NEED FOR APPROPRIATE TEACHING METHODS IN NIGERIAN PRIMARY SCHOOLS A CASE STUDY OF A PRIMARY SCHOOL IN THE OWERRI WEST LGA OF THE STATE OF IMO
INTRODUCTION
CONTEXT OF THE STUDY
These teacher skill requirements are essential for effective classroom operation. To properly comprehend teaching skills, we must first comprehend the concept of teaching. Different authors within the field of education have defined and described teaching differently. Kpangbon and Onwuegbu (2004) define teaching as the process of communicating information to the learner, stimulating relevant learning activities, evaluating the outcome of these activities, and taking corrective action as needed.
Okeke (2006) viewed teaching as the process of transferring knowledge from a more knowledgeable individual (instructor) to a less knowledgeable individual. In the process of instruction, the instructor instructs or commands the student to perform specific tasks or operations.
According to Okeke, the concept of teaching can be explained in terms of “drill.” Compliance to a command is indicative of the stimulus response process of learning. In the context of this study, teaching is therefore the process of communicating information to students, stimulating relevant learning activities, evaluating the results of these activities, and taking corrective action as needed in an inclusive classroom.
According to Kpangban and Onwuegbu (1992), teaching skills are the interactions that teachers have with their students. It is the teacher’s knowledge and ability to communicate with students. Romiszowski (2004) defines teaching skills as the process by which teachers communicate information to the learner, stimulate relevant learning activities, and take corrective action.
According to Saylor and Alexander (2004), teaching skills include assessment skills (that is, the teacher’s ability and knowledge to assess the learner), communication skills (that is, the ability to interact with the learner), and management skills (that is the ability to control human and material resources) Motivational skills (the ability to inspire the learner’s enthusiasm) and evaluation skills (that is the ability to ascertain whether learning has taken place).
Teachers with assessment skills have the knowledge and ability to evaluate their students in the classroom (Okeke, 1996). Assessment skill as part of teaching skill is an effort to determine the program’s strengths and weaknesses or its effectiveness (Anagbogu, 2005). Teachers with assessment skills have the knowledge and ability to determine the strengths and weaknesses of their students.
Teachers must convey authentic lesson objectives to students as part of their communication skills, which is yet another teaching skill required for inclusive classrooms. Smith (2005) explained that communication skills are the teacher’s ability to comprehend what the learner is attempting to express and the teacher’s ability to communicate with the learner.
Through effective communication, the instructor is able to clarify his perspective on the subject being taught. Dececco & Crawford (2004), on the other hand, defined management skills as the process or act of controlling or organizing a lesson in order to facilitate learning. The classroom instructor must possess the management skills necessary to organize the students for effective instruction.
In Motivation skills, (Anagbogu, 2005) defines it as an intangible inner drive or compulsion. Motivation relates to the effort required to achieve a goal. Teachers’ motivational skills are the inner drive that enables them to achieve their objectives. According to Dearden (2003), effective teaching and learning requires all of these skills. In this study, teaching skills refer to the strategies or plans adopted by teachers to help students realize their full potential.
According to Maduewesi (1999), a teacher must have a thorough understanding of the psychological theories associated with learning and human behavior. Numerous concepts, including communication skills, reinforcement, motivation, attitude, preparedness, peer approval, self-concept, and knowledge retention, should be familiar to the educator.
The teacher must have a thorough understanding of these terms in order to comprehend and interpret the classroom behavior of the students. Using reinforcement as an example, the teacher should recognize that verbal rewards such as ‘excellent,’ ‘well done,’ and ‘good answer,’ among others, serve as reinforcement and encourage the child to provide more correct answers in the future. These concepts enable the instructor to respond appropriately to student behavior.
Gender is another factor to consider when assessing the teaching skills requirements of teachers in inclusive classrooms. Teachers’ gender plays an important role.
curricular outcome It has been discovered that male educators are more competent than their female counterparts (Nwafor, 2000). Gender is the behavior-based condition of being masculine or feminine (Sinclair, 1996). This implies that there are behaviors intended for males and those intended for females. In the traditional Igbo society, for instance, men are expected to be strong and assertive while women are expected to be gentle and sensitive (Guinand & Lemessa, 2000).
Obasi (2004) defines gender as the socially and culturally constructed characteristics, qualities, behaviors, and roles ascribed to male and female by various societies. However, in the present study gender refers to the manifestation of teaching skill requirements for inclusive classrooms by male and female teachers. Previous research indicated that male regular teachers and female regular teachers are likely to possess distinct teaching abilities.
Female regular teachers are more likely than male regular teachers to discriminate in their classroom instruction (Nwafor, 2002). According to Hosever, Jacklin, and Lacey (1997), male regular teachers demonstrate superior organizational and grouping strategies than their female counterparts. For this reason, the study investigated the influence of gender on inclusive classroom teaching skills.
However, Aluko (1992) and Anagbogu (2000) have also confirmed that teachers in urban areas perform better than their rural counterparts in terms of teaching techniques and expertise. Aluko asserts that facilities and high performance expectations in urban areas are excellence in teaching and learning Location refers to a school’s physical location. It is termed the school’s geographic location (Jones, 2002).
A location is a place, particularly where something occurs or is situated (Sinclair, 1996). Some secondary and elementary schools in the state of Imo are located in urban areas, while others are in rural areas. Here, urban area refers to the township or metropolitan portion of the state of Imo.
In this context, “rural areas” refers to undeveloped regions of the state of Imo. In terms of teaching skills, teachers in urban areas may perform better than those in rural areas. Based on the preceding, the study investigated the effects of location on the inclusive classroom teaching skills of teachers.
