Language Skills and Academic Achievement of Intermediate Students: Government-Private College Comparison in Guntur District

This study examines the relationship between language skills and academic achievement among Intermediate students in Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh, with specific focus on comparing government and private college contexts.Employing a quantitative cross-sectional design, the research utilized proportional stratified sampling to select 300 first-year Intermediate students from government and private intermediate colleges during the 2024-2025 academic year.A validated language skills questionnaire assessing reading comprehension, written expression, listening comprehension, and oral communication was administered alongside collection of academic achievement data from official first-year examination results.Reliability analysis confirmed strong internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.891).Independent samples t-tests revealed statistically significant differences in mean language skill scores between government (M = 62.45) and private college students (M = 68.73),t(298) = 4.127, p < 0.001, with private college students demonstrating superior language proficiency.Similarly, academic achievement differed significantly, with private college students (M = 72.18%)outperforming government college counterparts (M = 66.34%), t(298) = 3.856, p < 0.001.Chisquare analysis confirmed significant association between language proficiency categories and academic achievement levels (χ² = 42.315,p < 0.001).Findings underscore the critical role of language skills in Intermediate academic success and highlight resource-related disparities between institutional types.Results suggest policy interventions prioritizing language skill development programs, particularly in government colleges, alongside enhanced teacher training in multilingual pedagogical approaches to promote educational equity across Guntur District's diverse institutional landscape.