CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The term competence first appeared in an article authored by R. W. White in 1959 as a concept for performance motivation. Over the years other scholars have also adopted the use of the term competence. Some scholars describe it as a combination of practical and theoretical knowledge, cognitive skills, behaviour and values used to improve performance; or as the state or quality of being adequately qualified, having the ability to perform a specific role (Wikipedia). In a general description, competency is the requirements of human beings in organizations and communities.
The word competency is increasingly being used in education circles today, it is a description of one’s ability and measurement of one’s performance. A person’s competencies maybe defined in terms of one’s knowledge, skills and behaviours. Usually competency in education is in reference to teachers i.e. Teacher ability, to understand the competencies required of a teacher we must first define the job of a teacher. A teacher is closely tied to the nature of the classroom. The modern classroom calls for a teacher to prepare virtually all students for higher order thinking and performance skills once reserved to only a few (Darling Hammond, 2006: 300).
There are certain competencies a teacher in the 21th century classroom need to possess, some of these competences are: Professional practice, Leadership and Management and Personal effectiveness.
A competent teacher seizes every opportunity to encourage learning, believing that all students can learn. A competent teacher knows that learning is not restricted to the classroom, the teacher takes every opportunity to improve on his or her own professional practice, in order to provide quality learning. Also, a competent teacher is a teacher who wins the hearts and minds of the students. The teacher sees value in developing and working with others, which includes parents, colleagues and actively seeks out professional collaboration within and beyond school. A competent teacher understands that it is important to develop oneself before one can provide support for others. As a professional, the teacher maintains high standards of personal and professional integrity when carrying out all duties and responsibilities.
Meanwhile, English language is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England and is now a global lingua franca (Wikipedia). In Nigeria the English language is studied as a second language, it is Nigeria’s official language (it is the language of politics, law, and business and so on). The overall aims of the English language curriculum are:
I. To provide every learner of English with further opportunities for extending their knowledge and experiences of the cultures of other people as well as opportunities for personal and intellectual development, further studies, pleasure and work in the English medium.
II. Also, to enable every learner to prepare for the changing socio-economic demands resulting from advances in information technology (IT) – demands which include the interpretation, use and production of texts for pleasure, study and work in the English medium.
III. It is also important for learners of the English language to speak the language correctly, considering the grammar and phonology.
Nigeria Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) 2008 revised the curriculum on English language with the following objective that learners should be able to: interact effectively in a variety of situations; access and make use of information from a variety of sources and media; present information in an organised manner; appreciate literature and other cultures, and develop linguistic awareness.
As a result of the reasons stated above, it is compulsory for teachers and schools to prepare the students to learn the subject well and be able to use the language in different settings. The present study is meant get the perception of students on the competence and methods of teachers on their use of the English Language.