Strengthening English Language Teachers' Proficiency in Secondary Schools in the North Central Zone of Nigeria

Abstract

English being the official language and medium of instruction in schools in Nigeria plays a pivotal role in the country's education system and communication at large. Despite the gargantuan function of English in our entire education set up, there has been consistent complaints of its decline at all levels especially at the secondary schools which various stakeholders have largely attributed to teachers’ failure in their responsibility in providing the required proficiency in English to learners. Thus, strengthening English language teachers' proficiency in secondary schools in the North Central Zone of Nigeria is a vital step towards improving the overall quality of education in the region. And to achieve this, descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. The study population consists of teachers in Kogi, Nasarawa, Benue, FCT, Kwara state making a total of 255,849 as its population. Simple random sampling technique was used to select eight hundred (800) teachers in secondary schools in two states. Questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. Descriptive and inferential statistical method of Mean and Standard Deviation were used to answer the research questions. The findings revealed that English Language teachers in the region are perceived to have a strong proficiency in the language and effective communication skills, and that continuous professional development programs, technology-assisted language learning, collaborative learning, and a supportive administrative framework are perceived as effective strategies to strengthen English language teachers' proficiency in secondary schools in the study area. The study recommended that stakeholders in education should develop and implement targeted training programs to address specific areas of weakness identified in teachers' proficiency and that advocate for policies that prioritize the professional development of English language teachers should allocate funds, establish guidelines for proficiency improvement, and recognizing proficiency achievements in teacher evaluations.