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THE IMPACT
OF MOTHER TONGUE ON STUDENTS’ PERFORMANCE IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE
ABSTRACT
This study
has thrown an insight into the impact of mother tongue in the speaking skills
of English language.
The impact:
of "mother tongue" was noticed in the section of grammar and sentence
structure and this affected their dialect and their grammar and sentences
structure.
Students'
background in all the four language skills listening, speaking, reading and
writing was extremely woeful.
Poor still
was their timidity towards speaking of English Language, Some of the teachers
did not hide their interest regarding their zeal in teaching thesubject.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background to the Study
The
importance of English language acquisition as a stepping-stone for proficiency
in other school subjects cannot be over emphasized. The.' knowledge is
important both for educational, economical and national development of a
country.
The
importance of English language as a school subject derives mainly from its
utilitarian value to the larger Nigerian society, English is the officia1
language of administration and commerce, It is major language of science. Above
all, Salami (2002) had emphasized the importance of tile USC of English
language in improving communication among, the various ethnic groups in,
Nigeria, He further highlighted the need for improving the quality of spoken
and written English .language among school children.
However, one
of the current educational problems of public interest is that of poor level of
achievement especially in public examinations (Kolawole1998) Kolawole and Dele
2002). This problem of underachievement among school children has persisted in
many subject areas such as Mathematics, English and Science (Ivowi, Okebukola,
and Oladorun, 1992; Falayajo, 1997). This poor level of achievement in many
subject areas may -be due to poor foundation in English Language at the primary
school level. There are also several research reports, which support the view,
that language inefficiency invariably leads to poor academic performance
(Ayodele, 1988; Falayajo, 1997). No wonder why today, according to Iroegbu
(2006) much emphasis is placed on the passing of English language at credit or
distinction Level in addition to other subjects to enable any candidate gain
admission into any Nigerian Higher Institution of learning or be placed well in
a good white collar job.
In
recognition of the importance of English language for enhancing educational
attainment as well as for improving communication ability of citizens, the
government had made the subject a core subject (FGN, 2004). It is also
compulsory for students to have credit in English language before entering the
university. This also explains why many parents go off their way to see that
their children pass at credit level or above in English language.
The
importance of English language as a school subject derives mainly from, its
utilitarian value to the larger Nigerian society. English is the official
language of administration and commerce. It is major language of science. Above
all, Salami (2002) had emphasized the importance of the use of English language
in improving communication among the various ethnic groups in Nigeria. He
further highlighted the need for improving the quality of spoken and written
English language among school children.
However one
of the current educational problems of public interest is that of poor level of
achievement especially in public examinations (Kolawole .1998, Kolawole and
Dele 2002). This problem of underachievement among school children has
persisted in many subject areas such as Mathematics, English and Science
(Akpan, Ivowi, Okebukola, and Oladotun, 1992; Falayajo, 1997). This poor level
of achievement in many subject areas may be due to poor foundation in English
language at the primary school level. There are also several research reports,
which support ·the view that languageinefficiency invariably leads to poor
academic performance (Oluikpe, 1979; Ayodele, 1988 Falayajo, 19.97 Onukaogu and
Arua, 1997; Onukaogu, 2002).
Okoro (2000)
has stated that the problem of poor level of achievement of primary school.
children was a serious one in Nigeria and this was in spite of the fact that
Nigeria had set up goals for increasing minimum level of learning by 1995. The
author had observed that ample evidences of poor performance were still
observed as the pupils move up the system. Attempt was therefore made to find
out the extent to which Okoro's (2000) observation applies to primary school
English. Language beyond the year 2000.
Perhaps the
way English language is taught in schools and colleges may be blamed for some
of the observed lapses in English language achievement and skills of learners.
Ubahakwe (1991), Ohia (1997) and Duff (1997) had criticized the traditional
teaching strategy for use in
English
language classrooms. Kolawole (1991,1998) had blamed the Use of traditional teaching
strategy for lack of good grasp of basic skills in writing. Williams (1990) had
described this teaching strategy as a hit and miss affair. Oglan (1997) had
criticized the domineering nature of traditional teaching strategy which
renders learners passive in class. He therefore recommended an activity
classroom where learners especially at the primary school level, can make
learning a fun: Such learning activities may include learning with objects,
things, photographs, films etc.
