English language, as one of the recognized ligua franqer in the world over, is nigerias official language, and a means of communication, even while one is outside the country. The benefits of the english language for individuals and societies. In l2 classrooms like nigeria english has become the dominant. The common denominator among these studies appears to be the linguistic hegemony of the english language as a global language and the survival of the other languages of the world. After stating the many numerous functions of the english language in nigeria, the problems msilitating against the effective teaching of the language were stated to include. Ironically, it is also nigerias dominant language, with the use of english being taught at various levels of the nigerian educational system prenursery schools, nursery schools, primary schools, secondary schools and tertiary institutions of learning. There are over 500 native languages spoken in nigeria. It generally appears that the official language of a country is the one in which the laws of the country are made and publicised, whereas the national language is. This article examines the role of english in nigeria as a medium of communication, political activitiessocial and. English language, the nigerian education system and human. The country is also home to more than 520 languages, but there are many more languages which are yet to be classified. The focus on education is, of course, manifest in the cliched emphasis on the role of language in education.
Perspectives for english language teaching in nigeria in. In accordance with the nigeria constitution first written in 1963 when nigeria became a republic was heavily based on the us constitution. Language is used to defining the characteristics of every nation. Though the constitution has been revised in 1979, 1993, and 1999. The acquisition and use of english as a second language in nigeria tope omoniyi.
Today the english language could be named as one of the most widely used languages in the world. English language is termed as nigeria second language, it is being used as a communication tool by everyone in the country. It is the most widely spoken language, although english is the official language of nigeria. The significance of pragmatics in english language teaching. English language is the official language of nigeria. As a second language, its acquisition makes its nigerian users either bilingual or multi lingual. What are the functions of english language in nigeria.
English language teaching in englishspeaking countries. Everything official in nigeria is been done with the use of english language, it is nigerias official language. Nigeria borders niger in the north, chad in the northeast, cameroon in the east, and benin in the west. The paper tries to highlight the challenges of teaching. The result also shows that multilingualism affects teaching and learning and general performance of students and the educational system in nigeria. The study of languages is becoming more and more popular every day.
The benefits of the english language for individuals and. One of the ways through which feedback can be obtained from the learners on what the teachers had taught them is evaluation. The official language of nigeria is english, the former language of colonial british nigeria. Prior to then, education was done informally, as children were taught tradition, culture, history, and the likes by their parents who were in turn taught by their own parents. This unifying role and its allied issues are discussed in this paper with a view to showing that the imposition or adoption of any language apart from english as the nations official language will lead to a chain of sociopolitical crisis that could.
Two main modern pronouncements on language policy in nigeria merit our attention, to wit the national policy on education 1977, revised in 1981, and the 1979 constitution, which is more cited than its 1989 reincarnation. The national education policy and the role of english in nigeria, the national education policy npe, formulated in 1977 and revised in 1981, 1998 and 2004, assigns to english the role of serving. Thus, the cut and thrust of this paper is the examination of the role of arabic language in the development of nigeria. Language situation at the colonia era when britain took over as the colonial power in nigeria, english became the tool with which the new territory would be administered. English is the official language of nigeria, a former british protectorate. Media literacy and the role of english language in nigeria. Top 10 important uses of english language for nigerians. Its southern coast is on the gulf of guinea in the atlantic ocean. Effects of english language on national development olofin alabi olusoji principal lecturer, the federal polytechnic, adoekiti, ekiti state, nigeria. Other writers, including lawal 1995, makinde 2000 and fakeye 2012 highlighted various roles play by the language in the nigerian societies. Abstract this article examines the role of english in nigeria as a medium of communication, political activitiessocial and academic guidance from its historical perspective, and the duration of gradual transition to the present status of. Language training and testing center lttc and commissioned by the ministry of education in taiwan, only 21. It appears to be the second language in lots of countries. Tackling the challenges of teaching english language as.
The use of the english language in nigeria dates back to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century when british merchants and christian missionaries settled in the coastal towns called. The state of the english language in nigeria education 2. Pdf the functions of english in nigeria from the earliest times to. Role of english language in nigeria decades after decolonisation, english being the language of the colonial masters still enjoys primacy through its significant role in the integration of the nigerian nation that is made up of three different regions of north, east and west. Abstract in the present day nigeria, the quality of the english language spoken by nigerians, is perceived to have been deteriorating and needs urgent attention. Pdf on jan 15, 2015, nawar alsaadi and others published importance of english language in the development of tourism management find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate.
Speaking english language is not easy but learning to speak is easy. It is only a language which the peoples of nigeria can use to relate with one another that can be used to build the nation. The functions of english in nigeria from the earliest times to the. Even usage of english in nigeria is another good evidence of the influence of language on social cohesion.
Problems and prospects of english language in nigeria. English especially the variety known as nigerian pidgin english functions as a lingua franca in this multilingual country. History of english language in nigeria and top 10 uses problems. English is one of them which become international language. Going by this historical position, it is safe to conclude that english predates colonization in nigeria. English language, being a borrowed language so to say, is a language worth speaking. The origin of english language in nigeria is connected with the colonial period. Pdf the functions of english in nigeria from the earliest.
Tackling the challenges of teaching english language as second language esl in nigeria doi. Department of general studies education college of education, ikereekiti, ekiti state, nigeria abstract the paper examined teachers education in relation to english language. They are divided into a complex nexus of interrelated clans. The importance of english in nigeria obviously goes beyond the boundary of academic, administrative, political, commercial, and religious communication alone. History and importance of english language in nigeria. What future does the english language have in nigeria. Not only is it the language of instruction, it is also a compulsory subject and a yardstick for evaluating a learners school performance. We are also advocating that as well as english language and mathematics being the precondition for admission into the nigerias higher institutions, the local languages should also be made a precondition for admission into the nigerian higher institutions to save our. Council, 2011 recently i was in a wellknown hotel for a conference and while i was waiting i heard a. Some people learn them for work, others simply because they receive immense pleasure from the learning process, thus turning this activity into their hobby.
