CHALLENGES FACING THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH

LANGUAGE IN
SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ANIOCHA SOUTH LOCAL
GOVERNMENT AREA OF DELTA STATE NIGERIA

AUGUSTINE O EVUE
School of General Studies
Delta State Polytechnic
Delta State

Abstract
This study examines the challenges facing the teaching of English language
in secondary schools in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta
State Nigeria. The purpose of the research is to determine the basic factors
that can be attributed to poor usage of the language by school leavers and
graduates. The methodology of the study was the use of questionnaire to
elicit response from English teachers. The questions contained in the
questionnaire covered areas of perceived difficulties in the teaching and
learning of English, the motivation of teachers, availability and use of
teaching resources, training of teachers and exposure to modern teaching
methods. Findings from the study show that the problem of poor usage of
English is a combination of various factors which include problem of
indiscipline among students, teachers’ inadequacy to teach effectively,
inadequate coverage of course contents, etc. Recommendations are made.

Background to the Study

Results of candidates who sat for both the West African Examinations
Council’s (WAEC’s) and National Examinations Council’s (NECO’s) Senior School
Certificate Examination (SSCE) in recent times show that most school leavers
performed poorly in English . Faniran (2011) states that:

Candidates’ SSCE results in English Language have been

embarrassingly poor. For instance, only two per cent (2%) of the
candidates who sat for the 2009 November/December SSCE of NECO
had five credits including English Language and Mathematics
(Nigerian Tribune, March 31, 2010, p.17); and seventy-nine per cent
(79%) of the candidates who wrote the examination in June/July 2010
failed to get credit passes in English Language (The Punch, October 7,
p.14). These extremely poor results in English, the language of
education and learning and academic empowerment point to an
important fact: that the Nigerian educational system is heading for total
collapse (p.2).
African Education Indices Vol. 5 No. 1,1Marchl, 2013
Given the state of English as a language of instruction in schools and as Nigeria’s
official language, it is natural to express concern over these observable deficiencies
among school leavers. The secondary schools produce candidates for the higher
institutions therefore any deficiency in teaching and learning in the secondary schools
spills over to the higher institutions vis-à-vis the quality of graduates produced for the
country. Thus, it is imperative that the teaching and learning of English in the
secondary schools should be given proper attention. On this basis this study was
conceived to examine some of the likely challenges facing the teaching of English in
secondary schools in Nigeria with the aim of highlighting the areas that require
attention.

Statement of the Problem

The problem of this study is to determine the basic factors that may be
attributed to the poor performance of students of tertiary institutions in the use of
English.

Purpose of the Study

The choice of this research area arose from a growing noticeable poor usage
of the English language by many school leavers and even graduates from some
Nigerian universities. The purpose of the study is to highlight the challenges facing
the teaching and learning of English language in secondary schools in Nigeria.

Significance of the Study

This study hopes to inquire into areas of difficulties in teaching various
aspects of English particularly grammar and how effectively teachers utilize teaching
resources in schools particularly in these days of information and communication
technology (ICT). It is expected that the areas of deficiencies unveiled in this study
will help to improve the teaching and learning of English in schools. Such
unravelling of the problem areas will give an insight into how best to approach the
teaching of English and possibly review existing methodology. The research will also
provide a platform for other researchers to look into this all important aspect of
language teaching in Nigeria. It is hoped that ultimately, this research work will help
advance the course of learning English to improve proficiency among users of the
language in Nigeria. The study also may set a basis for highlighting and expanding
views on the danger of declining proficiency in the use of English in Nigeria. It is
hoped that setting the agenda for the discussion of this problem from this perspective
or rather reinforcing discussion on the issue through this research there would be a
more concerted effort at tackling the problems that have been unveiled from this
research.

Research Questions
 What are the challenges facing the teaching of English language in secondary
schools in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State?
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 What are the factors responsible for poor performance of students in the use of
English in tertiary institutions in Nigeria?
 Does the non availability of teaching resources constitute a major challenge
facing the teaching of English Language in the secondary schools?

