CAUSES OF POOR PERFORMANCE IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE AMONG THE SENIOR SECONDARY STUDENTS IN EGOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF EDO STATE

ABSTRACT

English language is the instrument of communication in our post primary institutions, higher institution well as the official language of the country. Therefore, secondary school students need effective English to function properly or perform better. Fema, (2003) was of the view that “a person is functionally literature when he required the knowledge and skills in reading and writing which enables him to engage effectively in all those activities in which literacy is normally assumed in his culture of group”. English language normally has four basic skills, namely listening, speaking, reading and writing. It is the medium of instruction in our schools and compulsory subject that must be passed at all levels of education in Nigeria (Danladi, 2008). However, it is disheartening to note that the poor performance of students in English at public examinations in recent times has been explained as a major cause of decline in the general academic performance and standard of education in Nigeria. Oluwole, (2008) was of the view that “having difficulty in grasping fully the contents and concepts of the various subjects of the curriculum taught in target language seem to be one of the most serious problems that English as a first language students face in their particular course of study. This might be due to their weakness in English language (the medium of institution) which may be negative consequences on their overall performance.