EFFECT OF THE HOME ENVIRONMENT IN REINFORCING THE LEARNING OF YORUBA LANGUAGE IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS

 

EFFECT OF THE HOME ENVIRONMENT IN REINFORCING THE LEARNING OF YORUBA LANGUAGE IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

          This topic intends to examine the various aspects of a student life at home and its effect on his or her learning and acquisition of the Yoruba Language. Although many papers have been written by the researchers on the aspects of student environment and how it affects his academic performance  at school. But it is important to examine and explain how this affects a student’s cognitive development especially in Yoruba language acquisition in Ekiti State.

          It has been established by earlier researcher that the environment or background play a very important role in students education. Tarrents (2002), explains that each of use grows up under the two important facts (i) Heredity (ii) Environment.

(i)             Heredity: This is the process by which a child inherit talent from their parents. It manifested both in physical and mental mechanism   with all its strength and weakness.

(ii)          Environment: This is how the surrounding or conditions in which the external factors influences the life of a child. It determines the kind ofpeople a child moves/play with, it also determines  the kind of language a child speaks. This is the reason why an Igbo boy who lives among Yoruba people  easily acquired Yorubal language to the extent of chosen it as his favourite course in the university and became a news caster (Akaroyin).

This explains the reason for the inter play between the personality of a child and how his environment affect him for better and worse. It also explains why individuals have different responses to learning stimuli.

It also mean that by these two definitions the totality of the family’s educational and financial status parental encouragement and assistance or character  and even the emotional stability can affect the Yoruba child directly in his learning and acquisition of Yoruba language.

One may wonder why the Yoruba Language claims so much recognition or importance, it is because Yoruba Language is the language of our fore fathers. It tells us much about the belief (religion) culture, dressing, discipline and the literature of our fathers. Yoruba Ethnics are so rich in all aspect of life such as Administration, politics, socialization, economics e.t.c.

 Yoruba People are full of wisdom and knowledge which manifested in their day to day activities. Also they rein their children from birth. Yoruba people are found in places like Nigeria, Togo Jamaica, Tobago, Sierra Leon, Republic ofBenin, Brazil e.t.c. due to suchwide spread influence, one would expect the secondary school students in Ekiti State not to have problems of acquiring this language. But the majority still fail to pass the language at school and some of them even find it difficult to communicate effectively with it.

Since the general language in Ekiti State is Yoruba, one tends to think that the problem of acquisition has to come from somewhere, a part from the school and most possibly classroom learning is not adequate  for proper competency in the language,  which opens us to the second option of the students next immediate and most influential environment-the home.

This study hope to find out exactly the level or the extent to which it influence the student and perhaps make used of suggestions to help the school teacher and the parents awareed of these problems. It is assumed that academic performance of students in Yoruba language hasa direct link with their home environment.

It is also been observed that the socio-economic back ground of the parents or the home determines a student’s level of competence in Yoruba language. The environment of the home is taught in the school and because of this it affects the competence of the students learning of Yoruba language.

One would expect that children from the high economic strata of the society should be able to acquire higher level of competence, because of the added reinforcement that their family would be able to provide.

In a second language learning situation for instance, the radio, television, library and video recorders are vital. One expect children from homes where their basic needs could be fulfilledon time to have an added advantage above other classmates. It should be noted that children with assistance of their parents whocommunicate  with them in Yoruba language are likely to be more motivated to learn than others.

It is also assumed or  believed that emotional stability present in the home, the parental attitude of the child at home affects the child. These factors create the totality of his external circumstance which can affect him at any stage and of course which play privotedrole in his acquisition at school.

Statement of the Problem

Yoruba lab gauge is the general language all over Yoruba  ethnic group, Ekiti happens to fall under the category of the Yoruba ethnic groups. Although, Ekiti dialect is the common language in Ekiti Statewhile Yoruba language is the general language. But despite this it has always been observed that students still fail to acquire the standard for effective communication of Yoruba language which cause a lot of damage to the advancement of Yoruba language in schools. Students appears to fail to communicate effectively in Yoruba language.

Purpose of the Study 

          The study is designed to find out the effect of the home environment in reinforcing the learning of Yoruba language in some selected secondary schools in Oye local government area.

The study will examine the following;

(a)           Occupational or financial status of the family.

(b)          Educational attainment of parents/educational materials provided in the home

(c)           Language of communication in the family

(d)          Parental character, attitude, encouragement and assistance

These schools are co-educational and the randomly selected to provide for variety in the home background.

Research Questions

1.      Is there any significant relationship between the parental aims towards provision of educational materials and the academic performance of the students in Yoruba language?

2.     Is there any significant between the home language reinforcement and the academic performance of the students in Yoruba language?

3.     Is there any significant relationship between the variation in parents Education and the performance of students in Yoruba language?

  Research Hypotheses

1.     There is no significant relationship between the parental aims towards provision of educational materials and the academic performance of the student in Yoruba language.

2.     There is no significant relationship between the language reinforcement and the performance of the students in Yoruba Lnagauge.

3.     There is no significant relationship between variation in parents education and the performance of students in Yoruba language.

Significance of the Study

        This study will examine the effect of parent factors on student academic performance in Yoruba language in school. It will also highlight the various aspects of a student life at home and its effects on his/her learning and acquisition of Yoruba language.

Delimitation of the Study

        This study covers the effect of home environment on the academic performance of students in some selected secondary schools in Oye local government area of Ekiti state. The research is limited to only three (3) secondary schools within the local government.

Definition of Terms

Language: Language is a medium of communication among a group of people.

Yoruba Language: It refers to Yoruba as a subject taught in secondary schools

Socio-Economic Status: This refers to the position that the parent occupy in the society.

Communication: In this study communication refers to the way Yoruba people speaks and interact among themselves.

Environment: This refers to the home or the community where a child lives.

Occupational or Financial Status: This refers to the degree of which theparents earn their income.

Heredity: The refers to the talent that is transfer from parents to their children.

Culture: In this study refers to the way of life of the Yoruba people.


 

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