EFFECTS OF DEMONSTRATION TECHNIQUES ON REMEDIAL READING OF JSS STUDENTS

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1         Background to the Study

The four primary skills of language which any effective language teaching and learning programme centred on are: Listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Listening and reading skills are receptive while speaking and writing are productive skills. (Olaofe, 2012).The importance of reading cannot be over-emphasized as it is ”the most widely employed skill in the literate society” (Ekpunobi, 1989). The other skills as well are very important in language teaching and learning.

The inspiration for this study stems from the experiences gathered as a teacher of English Language at the JSS level of education. Some students at JSS level cannot recognise even two or three letter words like: go, to, is, the, see, bad among others. Many of these students lack the basic vocabulary which will aid them to read. Moreso, some JSS students cannot read group of words.The above challenges necessitated the need for this study on how demonstration techniques can be utilised to enable JSS students recognise words, acquire vocabulary, discriminate phonemes and read group of words. Punctuation problem encountered by these JSS students in an attempt to read is another inspiration for this study. Some of the students read without observing the necessary punctuation marks like comma, full stop, question mark among others.

The study is concerned with finding out whether or not teachers of English Language at the junior secondary school level can effectively use demonstration techniques to remedy students reading problems in order to enhance JSS remedial readers performance.

Demonstration technique is that which shows the learner how to do a task using sequential instruction with the aim of having learners perform the task independently.(Norton, 2004).When using the demonstration model in the classroom, the teacher performs the task of reading step by step so that learners can eventually be able read on their own.(Norton, 2004).The term remedial reading is concerned with children struggling to read.(Allington,1985).These readers have problem trying to read, as such they generally do not like reading.

There has been international and local concern on remedial reading. Benneth (1998) points out that in the U.S.A., there are some schools where almost everyone learns to read, but others where the situation is so bad and embarrassing to the extent that 40 to 45% of the children who enter public schools each year cannot read on average. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (1983) revealed that over ten million Americans reached the 12^th grade without having learnt to read at basic level. Some children in urban high poverty schools read below basic. If America can have such reading problems and they are struggling for the solution, the case in Nigeria is expected to be higher. As such, Nigeria should train teachers on how to teach reading. In Nigeria for instance, some of our students cannot read mere instruction on question paper correctly.

EFFECTS OF DEMONSTRATION TECHNIQUES ON REMEDIAL READING OF JSS STUDENTS