Use of English in Nigerian Universities

About the Author

• Oluseye O. Adegboye lectures in the Department of Linguistics & African Languages, University of Abuja, Nigeria.
• He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria.
• He also has a Master's Degree in English Languages from the University of Abuja, Nigeria.
• His research interests include Syntax, Semantics, Phonetics and Phonology, Forensic Linguistics, and Computational Linguistics.
• He is married with children.

About the Book

• Addresses the use of English in the Nigerian university education system, acknowledges students' poor communication skills in spoken and written English.
• Also addresses the lack of quality teachers and good reference materials.
• Covers topics in general studies English according to the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC)'s approved Minimum Academic Standards.
• Topics include Communication Skills, Listening, Reading, Writing, Phonetics, Registers, and Basic English Grammar.

Chapter 1: Language

• Language is the human faculty of speech, a social phenomenon, and an intellectual property of society.
• Bolinger (1968:12) defined language as "a system of vocal arbitrary communication using conventional signs composed of arbitrary patterned sound units assembled by set rules interacting with the experiences of the users."
• Sapir (1921:8) sees language as "a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntary produced vocal symbols."
• Yusuf (1992:5) suggests language to be "a signaling system utilizing vocal sounds used by a group of people for communication and social interaction."
• Essential for communication and social interaction.

Uses and Functions of Language

• Expressive purpose is the use of language to express feelings, emotions, desires, intentions, ideas, and thoughts
• Language is the instrument of thought where the human thought process can only be clarified by language.
• Instrument of socialization enables people to interact as members of society is possible via language.
• Language is an instrument of cooperation because infrastructure is built due to people cooperating with language.
• Language can be a play toy because both children and adults play with language forms in the way of rhymes or poetry.
• Other functions include informational and performative roles.

The Four Language Skills

• Language involves four separate but interrelated skills
• Skills are Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing.
• Listening and Speaking are primary language skills, while Reading and Writing are literacy skills.
• Listening means hearing speech sounds, speaking involves production of meaningful speech sounds, writing uses characters/symbols to represent speech, and reading is visualizing the written symbols.

English in Nigeria

• Nigeria is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-linguistic nation.
• English is an official language in Nigeria, a legacy left by colonial overlords.
• English facilitates cultural and linguistic unity.
• English is used in government/administration.
• English is the medium of instruction in schools.
• English is used by mass media and social media
• English is the language of publishing
• English is the language of lawmaking and jurisprudence
• Learning English in Nigeria can open access to a higher social status guaranteed as well as white color employment.

Chapter 2: Reading

• Aliyu (2006:47) defined reading as a form of communication that allows the reader to capture the writer’s claim.
• Obah (1982:145) suggests that in reading, information passes to the reader from writer.
• Animasaun&Ibileye (2000:43) describe reading as the ability to decode intricate phonemic signs woven on the page. Reading is a literacy skill, and it involves visualizing and interpreting data in print form such as grammar and summarizing.

Purpose of Reading

• Includes light reading for pleasure
• Also encompasses serious study of textual materials
• Light reading includes fiction and magazines while serious study is textual materials directly related to courses.

Types of Reading

• Skimming means glancing rapidly to determine the gist.
• Scanning aims to rapidly search for specific information.
• Extensive reading means a serious study of textual course materials
• Reading for specific purposes can be used to prepare for tests.

Factors Affecting Effective Reading

• Finger pointing slows down the reader
• Vocalized reading can distract others and slows assimilation
• Reading under the influence can affect blood flow, harming concentration
• Regression means moving back as reading progresses

Habit Corrections

• Aim to reread the first sentence/phrase due to a lack of concentration with unfamiliar vocabulary use
• Avoid reading while standing or lying on the bed as it is a faulty reading as one is invited to sleep
• Taking heavy meals before will induce sleep which makes for reading difficulty

Chapter 3: Listening Skills

• Osborn and Osborn (2000:60) are of the belief that listening is a teachable skill if the listener works at it.
• Lubega (1987:175) opines that listening is the perception of sounds and the ability to understand and evaluate what we hear.
• Lynch and Mendelson (2001:196) suggest that listening involves making sense of language typically accompanied with visuals.
• Ibrahim (2013:47) is of the view that listening is the ability to distinguish between different sounds of languages.

Aspects of Listening

• Interpretation of relevance with respect to the topic of discussion for communication and self expression
• Effort to select meaningful sounds and messages
• Focus listening attention to important sound and messages for those in higher learning institutions
• Recognition selection and compression of a spoken discourse

Why Listen

• A correlation between listening and communicative skills exist.
• One must listen to take notes from discourse to make response, discussion, produce summary and make good speech to talk and write too.

Types of Listening

• One-way listening involves grasping information, like in lectures.
• Two-way listening involves reciprocal interaction.
• Other categories include discriminative, comprehensive, critical, empathetic, and appreciative listening.

