BUSINESS RESEARCH

REPORT

Department of Management Sciences

The Islamia University of Bahawalpur
Sub Campus Rahim Yar Khan
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

WE HAVE CONDUCTED A RESEARCH ON THE TOPIC; THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN

THE ATTITUDES OF THE STUDENTS FROM ENGLISH MEDIUM SCHOOLS AND URDU
MEDIUM SCHOOLS IN PAKISTAN. THE PROBLEM IS DISCUSSED IN THE PROBLEM
BACKGROUND SECTION . T HE RESEARCH IS OF DESCRIPTIVE NATURE AND WE HAVE
DEFINED SOME CRITERIA TO SEEK THE DIFFERENCE AMONG THEM. A QUESTIONNAIRE
WAS PREPARED AND DISTRIBUTED INTO VARIOUS EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES. WE GOT
80 POSITIVE REPLIES THAT WE CONCLUDED IN OUR RESEARCH AS THE SAMPLE SIZE.
THE DATA ANALYSIS SHOWS US SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE ATTITUDES OF
STUDENTS FROM BOTH GROUPS. I TS BEEN NORMALLY CONSIDERED THAT STUDENTS OF
ENGLISH MEDIUM SCHOOLS ARE MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE, CONFIDENT AND OWN BETTER
COMMUNICATION SKILLS COMPARED WITH STUDENTS OF U RDU MEDIUM SCHOOLS. B UT
OUR REASEARCH SHOWS THAT IT THE SCHOOL , THE MEDIUM AND THE ENVIRONMENT
DOES MATTER IN THE ATTITUDE OF STUDENT BUT IT REALLY DEPENEDS UPON THE
STUDENT . MANY STUDENTS FROM ENGLISH MEDIUM SCHOOLS ARE FOUND LESS
CONFIDENT AND BAD IN EXPRESSING THEIR VIEWS . IT IS CONSIDERED THAT ENGLISH
MEDIUM SCHOOLS GUARANTEE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHILD BUT OUR RESEARCH
SHOWS US THAT ITS NOT ABOUT THE MEDIUM OF STUDY BUT THE ENVIRONMENT , THE
OPPORUNITIES, THE FACILITIES ARE THE FACTORS WHICH MAKES A STUDENT LEARN
BETTER AND BE BETTER . OUR RESEARCH CONCLUDES THAT OUR HYPOTHESIS THAT
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE ATTITUDE OF STUDENTS FROM ENGLISH MEDIUM
AND URDU MEDIUM SCHOOLS IS FOUND FALSE. STUDENTS FROM BOTH GROUPS ARE
FOUND CONFIDENT , KNOWLEDGEABLE AND GOOD IN COMMUNICATION AND WELL
BEHAVED.
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INTRODUCTION

This research is about the difference between the attitude of students of

English medium and Urdu medium school systems. The difference of
English medium and Urdu medium schools is very common in our society.
We will see if this sort of difference made any difference in the attitudes of
the students in respect to their behaviors, knowledge, communication and
confidence. English is the official language of Pakistan. It is used in all
domains of power - government, bureaucracy, military, judiciary,
commerce, media, education and research - at the highest level. Therefore
its importance can’t be neglected and people all over the country are
ready to invest in it for the future of their children.

Because of its demand, all over the cities of Pakistan we can see the
institutes claiming to be the English medium as their medium of study. So
irrespective of what state provides parents are willing to buy a future for
their children with scarce resources. And the most interesting fact is that
more of the English medium schools are located in middle-class and
working-class areas of the cities.

The schools in Pakistan are categorized as

1) Government schools
2) Private schools

The government funded schools are further divided as

a) Elite Government public schools
b) Cadet colleges
c) Non-elite Government schools

And so the private schools are categorized as

a) Elite Private schools
b) Non-Elite Private schools

A large number of private schools are English medium whereas the

government supported schools are mostly Urdu medium. We will have a
look at different factors that can help us to analyze the difference among
the approach of students belonging to both mode of study.
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HISTORICAL BACKGROUND (LITERATURE SURVEY)

The problem of two education systems started under British rule, at that
time there were three types of schools in Indian; those for the privileged
class were chief’s colleges and those for newly emerging professional
classes were called English schools which taught all subjects in English
and other for the common people of the country. This class was created
for the social and political purposes. The chief’s colleges were meant to
produce loyalty to the crown. The newly emerging professional class
families sought admission in English schools. These schools were better
than the Indian’s one due to higher standard of instructions and more
efficient discipline. Therefore it wasn’t possible for everyone to bear the
high cost of these schools.