Assumptions
This research work was carried out based on a set of assumptions. These are:
 That there are challenges facing the teaching and learning of English in Nigerian
secondary schools.
 That problems arising from these challenges negatively affect the teaching and
learning of English and these have resulted in poor usage of the language by
school leavers and graduates.
 That if these challenges are identified they could be solved and when they are
solved it may lead to improvement in the use of English by educated Nigerians.

Delimitation
This study covered 15 secondary schools in Aniocha South Local
Government Area of Delta State Nigeria. Interviews were conducted among some
English teachers. Interviews conducted among the English teachers were used to
analyse the problems investigated.

Population
The population of this research consists of English teachers in secondary
schools in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State Nigeria. But the
research could not cover every teacher therefore; we decided to take certain
percentage of the English teachers through the stratified random sampling method
from which the questionnaire was administered to 66 English teachers. The sample
size was considered adequate because of the homogeneity among those selected.

Instrumentation
The instruments for data collection in this research were a questionnaire
administered on English teachers and oral interviews with some teachers. The
questionnaire is divided into three sections, and the three sections comprise 30
questions. The thirty questions were drawn to cover the three research questions so
that relevant data could be obtained to address the questions. The questions in the
questionnaire were developed by the researcher. In developing the instrument, the
researcher relied on perceived challenges facing the teaching and learning of English
in the secondary schools. These perceived challenges provided the source for
evolving the questions.

Literature Review
What today is English has its origin in Britain and it evolved through a series
of conquests of the British Isles by various tribes that invaded the Isles at various
times in history. Around 500B.C the British Isles were inhabited by the Brythons
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(Greene, Loomis, Biedenharn and Davis 1979:5). The Romans were the first to
conquer Britain around A.D 43. Later, around A.D. 400, the British Isles were
invaded by the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. These later invaders, who were later
known as Anglo-Saxons, brought their languages and imposed them on the Isles.
Through linguistic fermentation and dilution the English language eventually evolved.

From its homeland in England, the English language has spread to every part
of the world to entrench itself to assume the status of a world language. Colonialism
is a major factor for this dominance. Barber (1999) posits that:

…..English has become a world language because of its wide diffusion

outside the British Isles, to all continents of the world, by trade,
colonialism, and conquest. (p. 235).

In his assertion on the spread of English, Pei (1979) declares that the language is the
greatest beneficiary of British colonialism and American expansionism.

The advent of English in Nigeria was through European contacts around the
15th century through trade and missionary activities. Missionary activities helped the
spread of the language to all parts of the country. Later, when Nigeria was colonized
by Britain English was entrenched as an official language. Even post colonial and
independent Nigeria continued the use of English as an official language. Thus
English has continued to play a dominant role in Nigerian socio-economic and
political activities. According to Barber (1999), “In Nigeria, the most populous of
Black African countries, there are three main languages (Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa) and
over four hundred local ones, but English is also an official language, and plays a
major role in government and administration” (p.238).

One of the reasons why English is so central to Nigeria’s educational growth

is because of its significant role as a medium of knowledge delivery in Nigerian
schools. English is the language of instruction in schools particularly the upper level
of primary school and secondary school and beyond. Barber (1999) attests to this fact
when he acknowledges that, “In Nigeria, primary schools are being built which teach
the local languages, but the secondary schools and the universities are still
predominantly English medium” (p.239).

Added to this basic role of a medium of knowledge delivery, English is a marker of

status in Nigeria. A good use of the language is highly cherished and such gives the
user a defining status. Opubor (2006) in a foreword to Uyo, O. A. (2006) ‘Rite, It
Right: Analysis of Writing Errors in Nigerian Mass Media, posits that,

English is the language of the Nigerian elite…. Mastery of the

language is a defining attribute of elite status, since it correlates with
other social markers such as post secondary or professional education,
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 a good job and the comfortable income that comes with it…acquiring a
mastery of English is one of the goals of those aspiring to elite status.

