ABSTRACT
This study examined the effects of mother tongue interference in the study of English language in Senior Secondary Schools using Egor Local Government Area, Edo State as a case study. This research assessed teachers' awareness of the effect of mother tongue interference in the teaching and learning of English language.
The study surveyed 56 English language teachers across the Secondary Schools in the Local Government Area. Four research questions were raised to guide the study . A survey research design was adopted for the conduct of the study using a questionnaire as the instrument for gathering data to answer the research questions. The instrument was validated, and subjected to Alpha Cronbach’s reliability co-efficient, and a reliability index of 0.69 was obtained. Descriptive frequency, mean, and tables were used to present the results for ease of discussion and interpretation.
The findings from the study showed that pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary are the primary areas where mother tongue interference is most prevalent among secondary school students in Egor Local Government. The study also revealed the linguistic features affected by mother tongue interference include pronunciation, grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary, and word choice. Finally, based on the findings and conclusion, appropriate recommendations like teachers should be exposed to specialized training programs focused on addressing mother tongue interference, establishment of a robust feedback system that consistently identifies instances of mother tongue interference in student speech and writing, and English language curriculum instruction should be adapted to include activities and exercises specifically designed to reduce mother tongue interference were made.