Kolawole
(2002) also confirmed that the performance of the primary school pupils in
English language was very poor. They stressed further that the standard was
poor due to a number of other .reasons such as:
1. The use of tribal language
in the lower classes of the primary school;
2. Some pupils do not understand the grammar
because their teachers themselves do not know it; and
3. In most cases English language
teachers in the senior primary schools resort to these of mother tongue to
teach and explain the English language even up to the secondary school level.
These
researchers are of the opinion that there should be a review in the language
policy on education. The review according to them should contain
recommendations that will make pupils to have exposure to the subject quite
early from the primary school' irrespective of the advantages of mother tongue,
They further suggested that teaching and learning of English should be more
practical in our schools, and also the number of years of study and. teaching
periods should 'be increased. Finally, materials for learning the subject
should be supplied.
This will be
the time when the problem of failure in the subject will hopefully be overcome.
So a firm foundation in English language is very important for better
performance.
Ogunsanwo
(2003) has a different view on the use of English language in the early years
of the primary school. He opined that the use of mother tongue .in the process
of teaching and learning in the early years helps, not only to preserve and
value ones culture but also to develop it lexically. According to the author,
the use of English language in the early primary school makes the average
primary school child unable to be sufficiently literary in either the mother
tongue or English language.
He felt that
to use English language at that level will lead to the children having a mental
translation of a1l concepts presented in English language to their mother
tongue in order to gain sufficient meaning of the concepts presented. The
researcher believes that a citizen that is literate even only in the mother
tongue will be sufficiently equipped to live a useful life in the fast changing
world. So if permanent literacy is to be promoted in the primary schools the
use of the mother tongue as the medium of instruction in schools ought to be
encouraged.
Harker
(2000) investigated gender differences in achievement of boys and girls in
schools in New Zealand. The study which employed a large sample of 5300 pupils
showed that the achievement of girls in English language was significantly
higher than that of boys both in terms of mean curriculum coverage and
examination learning outcomes. The results however showed.that boys achieved
significantly better results than girls in Mathematics. The result further
revealed that there were no significant difference in the achievement of boys
and girls in Science (Okeke, 2004). Iyowi, Okebukola, Oludotun and Akpan (1992)
showed that English language and literature achievements by Nigerian Junior
Secondary School Students is very poor (Ivowi, et al, 1992; Okoro, 2000).
Primary schoolchildren in the age range of (6-1lyrs) need to improve level of
their achievement or at least the number achieving minimum standard. This
target has not been met (Okoro, 2000).
Although
English language retains its dominant position in the education. Delivery
system in Nigeria, the thrust of our educational language policy is the use of
the. Mother tongue or the language of the immediate community in pre-primary
and primary education. Interestingly, private educational entrepreneurs provide
pre-primary education exclusively through the medium of English language. The
mother tongue medium education at the primary school level is provided in less
than twenty Nigerian languages throughout the country. English is the exclusive
medium of instruction at the junior and senior levels of secondary school
education.
It was in
recognition of the importance and contributions of mother tongue to education
that made the, Federal Ministry of Education in Collaboration with other
educational statutory agencies include in the National Policy on Education
published in 1977, revised in 1981, the use of mother tongue as a medium of
educating pupils at the pre-primary and primary level throughout the country.
According to
the National Policy on education published in 1977 revised in 1981, Section
2(u) which stated that “Government will ensure that the medium of instruction
will be principally the mother tongue or the language of the immediate
community” also in section 3 of the same National Policy on Education stated
that:
“Government
will see to it that the medium of instruction in the primary school is
initially the mother tongue of the immediate community and at a later stage
English”.
The importance
of Nigerian language in the educational process is stated in section.
“In addition
to appreciating the importance of language in educational process, and as a
means of preserving peoples’ culture, the government considers it In the best
interest of national unity that each child should be encouraged to learn one of
the three major languages other than his mother tongue”.
