Title of Paper: ENGLISH AS A MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION: CHALLENGES TO

NIGERIAN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Authors: Hadiza AlHassan Ibrahim, Shafaatu Muhammad Anka, and Nafisat Umar Yabo

Affiliation: Department of English, Federal College of Education Technical (Female), Gusau,

Section: Articles

Date of Publication: June, 2017

Issue: 5.2

Abstract: This study explores the challenges of using English as a medium of instruction in both
public and private primary schools in Gusau local government area of Zamfara state, Nigeria.
Nigeria is a multi-lingual nation with over 400 local or indigenous languages, and English has
been adopted as the second language as well as the language of instruction in the country’s
education system. This study was carried out in order to ascertain the pattern of using English as
medium of instruction, and the challenges as well as the effects of using it as medium of
instruction. Three research questions guided the study. The methodology involved descriptive
survey design. The area of the study consists of 206 primary schools, 152 public (government
owned) and 54 private. Purposive and proportionate stratified random sampling was used to select
220 teachers from 13 public and 8 private primary schools that were sampled for the study. Results
indicate non-effective implementation of English as medium of instruction in the primary schools
which is contrary to the provision in the National Education Policy of Nigerian Federal
Government. The teachers and pupils also have various challenges associated with using English
as medium of instruction, especially due to local languages or mother tongue influences. However,
some of these challenges can be overcome by implementing the recommendations that arise from
the findings of this study.

Keywords: English as second language, English as medium of instruction, EMI, indigenous

Author Bios: Hadiza Alhassan Ibrahim ([email protected]), Shafaatu Mohamed

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Introduction

English is an international medium of communication that is being used as the second language
(L2) in Nigeria. The status of English as L2 in Nigeria dat es back to the colonial period during
British rule. After independence in 1960, Nigeria like other colonized countries was left to adopt
English as its official language. The adoption of English was necessary because Nigeria is a
country that consists of different ethnic groups. Each of the ethnic groups wants its local language
to be given national recognition. Hence, Nigeria was not able to choose a lingua franca or adopt
one indigenous language as a national language. The number of languages spoken in the country
is not certain; Greenberg puts it as 248, Tiffen estimates over 150, while Bamgbose asserts that
the indigenous languages in Nigeria are about 400 (Uche, 1999). What is certain, however, is that
there are three major Nigerian languages – Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba – which are given national
recognition.

The multi-lingual nature of Nigeria has resulted in a policy that adopted English language as the
medium of instruction (MOI) for the education system in the whole country. At the primary
education level (primary classes 1-6), the National Policy on Education (Federal Government of
Nigeria, 2014:11) states that the school curriculum shall include four languages: language of the
immediate environment, English, French, and Arabic. This policy also states that the MOI in the
primary school shall be the language of the environment for the first three years (primary 1-3
classes). During this period English shall be taught as a subject. The policy further states that, from
the fourth year, English shall progressively be used as an MOI, and the language of the immediate
environment shall be taught as a subject. However, Ndukwe (2015) posits that this policy lacks
effective implementation mechanisms. This is due to non-availability of quality teaching staff, lack
of materials in the appropriate language, inadequate supervision for proper implementation and
coordination for facilitating the use of the MOI.

English as medium of instruction (EMI) was defined by Dearden (2014, p. 4) as “the use of English
language to teach academic subjects in countries or jurisdictions where the first language (L1) of
the majority of the population is not English.” In Nigeria English is used as the enabling
communication tool in the teaching and learning process. As such without effective use of EMI,
the basic skills and knowledge of subject contents will not be imparted in a meaningful way
(Namuchwa, 2007). In any teaching and learning situation the language of instruction plays a very
vital role in facilitating learning of subject contents. So it is necessary for the teachers and learners
to use the language of instruction appropriately for enhancing effective teaching and learning. In
other words, when there is conflict regarding the MOI that is used at early learning stage, the
situation may have negative effect on the subsequent educational level of the learners.

Statement of the Problem

Nigeria as a multi-lingual nation adopted English language as the L2. Hence, the federal
government of Nigeria provided a policy for using EMI. However the educational policy stated
that one of the three major Nigerian languages (Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba) or the language of
immediate environment should be used as the MOI at lower primary school level (classes 1-3),

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while EMI is to be used at upper primary school level (classes 4-6). However, observations by
researchers of this study during teaching practice supervision have shown that the language of
instruction in some primary schools in Zamfara state lacks proper coordination and guided
implementation. Although the language policy for instruction at primary school level is clearly
stated in Nigeria’s National Policy on Education, there has been no attempt made to explore the
challenges of using EMI at the primary education level in Zamfara state. Hence, it is worthwhile
to explore the current challenges of using EMI at the primary school level in Gusau local
government area of Zamfara, Nigeria.

Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to explore the challenges associated with using EMI in primary
schools in Gusau local Government area of Zamfara state, Nigeria.

The study attempts to answer the following research questions:

Literature Review

In 1982 an attempt was made to address the conflict in the use of language of instruction in Nigeria.
Thus, the Ife (a town in Southern Nigeria) Six Years Primary Project (SYPP) was conducted to
find out the most effective language of instruction between the English language and an indigenous
language (Yoruba, which is one of the three major national languages). In this language project it
was discovered that pupils taught in their mother tongue did better than those pupils taught through
the medium of English. Similarly another research study (Namuchwa, 2007), conducted in Mpigi
district of Uganda, found that both teachers and parents had preference for using indigenous
language to serve as the MOI at upper primary school level. Makoshy (2001, p. 228) is of the same
view, and stated thus, “We are well aware of, or at least made to believe the fact that children learn
faster and better in their mother tongue than in another language.” This suggests how optimistic
people are about using indigenous languages as the MOI at early stages in children’s education.
Dada (2013) also adopted a descriptive survey design and used structured questionnaire to collect
data regarding the use of MOI from 300 individuals across Nigeria. The findings of this researcher
support the use of indigenous languages to reduce the over dependence on English language. This
is further supported by studies conducted by different researchers such as Dadzie and Awonusi
(2009), Lawal (2014), and Ibrahim (2010).

Despite the above conflicting views, other scholars are of the view that English can never be
discarded as an MOI in Nigeria. The British Council sponsored a survey which involved 55
countries across the globe and reported that 51% of the respondents are of the opinion that English
as Medium of Instruction was thought to be controversial, while 38% express their opinion in
favour of using EMI, and 11% did not give an answer (Dearden, 2014). In the case of Nigeria the

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survey concluded that “EMI is highly supported by the parents” (Dearden, 2014, p. 21). Parental
support for the use of EMI came from Southern Nigeria where private schools have been using
EMI before now. This is because a primary school class may have six or more different tribes in
the Southern Nigeria. Matemilola (2001) also argues that when Hausa, for example, is used as the
MOI in Northern Nigeria, only a fraction of the class will have advantage over others. Matemilola
further noted confusion that in the northern part of Nigeria, the MOI in public schools is Hausa
from primary classes 1-6, while EMI is used in the private schools. Another study was carried out
by Egwuogu (2011) to investigate teachers’ perception of the use of EMI. The study adopted a
descriptive survey involving 200 teachers of various subjects in primary schools. The findings
reveal that English cannot be discarded now as a language of instruction in Nigerian primary
schools. This is because of the inability of the indigenous languages to explain concepts and ideas
especially with new innovations of the 21st century.

From the literature cited above, it can be understood that there is conflict between using EMI and
using indigenous languages as MOIs in multi-lingual nations like Nigerian. Ogbuehi (2001) argues
that the conflicts between English and indigenous languages as MOIs in Nigeria arise due to the
nature of the English language itself. This author pointed that the learners of English as a second
language encounter problems when English is used as the MOI, especially at early stages of
schooling. Some of these problems include:

lack of correlation between spelling and pronunciation, the inconsistent rules in the
formation of plurals, the phonological transfer (consonant vowel combination) from
indigenous language to the pronunciation of English words, the vowel system of English
is more complex than that of indigenous languages. Other major features of English that
affect using it as medium of instruction in Nigeria have also been highlighted as follows:
direct translations from mother tongue by both teachers and learners, infusion of dialectical
words into English structure, adaptations to cultural understanding, semantic adjustment of
English words, and phonological interference. (Ogbuehi, 2001, p. 27)

In summary, English is recognized as a second language as well as the official language in Nigeria.
It also has great influence as the MOI in Nigeria’s education system. However, EMI has also
resulted in consequences which have impacted the teaching and learning process in Nigerian public
and private primary schools, due to ineffective implementation of the language of instruction. The
focus of this paper, therefore, is on the challenges associated with EMI in both public and private
primary schools in Gusau local government area, Zamfara, Nigeria, where Hausa is the dominant
indigenous language.

Methodology

Design of the Study

The design for this study was descriptive survey. According to Nworgu (2015), descriptive survey
is a type of design that is concerned with systematic description of events as they are, because it is
aimed at collecting data and describing the characteristics, features or facts about the population

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of a given study.

