ABSTRACT
This study focussed on the Effect of Exposure to Figurative Language on Senior Secondary School Students’ Achievement in English Reading Comprehension in Awka Education Zone of Anambra State. Three research questions and six null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The study engaged quasi-experimental research design, otherwise known as pretest-posttest non-equivalent control group design involving two intact classes from each of the randomly selected schools. Two hundred and ninety-nine (299) Senior Secondary Class Two Students, comprising males and females exclusively from four schools located in urban and rural areas of the Education Zone served as subjects in the study. The experimental group was made up of one hundred and fifty two (152) students, comprising 43 males and 47 females from urban; 26 males and 36 females from rural schools. In the control group of (147) students, 47 males and 45 females were from urban, and 25 males and 30 females were from rural. Each of the intact classes in each of the schools selected for the study through simple random sampling was also randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The instrument for data collection was the English Language Reading Comprehension Achievement Test (ERCAT) based on two reading prose passages. Five different lesson plans for the two groups with the same instructional objectives and questions but different teaching strategies were developed. Two reading passages one for pretest and the other for posttest were used for the assessment. An internal consistency reliability estimate of each of the reading passages was calculated using Cronbach Alpha at .84 and .91 for the pretest and posttest respectively. Kendall’s Coefficient of Concordance (W)Test was used to determine inter-rater reliability which yielded .51. Data obtained were calculated using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions while the Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The results of the study indicated that the strategy of exposure to figurative language significantly enhanced achievement in reading comprehension more than the conventional method. Gender had no significant influence on the students’ achievement while location significantly did. The interaction effect of gender and instructional strategy was not significant but there was significant interaction effect of instructional strategy and location. Again, the interaction effect of gender, location and instructional strategy was not significant. Following discussion on findings, the educational implications of the study were posited and recommendations made. Among others, English Language teachers should adopt the exposure strategy to figurative expressions as added alternative to the conventional method of vocabulary learning in reading comprehension. A stronger reading foundation should be laid right from pre-nursery to junior secondary school during which learners engage in extensive reading for more exposure to figurative expressions embedded in texts. The limitations of the study and suggestions for further research were given.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
English Language has become an invaluable legacy of the British colonial masters to Nigeria. The language has provided Nigerians with another means of expressing their culture. Before the British came into Nigeria, the country already had its many indigenous languages. One would have expected that with the attainment of Nigeria independence in 1960, the language referred to as the language of conquest and oppression would have been abolished (Akindele and Adegbite, 1999). On the contrary, the English Language has come to stay as the country’s official and national language. Globally, English is recognized as a world language.
Language is understood as the particular set of speech norms of a particular community (Alersandrowicz-Pedich and Lazar, 2002). It is expressed using a set of symbols in form of letters or pictures which represent its sound system. According to Offorma (2009) language expression can be verbal or non-verbal to convey thoughts, feelings, and information. The way the information is conveyed would reveal that language operates within a systematic arrangement. Again, there are some elements or characteristics of language which one cannot easily explain or find reasons for (Schmmit, 2000). For instance, in English, the object called “house” is so called not on the basis of any rational explanation but that the English people have conventionally agreed to call it so, otherwise different languages would have had the same name to designate the same object. Therefore, no two languages express the same idea exactly the same way. This suggests that language learning is by imitation and that to be clear and acceptable one must use words and patterns of expression which people of the group understand and accept and which have the same meaning for the hearer as for the speaker (Alersandrowich-Pedich and Lazar, 2002).
Every language is made up of four skills in their hierarchical order of acquisitions as follows: listening, speaking, reading and writing. The listening skill as the first of the four major language skills is the key and the gateway to language learning and it is very vital and fundamental in the process of language acquisition. The three other skills, speaking, reading and writing build upon it and are more or less dependent on it (Mgbodile, 1999). As the child consolidates his listening skill he moves into the speaking stage that will enable him join his speech community. Listening and speaking stages are termed natural stages because they are acquired without any formal learning. Long before the child learns to read, he has started to communicate. Reading is the extension of communication and it naturally builds upon listening and speaking skills already acquired. With practice and further exposure to reading materials children gradually learn to read at primary school and perfect their reading as they move higher to secondary school and higher institutions. Skills for reading aloud, silent reading, intensive, extensive and fast reading are then acquired. According to Agwu (2003) and Nduka (2003) reading is an indispensable tool of learning at the various levels of education.
