EFFECT OF SYNTHETIC PHONICS INSTRUCTION ON NIGERIAN ENGLISH AS SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNERS’ INTEREST IN READING

Abstract

This study determines the effect of synthetic phonics on Nigerian primary school pupils’ interest in reading. The study which was conducted in Enugu, South East Nigeria adopted the non equivalent, non randomized control group qausi-experimental design. The sample of the study consists of 118 primary one school pupils drawn from four public primary schools in Enugu, Nigeria through multi-stage sampling technique. The subjects of the study who were in intact classes were assigned to experimental and control groups and were pretested and post tested. The experimental group was instructed using synthetic phonics while the control group received instruction through analytic phonics. Data were collected using Reading Interest Inventory (RII). The collected data were analysed using Means, Standard Deviation and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). Mean and Standard Deviation were used to answer the research question while ANCOVA was used to test the hypothesisat 0.05 level of significance (p<0.05). The results of the study revealed that synthetic phonics prove to be more significant in enhancing pupils’ interest in reading than analytic phonics. Based on the observations of the study, it was concluded that the use of synthetic phonics for reading instruction is capable of stimulating and sustaining pupils’ interest in reading more than analytic phonics. It was therefore recommended that learners should be properly exposed to learning activities and methods such as synthetic phonics that can ignite and sustain their interest in reading.