Area of the Study

The study was conducted in Gusau Local Government area of Zamfara State in North-West geo-
political zone of Nigeria. This area consists of 206 primary schools that include 152 public schools
(government owned) and 54 private primary schools. The area was chosen because of the need to
provide information to educational administrators and policy makers, researchers, teachers, school
proprietors and other stakeholders for enhancing the use of EMI as well as implementing the
Nigerian language policy within and beyond Zamfara state.

Population, Sample and Sampling Techniques

The population of the study consisted of 1,107 teaching staff in both public and private primary
schools in Gusau Local Government area of Zamfara state in North-West Nigeria. The data on the
population was obtained from Annual School Census (Zamfara State Government, 2013). Multi-
stage sampling procedure was adopted for the study. First, the researchers purposively selected
Zamfara state as the area of the study, and that was because it is one of the areas with poor
performance of students in English language at secondary education level which could be
associated with the way English is used as the MOI right from primary school level. At the second
stage of the sampling, the researchers purposively selected Gusau local government area to enable
them sample schools they could easily reach. Consequently, proportionate stratified random
sampling was used to select 220 teachers from 13 public and 8 private primary schools.

Instrumentation, Data Collection and Analysis

The data was obtained using an observation checklist. According to Onyango (2002), an
observation checklist is a prepared list of items that provides systematic means of summarising or
quantifying the data collected. Therefore, the researchers employed participant observation
technique in carrying out the observation. The observation checklist consists of four clusters,
namely: a) demographic information; b) pattern of using EMI; c) teacher challenges of using EMI,
and d) EMI and pupils’ learning process. The instrument was subjected to face validation by three
senior colleagues. The Cronbach alpha method was used to determine the validity of the
instrument. The researchers went round the sampled schools and carried out the observation
between the months of April and June, 2016. The researchers observed the lessons in progress in
a friendly atmosphere. The descriptive analysis was used to analyse and summarize the data
obtained.

Results and Discussion

The results of the study are presented in accordance with research questions that guided the study.
Table 1 shows the characteristics of the sample with regards to their demographic information.

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Table 1
Demographic Information
Variables Frequency Percentage
School type
Public 13 61.9
Private 8 38.1
Total 21 100
Sex
Male 129 58.6
Female 91 41.4
Total 220 100
Classroom Observed
Primary 1-3 121 55.0
Primary 4-6 99 45.0
Total 220 100

The data used to answer the first research question is presented in Table 2. These results show that
out of 220 teachers observed, only 118 (53.6%) used Hausa as the indigenous language for
instruction in primary 1-3 classes. However, 51 (23.2%) of the teachers used EMI, and 44 teachers
(20%) used code mixing/switching, which is contrary to the National Language Policy of the
Federal Government of Nigeria. For primary 4-6 classes, the observation also shows that the
majority of the teachers (85 or 38.7%) used Hausa as the MOI, while 61 (27.7%) of them used
EMI, and 74 (33.6%) used code mixing/switching, which is also a deviation from the Nigerian
language of instruction policy for primary 4-6 classes. It is also evident from the data that the
pattern of the MOI used cut across the various subjects taught in the schools involved in this study.
These findings, therefore, corroborated the views of Ndukwe (2015) who posits that the policy
guidelines for MOIs in Nigerian primary schools lack effective implementation including the use
of EMI. The results from Table 2 have also corroborated the views of Matemilola (2001) who has
noted that the MOI for primary 1-6 in the northern part of Nigeria is mostly Hausa, particularly in
the public schools.

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Table 2
Uses of Mediums of Instruction (MOI)
Variables Frequency Percentage
MOI in use for primary 1-3
Hausa 118 53.6
Yoruba 7 3.2
Igbo - -
English 51 23.2
Code mixing/switching 44 20.0
MOI in use for primary 4-6
Hausa 85 38.7
Yoruba - -
Igbo - -
English 61 27.7
Code mixing/switching 74 33.6
Subject taught by the teacher
English 59 26.8
Mathematics 41 18.7
Basic science 28 12.7
Computer 11 5.0
Social studies 48 21.8
Other 33 15.0

Table 3 shows different statements that address research question 2, exploring teacher challenges
of using EMI. These results reveal that the majority of the teachers (55.9 %) have challenges using
EMI with regards to pronunciation, while 54.1% have challenges with English vocabulary, and
50.5% have phonological challenges, which are all associated with mother tongue as shown in the
table. Other notable areas where the teachers have challenges include use of vocabulary and
adaptation to cultural understanding as against the English language standard. The results in Table
3 indicate that teachers’ ability to communicate in English while teaching is in question. The
findings from Table 3 confirm Ogbuehi’s (2001) assertion that due to its nature, English language
is in conflict with indigenous languages in Nigeria. Hence, these conflicts constitute problems in
using it as an MOI, particularly at primary school level in Nigeria.

