Language pedagogical cheers in tertiary institutions and its gloom on indigenous languages in Nigeria

Abstract

The strength of English language usage among Nigerians who speak Yoruba, Igbo, Ikwere, Hausa, and Gwari was contrastively studied in the University of Ibadan, Imo State University, Rivers State University, Sokoto State University, and the University of Abuja (representing the zones in Nigeria). The research adopted descriptive survey design and three research questions were formulated for a guide with a population of 19,532 respondents and a sample size of 8,800 selected through purposive procedure, using Language Pedagogical Cheers in Tertiary Institutions and its Gloom on Indigenous Languages (LAPECTIGLOOM) with four-point modified Likert scale of strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree and Strongly disagree, which was validated by experts in language studies, and measurement and evaluation from Federal College of Education (Tech.) Omoku is the instrument for data collection. The reliability of the instrument utilized the test-retest reliability technique, and a correlation coefficient of 0.87 was obtained. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the research questions, using SPSS version 20. The result of the study indicated that the English language is shifting the linguistic empathy of Nigerian bilinguals from the indigenous languages by modifications to achieve nativisation and acculturation to Nigerian concepts. The outcome shows that these modifications have challenged the prominence of indigenous languages as an L1, leading to a gradual loss of indigenous language relevance in Nigeria. The researcher, therefore, made recommendations on government policies, preservation force, and localization of discourses.