Parents and Teachers' Perceptions of Mother-Tongue Medium of Instruction Policy in Nigerian Primary Schools

Abstract

Many inadequacies of Nigeria's schools derivec from their religious and colonial past. One in particular is studied in this paper, namely opposition to the use of the mother tongue as the medium of instruction. Questionnaires on the subject were administered to samples of 1000 primary school teachers and 1500 parents of primary school children. Results show that both parents and teachers appreciate the advantages of mother-tongue education, but that parents would not subscribe to their children being taught in the mother tongue. The two biggest obstacles to mother-tongue teaching are (1) the push for a language of wider communication and (2) lack of suitable teaching materials. Recommendations made include the need for a reorientation of parents and the public on the place of mother-tongue education.