AN APPRAISAL OF THE ADEQUACY IN LEARNING AND USE OF PERSONAL AND DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS AMONG THE STUDENTS OF SELECTED COLLEGES OF EDUCATION IN SOUTHWESTERN NIGERIA

Abstract

The necessity for Nigerian tertiary institutions' students to correctly
learn and use both spoken and written forms of English has become
increasingly endearing as the need for grammatical competence
transcends examination purposes. Adopting Intentional Teaching
Approach (ITA) within the English Language Arts Framework (ELAF)
(2015), the paper examines the adequacy in learning and using
personal and demonstrative pronouns among the students of selected
colleges of education in South-western Nigeria. It also aims at finding
out the level of inadequacy in learning and using these pronouns, if
any, and proffer solutions. Data collected through a computer-based
Google Forms structured questionnaire answered by one hundred
and seventy (170) respondents (students) randomly selected from five
colleges of education in South-western Nigeria were analysed using
bar charts with simple percentage statistics. The study revealed that
students of colleges of education poorly learn and use these pronouns.
However, they correctly learn and use demonstrative pronouns at a
fairly adequate level than personal pronouns. The study concludes
that stakeholders should ensure that necessary assistance is provided
for proper teaching of English while students put in more efforts to
correctly learn and use every aspect of English.