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Table 3
Poor Proficiency Levels of English Language Teachers
Variables Able Unable
Pronunciation 97 (44.1%) 123 (55.9%)
Spelling while writing on the chalkboard 220 (100%) -
Phonological interference of mother tongue 109 (49.5%) 111 (50.5%)
Grammar 187 (85.0%) 33 (15.0%)
Correct use of English vocabulary 173 (78.6%) 47 (21.4%)
Imposition of lexico-syntactic structure (direct translation from mother 192 (87.2%) 28 (12.8%)
tongue)
Adaptation to cultural understanding contrary to English language 127 (57.7%) 93 (42.3%)
Vagueness resulting from poor vocabulary of mother tongue. 101 (45.9%) 119 (54.1%)

Table 4 presents results on pupils ’ encounters with EMI in the learning process in the classroom
(research question 3). The data shows that out of the 220 lessons observed, only in 173 (78.6%) of
the classes did the pupils have active participation in the learning process. This implied that the
participation of some pupils in the learning process was limited due to challenges of EMI. The
results also show that in the classes observed, there was use of Hausa indigenous language, use of
English language and use of code mixing/switching in the range of 42.3%, 25.9% and 27.2%,
respectively. Hence, the pupils’ proficiency in English language during the lesson observation was
found to be just 46.8% adequate in 103 classes. In other words, in 117 (53.2%) classes observed,
the pupils’ proficiency in English language was found to be inadequate. The findings from Table
4 corroborated that of Namuchwa (2007), who established through interview and observation
techniques that using EMI in upper primary schools in rural Uganda has created a teacher-
dominated classroom environment. This is because, at this early stage in education, the pupils
cannot express their ideas in a foreign language due to lack of linguistic foundations and solid
cultural base for using EMI.

Table 4
English as a Medium of Instruction and Pupils’ Learning Process
Variables Frequency Percentage
Pupils’ participation in the lesson
Active 173 78.6
Inactive 47 21.4
Language use by pupils in the learning process
Hausa 93 42.3
Yoruba 7 3.2

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 Variables Frequency Percentage
Igbo 3 1.4
English 57 25.9
Code Mixing/Code Switching 60 27.2
Pupils’ proficiency in English language during lesson evaluation
Adequate 103 46.8
Inadequate 117 53.2

Conclusion and Recommendations

This study attempted to explore the challenges of using EMI in primary schools in Gusau Local
Government area of Zamfara state, Nigeria. Three research questions were used for the study. The
study had established some major challenges associated with the use of EMI within an area
dominated by Hausa indigenous language. These challenges are:
1. In both categories of classes (primary 1-3 and primary 4-6), there is no effective and
appropriate use of language of instruction as stated in Nigeria’s national policy on
education. This confusion arises due to the fact that Nigeria is a multi-lingual nation with
over 400 local or indigenous languages, which makes the choice of language of instruction
a very complex task, including the English that was adopted as the second and official
language.
2. The majority of teachers lack the ability to use EMI due to influence of local or indigenous
languages and the complex nature of some features of English language.
3. Pupils use different languages such as Hausa and English as well as code mixing and code
switching during lessons in their classrooms. This situation makes some of the pupils
inactive during lessons and consequently has negative effects on their proficiency in
English. Thus, their understanding of the subject content taught will be limited.

The recommendations arising from the findings of this study are that the language of instruction,
including local or indigenous languages and the English language, should be implemented in
accordance with the provision in the National Education Policy in Nigeria. The effective
implementation of EMI in this regard is the responsibility of both the Nigerian government and
other international communities so that standards can be established and maintained. Any
programme for the effective implementation of EMI should give adequate attention to training and
retraining of teachers, policy makers and primary school administrators / proprietors. Another
recommendation is that both teachers and pupils should be exposed to appropriate and adequate
instructional materials for using EMI, particularly in primary 4-6 classes. Teachers should be
properly trained on how to cope with English being the MOI as well as being proficient in the
language. Finally, it is hoped that this study will be useful in stimulating further discussion and
research on how to effectively implement EMI in multi-lingual nations like Nigeria.

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