A Study of the English Language Varieties, the Syllabus and the Classroom Instruction Realities in Nigerian Secondary Schools

Abstract

The teaching of English Language in Nigeria has always been modeled after British English (BE) being a former British colony which is the supposed ideal despite the reality of other varieties such as Nigerian English and American English while the examination bodies in Nigeria also remain very strict on the British English. This study investigates the variety of English being taught in Nigerian secondary schools using Ekiti state as a sample. The main objective of this study is to examine the variety of English recommended by the syllabus for teaching in Secondary schools vis a vis the variety being taught and used by the teachers and the effectiveness of the teachers as models of proficiency in the target variety of English being taught The total number of 100 secondary schools distributed across the 16 local government areas of Ekiti State, Nigeria were selected for this study. As such 100 teachers of English were selected randomly as source of data. Classroom observation and questionnaire together with a designed variety checklist were used to elicit information from the respondents. The result revealed evident discrepancy between claimed proficiency, preferred English variety, and actual classroom instruction practices. The findings of the study present a complex and intriguing scenario regarding teacher proficiency, classroom instruction, and the use of different English varieties. The study concludes that the standard stipulated by the syllabus seems to be unrealistic because the teachers don’t have the proficiency in such variety to serve as role models and that there is need for acknowledging and integrating diverse English varieties, including Nigerian English, into syllabi and instructional strategies to better cater for the linguistic needs of students.