In the early years of Pakistan, the parallel system of elite schooling did not
change because of the establishment of Pakistan as the military and
bureaucracy both came from these elite schools. Thus it is no surprise that
the government was dominated by members of those elite class families.
These schools multiplied in Pakistan around 1960s as the professional
class started expanding.

Then Mr. Zia ul Haq brought the most significant policy according to which
the Urdu was the medium of study in all schools from Class 1 and all
students appearing in matriculation examination would use only Urdu.
Then in 1987 a real change in policy occurred when Zia ul Haq himself
gave legal protection to Elite English schools by allowing them to prepare
students for “O” and “A” Levels school certificates of British Board of
Education.

At present there are several Elite class English medium schools that being
operated under the federal government of Pakistan. The non-elitist system
of education, fully dependent upon the state, functions for the most part in
Urdu (or in Sindhi and Pashto at places). Most significantly, the non-elitist
stream of public education functions in the vernacular rather than in
English, which means, prima facie, that its products would have greater
difficulty in the competition for lucrative and powerful jobs and participation
in the elitist domains of power than their English-educated counterparts.
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PROBLEM STATEMENT

“There is a difference in the attitudes of students from

English Medium Schools and Urdu Medium Schools in
Pakistan?”
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

PURPOSE OF STUDY:

Our study is of descriptive nature as the problem is described and the

variables are known and their characteristics are defined.

TYPE OF STUDY:
The type of study is Correlational as there are many variables influencing
the problem.

RESEARCHER’S INTERFERENCES:

In our particular study the researcher’s interference will be minimal.

STUDY SETTING:

The study will be carried out in natural environment therefore it is non-

contrive study.

UNITS OF ANALYSIS:

Our units will be the individuals that are part of our study topic.

TIME HORIZON:

Our time horizon will be cross-sectional as we need to gather data only

once and no comparison is involved.
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Research Survey
“This is a small survey being conducted for Business Research
Management. We are studying the different aspects of attitudes of
students from English medium and Urdu medium Schools. You are
requested to please spare your 5 minutes to answer the following
questions.”

o Please encircle your answer.

Q.1. You studied in?

• English Medium School • Urdu Medium School

Q.2. Were you provided with practical Labs?

• Yes • No

Q.3. Is there a sports ground in your school?

• Yes • No

Q.4. Were you satisfied with the environment of your school?

• It’s Best • Yes
• Somewhat • No

Q.5. Was there any class test schedule for you?

• Yes • No

Q.6. How do you rank the command of your teachers over their
subject?
• Strong • Okay
• Weak • No command

Q.7. Are you satisfied with the teaching methods by the teachers?
• Very much • Satisfied
• Somewhat • Not satisfied

Q.8.?
• Taste • Energy
• Price • Availability

Q.9. Do you feel energy after drinking Dew?

• Yes, I do. • No, I don’t.

Q.10. Do you know Dew provides energy?

• Yes, I do. • Umm may be.
• What? You must be kidding • No! Who cares?
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Q. Do you think dew should introduce new variants?

• Yes, I agree. • May be
• Doesn’t matter really • No, It shouldn’t

Q. Who do you think, is the competitor of Dew?

• Coca Cola • Sprite 3G
• Big Apple • Red Bull

Q. In thirst, what do you prefer?

• Soft drink • Water

Q. You didn’t find Dew on a shop, now what?

• I have to find it somewhere • I don’t want to drink
• Doesn’t matter I need a • Give me something else
drink

Q. Do you find Dew easily on retail shops?

• Yes, quite easily • I’ve to travel to get it
• Can be found on Super • Is it available in our area?
store

Q. How often do you see Ads of Dew on Media?

• Very Often • Sometimes
• Rarely • I never seen it

Q. Do you feel their ads are convincing?

• Yes they are • May be it does
• It doesn’t work for me • Huh?

Q. Do you know who owns Dew?

• Coca Cola Company • Murree Beverages
• Pepsi co • It must be Dew

Q. Do you like the slogan “ Dew na piya to phir kia jiya” ?

• Yeah It’s cool • It’s Okay
• Who cares? • I don’t like it.

Q. Any suggestions you want to make?

Thanks for the Time.

Muazzam Imtiaz
MBA 1st Section ‘A’
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The Islamia University of Bahawalpur (Rahim yar Khan Campus)

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STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

We are going to analyze each question on the basis of responses we get from
individuals. In total we were able to get 80 responses out of 100
questionnaires sent to different educational institutes.

