EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS IN CAMEROON: INVESTIGATING THE CHOICE OF FRENCH-SPEAKING CAMEROONIAN PARENTS TO SEND THEIR CHILDREN TO THE ANGLO-SAXON SYSTEM
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Abstract
Education and language are among the keys to a balanced and robust society. The educational system in Cameroon is one of the products of its history from the colonial period to the years of independence. While Germany, France, and England colonized Cameroon, its educational system was modeled and imposed by former colonizers, particularly France and England. Thus, the Francophone and Anglo-Saxon systems have been education models in this bilingual country for more than 50 years. Officially in Cameroon, French and English are the languages of instruction in public schools. This research aims to analyze these two nationwide educational systems and understand why parents from French-speaking families might encourage their children to the Anglo-Saxon system. Based on results obtained through a questionnaire distributed to 52 French-speaking parents home-based and abroad, it is now clear that the Anglo-Saxon system is more prevalent in Cameroon and will be more and more coveted for various reasons: involving the socio-professional integration, quality of education, weight of the language of study, quality of infrastructure, and equipment. Henceforth, this is where the research draws all its importance and its particularity. However, we must note that there are several reasons why parents may not want to take such a risk, as mentioned in this paper.