It appears that inclusive classrooms are relatively new in Imo state primary schools. According to researchers such as Efobi (1999), the level of awareness of inclusive classrooms in primary schools in the state of Imo is quite low and alarming, denying children with special needs equal access to education.
Ozoji (2003), Okeke (2004), and Nwazuoke (2004) have also pointed out the extreme negativity with which Nigerians treat the various categories of children with special needs, including the deaf, the blind, and others. The researchers have also demonstrated that neither the government nor society have done much to alleviate the burdens of these less fortunate members of society. This demonstrates that they are considered “burdens” of society and provided with few or no facilities.
In an inclusive classroom, they are afforded the opportunity to realize their full potentials. To alleviate this dreadful circumstance, teachers must acquire the teaching skills necessary to meet the challenges of inclusive classrooms. In light of this, the present study investigated the teaching skills needs of teachers for inclusive classrooms in primary schools in the state of Imo.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Despite the worldwide desire for inclusive classrooms with high-quality education, stakeholders appear to recognize that the quality of instruction has declined significantly, particularly in primary school classrooms. The quality of teacher training and retraining was insufficient to ensure optimal service delivery as a guarantee for nation building and the realization of the inclusive classroom vision.
Similarly, the quality of primary school teachers’ instruction was inconsistent with the goal of an inclusive classroom. Due to teachers’ poor teaching abilities, inclusive classrooms, which aim to provide every member of society with an equal opportunity to acquire a basic education in a regular school setting, are not achieving the desired results.
The public perception is therefore that the teaching skills and standards of public elementary school teachers have declined. It is presumed that public elementary school teachers are unable to advance their
They lack teaching skills, as a result of which they perform poorly. However, it was discovered that teachers in primary schools lacked the necessary teaching skills for effective instruction in inclusive classrooms. Diverse factors have been attributed to the failures of primary school teachers’ teaching results. Review of empirical works revealed that research has been conducted in areas related to the current study, such as numerous studies on inclusive classrooms and children with special needs.
However, none of the available literature appears to have addressed the teaching skill requirements of teachers and special education educators for inclusive classrooms. As a result, all educators must possess this knowledge in order to effectively instruct in an inclusive classroom. In light of this context, the research question was formulated as follows: What are the teaching skill requirements of teachers and special educators for inclusive classrooms in primary schools in Ebony State?
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
This study’s primary objective is to investigate the teaching skill requirements for inclusive classrooms in primary schools in the state of Imo.
In particular, the study:
Determine the teaching assessment skill requirements of teachers and special educators for inclusive classrooms
Determine the teaching communication skill requirements of teachers and special educators for inclusive classrooms
Determine the teaching management skill requirements of teachers and special educators for inclusive instruction
Teachers need motivational teaching skills for inclusive classrooms.
Importance of the Research
The findings of this study will be of great theoretical and practical importance to policymakers, curriculum planners, teachers, and the school administration.
Theoretically, in the field of special education, the study’s findings will provide information that may be useful for gaining a firm grasp of the existing theories of teaching and behavior modification. The study will generate data that demonstrates the viability of human relation theory, theory of human motivation, and social learning theory. Due to their relevance to the study, all of the theories serve as the foundation for the research.
The findings of this study were extremely useful for policymakers, curriculum planners, and educators. The findings of this study provided policymakers with empirical data on the teaching skills requirements for inclusive classrooms. This could allow them to formulate policy statement pertinent to the skills teachers must possess prior to employment in inclusive classrooms.
If curriculum planners are made aware of the study’s findings, they will be able to modify existing curriculum coverage for teacher preparation for inclusive classrooms. This could also implement the modification to address the identified problem areas.
Similarly, teachers will benefit from the study’s findings because they will be better informed about the teaching skills required to instruct children with special needs in their classroom. Special Educators can begin to investigate the need for these teaching skills on their own prior to enrolling in a formal training program. Teachers would participate in a sensitization workshop to update their knowledge of the teaching skills required to accommodate children with special needs in regular classrooms.
When documented and published, the findings of this study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge in the field of inclusive education and the teaching skill requirements of regular teachers, which will be disseminated via workshops, scholarly journals, conferences, and internet postings.
SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH
The present study focused on the teaching skill requirements for inclusive classrooms in primary schools in the state of Imo. In this study, gender and location were also investigated to determine their impact on teaching abilities. The independent variables are teachers’ needs for teaching skills, while the dependent variable is the impact of teachers’ teaching skills on students in an inclusive classroom. Therefore, the researcher focused on the teaching skill requirements for inclusive classrooms in Imo state elementary schools.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The study was guided by the four research questions listed below:
What assessment teaching skills do teachers and special educators need for inclusive classrooms?
What are the required communication teaching skills for inclusive classrooms?
What are the required management teaching skills for inclusive classrooms?
What are the required motivational teaching skills for inclusive classrooms?
HYPOTHESES
The hypotheses listed below were tested at a significance level of 0.05.
There is no significant difference between the mean scores of male and female teachers on the inclusive classroom teaching skill requirements.
There is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of regular teachers and special educators in urban and rural areas on the teaching skill requirements for inclusive classrooms.
H03: There is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of regular teachers and special educators on the inclusive classroom teaching skill requirements.
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NEED FOR APPROPRIATE TEACHING METHODS IN NIGERIAN PRIMARY SCHOOLS A CASE STUDY OF A PRIMARY SCHOOL IN THE OWERRI WEST LGA OF THE STATE OF IMO