The mother
tongue therefore, is a part of the Nigerian culture; it conveys or transmits
culture and itself in subjects to culturally conditioned attitudes and beliefs
(Awoniyi, 1975). The positive results of the experiment in Mother Tongue Medium
in Yoruba carried out at the then University of Ife empirically demonstrated
the great advantages, of mother tongue in primary education for scholastic
attainment (Bamgbose, 1984) and even in the successful mastery of English as a
second language.
At this
juncture, it is very imperative to look at whether mother tongue has bearing on
the English language stage among the secondary school students. It is important
to draw attention to the presence of the problems and on the basis of what will
be found out recommend what could be doneto reduce them if they cannot be
totally eradicated.
1.2
Statement of the Problem
The study is
designed to examine the influence of mother tongue on Students performance in
English language in Junior School CertificateExamination. The study
investigated if mother tongue is solely the cause of the student’s woeful
performance in English Language, in Junior School certificate Examination or if
there are other complementing factors.
Several
scholars have addressed the core problems of communicative competence in the
use of English language as L2 and its use as the main language of instruction
in Nigeria's education delivery process. It is unfortunate that most school
leavers (apart from the products of elite private schools) do not possess the
required competence in the four language skills for both cognitive and
communicative functions.
Statistics
released by the West African Examination Council, which conducts the West
African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, show that less than ten
percent of secondary school leaver passes in English language at credit level.
At the tertiary level of education students have so much difficult with their
communicative skills In English that they cannot function effectively in the
academic use of English (Okoro, 2000).
There is no
doubt that there is a great diversity of varieties and functions of English in
Nigeria. For example, it is extensively used in both the electronicand the
print media, in the judiciary, the police, the armed forces, the legislative,
etc. and as a lingua franca in political mobilization, ethical orientation and
population education. This confirms the entrenchment of English as the dominant
official language of Nigeria. The nagging problem however concerns the quality
of English that is taught and used in the system. The concern being expressed
in informed educational circles is .the extent to which the variety and quality
of English being learned and usedthe school system can serve in achieving
Nigeria's educational goals and the objectives.
It is
therefore generally accepted that in teaching .and learning processes the
mother tongue of the child is of utmost importance. For one thing, it
categorizes a large part of the child's environment, that is, it has names for
most of the objects, actions, ideas, attributes and so on that are so important
to him, as well as to any society. In many developing countries today, this is
either local language or the language of the previous colorizing power. The
mother tongue.is the child's environment and is the natural basis on which
verbal skills can be built, children learn through communicating in a language,
which they understood, hence the need for this study: Impact of mother tongue
on students’ performance In English Language.
1.3 Research Questions
The
following research questions will be used in:
(i) Is there any way that teachers can
motivate students to speak English in the school?
(ii) Are there adequate teaching materials for
teachers to teach the students?
(iii) Is
there sufficient period to teach the subject on the school time-table?
(iv) Are there specialized teaches to teach the
subject?
(v) Are there anyway students are exposed to
correct pronunciation of words?
1.4 Hypothesis
HO1:There is
no significant relationship between mother tongue and students' performance in
English Language.
H02: There
is significant relationship between mother tongue and students' performance in
'English Language.
HO3: There is no significance difference in male
student performance and female students' performance in English Language.
1.5
Significance or the Study.
This study
would provide a thresholds for proper understanding of the impacts of mother
tongue on students' performance in English Language. It will also serve as a
rich source of data for consultation by teachers and students on how to improve
the performance of students in English Language. The project will form an
invaluable material for the academia and the public in general.
1.6
Delimitation or the Study
The study
essentially covers Nigerian secondary schools but with specific reference to
secondary schools in Okota/lsolo Local Government Area. This choice is made to
cover both private and public schools. The schools were selected randomly based
on students’ population and enrolment strength. Also the presence of a WAEC
marking centre within the Okota Secondary Schools Complex makes for easy access
to data, hence the choice of Okota.
1.7 Limitations of the study
The chief
limitation faced by the researcher was the inability to reach the target
audience to conduct interview as well as to administer the questionnaires
amongst teachers of the target secondary schools. To mitigate this and other
shortcomings, the researcher had to rely much on mail questionnaire as well as
the few people that could be interviewed and those who willingly completed the
questionnaires to corroborate her personal experience in the industry.
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