Question No.1

You studied in?

This question has two possible answers that are either English Medium
School or Urdu medium school. We got total 82 responses but we skipped
two of them to keep the ratio of students from medium to be equal to keep this
research as clear and valid as possible.

Medium of Study

Frequency Percent

English Medium 40 50.0

Urdu Medium 40 50.0

Total 80 100.0

Table 1.1

Analyses:
So, our numbers of respondent are equally 50% for both English
Medium Schools and Urdu Medium Schools.
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Question No.2

Were you provided with practical labs?

This particular question was set to analyze the study environment for the
student, as practical labs have key importance in the practical knowledge of
the student. This question will help to see if there were enough facilities
provided for the students.

Practical Labs

Medium of Study Mean N Percentage

English Medium .58 40 58%

Urdu Medium .23 40 23%

Total .40 80 40%

Table 1.2

Analysis:
As we can see the 58% students from English medium schools says
that they have got the Practical Labs facility and on contrary only 23% of Urdu
medium students were provided such facility. This clearly states a difference
in the facilities. But still we need to hold up to see if it makes any difference for
our final conclusion.
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Question No.3

Is there a sports ground in your school?

Again, this question is referred to the environment and facilities. Sports are
key part of student’s active life. More sports opportunities keep the students
healthy and active for the challenging life ahead.

Play Grounds

Medium of Study Mean N Percentage

English Medium .62 40 62%

Urdu Medium .83 40 83%

Total .72 80 72%

Table 1.3

Analysis:
This table shows us that 62% of English medium students said they
were provided with play grounds and 83% of students from Urdu medium said
so. Therefore we can clearly say that in Urdu medium schools, in which a big
number is Government schools, provide play grounds for the students.
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Question No.4

Were you satisfied with the environment of your school?

This question was asked to see their overall satisfaction level with the
environment they were provided with. The students from both medium have
responded differently. It has four possible answers:

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

It’s Best 3 Somewhat 1
Yes 2 No 0
Table 2.1

Environment Satisfaction

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 2.18 40 .781

Urdu Medium .72 40 .640

Total 1.45 80 1.018

Table 1.4

Analyses:
As we have seen its possible answers, the mean of 2.18 shows that
students from English medium schools were more satisfied and most of them
responded Yes or It’s Best. On contrary, students from Urdu medium has a
mean of .72 that shows there unlikeness towards the environment they were
provided in the schools. Most of them have selected either No or somewhat.
But again the Standard deviation shows us the deviation of opinion from
student to student. There is more deviation in the students of English medium
schools than the students from Urdu medium.
 - 14 -

Question No.5

Was there any class test schedule for you?

Now we are asking about the study patterns of students, class tests are part
of the techniques which are used as tool for the preparation of exams. A
structured class test schedule shows the concern of institute towards the
student’s final results.

Class Tests

Medium of Study Mean N Percentage

English Medium .85 40 85%

Urdu Medium .62 40 62%

Total .74 80 74%

Table 1.5

Analyses:
The test shows us that 85% students from English medium have said
there were schedule tests for them and 62% of Urdu medium said so. Overall
74% of the total numbers have responded positively on that.
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Question No.6

How do you rank the command of your teacher over their subject?

This particular question was set to see what students think of their teachers?
How well they were able to teach them? This is certainly not a criterion to
judge a teacher but to see how students perceived their teachers.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Strong 3 Weak 1
Okay 2 No 0
Table 2.2

Teacher's Command

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 2.10 40 .632

Urdu Medium 1.33 40 .572

Total 1.71 80 .715

Table 1.6

Analysis:
In table 1.6 the results shows us that students from English medium
schools have shown confidence on their teacher that they got strong or
satisfactory command over their subject. The mean of 2.10 represents the
tendency of answer towards Okay and Strong. The mean of 1.33 shows that
students from Urdu medium schools have shown less confidence on their
teachers, they have answered either weak or no command.
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Question No. 7

Are you satisfied with the teaching methods by the teachers?

In this question, we have tried to see how much students were satisfied with
the teaching method? As we are studying the study patterns, and teaching
methods are important part of it. We have tried to find out how much the
students were satisfied with the teaching methods provided at their institutes.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Very Much 3 Somewhat 1
Satisfied 2 Not satisfied 0
Table 2.3

Teaching Method

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.57 40 .675

Urdu Medium 1.17 40 .931

Total 1.38 80 .832

Table 1.7

Analysis:
The above table shows that students from both medium of studies
have shown similar satisfaction level into their teaching methods. They don’t
seem to be satisfied with the provided methods so the tendency of answers is
towards satisfaction but most of the answered either somewhat or not
satisfied. Students from Urdu medium schools have less satisfaction
compared to English medium schools students.
 - 17 -

Question No.8

How many times seminars are conducted in your school in a year?

