Causes of Inappropriate Use of Kinyarwanda in the Rwandan Media

Abstract

This study focused on causes of inappropriate use of Kinyarwanda in the Rwandan Media by the use of the explanatory design. The target population was 225 media stakeholders. The sample size involved 10 employees at the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency, 20 students who were studying journalism at the University of Rwanda and 20 Rwandans who regularly followed different Kinyarwanda entertainment programs through the RBA. The study employed semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions to acquire qualitative data and a questionnaire for quantitative data. The analysis focused on themes related to the topic. It was also accomplished through descriptive statistics.  The study discovered numerous causes of the misuse of Kinyarwanda in Rwandan media. Such the causes include failure to teach Kinyarwanda as a compulsory subject in secondary school, absence of a staff in charge of monitoring the appropriate use of Kinyarwanda in the entertainment programs and the recruitment which does not consider mastery of Kinyarwanda. Based on the findings, the study recommends the Ministry of Education in Rwanda to revise the teaching and learning policy of Kinyarwanda in schools and incorporate Kinyarwanda subject as a compulsory subject. Each Kinyarwanda entertainment program should have a staff in charge of monitoring the appropriate use of Kinyarwanda. The researchers further recommend that media institutions should employ qualified journalists in Kinyarwanda entertainment programs.