Reading is an active mental process through which the reader gets into the author’s mind and comprehends his view –expressed and unexpressed – on a subject which is presented before him in the form of printed language. In other words, the reader is involved in both mental and emotional interaction with the author’s ideas, processes these ideas in the light of his total experience past and present. In order to do this, the reader has to make speculations, think over, interpret, judge and evaluate all that the author has said. In comprehending what is read, mere understanding of sentences and language are not enough but the semantic (underlying meaning) and not the syntactic (sentence arrangement) content which is retained after reading. In other words, comprehension is an act or process of understanding the nature or meaning of something, the act or process of grasping with the mind (Alberto and Troutman, 2003). In the same vein, Nduka (2003) could be said to have lent support to the above view when he observed that comprehension, as it refers to reading, means getting meaning from what is perceived in writing. Perception here implies forming mental images and concepts generated by the written symbols (words). These images and concepts are not restricted to only the visible language symbols but extend far beyond to include ideas not directly represented by the symbols of the language. Basically, authors often use words perceptively to achieve special effects. Using language figuratively is one such use. `
Figurative expressions are the expressive, non- literal use of language for special effects usually through images. Figurative language is one of the richest means of emotional communication and it is an indispensable tool for arousing the feelings of hearers or readers. It enriches literary writing as images and evocative expressions. According to Nwachuwkwu-Agbada (2001) the use of figurative language makes for conciseness in speech and writing. In other words, its use gives rise to economy of words, enhances clarification of meaning, provides vivid examples, stimulates associations and emotions and gives life to inanimate objects and ornaments. The kinds of figurative language people use stem from the underlying values and assumptions of their culture or society. A well understood metaphor in one culture may have an entirely different meaning in another culture. For example, the figurative meaning of different colours varies from one language group to another. According to Palmer and Brooks (2004) the conventional association in British English between the colour “green” to mean nature and innocence might not be the same for students in other cultures. Students ought to be aware of these associations in order to make tense of idiomatic usages like “to be green” (referring to the colour of a thing and “to have green fingers” which means “one good at making plants grow”, as well as more literary uses of the colour green. The teacher’s task is to sensitize students to the cultural significance obtainable to particular examples of figurative language in English, while encouraging them to compare the association with those in their own language.
Figurative language is found both in literary and study-type reading materials. It is used in conversations too. Hence, it is part of every individual’s cultural background. The embedded figurative language in a reading passage carries the culture of that language and the reading process involves recognition and handling of such cultural meanings (Dellicarpini, 2007). On the problem of recognizing and handling cultural meanings, Dellicarpini (2007) stated that because figurative expressions have become conventional components of everyday language, listeners and readers are unaware of the extent of the metaphorical nature of language. Some popular idioms, proverbs and metaphoric expressions are so deeply embedded into language that they are comprehended immediately when used in oral conversations without the individual knowing the initial, historical context of the word or phrase. But Batolva (2006) observed that despite the copious usage of figurative language in conversations, many readers struggle to interpret the language when it is encountered in a text. This inability to interpret the language leads to a breakdown in text comprehension which in turn can frustrate readers and discourage them from continuing the reading task.
Figures of speech are numerous but the most commonly used are metaphors, synecdoche, metonymy, personifications, idioms, proverbs and allusions (Palmer and Brooks, 2006). Other commonly known forms are hyperbole (overstatement), litotes (understatement), simile, which is a formal comparison of two things usually introduced by the words “like” or “as”, and, irony. Metaphors on the other hand, provide direct comparisons between two things that are usually considered not similar. An important characteristic of one thing is used to describe another in a metaphor. For example, in the statement, “The child was a bolt of lightning,” characteristics of lightning are associated with the child’s quick movements.
