FACTORS AFFECTING TEACHERS' INTEREST IN THE TEACHING OF ORAL ENGLISH IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN LANGTANG NORTH

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1       BACKGROUND OF STUDY

In English Language, there is a strong correlation between oral language skills and achievement in the written language among learners in schools. In Nigeria, English remains the undisputed language of school instruction, governance, administration, legislation, judiciary, international relations, unification of the country‘s numerous ethnic constituents, social prestige, and so on (Adeniran, 2009; Okedara 2010; FGN, 2004 andOsisanwo, 2005).

English language is taught as a subject and at the same time it is a medium of instruction for other subjects in the Nigeria education curriculum. The aim and objectives of teaching oral skills in English as taught in the Nigeria education curriculum is to enable students communicate effectively and intelligently in English. It also helps the student to develop confidence in his ability to express himself in English as fluently as possible and provides an opportunity for the correction of mistakes in spoken English.

A good approach to oral language instruction will develops the reading, writing and speaking skills of the student thereby making the learning of English language more effective and the learning experiences of the learners in other subjects being taught in Secondary Schools more concrete and more enjoyable.

This research seek to study and identify the factors affecting teachers’ interest in the teaching of Oral English in Langtang North Local Government Area of Plateau State.

The English language has become greatly valued and adorned in Nigeria’s Educational system. As remarked by Bamgbose, Banjo & Thomas (2005), the dominance of English in formal and transactional communication is unchallengeable. In view of the multilingual nature of Nigeria, with more than 400 indigenous languages Ufomata(2017), believes that English is regarded as the only feasible and realistic choice for the nation now and in the foreseeable future. The greatest efforts expended on English language in Nigeria have been in the area of the Educational system, particularly in relation to Nigerian indigenous languages of which the major ones are Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba, Ibibio, Edo, Fulfulde, and Kanuri. English as the official language of Nigeria and also the former colonial language was chosen to facilitate the cultural and linguistic unity of the country. English, however remains an exclusive reserve of the country’s urban elite, and is not widely spoken in the rural areas which comprise three quarters of the country’s population.

Language planning in Africa has to take place against the background of several factors, including multilingualism, the colonial legacy, the role of education as an agent of social change, high incidence of illiteracy, and concerns for communication, national integration and development (Bamgbose, 2007: 99) Thereforelearners of English language as a second language are mostly faced with the problem of oral proficiency in terms of appropriate pronunciation of English sounds (phonemes) either by virtue of being a new language or mother tongue or first language interference. However, there has been emphasis on the quest for Standard English, hence; an English language Instructor as well as learner must aim at proficiency to a degree of the standard form (Standard English or Received Pronunciation). This enables the instructor and the learner to acquire adequate competence for practical purpose of teaching and everyday communication.

It is on this note, that much emphasis and efforts should be placed on the interest of teachers teaching Oral English because it will help the learner to develop his or her pronunciation sufficiently to permit effective communication with both native speakers and non-native users. Similarly, it is obvious that common mistakes identified among the teachers and learners of English as a second language today include improper pronunciation, mispronunciation, poor intonation, as well as misrepresentation of phonetic sounds. For instance, most students misplace the qualities and length of vowels. It is in view of these problems that recent development in language teaching and learning has made the teaching and learning of oral English not only a necessity but also a pre-requisite for assessing the learner’s competence in language use and acquisition.

Therefore, since emphasis has shifted to studying varied rules aimed at the identification, interpretation and reproduction of English sounds (phonemes), there is every cause to emphasize and to review the teaching of oral English especially in post-primary schools. Furthermore, speech is regarded as persona which represents an individual’s ability to articulate phonemes according to some established norms. It also entails the ability of an individual to identify and understand the representation and meaning of English sounds. It is quite unfortunate that most of our secondary school learners do not exhibit the knowledge of oral English when using the language which could be associated with the aforementioned factors. In a nutshell, there is the need for concern.

Oral proficiency should be made inherent in both Instructors (teachers) and learners (students). Jowitt (2008) confirms that the emphasis on proficiency in spoken English was introduced in the New National Curriculum in English language for Nigerian Secondary Schools in the 1980s. It was previously neglected in the teaching of English in Nigeria as oral English was made optional for the West African School Certificate students (though a compulsory course for teacher grade II examinations in those days). Roach (2000) confirms that pronunciation teaching has not always been popular with teachers and language theorists and in the 1970s and 1980s. It was fashionable to treat it as a rather outdated activity. It was claimed that it makes learners try to sound like native speakers of Received Pronunciation, which became difficult and led to repetitive exercises, and it also failed to give importance to communication.

Jowitt (2015) commentsabout the negligence of oral English teaching on teachers, that students unconsciously relied on mother tongue models when deprived of consistent and reliable guidance from teachers. This is as many teachers assume that there was a perfect correspondence between sound and spelling. They use orthography as their guide to pronunciation. Anthony (2001) and Uche (2018) emphasise the difficulties of acquiring oracy skills. According to Williams (2003), the factors to be enumerated could be categorised under one factor – the interference of mother tongue. It is worth noting that for the non-native speakers, the mother tongue always affects the acquisition of the second language. This has always, been a major problem in oral English or pronunciation teaching especially in Nigerian schools. Unoh (2017) also examines the situation of oral English in Nigerian secondary schools. He asserts that teaching of English pronunciation in Nigeria suffers from peculiar handicaps unknown to the teaching of English language or any other school subject (for that matter). For any subject to be effectively taught, there are at least three very important conditions that must be met:

1. A high degree of motivation on the part of both student and teacher; and
2. The teachers’ competence in the subject, and his or her mastery of the techniques of imparting knowledge in it.
3. Availability of relevant books as well as standard facilities for practical.

