ABSTRACT
Reading is central to learning in schools because all learning
activities revolve around it. Owing to its importance in academic work,
this study assessed factors influencing reading habits of secondary
school students across the major Nigerian tribes. It has become
necessary now that the modern school system makes greater use of reading
as a tool for learning other subjects as well as acquiring other
linguistic skills of listening, speaking and writing. Seven research
questions were formulated with their corresponding hypotheses. Secondary
school students within the major tribes were used as population for the
study. However, the sample was drawn from senior secondary school
students where nine hundred students were randomly selected from each of
the major tribes. The total sample was two thousand seven hundred
students. Questionnaire and observation were used as instruments in
collecting data. Frequencies and percentages were used in analysing the
results, while ANOVA statistical tool was adopted in testing the
hypotheses. The major findings revealed that students claimed they read
everyday, yet a large proportion of them did not provide evidence of
reading anything. Those who read among the students, concentrated on
notebooks and other prescribed texts. However, Yoruba students had the
highest percentage of reading highly qualitative materials, while those
across Igbo states had the least percentage. The numbers of extensive
reading texts were few (Hausa and Yoruba, 6 and Igbo, 3). It means that
the quantitative reading level is low. No significant differences were
recorded in the reading activities of male and female; urban and rural
students across the major groups. Despite the fact that the findings
revealed poor reading habits of these students, a few who read indicated
that they were encouraged to read to acquire knowledge that would
improve them. This knowledge seems to be the one that would enable them
to pass examinations since their reading was restricted to notebooks and
prescribed literary texts. Laziness and chatting became the major
factors that hindered students‟ development of reading habits. States
labelled with educational advantage did not read better. The major
recommendations were that senior secondary schools need experts who
teach reading in schools. Alternative to a reading teacher and English
language teachers are teachers of other subjects. They are to make
reading become part of every class and subject. Students who are still
ignorant concerning the enormous roles reading plays in the lives of
everybody should be enlightened through sensitization workshops by their
teachers and parents. Besides, they should be given adequate motivation
to read, get them attracted to books and provide adequate books. It
becomes necessary to supply students with high quality reading materials
in order to develop their reading habits. The curriculum needs to be
expanded to incorporate more reading activities. This should transcend
to creating more time and space in the scheme of work.