Background of the Study
The teaching and learning of Igbo language both as L1 and L2 has
been bedeviled with a lot of problems. One of the major problems is the non
availability of trained teachers in this area. Some schools do not even have
the teachers at all and so do not offer the subject. Lack of necessary encouragement
from school authorities is another problem as teachers complain that the
periods allocated to the subject is few and that lessons are fixed at odd
times. This fact and the negative attitude of both the parents and students to
the language do not make some of the teachers to have the zeal and enthusiasm
that can make the teaching/learning of Igbo language interesting. Lack of
adequate teaching materials and language laboratory also constitute a major
problem to the teaching and learning of the subject.
It is an accepted belief that education holds the key to peace and progress of
any society. Indeed, the National Policy on Education, (FRN, 2004)
categorically stated that Education is an instrument “per excellence” for
national development and that efforts should be made to relate education to
overall community needs. In general terms, the curriculum is a systematically
organized body of knowledge through which the goals of education can be
achieved for the fulfillment of the needs and aspirations of any given society
(Igbokwe & Eze, 2009).
In Nigeria, the government planned that progress along the
educational cycle will be based on achievements made on specific subjects at
the various levels towards the attainment of the overall objective of education
is outlined in the National Policy on Education. One of the specific subjects
studied at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels include Igbo language and
others. Igbo language is one of the core subjects at the primary and
secondary levels whose importance is based on its relevance towards the
realization of the overall educational objectives of secondary education. The
National Policy on Education prescribes the use of the mother tongue or
language of the immediate community of the child as medium of instruction
especially at the junior primary school level. Language is a veritable
instrument of communication. It is believed that the child learns better in her
mother tongue because if the language used to communicate facts and figures is
inaccessible to the child, then little or no concept development is feasible.
The three major Nigerian languages are Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.
The issue of the teaching and learning of the Nigerian languages has received
much attention from language scholars and educationists in the country. These
efforts include the production of learning and instructional materials for
major Nigerian languages. A worthwhile curriculum is never static, it is
dynamic, the curriculum embraces purposeful experiences provided and directed
by educational institutions to achieve pre-determined goals. When analyzed, the
intended objectives, the learning experiences, the methods of instruction, the
methods of evaluation, all parts of or steps in curriculum development have
continued to change.
The idea of adding or removing items in the curriculum implies revision or
renewal. To renew a curriculum is to revise or modify an existing curriculum
with the hope of providing a better programme. Curriculum revision may
originate at any step of the curriculum process. For instance, when there are
new aims of education arising from changes in cultural beliefs, values, ideas,
philosophy of the society like our new economic agenda, the learning objectives
change. Subsequently, changes in content and methods also occur.
In line with government reforms in education, the Nigerian Educational Research
and Development Council (NERDC) was directed by the National Council on
Education (NCE) to review and realign the existing senior secondary school
curriculum in Igbo language and other subjects to meet the targets of the
reform in the context of National Economics and Empowerment and Development
Strategy (NEEDS) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (NERDC, 2009).
The exercise was completed and the new curriculum was introduced into the
schools in 2009, the critical target of NEEDS are value re-orientation, poverty
eradication, job creation, wealth generation and using education to empower the
people. Whenever any change occurs in any stage of the curriculum process or in
the entire curriculum, and when the learning experiences that the pupils are
exposed to is affected, we conclude that new life has been given to the
existing curriculum. These changes will pose challenges to the implementation.
The challenges experienced by teachers in the achievement of the objectives of
the new Igbo language curriculum is one of the aims of the study.
Government has laudable policies for the teaching of Igbo language in the
nation’s secondary schools. The success of the policy in teaching of Igbo
language in schools depends on the availability of both human and material
resources among other social-cultural problems. The policy makers highlighted
the important role of teachers in the implementation of curriculum by stating
that no education system can rise above the quality of its teachers. Good
teachers adopt suitable methods and use appropriate instructional materials and
evaluation techniques to achieve curriculum objectives. However, in the
Implementation of Curriculum, teachers face some challenges.