While the aforementioned conditions are rarely achieved in the teaching of English Language, they are also hardly met in the case of the teaching and learning of English pronunciation. Okoli (2000) comments on the need to be proficient in the sound system of a new language and explains that English should be pronounced in the accent normally chosen as the standard form especially the model most often recommended for foreign learners studying standard British English and also Received Pronunciation.

Oral English is a very important language skill, however it has been neglected for far too long by teachers of English, this is as a result of negative interest of these teachers to oral English. However, recent development in the teaching of English Language requires greater emphasis on this aspect of English language. This is because oral English complements the understanding and the use of English language so as to improve the standard of spoken English. According to Idris (2001), not much has been achieved since the introduction of Oral English in West African School Certificate and National Examination Council due to the problems associated with teachers’ negligence of oral English. Recently, there is the emergence of new publications particularly on Oral English by other language teachers, researchers and scholars such as Mannell, Cox, and Harrington (2009), Akperero (2000), Enyeazu (2001), and Idris (2001). This development has gone a long way in bringing oral English into focus and enhancing of teachers’ interest in teaching it. Its recent inclusion in the English Language Examination Paper (Test of Orals) has drawn the interest of many teachers and also the attention of many students.

Teachers’ interest in oral English is rather weighed down by various factors which have contributed to the slow pace and ineffectiveness in teaching the language skill. These factors include:

1. Teachers’ poor background in oral English
2. Interference of mother tongue in teachers

• Unqualified teachers

1. Poor teaching methodology
2. Lack of constant practice on the parts of the teachers
3. Lack of orientation and facilities such as language laboratories

• Shortage and limited accessibility to relevant books.

Most of the students in our secondary schools are faced with either one of the problems or the other. Some are deficient due to more than one problem especially students from rural and poor backgrounds. This study examines factors affecting teachers’ interest in the teaching of oral English in Secondary Schools in Langtang North Local Government Area of Plateau State.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Research in oral English will never end due to the increasing nature of poor academic performance of secondary school students especially in external examinations like WAEC, NECO, NABTEB or JAMB, many educationists tend to shift the blame on the students lack of interest in the subject being discussed, interference of mother tongue, lack of constant practice by the students, lack of orientation and facilities as well as shortage and limited accessibility to relevant books.

It is very important to maintain that though efforts have been put in place to improve Oral English, a good result is yet to be seen and according to Obriri (2007), “Although many concerned scholars and researchers have charted numerous ways to simplify the teaching or instruction of Oral English, many more problems are mounting and need to be thoroughly addressed urgently as they are alarming”. The cause of this negative development is certainly because a lot of energy are being channelled only towards the learners’ problems, and not the problem of teaching. Therefore, it is the opinion of the researcher that teachers are also problems and contributing factors to the low performance of students in oral English. This is why the researchers is interested in investigating factors affecting teachers’ interest in teaching of oral English in secondary schools in Langtang North Local Government Area with the aim of proffering lasting solutions.

1.3       THE PURPOSE OF STUDY

            The main purpose of this study is to examine factors affecting teachers’ interest in teaching of oral English in secondary schools in Langtang North. Specifically, the objectives of this study are:

1. To determine teachers’ attitudes towards the teaching of oral English.
2. To uncover factors that positively affect teachers’ interest in teaching oral English.

• To determine factors that negatively affect teachers interest in teaching oral English.
  • RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following research questions were formulated in order to guide the study:

1. What are teachers’ attitudes towards the teaching of oral English?
2. What are the factors that positively affect teachers’ interest in teaching oral English?
3. What are the factors that negatively affect teachers’ interest in teaching oral English?

1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

            The following null research hypotheses were postulated to be tested at 0.05 level of significance:

H₀1: There are no factors that positively affect teachers’ interest in teaching oral English.

H₀2: There are no factors that negatively affect teachers’ interest in teaching oral English.

1.6. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

It is believed that the findings of this research work will be of great benefit to the following; Teachers, students, community, government, and researchers:

To the Students, it will motivate and give them enthusiasm in the learning process of oral English so that their performance can encourage teachers’ interest to teach oral English. Again, it will help to boost the students’ competence in speaking English.

It will enhance teachers’ interest in teaching oral English. It will also be of benefit by providing them with the added knowledge, skills method and techniques needed for effective teaching of oral English.

It is equally believed that this work will be of benefit to the government who are the overseers of all academic activities in the society. It will enable them to design the curriculum in a way that it will ensure effective teaching and learning of the oral English at all levels of education.

This research, after completion, will serve as reference materials to future researchers who will want to carry out further research in this field.

1.8       OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

Factors:          Things or circumstances contributing to result.

Affecting:       Produce effect on or to bring about.

Quality:          Degree of excellence.

English:          The language, originally of England, now spoken in many countries and used as a language of international communication throughout the world.

Language:      Use of words in agreed way as means of human communication.

Teaching:       Guidance or training given to someone.

Students:        A school pupil or a person studying at a place of higher education

Secondary School:     Level of education that comes after the basic or results from the primary education.