The Influence of Technology on the English Vocabulary among Senior Secondary School Students in Abakaliki Urban
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Communication cannot be excluded from human existence as man has communicated with one another right from the beginning, using various mediums. The issue of language needed to be taken very seriously because man must continuously communicate to live peacefully and also carry out his daily activities with his neighbors. Therefore, the existence of man and his development depend on language for communication (Babatunde, 2012). Over the years, language has remained and will remain a very vital tool through which humans communicate with one another. This is because language serves as a means of socialization (Egwuogu, 2012). It has therefore been noted that one of the major features of man is his ability to communicate information relating to his activities to others and this is done through either written or spoken language (Abudu, Lawal & Abiodun, 2020).
The Influence of Technology on the English Vocabulary among Senior Secondary School Students in Abakaliki Urban
The integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in education has been a priority in most advanced countries but progress has been uneven especially in the developing countries such as Nigeria. BECTA – British Educational Communication and Technology Agency (2016) reveals that there are considerable differences of e-maturity among various nations. Schools in most countries however are at the early phase of ICT adoption. The Nigerian government realizes the inestimable role of ICT in the National Policy on Education (2014) and states and government shall provide necessary infrastructure and training for the integration of ICF in the school system in recognition of the role of ICT in advancing knowledge and skill in the modern world.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been a veritable tool in medicine, commerce, engineering, education etc. As a result of this, we now have e-commerce, e-banking, e-government, e-learning etc. This is to testify to the fact that the educational sector in Nigeria needs to fully integrate ICT into its system in order to benefit from the inexhaustive opportunities that it affords.
Kolawole (2016) specifies that language experts and many stakeholders in education have advocated the use of ICT to improve teachers’ competence and pedagogical skills as a major way by which the teaching of English Language can be improved. UNESCO (2015) had earlier stated how ICT potentially offers numerous advantages and provides opportunities for facilitating learning for children who have different learning styles and abilities including slow learners, the socially disadvantaged, the mentally and physically handicapped, the talented and those living in remote areas.
Machin (2016) submits that ICT impacts positively on educational performance in secondary schools, especially in English language. He believes that it leads to improvement in the attainment level of students in the subject. This submission was buttressed by Oyinloye (2017) who stresses that ICT facilities are essential to the English teacher and learner, particularly at the senior secondary school level in the following ways:
- It helps the teacher to arouse the interest of the learners during language lessons.
- It assists the teacher by throwing more light on the meaning of the utterances made by the teacher,
- It makes the learners realize the correct articulation of sounds and words,
- It enables the learners to have the opportunity of listening to native speakers of a particular sound language without necessarily leaving their own country.
All the above put together means that the integration of ICT into teaching and learning of English Language in the senior secondary school will lead to more concentration on the part of the learners towards the subject. Therefore this study aims to investigate the Influence of Technology on the English Vocabulary among Senior Secondary School Students in abakaliki Urban
The Influence of Technology on the English Vocabulary among Senior Secondary School Students in Abakaliki Urban
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The emergence of ICT has had considerable effect on different sectors of human life especially among advanced nations but these invaluable advantages have not been fully utilized by developing nations. More importantly, the use of ICT has not been fully exploited in the teaching and learning of English Language. This may not be unconnected with the subjects’ attitude to this modern innovation. Against this background, this study aimed at investigating the Influence of Technology on the English Vocabulary among Senior Secondary School Students in Abakaliki Urban.