In the nigerian polity, english language plays the role of a second language, considering the multilingual nature of the country. Aug 10, 2019 in accordance with the nigeria constitution first written in 1963 when nigeria became a republic was heavily based on the us constitution. It is chosen to be the official language partially because people of some parts speak english because of the colonies ruled. A veritable instrument for fostering teachers education in nigeria obadare, f. A second language is one that comes after ones primary language. Aug 01, 2019 nigeria is a multilingual nation with over 520 languages being spoken in the country. This means that this language has a role to play in maintaining and improving on media literacy in nigeria. The importance of english language cannot be overemphasized, due to its role in social, political economical, and environmental development.
As the official language, the english language has come to be seen as probably the most important language. English language is a worldwide language, and its the means of communication in over 30% of all countries in the world. Importance of english language english is critical for countries successful participation in the global economy, that it provides individuals with access to crucial knowledge, skills and employment opportunities and enables organisations to create and sustain international links. In a typical nigerian classroom, one finds students from diverse cultural backgrounds and mother tongues igbo, yoruba, hausa, efik, echie, to mention but a few who. Hausa is the predominant language of the northerners, igbo of the.
Although english language is nigerias lingua franca, more efforts are needed to teach it in schools before its full developmental potentials can be achieved in the country. The importance of english language is spreading geographically in the world there are many languages being spoken. English language teaching and learning is faced with myriads of challenges ranging from. In addition to english, hausa, yoruba, igbo, fula, and english creole are widely spoken. English language is the interconnecting language amongst nigerians from different geopolitical zones and different ethnicities. Importance of english language in nigeria free essays. Finally, the study identified that the use of mother tongueindigenous language should be chosen to enhance academic performances of. Communication in the english language is much more popular in the countrys urban communities than it is in the rural areas. English language functions as a vehicle of interaction and an instrument of communication. It is chosen to be the official language partially because people of some parts speak english because of the colonies ruled by the british which came to an end in the year 1960. Perspectives for english language teaching in nigeria in the. This article examines the role of english in nigeria as a medium of communication, political activitiessocial and academic guidance from its historical.
It is being taught in schools from the prenursery down to the tertiary institutions. If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the faq by clicking the link above. Promoting the teaching and learning of english language in. Aug 10, 2017 having been colonised by the british, the future of english language is 100% guaranteed in nigeria. The use of the english language in nigeria dates back to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century when british merchants and christian missionaries. Nigeria is a multilingual nation with over 520 languages being spoken in the country. History of english language in nigeria english is the official language in nigeria was made so to unite the country linguistically and culturally. Language, being a potent vehicle of transmitting cultures, values, norms and beliefs from generation to generation, remains a central factors in determining the status or nature of any nation. The spectrum of english in nigeria ranges from standard english through a more general english whose structures are. The role of english language in nigeria essays antiessays.
Underlying these all is the use of english language as the vehicle for the transmission of ideas, meaning and literacy. This role falls on the english language which is the nations official and second language, as well as her lingua franca. Hausa was an official language of the northern states from 1951 to 1967. It is unfortunate that those who speak english in nigeria far below nativelike control of grammatical, phonological and pragmatic competencies to claim literacy in the. Quantitative indicators from cameroon, nigeria, rwanda, bangladesh and pakistan the findings of this study were developed through primary source interviews across a wide cross section of private and public sector subjects. The difference between nigeria and italy is that nigeria claims to be an english speaking country while italy is not. International journal of english language teaching vol. Pdf the use of the english language in nigeria dates back to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century when british merchants and christian.
Oct 14, 2019 english is the official language of nigeria, a former british protectorate. This unifying role and its allied issues are discussed in this paper with a view to showing that the imposition or adoption of any language apart from english as the nations official language will lead to a chain of sociopolitical crisis that could threaten the corporate existence of nigeria. English is also the language of instruction in the nigeria education system. Teaching and learning english language in nigerian schools.
As reported in 2003, nigerian english and nigerian pidgin were spoken as a second language by 60 million people in nigeria. And another one billion people are said to be studying it, at any one time, as a foreign language, in countries like china, south. Unit, emmanuel alayande college of edu, oyo abstract. Nigeria is the most populous country in africa with over 186 million residents. This paper examines the role of english language in media literacy. The importance of english language cannot be overemphasized, due to its role in social, political economical, and environmental. The state of the english language in nigeria education. The english language of the nigeria police udo victoria chinwe general studies unit, tansian university, umunya, anambra state, nigeria. Tackling the challenges of teaching english language as second language esl in nigeria oluwayemisi florence fatiloro department of general studies education, school of education, federal college of education sp oyo, oyo state, nigeria abstract. This paper demonstrates that pragmatics should be viewed as a branch of linguistics and its significant role in english as a second language. The christian missionaries who came from great britain introduced formal western education to nigeria, just before the middle of the 19 th century. This paper discussed the importance of english language as official language of communication in nigeria. In nigeria where english is a second language it is imperative for the teaching and learning implications to be properly addressed in such a diverse l2 classrooms. This article examines the role of english in nigeria as a medium of communication, political activitiessocial and academic guidance from its historical perspective, and the duration of gradual transition to the present status of bilingualism and its democratization of language in conformity with national unification.
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