With the growing influence of English around the world it is ironical that Nigeria,
reputed as having the largest population of second language speakers of English in the
world (Akere, 1998:21) may be witnessing dwindling proficiency among its school
leavers and graduates. In his observation of the state of the use of English in Nigeria,
Akere (1998) states that:

There is today an embarrassingly poor level of competence and grossly

inadequate proficiency in both spoken and written English among
graduates of our tertiary and secondary institutions, and among
students and pupils at the various levels of the educational system.
One is forced, therefore to question the quality of education delivery
process that is taking place in our educational institutions and as a
corollary the quality and depth of knowledge and literacy with which
their products are equipped to be able to function effectively in the
competitive cognitive and communicative world (p.3).

Several other questions have been raised regarding the state of proficiency in
English among graduates and secondary school students. The state of English in
Nigeria and around the world naturally makes it worrisome to see that users of
English in Nigeria are declining in proficiency. The major cause attributed to this
problem has been the state of teaching and learning of the language in secondary
schools. Mgbemena and Ewurum (2011) feel there have been some reasonable
efforts in the past to help with the development of communicative competence among
students both at the secondary level and the tertiary level. But the unfortunate thing is
the dismal outcome of these efforts. In raising questions about some of the factors
that could be accounted for students’ poor performance in English, they say:

…it is disheartening to observe that despite the efforts that have been
made in the educational sector to ensure that students attain
communicative competence in the basic educational levels – primary
and secondary – the situation shows that communicative competence
among students in Nigeria is far from being achieved as evinced by
their poor performances, especially in writing. Thus, Nigeria keeps
producing graduates who cannot contribute meaningfully to burning
issues in the society. This situation incites such question (sic) as: do
these students possess adequate facility in English that will enable
them to understand, interpret and evaluate some of the crucial
developmental issues that are raised? Do they have adequate
vocabulary in English to express their ideas about the concepts? Are
their lexical choices intelligible to the international community?
(p.78).
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 Given the state of English as a language of instruction in schools and as
Nigeria’s official language, it is natural to express concern over its poor usage among
educated Nigerians. The secondary schools produce candidates for the higher
institutions therefore any deficiency in teaching and learning of English in the
secondary schools spills over to the higher institutions vis-à-vis the quality of
graduates produced for the country. Thus it is imperative that the teaching and
learning of English in the secondary schools should be given proper attention. On
this basis, this study was conceived to examine some of the likely challenges facing
the teaching of English in secondary schools in Nigeria with the aim of highlighting
the areas that require attention.

Methodology
The methodology used for conducting this research involved the drawing up
of a set of questions in several aspects of the teaching and learning of English in the
secondary schools. The questions were set out in a questionnaire which was
distributed to English teachers in the secondary schools in Aniocha South Local
Government of Area of Delta State. The questions set covered areas of perceived
difficulties in the teaching and learning of the various aspects of English such as
grammar, oral English, summary and comprehension. The questions also touched on
the aspects of discipline in school, motivation of teachers, teacher’s welfare,
curriculum, and availability and use of teaching resources. To facilitate the analysis
of data collected the use of percentages was employed.

Data Analysis and Results

Research Question One

What are the challenges facing the teaching of English Language in secondary
schools in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State?

Under this research question four perceived areas of problems were highlighted in the
questionnaire. These are:
 Problems of indiscipline among students such as examination malpractice and
lack of interest in learning.
 Problem of non-availability of relevant English textbooks for use by teachers.
 Problem of non-retraining of teachers.
 Problem of teachers’ welfare/remuneration.

The data from the response to the questions drawn in the questionnaire are analyzed
below:

Table One
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S/ Area of problem no of Affirmative Negative
N respondents Response Response
Number % Number %
1 Problem of 66 60 91 6 9
indiscipline among
students such as
examination
malpractice and lack
of interest in learning
2 Problem of non- 66 39 59 27 41
availability of
relevant textbooks for
use by teachers
3 Problem of non- 66 36 55 30 45
retraining of teachers
4 Problem of teachers’ 64 36 56 28 44
welfare/remuneration
Analysis of subjects responses to questions on challenges facing the teaching of
English Language in secondary schools.