Another important figure of speech in English Language is idiom. Idioms are defined as fixed phrases or sentences whose meanings are different from the meanings of the individual words (Baldeh, 2001). They form integral part of everyday colloquial speech of native speakers. For instance, idioms such as “making a mountain out of a molehill or burning the midnight oil are expressions that do not mean what they literally say (Akmajian, Demers, Farmer, and Horrnish,2004).
One may ask what implications these examples have for the teaching of figurative language. First, understanding figurative language involves a process of inference whereby the learner is able to comprehend that two things which do not normally collocate are being brought together. Understanding figurative language requires a deeper level of text comprehension, an understanding beyond the literal level using analytical and inferential skills. According to Fredricks (2006), analyzing figurative language for meaning is found to be complex and challenging for both native and nonnative English speakers. As a result, students’ inability to grasp figurative language can lead to a breakdown in understanding key points or even comprehending the passage as a whole. In the same vein, its being complex to understand can also cause difficulty in teaching particularly if students’ prior exposure occurred in a dry, dull format with material that they could not relate to, thereby decreasing their incentives to learn. Therefore, two major tasks are needed to interpret figurative language. These are the ability to recognize figurative language and the ability to understand it. According to Batolva (2006), to recognize figurative language the reader should see if the writer used language that would not make good sense if taken literally; if he made a direct comparison; if the writer said that one thing is something else; if the writer exaggerated the comparison. To understand figurative language, students are expected to do the following: decide what things are being compared; think of the qualities that are characteristic of the figurative language; and, decide which of these qualities is appropriate to the context in which the figurative language is used. In reading for comprehension then, word recognition is not enough. Vocabulary knowledge is needed (Scarborough, 2001).
For English as a Second Language (ESL) learners, many factors have been known to influence reading negatively. These factors have been categorized into psychological, physical, environmental, pedagogical and linguistic. Generally, reading achievement can be hampered by psychological problems and physical defects ranging from general low intelligence leading to poor mental and perceptual ability; auditory defects which lead to poor auditory perception; eye defects, defects of the speech organs and emotional instability (Mgbodile,1999). Also, studies have shown that Nigerian learners of English have poor reading habits which influence comprehension. These habits include pointing at words thereby delaying the fast movement of the eyes for fast reading; moving the head sideways along the line of print, thereby making reading tiring and boring; vocalization in which the reader pronounces words to oneself equating the speed of talking with the speed of reading; sub vocalization, in this case, the lips are not moved, the tongue and vocal cords are intact but a sort of inner speech is made to oneself; and, word by word reading which results in excessive word analysis (Nduka, 2003; Ikonta,2005; and Offorma, 2009).
A variable considered important in reading skill is gender. Gender in this study is regarded as a cultural constraint which distinguishes the roles, behaviour, mental and emotional characteristics between males and females developed by a society (Azikiwe, 2005). A society in this regard is a group of individuals who share common interest and norms, living together in a particular geographic location (Nwafor, 2002). In language learning, especially reading, there have been controversial reports on gender performance. For instance, Akabogu (2002) and Marja (2008) recorded no gender difference in performance of male and female students in reading comprehension. Offorma (2001,2009) reported that girls achieve more than boys in foreign language acquisition. On the other hand, Anizoba (2004) and Oluikpe (2004) also reported no significant influence of gender on the students’ achievement in essay writing.
Closely related to the influence of gender on students’ performance in reading comprehension is location of the school. Differences in location imply the existence of differences in demographic and socio-economic parameters of the school. (Anizoba, 2004), Uwa (2005) and Adepoju (2008) observed that students in schools located in the urban area perform better in second language learning than those in schools located in the rural area. The observation was that schools in the urban centres had access to electricity which in turn attracted infrastructures like language laboratory, computers for computer based learning, well equipped school libraries, conducive classrooms and enough qualified English language teachers. On the contrary, schools located in the rural areas lack most of these amenities. So far studies carried out on the influence of location on reading comprehension have shown controversial results. For example, Ene (2002) and Akabogu (2002) reported that students in the urban area scored higher marks in reading comprehension than the students in the rural area. Okeke (2000) and Anizoba (2004) reported a no significant difference in achievement in reading comprehension of students from the urban and rural areas.