Seminars and workshops though not a part of our school system but still
many institutes provides students with the opportunity to learn something.
These kinds of activities can have a positive impact on the attitude of the
student in terms of Knowledge.
Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

More than 2 3 1 1
2 2 0 0
Table 2.4

Seminars

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.48 40 1.109

Urdu Medium .25 40 .707

Total .86 80 1.111

Table 1.8

Analyses:
The results show us that there is almost no seminar activity in Urdu
medium schools while the English medium schools do provide activity of
seminar once a year. This could make a difference in their practical approach
in later life.
 - 18 -

Question No.9

Were there any quiz competition?

The quiz competition is an activity which does affect a student positively.

Though it’s considered an extra curricular activity but it surely has positive
impact on a student’s career.

Quiz Competition

Medium of Study Mean N Percentage

English Medium .80 40 80%

Urdu Medium .45 40 .45%

Total .63 80 63%

Table 1.9

Analyses:
The figures in table 1.9 shows us that 80% of the students from English
medium were provided with quiz competitions either at school level or class
level. And contrary the Urdu medium schools this percentage is below 50%
which means most of them are not providing any such activity.
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Question No.10

How do you rank the study pattern of your school?

Here we are asking straight away from the students that what they feel about
their study pattern? A good pattern should result in a positive impact and poor
system might lead to a negative one.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Excellent 3 Okay 1
Good 2 Poor 0
Table 2.5

Study Pattern

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.95 40 .904

Urdu Medium .88 40 .966

Total 1.41 80 1.076

Table 1.10

Analysis:
The statistics shows us that students of English medium schools rank
their study patterns higher than the Urdu medium school students. The mean
of 1.95 shows that almost all students consider their study pattern to be good.
But in Urdu medium system the situation is worse, as most of them consider
the pattern to be poor or just okay.
 - 20 -

Question No.11

Have you been participating in extra curricular activities?

Now we are asking about some traits from the student to see their attitudes
towards different aspects. The extra curricular activities show the interest of
student into their studies.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Often 2 Never 0
Seldom 1 - -
Table 2.5

Extracurricular Activities

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.25 40 .776

Urdu Medium 1.15 40 .736

Total 1.20 80 .753

Table 1.11

Analysis:
We can observe from the table that students of English medium
schools have more tendencies towards extracurricular activities in compare
with the Urdu medium but this difference is not noticeable. Overall they
participate in extra curricular activities seldom or often.
 - 21 -

Question No.12

How easy do you feel to talk to strangers?

This question will help us to determine the confidence level of the student. If
he feels hesitation that means low confidence, it will help us to judge their
differences.
Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Very easy 3 Hardly 1
Hesitate 2 Can’t 0
Table 2.6

Talk to Strangers

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.88 40 1.042

Urdu Medium 2.15 40 .864

Total 2.01 80 .961

Table 1.12

Analysis:
In this question our study shows that students of Urdu medium schools
feel easier to talk to strangers than the students of English medium. The
mean of 2.15 indicate that most of them are at hesitation level or feel easy to
talk to strangers. But surprisingly students of English medium schools are
below 2 that mean they are hesitant or hardly able to talk to strangers. That
shows lack of confidence but we can’t ignore the standard deviation here that
indicates a big difference in individuals. With a standard deviation of 1 we
can’t say all students are hesitant.
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Question No.13

What If you are asked to host the audience of over hundred people?

Another question to measure the confidence among students, facing the

audience is very difficult for a person without a boost of confidence. We will
see how many students claim that they can face the audience without fear.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Not a problem 2 No, I can not 0
Is it necessary? 1 - -
Table 2.7

Host Audience

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.58 40 .594

Urdu Medium .75 40 .981

Total 1.16 80 .906

Table 1.13

Analysis:
From the table above we can observe that students from English
medium schools claim that facing the audience is not a problem for them.
The mean of 1.58 shows that almost all of them are confident. On contrary the
students from Urdu medium are not feeling that confident to accept it. They
either go for other options or simply deny taking it. But again the standard
deviation of almost 1 is an alarm for our result; we can’t rely on this result and
make a decision that students of Urdu medium school are less confident.
 - 23 -

Question No. 14

If some one hits you, what will you do?

