An Assessment of the Language of Instruction in Selected Senior Secondary Two Science Classrooms in Osun State, Nigeria

Abstract

The role of language in education cannot be overemphasized because it is through this vehicle that instruction and information is passed from the teachers to the learners and without language, the act of educating learners would be a mirage. This justifies the reason why many studies have been conducted in examining the appropriate language of instruction in teaching pupils and students. The purpose of this study is to examine and discuss the appropriateness of complementing English with indigenous language(s) as languages of instruction in the dissemination of knowledge in English as Second language (ESL) classrooms. The study employed responses from two sets of questionnaires that were administered to 400 Senior Secondary School II students and 35 teachers who taught Mathematics, Biology and Chemistry. The teachers and student respondents were selected randomly from 12 Secondary Schools in 6 Local Government Areas of Osun State, Nigeria. The research design is self-constructed and explorative. The data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The results revealed that students understood and performed better in their Science subjects when English language is complemented with their mother tongue. It was concluded that the bilingual medium of instruction is highly beneficial to the educational progress of Nigeria, therefore, the English language should be complemented with the Mother tongue in ESL classrooms. Though English is the official language in Nigeria, complementing it with the indigenous languages in ESL classrooms should not be seen as an unmodern and uncivilised practice, but seen as a way of creating a more comprehensive and effective language of instruction which employs the students’ knowledge of their mother tongue to facilitate their knowledge in English. This study is limited to examining language of instruction in senior secondary science classrooms; therefore, further studies can examine the language of instruction in universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, technical colleges and other educational institutions.

Key Words: Language of Instruction, Appropriateness of Language, Science Subjects, Mother tongue, Bilingual Medium of Instruction

DOI: 10.7176/JEP/15-10-02

Publication date: September 30th 2024