence and their order is as a result of attraction and feature-driven movement constrained by the Minimal Link Condition.
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    Role of Social Networks, Attidude and Motivation in Informal Foreign Language Learning in the Tourism Industry in Mombasa County, Kenya
    (Journal of Communication and Cultural Trends (JCCT), 2022-03) Ayieko, Gerry; Phyllis, Mwangi
    The current paper investigates the predictive values of five independent variables including attitude, motivation, social networks, and problems encountered during the process of informal language learning. These values were calculated based on the dependent variable, that is, the scores on Test de Niveauenfrançais (TNF) of the informal learners of French working in the tourism industry in Mombasa, Kenya. A quantitative descriptive survey design was used. Data was collected through a set of three questionnaires and TNF was administered to 45 informal learners of French working in different tourism sectors in Mombasa County. The results revealed that instrumental motivation and interest in the language were the most significant predictors of the TNF score of the respondents. A multiple linear regression model was used to estimate the predictive value of social networks, attitude, and motivation in informal language learning. The results revealed a significant combined effect of variables on foreign language mastery. Furthermore, the results also revealed that the sum effect of the remaining social network variables on the respondents’ mastery of French was not significant. We discovered a highly positive correlation between learners’ social networks and their mastery of the language. Network density was found to be the most significant predictor when all the social network variables were factored into the model. In the first step, it was determined that the respondents’ initial proficiency level and the percentage of native French speakers in their network were the most significant predictors of French language mastery. The second step added overall size and density in the model and they were found to be significant as well. Finally, it was concluded that informal foreign language learning seems to be a viable model of language learning that should be given attention by stakeholders in the tourism industry.
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    Task Based Vocabulary Teaching: An Experimental Study in Selected Secondary Schools in Mombasa County, Kenya
    (Ruwaza Afrika, 2021-12) Ayieko, Gerry
    Vocabulary teaching has generally been neglected in the English language teaching learning process in Kenya. The syllabus and material design process is predicated on the notion that vocabulary can be learnt with explicit methods and approaches that address it the present study employed the Solomon Four Group experimental design to investigate the effect of task abased teaching on students’ score on a Vocabulary Acquisition Test (VAT) in selected form two secondary schools in Mombasa County, Kenya. The researcher conducted three experimental classroom teaching sessions in the experimental group using task based methodology while the control groups were taught by the regular teachers using the regular prescribed methods of teaching vocabulary. The data was collected using the VAT and analyzed using a paired t test and the Maximum Likelihood Regression model and it revealed that the experimental group out performed their peers in the control groups and the tasks selected were good predicators of the outcome of the students score on the VAT. The conclusion based on the results is that task based teaching be adopted in the teaching of English language vocabulary in Kenyan schools.