SCHOOL TYPE AS A PREDICTOR OF READING ACHIEVEMENT IN LOWER PRIMARY EDUCATION IN IBADAN NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, OYO STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study examines the influence of school factors such as teachers' qualifications, teachers' experience, availability of reading/learning resources, type of school and teacher-pupil ratio on children's reading skills. Efficient reading skills have been researched to be a huge determinant of future success. For this study, data were collected from 150 pupils in Primary One to Primary Three across 12 public and 6 private randomly selected schools in Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State. The study adopted an ex-post facto causal-comparative research design. Data were collected using three instruments: a Reading Assessment Rating Scale, a School Facilities and Resources Observation Checklist, and a Teacher Information Questionnaire. The instrument demonstrated high reliability, with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.89. Data collected shows that (73.3%) of pupils were between 5 and 7 years old, and public schools accounted for 57.3% of the sample. Over half of the teachers (54.7%) held NCE qualifications. Instruction in reading comprehension relied mainly on textbooks and charts. The result of this study shows that among all the variables examined, only school type(private/public) made a significant contribution, while teacher qualification, experience and teacher–pupil ratio made no significant contribution