Barriers To Effective Listening

• Could be an external interference with environmental factors and noise in unfamiliar setting, and modes.
• The message can be affected by internal influences and a listeners own attitude.
• Personal concerns such as anxiety, sadness, hunger also affect.
• Bad habits such as daydreaming can affect listening.
• Attitudes with negative speaker mindset will have an impact.
• Strong emotional reaction of words may cause disturbances.

How To Improve Listening Skills

• Practice and time must be made to use skills.
• One must work at recognizing nonverbal cues
• Be aware of the context and social setting to see what people will talk about
• Guess at the context to understand unknown words and do not panic

Improving Continued

• Recognize different intuition patterns and understand their meaning in the social setting
• Focus and avoid distractions from surroundings
• Reject the irrelevant information while retaining the more relevant
• Good listener must cultivate the right attitudes and not be biased

Chapter 4: Writing

• Writing involves characters, signs and symbols that represent speech on any material that is skill that must be improved with practice.
• Writing involves pre-writing activities and organization
• Composing through drafts and the editing process to make a good piece.

Characterization Of Good Writing

• Degree of content and information development
• Clear expression and sentence coherence
• Avoiding repetition that reduces clarity

Types of Writing- The Essay

• The essay is a type of writing in prose form
• Goal is to have exposed information to readers
• Before starting plan and use such topics and adequately with the topic
• Divided include include argumentative and exposity

Narrative Essay

• Details taking place and characters shown through use of dialogue that shows the character and acting
• Author tells a story with fact and fiction
• Often from the journalists or in historical work

Descriptive Essay

• Involves description with the use of event and people or animals
• Type by the writing by on the and many sentence patterns to display good images

Writing an Argumentative Essay

• Used to persuade and based on reason that influences reader and issue point of view
• States an opinion writer and attempts to influence the person or reader to agree with topic
• Presents evidence to support the argument and acknowledges contrary View points

Expository Essay

• Purpose is to inform and to explain the subject
• Involves processes in the logic in simple manner, such as reviewing research with instructions or clarity

Letter Writing

• Writing correspondence can be classified into two. The Formal and Informal
• Formal letters which serve official from an organization and not informal in friendly tone.
• Serve a formal answer or advertisement

Format Of Formal Letter

• This includes the Writer's address & date on the right hand margin
• May or may not have punctuation and be with block format
• No abbreviation should be done

Address of Receiver

• Designation shown on left margin
• Salutation in greeting to a letter recipient
• Should be formal such as Dear Sir for a man and Madam and for some personally known then Dr. then
• Should have a subject heading

The Body of the letter

• Should be with short paragraphs and opening and closing that support and give
• A paragraph can be added along with expression
• Closing phrases must match the respect level of speaker

The Closing phrase

• Most important most letter end with either, thank you, faithful and
• Signature must be present

Important Note

• That should be made and keep clear about the message being written
• Note is to is informal writing which involves a letter sent to friends of family

Difference with Informal letters

• Comes on right hand corner a page with the date is written
• Salutation is less formed with the expressiveness within letter
• Has both an informal feel with a well punctuated and developed of the context as in the letter

Other writing

• Writing includes the speech and memos which students must carry along with the skills

Basic Skills of Writing

• With practice and there is not quick with words as there are things
• Such as a clarity or expression and should be easy to understand with
• The use of economy with sentences with good delivery of a meaning or accuracy

Chapter 5: Note Taking

• Distinctions Exist is the action in of writing books with some point listed all are from seminars and conference is of writing notes into an organized manner to make a good text from one place
• Must be followed with paying close that should go to a speaker and pay for that information in writing.
• Summation points only which not to take the longer notes.
• In use and symbols for to save time.
• These are commonly used.
• You can make on your own even by use with various symbols and

Follow These Tips

• Take clear heading and subject
• Use the topic sentences
• Then include the main points
• And using precise words with good layouts
• Be brief that would make one better at notes

What are Uses Of Note Taking

• They improve focus at details
• From motor active learning at both of concentration skill.
• Also increase productivity in writing and reading with skills

A good outline consists of

• All types of detailed and vivid description of the content such as from a lecture
• To all important thoughts and ideas down that an outline as graphic as
• Must be a proper and detailed with short with brief information
• A outline are to used to think with paper and it connected

Chapter 7: The Dictionary

• There is mental process that words is stored the mind is known as, lexicon, is used as from
• A reference in which the word and is used to with a word and pronunciation
• Use to look up meaning with a spelling, another information of words in syntax use.

Chapter 8: Word building skills

• Word building falls from the of morphology and which means of the analyzing by inner words
• Concept is of a morpheme that is in with grammar
• For an example, "girls" is the use in a woman and 2 words to morphemes
• With free morphemes which are bond with can or not used with

Function in combination

• Morphemes in which can attach to a
• Root Morpheme is use the adding in the root of the is the nucleus or by adding in the addition to
• Other inflection and derivational morphemes

List other processes

• Affixation involves a adding before those which are not productive in all of English
• There is a blending by is creating in a language .
• A compounding is

Addresses English language usage in Nigerian universities' education system and communication skills. Covers topics in general studies English according to the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC). Topics include Communication Skills, Listening, Reading, Writing, Phonetics, Registers, and Basic English Grammar.