Research Question Two

What are the factors responsible for poor performance by students in the use of
English in tertiary institutions in Nigeria?

Under this research question the conclusions reached in the analysis of the
data collected under research question one are applicable to this next research
question. Because with such problems hindering the teaching of English Language at
the secondary school level performance at the tertiary level will certainly be below
expectation. However, to ensure specific findings in this aspect of the research,
specific questions were drawn out in the questionnaire which was administered to
English teachers in the secondary schools. What was required of the teachers in the
questionnaire was for them to respond in the affirmative if they agree that those areas
of problem stated in the questionnaire were the factors responsible for poor
performance by students in the use of English in the tertiary institutions. The teachers
were also asked to specify if they disagree. The factors highlighted under this
research question were:

 Problem of teachers’ inadequacy to teach effectively.

 Problem of inadequate coverage of course contents due to non-maximization of
available time.
 Problem of student’s inability to assimilate adequately knowledge of English
being passed on to them.

The data from the responses are as analyzed below:

Table Two
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S/N Factors No of Affirmative Negative
respondents response response
number % number %
1 Problem of
teachers’ 66 51 77 15 23
inadequacy to teach
effectively
2 Problem of
inadequate 66 48 73 18 27
coverage of course
contents due to non-
maximization of
available time
3 Problem of
students’ inability 64 36 56 28 44
to assimilate
adequately
knowledge of
English being
passed on to them
Analysis of subjects’ responses to question on factors responsible for poor
performance of students in the use of English in tertiary institutions in Nigeria

Research Question Three

Does the non-availability of teaching resources constitute a major challenge to the
teaching of English Language in the secondary school?

To address this research question, two main questions were drawn out in the
questionnaire in which the respondents were required to affirm or disagree with each
of the two questions in the area of non-availability of teaching resources as
constituting a major challenge facing the teaching of English Language in the
secondary schools. The data collected from responses are analysed in the table
below:

Table Three
S/n Area of problem No of Affirmative Negative
respondents Response Response
Number % Number %
1 Problem of non- 66 63 95 3 5
enhancement of
teaching with
modern teaching
resources
2 Problem of non- 66 39 59 27 41
training of teachers
in area of ICT
Analysis of subjects’ responses to questions on non-availability of teaching resources
as constituting a major challenge to the teaching of English in the secondary schools
Discussion on Findings
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 Among the major findings is that the problem of indolent students has
impacted negatively on knowledge delivery in the secondary schools and this has
affected negatively the teaching of English. Among the areas of difficulties by
teachers in the teaching of English is the teaching of oral English. Teachers hardly
teach this area. Conversely, students find it difficult to understand the aspect of oral
English. Also, most teachers do not teach ways of approach to tackling
comprehension to the students. They do not go beyond reading the passages in class
and answering the questions that follow. Findings in this research also show that
most teachers are inadequately equipped to teach English effectively.

With regard to the use of teaching aids, though in the response to questions in
this aspect of the problem of teaching English, 95 per cent of the respondents agree
that the non-availability of teaching aids constitutes a major problem to the teaching
of English, during the oral interviews it was revealed that this was not a big problem
per se. However, with the rate at which the world is travelling on the super highway
of information and communication technology (ICT) the availability and use of
modern teaching resources could enhance learning of English. From the findings,
apart from the chalkboard and the chalk all the schools covered by the study have no
resources for educational technology. Teaching method is still anchored on the use of
chalk and chalkboard. Only one school mentioned the availability of radio, and
another one the availability of a tape recorder. Teachers from two schools mentioned
the use of chart to aid teaching.

It is highly necessary that approach to solving the problem of proficiency in

English should be through the secondary school level so as to maximize efforts at
teaching the language in the higher institutions. Professor Ayo Banjo in a foreword
written to David Williams (1999) English Language Teaching: An Integrated
Approach stresses the importance of approaching the problem of proficiency in
English from the lower level of the educational system. In the foreword he states that:

Given the understandable importance of English Language at all level

of the education system, it is important to ensure returns which are
commensurate with the vast amounts of time and resources spent on
the teaching of the subject. It is generally agreed that the problems lie
with the foundations at the primary levels, and a great deal of energy
has been expended in recent years on various forms of remedial
programmes, even up to the university level.

