Abstract
According to spelling experts, it is very important that the learners of a secondary language should be equipped with the basic words as to be able to communicate effectively in that language. So, in as much as the learners should efficient in the spoken aspects, it is crucial and necessary that the words should be spelt correctly. This is where good spelling habit comes into spell means to name correctly in order, the letter that make up a word. However, to many students there are difficulties being encountered in this essential academic activity spelling. This is the focus of this research work. It has been established that really; students commit spelling errors for various reasons ranging from their own carelessness to inappropriate teaching methodology and environmental factors. In Nigeria, teachers should make students understand necessity of good spelling habits. Curriculum designers should designate appropriate time for spelling programme. This research work has therefore looked into the crucial issue of spelling errors. Through the teachers’ answers to the questions and the students’ performance in the test administered, it has been established that the problem of spelling errors actually exist among Nigerian secondary school students.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
- Background of the study
To spell means, to name in order, the letters of a word for instance T-W-O = two spelling is an academic activity. It is a skill which marks the learners with such scholarly qualities as intelligence, cultivated, neat, efficient and conscientious. NIn any human society, the need for a common language cannot be over-emphasized. No society can exist comfortably together if the members of such society cannot communicate effectively among themselves. In Nigeria, English language is the lingua – franca (the official language) The language of Government, businesses, education, law, politics religion, mass media and international communication. This is the inevitable situation because Nigerian is a multilingual society with many different ethnic groups such as Yoruba Edo, Igbo, Tiv, Hausa, and so on. Since it is only in English language that all these groups can communicate, we can realize the indispensable role which English plays in Nigeria. In a multilingual country like Nigeria, English language is considered as an essential tool in achieving effective communication. The use of English language for formal teaching and learning in Nigeria started when Britain became their colonial master (Sackey, 1997:126). He further explains that the teaching of English language started in schools where the language was learnt through “repeated readings of primers and spelling books”. As part of the British colonial policy during the colonial era, the indigenes of colonies of which Nigeria was not an exception were compelled to learn the language of the colonial master (that is; English language). As a result of this policy, English had so much power and as Sackey (1997:132) puts it, ‘without it, there could be no participation in the economic and political life. Also, Roberts (1996) explains that English Language has become a powerful language due to the fact that it has broken linguistic barriers to become a widely spoken international language particularly, as a second or foreign language. For this reason, even after colonial rule, Nigeria had to adopt English Language as an official language for formal education, the media, and for government and business purposes in the country For instance, the present education language policy states that with the exception of lower primary (classes one to three); English should be a medium of instruction at all levels. It is used in teaching subjects like mathematics, agricultural science, and science, amongst others. English Language is considered as one of the core subjects in Nigerian schools and also a prerequisite for entry into Senior High Schools and tertiary institutions.
Thus, success in any form of formal education and training in highly skilled labour generally depends upon one’s ability to understand and use English Language effectively. However, a lot of individuals, particularly students, tend to commit avoidable errors in the use of the language; more worrying is when such errors are committed by students in their final examinations In Owusu-Ansah (2005)’s analysis of the Chief Examiner of WAEC’s report, concerning the Junior High School Certificate Examination between 1993 and 2003, he highlighted spelling errors as a major problem in written grammar of students. He opined that students’ inability to spell words correctly lead to the deduction of marks resulting in poor performance. Again, reports of Chief Examiners on the performance of students in WAEC from 2001 – 2010 also revealed spelling errors as the type of errors most students commit in their final examinations. These reports buttress the previous reports that highlighted spelling errors as being common in written grammar of students. The Chief Examiner’s Report on the 2008 Basic Education Certificate Examination (B.E.C.E.) described the level of spelling during B.E.C.E. English papers especially, that of the year 2008 as “terrible”. For this reason, the report suggested that English Language teachers in basic schools should intensify “the good old practice of spelling drills” in all schools and encourage dictation of single words and short passages during language lessons. These he emphasized, “Will improve spelling” of student
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
This researcher is concerned with spelling errors among Nigeria secondary school students which no doubt affect their general performance in English language. Normally, whenever there is any problems the first thing to do is to try to identify the cause of such a problem and then seek possible remedies to it because “a problem, once identified, is almost solved” Many factors are responsible for spelling errors among Nigerian secondary school students which make it difficult for them to resolve independently spelling problems. These factors are as follows:
- Complex nature and illogicality of the English language for example – different sounds or tones are given to the same letter or combination as in:- Head/hed/j Bread/bred/.
- Some words of English language are not spelt as pronounced because in English language, there is no sound to letter correspondence. One factor responsible for this is that English words contain prefixes mostly derived from prepositions in French, latin and Greek. Thus the poor Nigerian secondary school students who did not study either latin or Greek find themselves in difficult situations.