This question is to check the behavior of the student. A student with positive
behavior will response rather reacting, again we will see how it differs among
the students from both school groups.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Forgive 2 Hit back 0
Warn 1 - -
Table 2.8

Hit Response

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium .85 40 .834

Urdu Medium .95 40 .714

Total .90 80 .773

Table 1.14

Analysis:
In this question we tried to assess the behavior of students. The
answers are almost same for both medium of students. They will warn the
person or hit back rather forgiving. But still deviation rate is high so it really
does vary student to student.
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Question No. 15

How often do you participate in discussions?

The group discussions are vital in higher study and play a role in career and
personality building. More a student participates in discussion, the more
confident he is and more knowledge he gain.

Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Often 3 Rare 1
Seldom 2 Never 0
Table 2.9

Discussions Participation

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 2.42 40 .675

Urdu Medium 1.50 40 .934

Total 1.96 80 .934

Table 1.15

Analysis:
The statistics shows that the students of English medium schools more
often participate in discussions compared to Urdu medium students. Thus
they consider being more knowledgeable and confident but again in Urdu
medium students the standard deviation tells us that there are many students
among them who do participate often and it varies on individual to individual.
 - 25 -

Question No.16

What If you are given a chance to be the Class Representative?

This is a key question for measuring the overall personality traits of a student.
If he goes for the opportunity without any hesitation, he certainly owns some
qualities.
Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Yes Sure 3 Is it necessary? 1
I’ll think 2 No, Thanks 0
Table 2.10

Class Representative Opportunity

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.80 40 1.043

Urdu Medium 1.60 40 1.033

Total 1.70 80 1.036

Table 1.16

Analysis:
The results show us that students from both groups responded quite
similar. The mean score of 1.8 and 1.6 shows that either they will think about
it or try to escape from it. But the standard deviations of more than 1 again
indicate that these results are not dependable and it does vary from student to
student.
 - 26 -

Question No. 17

Do you participate in class activities?

Class participation is an indicator of confidence, communication and

knowledge. The students who more participate in the class activities are
definitely better than others in all aspects. We will see how it goes here.
Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Yes 2 No 0
sometimes 1 - -
Table 2.11

Class Activities

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.40 40 .496

Urdu Medium 1.33 40 .474

Total 1.36 80 .484

Table 1.17

Analysis:
Here we can see that students from both medium of studies does
participate in the class activities or at least claims to be. There means are
almost same and so does the standard deviations. They sometimes
participate in the class activities.
 - 27 -

Question No. 18

Do you feel easy to express your views to others?

With the help of this question we are trying to analyze how easy they feel to
express their views. It does indicate their self-confidence and communication
skills. The results will tell us how it differentiates among both medium of
educations.
Question Scale

Answer Scale Answer Scale

Yes Easily 2 Impossible 0
Difficult 1 - -
Table 2.12

Express your Views

Medium of Study Mean N Std. Deviation

English Medium 1.20 40 .723

Urdu Medium 1.45 40 .783

Total 1.32 80 .759

Table 1.18

Analysis:
The data in the table 1.18 shows that students from Urdu medium
schools feel easier to express their views to other irrespective of the language
they are using. And students from English medium schools do feel it easy but
most of them find it difficult to express their views. The standard deviation
rates again make us not to think this as a final decision. It does vary with
student to student that how easy he feel to express his views.
 - 28 -

CONCLUSION

From the data we have gathered and analyzed, the following conclusions are
extracted for the topic “There is a difference between the attitudes of students
from English medium and Urdu medium schools“.
1. Students from both groups have similar tendency towards extra
curricular activities.
2. Students from Urdu medium schools found it easy to talk to strangers.
3. Students from English medium schools are more confident to face the
audience.
4. Students from both groups have similar behavioral response towards
action.
5. Students from English medium schools more actively participate in
group discussions.
6. Students from both groups have similar response towards grabbing the
opportunity of being the class representative.
7. Students from Urdu medium schools found it easier to express their
opinions.

The above statements might seem to give feeling that the problem statement
sounds true but as we closely look at the main factors which we identified in
research that there are students from both groups who have positive attitude
in respect to Knowledge, Communication, Behavior, Confidence. But there
are certain points where both groups do vary. Those are environment,
qualified teachers, facilities and activities.

We would conclude that the statement “There is a difference between the

attitude of students from English medium and Urdu medium schools” is false
as they attitude doesn’t really depends upon the medium of education. Rather
the attitude of a student does vary irrespective of the school system he is
studying.