Study Abroad vs. At-Home Instruction: Swahili Language Acquisition Among Ghanaian Learners in Tanzania and Ghana

Study abroad (SA) programs have been widely recognised as effective contexts for second language acquisition (SLA), yet comparisons between SA and At-Home (AH) classroom instruction remain limited, particularly for learners of indigenous African languages such as Swahili. This pilot study investigates the influence of SA programs on SLA by comparing the listening and speaking proficiency development of Ghanaian Swahili learners in Tanzania with those receiving AH classroom instruction in Ghana. The study was guided by two research questions: (1) How do listening and speaking skills vary between participants in SA programs and those in AH classroom instruction? (2) What are the perceived benefits and challenges of each context as reported by participants? Grounded in Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory, Krashen's Input Hypothesis, and Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory, the study employed a qualitative cross-sectional design. Six fourth-year undergraduate Ghanaian Swahili learners, three in each context, participated in semi-structured interviews and communicative role-play tasks conducted via Microsoft Teams. Findings reveal that SA participants demonstrated stronger listening comprehension, more natural vocabulary use, and greater conversational fluency compared to AH participants. SA learners attributed their gains to immersive interactions with native speakers and daily exposure to authentic language use. In contrast, AH participants reported notable gains in grammar and writing but faced limited opportunities for authentic communication. Both groups identified contextual challenges: SA participants navigated socio-cultural adjustment, while AH learners struggled with motivation and limited language exposure. The study highlights the value of immersive environments for oral language development and calls for future research with larger, more diverse samples to further examine long-term proficiency outcomes across learning contexts.