While stressing the importance of laying proper foundations for the learning of
English at the tertiary level, he emphasizes the centrality of the teacher and
methodology of knowledge delivery in English. He says:

This system is….bound to be locked in this vicious circle unless bold

attempts are made to lay a proper foundation at the primary and
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 secondary levels with skills of oracy receiving prime attention at the
primary and those of literacy at the secondary. It will be possible to
take nothing short of a revolution to bring about the desired state of
affairs, but obviously, the centre-piece of such a revolution is the
teacher of English who, besides being, himself a worthy model of the
linguistic skills he seeks to impart, should also have a clear idea of the
best methods to achieve his goals.

Conclusion
This research has concentrated on the problems facing the teaching of English
in the secondary schools and it is hoped that the findings here will set agenda for
further study in the area of poor usage of English in Nigerian post secondary
education.

Recommendations
Arising from the findings in this research the following recommendations are being
made:
 Pupils in primary schools should be properly and adequately taught English.
Consideration should be given to the quality of students entering the secondary
schools. Quality should be maintained through administering of entry test and
only pupils with good performance should be admitted into the secondary
schools.
 Parents should partner with teachers in ensuring that students are serious with
their studies of English; parents should assist their children to study at home.
 English teachers should study widely and improve their competence in the
teaching of English. Teachers should apply self effort to complement
opportunities available for re-training.

Limitations
Some of the limitations of this study need to be highlighted here. Though we
have applied as much honesty and sincerity as possible to the study to avoid
misleading assumption and conclusion, we have to emphasize that we cannot say we
are one hundred per cent certain that what we have found out is applicable across the
country. We note here that most modern private schools do not have these problems;
that the problem is largely associated with government own (public) schools.
In the course of the research there were constraints to getting sufficient
responses from the schools earmarked for the entire local government area. Two
major factors were responsible for this. First, the cost of covering the entire Aniocha
South Local Government Area of Delta State is enormous and there was no sufficient
fund to go round the nooks and crannies of the local government. Secondly, the time
for the research was limited and most teachers could not respond as quickly as would
have enabled the researcher to complete the research within the stipulated time. As a
result of this we have to resort to the use of random selection of the subjects. We
were limited by people’s attitude towards collection of data for research purpose in
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Nigeria. In some instances, respondents were not so enthusiastic while in others
response was highly encouraging.

The stated limitations notwithstanding, we believe this study has been able to
provide an insight into some of the challenges facing the teaching and learning of
English in Nigerian secondary schools, particularly the government owned schools.

References
Akere, F. (1998). The English Language: Knowledge and Tool for Developing a
Literate Society. Inaugural Lecture Series. Lagos: University of Lagos Press.

Barber, C. (1999). The English Language: A Historical Introduction. Cambridge Low

Price Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Faniran, A.O (2011). “The English Language for Empowerment in Nigeria. In

English Language Teaching Today: Proceedings of the Annual ELTT
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Greene, H. A., Loomis, K. A., Biedenharn, N.W., Davis, C.P. (1979). Basic
Language: Messages and Meanings. New York: Harper and Row,
Publishers, Inc.

Mgbemena, J. A. and Ewurum, R (2011). “The Use of English in Global

Communication: An Assessment of the Communicative Competence of
Undergraduates in Written Discourse” In English Language Teaching
Today: A Journal for Teachers of English and Communication Skills. Vol 8,
2011.

Pei, M. (1979). “A Historical Sketch of the English Language” in an Introduction to

The Lexicon Webster Dictionary, Vol. I. Columbia: The English Language
Institute of America, Inc.

Uyo, O. A. (2006) ‘Rite It Right: Analysis of Writing Errors in Nigeria Mass Media.
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Williams, D (1999). English Language Teaching: An Integrated Approach. Ibadan:

Spectrum Books Limited.

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